16.
Title: [Fire Touched]
Author: Patricia Briggs
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Medium: Hardback
Acquisition: Pre-Ordered
Date Completed: March 9, 2016
Rating: ***

The latest in the Mercy Thompson series, Fire Touched has received rave reviews on LibraryThing.  Though I, too, share much of the enthusiasm as these readers, I have to beg to differ on their love of this latest.  To be direct, I found it to be an incredible disappointment.

Why?  Because nothing happens.

I've long looked to Briggs as a consistent fantasy author whose work I know will deliver a certain level of entertainment.  She writes interesting characters, and is consistent throughout, developing each personality in linear (i.e. believable) ways.  Her protagonist is compelling and sympathetic, and the whole work has a strong mix of reality versus fantasy that makes it both familiar and escapist. However, the active arc of Fire Touched is dry and mechanical as compared to much of the series thus far.  From the first, Mercy and the wolf pack are used as an extension of the police force, and their presence is more like a weapon than sentient participants.  Something bad happens, the wolves are called in, and everything is resolved.  Even the social conflict between fae and the rest is glossed over, and very little is done to build this tension.  There are so many moments which could have been entertainingly (but consistently!) dramatic, but things are neatly and quietly resolved in the blink of an eye.

Despite the title there is very little fiery about this story.

23. 
Title: [Night Broken]
Author: Patricia Briggs
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Medium: Hardback
Acquisition: Pre-ordered
Date Completed: March 20 2014
Rating: ****1/2

The pack often blames Mercy for bringing trouble to their collective doors, but this time it's Adam's ex-wife who comes calling, with trouble and melodrama to spare.  Christy is a human who leaves Adam years before, citing fear of the wolves, but her present (legitimate) danger chases her back to the home she helped build, with one thing on her mind: winning back the alpha and father of their daughter.  Christy's presence divides the pack between those who recognize her for the selfish manipulative *expletive* she is, and those who are driven by a need and desire to protect the "weak." 

Christy is loathsome, and a desire to see her fall races through the novel.  The fact that she brings a long-unidentified danger with her, threatening the lives of everyone around her, makes her presence even more grating. 

Briggs is a solid urban fantasy author, and the consistency of her novels will always keep me coming back for more.  Night Broken maintains reader expectations, and though it doesn't take any chances, the action and development are what I've come to expect.  I'm glad I put down all other books when this arrived at my door - it's just the fun I wanted and needed. 

27.
Title: Fair Game
Author: Patricia Briggs
Pages: 293 pages
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Medium: Hardback
Acquisition: Preordered
Date Completed: March 10, 2012
Rating: *****

Like Kelley Armstrong, Patricia Briggs is one of the more reliable authors of the genre; her novels are consistent in character while still encouraging development and growth, and she well-balances the expectations of new readers and old. In Fair Game the reader finds Anna and Charles in the midst of some personal turmoil: Anna can feel that something is wrong with her mate and is afraid he is hurting himself more than Bran may realize and Charles, haunted both literally and figuratively, shuts her out in a misguided attempt to protect his wife. Thinking a change of scenery and occupation may give the couple time to heal, Bran sends them to assist the FBI in their quest for a serial killer who has been taking out supernaturals since the 70s.

While Anna is not quite the spitfire that Mercy can be, her reclaimed strength makes her an excellent protagonist.

24.
Author(s): Patricia Briggs
Title: River Marked
Publication: Hardback
Pages: 326
Genre: Horror/ Fantasy
Acquisition: Preordered
Date Completed: March 9, 2011
Rating: 5 stars out of 5

Mercy Thompson defies convention from all sides: she's a female mechanic named Mercedes who specializes in VWs, she's a coyote walker who has run with werewolves her entire life, and despite her rather bohemian lifestyle, she has fallen for a straight-laced former-military Alpha. So, when she finally gets around to marrying Adam, it stands to reason that her wedding will break from expectations - hers, at least.

And then comes the honeymoon.

River Marked contains a great deal of self-discovery for Mercy, as she and Adam set out learning how to be married and mated. Although the fae's interference turns the honeymoon itself into a real nightmare, watching the bond between Adam and Mercy - and discovering secrets to Mercy's heritage - really adds depth to what would otherwise be a fairly common MT novel. I enjoyed the discovery as much as the action, and closed the book with a sense of deep satisfaction.

29.
Author: Patricia Briggs
Title: Silver Borne
Publication: New York: Ace Books, 2010
Pages: 342 pages
Genre: Horror
Acquisition: Purchased April 10, 2010
Date Completed: April 11, 2010
Rating: 5 stars out of 5

Silver Borne - the fifth book in the Mercy Thompson series - is thoroughly enjoyable and full of satisfying resolutions.

110. Adrian, Lara. Midnight Rising. 384 pages. 9.1.09.


111. Briggs, Patricia. Hunting Ground. 286 pages. 9.4.09.

Readers who enjoyed Patricia Briggs' first Alpha and Omega book will likely enjoy the second installment, Hunting Ground. Following the introduction of Anna and Charles' relationship, Hunting Ground takes the pair to Seattle where Charles works as his father's spokesperson at a conference called to discuss the consequences of werewolves taking their existence public. Not everyone is pleased with Bran's decision to go public, and a series of extreme events send the werewolves scrambling to find the culprit - for individual reasons.

Like Briggs' Mercy Thompson series, the Alpha and Omega novels are fairly consistent in tone and style, and Hunting Ground allows for further insight and character development while avoiding deep introspection. Hunting Ground is intended to be a popular fiction book, and delivers the entertainment such books promise.

21. Hamilton, Laruell K. Swallowing Darkness. 365 pages. 2.22.09.

22. Briggs, Patricia. Bone Crossed. 309 pages. 2.27.09.

Patricia Briggs is very consistent in her writing; the characters and events in her Mercy Thompson novels always seem to read true from one to the next. Bone Crossed clearly follows Iron Kissed, although the beginning follows so closely that I felt lost for the first few paragraphs. While the plot itself seems to be even more outlandish than expected (as much as a fantasy/horror series can seem outlandish), the latest installment will continue to entertain Mercy Thompson fans.