Cover Reveal: Silence Fallen ~ Patricia Briggs

The cover for the next book in the wonderfully addictive Mercy Thompson series by Patricia Briggs was posted this morning over at Happy Ever After.

You all know how much I love Dan Dos Santos and his art. This is another winner by him. I love the detail work he does. You can see it on the feathers and the tattoo. This cover has a dark feel to it, and I don't mean the background Mercy is against but it feels like the book will deal with a decidedly grim plot line. I have no doubt there will be laughter and snark as well. And we're going to Prague! I've never been there, don't know if I will ever get there so this should be an exciting virtual trip!

Here's the blurb:

In the #1 New York Times bestselling Mercy Thompson novels, the coyote shapeshifter has found her voice in the werewolf pack. But when Mercy’s bond with the pack—and her mate—is broken, she’ll learn what it truly means to be alone… 

Attacked and abducted in her home territory, Mercy finds herself in the clutches of the most powerful vampire in the world, taken as a weapon to use against alpha werewolf Adam and the ruler of the Tri-Cities vampires. In coyote form, Mercy escapes—only to find herself without money, without clothing, and alone in the heart of Europe… 

Unable to contact Adam and the rest of the pack, Mercy has allies to find and enemies to fight, and she needs to figure out which is which. Ancient powers stir, and Mercy must be her agile best to avoid causing a war between vampires and werewolves, and between werewolves and werewolves. And in the heart of the ancient city of Prague, old ghosts rise… 

There is also an excerpt posted over at Happy Ever After. You can read it here.

Silence Fallen is scheduled for release on March 7, 2017. You can find out more about Mercy Thompson at Patricia Briggs' website.

Keeper Shelf Sunday ~ Patricia Briggs

This week on Keeper Shelf Sunday ~

Werewolves

Vampires

And Shapeshifters

 OH, MY!


Patricia Briggs is well known for her Mercy Thompson series about shape-shifter Mercy and her pack of werewolves. Then there is the popular spin-off series, Alpha & Omega about Charles and Anna Cornick, two werewolves who travel around the country, solving problems for the Marrok, Charles' father and the Alpha of the North American Packs. Both series are well written, highly entertaining urban fantasy/paranormal romances. They can be categorized as either, it depends on whom you ask.

I've read nearly everything Ms. Briggs has written, missing a few novellas and short stories. Her early works are classified as high fantasy and fantasy and should not be missed if you enjoy those genres.

A while ago I lucked into finding Homecoming, a graphic novel set in the Mercy universe. I'm not much for graphic novels but I couldn't pass this up.

Homecoming is a prequel which tells, in graphic novel format, how Mercy came to be in the Tri-Cities area of Washington. The characters are not exactly how I pictured them from reading the novels. There is some nudity of Mercy and she is very well built, like a weightlifter. Where as I've pictured her as fit but not with huge muscles. Perhaps it this is typical in graphic novels?

Stefan is not at all how I see him. I expect him to be thinner, looking deceptively weak. And I'm not sure about the "bandana" on his head. What's with that? Does he wear one in the books?

The werewolves look far more fierce and scary than what is described in the novels. In the novels, they are depicted as looking like wolves but generally larger than a typical wolf. Here. one look and you would be soiling yourself. No compulsion to pet them, that's for sure!

If you savor alpha werewolves, smart heroines and magical worlds give Patricia Briggs a try. I'll bet she ends up on your keeper shelf.

Review: Frost Burned

Frost Burned

Patricia Briggs
Urban Fantasy
Mercy Thompson/Book 7
Ace/March 5, 2013

Mercy Thompson’s life has undergone a seismic change. Becoming the mate of Adam Hauptman — the charismatic Alpha of the local werewolf pack — has made her a stepmother to his daughter Jesse, a relationship that brings moments of blissful normalcy to Mercy’s life. But on the edges of humanity, what passes for a minor mishap on an ordinary day can turn into so much more….

 After an accident in bumper-to-bumper traffic, Mercy and Jesse can’t reach Adam—or anyone else in the pack for that matter. They’ve all been abducted.

Through their mating bond, all Mercy knows is that Adam is angry and in pain. With the werewolves fighting a political battle to gain acceptance from the public, Mercy fears Adam’s disappearance may be related — and that he and the pack are in serious danger. Outclassed and on her own, Mercy may be forced to seek assistance from any ally she can get, no matter how unlikely.

I read this shortly after it was released but never got around to reviewing it.  Since the Mercy Thompson series is one of my favorites, it wasn't a hardship to do a quick re-read and then review.

It's one of the most insane days on the planet and Mercy finds herself right in the middle of the insanity.  Black Friday has Mercy and Jessie, Mercy's stepdaughter, fighting the crowds which are  almost as dangerous as fighting supernatural beings.  The plot gives the reader a better look at Mercy and Jessie's relationship, which I really enjoyed.  It's not easy taking on the role of stepmom but Mercy finds the balance between authority figure and friend for the teenage Jessie.

Mercy is out of her comfort zone, having to make critical decisions for the pack.  She is the mate of the pack's Alpha so it's not out of place for her position within the pack had she been a werewolf.  But being a coyote shifter means she has had to and continues to have to prove herself. Of course she does well under pressure and even has a few abilities the werewolves don't have at her disposal.  I liked seeing Mercy out of her element and having to rely on some unusual characters for help.

We didn't learn as much as I'd hoped for after the events of Fair Game (Alpha & Omega, book 3) but Frost Burned still provided some great character development and an interesting, entertaining story.

