Review: No Mercy by Sherrilyn Kenyon

Title: No Mercy
Author: Sherrilyn Kenyon
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Release Date: 09/07/10
Summary:

Live fast, fight hard and if you have to die then take as many of your enemies with you as you can. That is the Amazon credo and it was one Samia lived and died by. Now in contemporary New Orleans, the immortal Amazon warrior is about to learn that there’s a worse evil coming to slaughter mankind than she’s ever faced before.

Shapeshifter Dev Peltier has stood guard at the front of Sanctuary for almost two hundred years and in that time, he’s seen it all. Or so he thought. Now their enemies have discovered a new source of power -- one that makes a mockery of anything faced to date.

The war is on and Dev and Sam are guarding ground zero. But in order to win, they will have to break the most cardinal of all rules and pray it doesn’t unravel the universe as we know it.

Plot: 4 Stars
First off, I have to say that this is my first Kenyon novel and I was a bit tentative to jump in headfirst this far into a series. But having done it with other authors and not been completely lost, I figured I'd give it a shot. And I definitely wasn't disappointed. While there were minor details or in reference to minor characters or references to certain events in the past that could've been expanded on, I never once felt lost or confused. The author did a great job of giving bits and pieces of the past. It was enough to fill anyone in that hadn't read every book, but not so much as to bog the story down with too much background information. The idea of the different supernatural races was a very interesting take on vampires and shapeshifters. I'll definitely be picking up more Kenyon novels in the future, both future and past releases.

Pace: 3.5 Stars
The first half of this novel felt like one of those run-of-the-mill urban fantasy/paranormal romances where everything, and I mean everything that can go wrong will go wrong. It seemed like every time Sam or Dev turned around, someone was attacking them or capturing them or threatening them. Luckily, this didn't last. The second half involved more action on Sam and Dev's part than standing around and waiting for the baddies to come to them. They really took things into their own hands and didn't let the circumstances overwhelm them. All in all, this was a quick read that kept me interested.

Characters: 4.5 Stars
I really enjoyed both Sam and Dev. Sam was a very strong female character, but what I enjoyed most about her was the vulnerability underneath the hardened exterior. She was a great blend of hard and soft. Dev was a very likeable male character. He stood out from many Paranormal Romance heroes I've read in that he wasn't rude or overly macho. My only complaint would be that I wish we could've seen more of Dev's siblings, especially considering how much of the book happened at Sanctuary, where they all live and work.

Cover: 3.5 Stars
As simple as the cover is, I often like covers that don't fill my mind with any preconceived notions of what a character might look like. Too often, the cover model's don't fit with the description of the character and I like to make my own version in my head without anything to disrupt that. The colors of this cover work very well. I can't pinpoint why, but I couldn't imagine this story with a cover that wasn't done in hues of red. The color just really fit. My only objection is the large shape on the cover. I don't remember anything in the book refencing a shape like the one on the cover, so it leaves me wondering if it was completely random, or if I'm missing something from a past book.

Overall: 4 Stars

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book from the publicist.