NetGalley Review

*Book source ~ NetGalley

Title ~ Fire Touched

Series ~ Mercy Thompson, #9

Author ~ Patricia Briggs

Published ~ 8 March 2016

Genre ~ UF | Paranormal

Pages ~ 352

My Rating ~ 5 bites

Mercy Thompson is the wife to Adam Hauptman, Alpha werewolf of the Columbia Basin Pack and she’s a Walker who can shift into a coyote. She can see ghosts, has a nose for magic and has the knack of making friends, allies and enemies wherever she goes. In this novel, while dealing with every day Pack business, she and the Pack suddenly have to deal with a troll. But the troll is not a run-of-the-mill problem. They come to find out the troll is the shot across the bow from the Fae. Mercy and the Pack have given refugee to a boy who has escaped Underhill and the Fae want him back. As if Mercy’s life wasn’t complicated enough, now they have a possible war with the Fae to prepare for.

Mercy Thompson is back and better than ever. I was getting worried, as each book produced a Big Bad that was bigger and badder than those that came before, that this series may be writing itself into a corner. However, Patricia Briggs brought things back home and gave me a look into what it’s like to belong to the Columbia Basin Pack and having a husband like Adam.

While there is a tense and potentially fatal situation developing between humans, the Pack, and the Fae, there is no single Big Bad to up the stakes yet again. In any volatile situation there are going to be factions and this tale shows how things can go from bad to worse to good again, how to negotiate (especially with the tricky Fae) and how to make the most of your connections. I also am glad that a situation in the pack that was driving me crazy is finally resolved. As with every story so far in this series, this book has everything I love: paranormal situations and characters, humor, depth, action, great dialogue and steaminess.  I love every bit of it and I look forward to more Mercy books.