Rating: A-

Books in this series ~

Moon Called
Blood Bound
Iron Kissed
Bone Crossed
Silver Borne
River Marked
Frost Burned

Review: River Marked

River Marked
Patricia Briggs
Urban Fantasy
Mercy Thompson/Book 6
Berkley/March 1, 2011

*Spoilers for previous books*

From the inside cover ~

Coyote shifter Mercy Thompson knows that life with her mate, the Alpha werewolf Adam, will never be boring, but even their wedding doesn't go as planned. Nevertheless, a ten-day honeymoon camping on the banks of the Columbia River, alone, just the two of them, should make up for it. But the trip - and the pimped-out trailer they're using - is courtesy of the fae. And nothing from the fae comes without strings attached...

Being a different breed of shapeshifter - a walker - Mercy can see ghosts, but the spirit of her long-gone father has never visited her. Until now. An evil is stirring in the depths of the Columbia River - and their presence known to Mercy, she must reconnect with her heritage to exorcise the world of the legend known as the river devil...

Mercy Thompson is one of my favorite Urban Fantasy series, heck, one of my favorite series period. I love the world that Briggs has created. It's such a full, rich world with the primary and secondary characters multi-dimensional with all their own quirks, flaws and strengths.

Mercy is staying busy with her work and her wedding coming up. She's also worried about her vampire friend Stefan. We get to see how Mercy, Stefan, Warren and Kyle spend movie night. This is an example of what makes this series so wonderful. Those moments of normal interspersed with scenes of fighting monsters bring it all together to make the unbelievable, believable. Even though she's marrying a werewolf, her friend is a vampire and Mercy herself is a shapeshifter, when you get down to it, she still faces many of the same problems any of us might have - minus the claws and fangs.

There is a lot of Mercy and Adam time and I loved it! We get to see them in this very domestic setting away from the pack. I will admit that I missed the pack - Samuel, Warren, Darryl, Auriele, even Ben, who is growing on me. Along with Julie, Kyle and most definitely Stefan. We do get to see them at the beginning, at Mercy and Adam's wedding. The pack may be close but not close enough to join Adam and Mercy on their honeymoon. Since it is their honeymoon, along with searching out and finding the monster, there are some sweet and sexy scenes with Mercy and Adam. I love seeing them tease each other, still learning their way around each other. They've known each other for 10 years and yet they still have things to discover about one another.

River Marked starts as a road trip story. It's a short road trip but it does put Mercy and Adam in new surroundings. Along with those new surroundings are quite a few new characters. It took a little work for me to keep everyone and their relationships straight. These characters help Mercy learn more about her Native American heritage. It's this information that leads Mercy and Adam to discover what the creature in the river is and what it wants. In reading about Mercy's heritage, watching her uncover more information about her father and sharing that with Adam we get to know Mercy better. She knew some of her heritage but still had much to learn. Adam is right there with Mercy, supporting her while still trying to give her room. His trust in Mercy's safety is tested but he continues to seek that balance of overprotective alpha and 21st century forward thinking husband.

The are moments in River Marked that are so profoundly sad. It has it's lighter moments but there are some very dark, very scary beings in Mercy's world. There were scenes when I knew bad things were going to happen, that there wouldn't be a happy ending to what was playing out before me. And I got why it had to happen that way but that didn't stop me from wishing someone or something would swoop in and save the day. I think the way Briggs has created Mercy's world reminds us that for humans and supernatural beings, life can be fleeting, unfair and justice is not always swift. So appreciate what and who you have in your life.

River Marked goes down as another exceptional addition to the outstanding series that is Mercy Thompson.

Rating: A-

Books in this series ~

Moon Called
Blood Bound
Iron Kissed
Bone Crossed
Silver Borne
River Marked

Review: Silver Borne

Silver Borne
Patricia Briggs
Urban Fantasy
Mercy Thompson series/Book 5
Berkley/April 2010
Library book

*Spoilers for previous books*

From the inside cover ~

Mercy Thompson, car mechanic and shape-shifter, never knows what the day-or night-may bring in a world where "witches, vampires, werewolves, and shape-shifters live beside ordinary people" (Booklist). But she is about to learn that while some secrets are dangerous, those who see them are just plain deadly...

Mercy is smart enough to realize that when it comes to the magical fae, the less you know, the better. But you can't always get what you want. When she attempts to return a powerful fae book she previously borrowed in an act of desperation, she finds the bookstore locked up and closed down.

It seems the book contains secrets-and the fae will do just about anything to keep it out of the wrong hands. And if that doesn't take enough of Mercy's attention, her friend Samuel is struggling with his wolf side - leaving Mercy to cover for him lest his own father declare Samuel's life forfeit.

All in all, Mercy has had better days. And if she isn't careful, she may not have many more...

One of my favorite series and after reading Silver Borne, it still is. Ms. Briggs takes us back to Mercy's world and the pack that Mercy is slowing becoming part of. This time the fae figure prominently in the the story. I like the fae of Mercy's world. I'm not always fond of fae in UF, or witches for that matter. But Briggs writes them well and integrates them into the supernatural world of the Tri-Cities.

Mercy is still living at her trailer with Samuel as her roommate even though she's mated to Adam, the local pack alpha. I keep waiting for her to move to Adam's house, it's putting a strain on the pack dynamics, having the mate of the pack's alpha not living with the alpha. I can't help but think the only way Mercy will cement her position as Adam's mate and get the rest of the pack on the road to accepting her is to move into Adam's house. I get that she doesn't want to leave Samuel alone because he's been on the edge for a long time but as much as I love Samuel, IMO, Mercy's first loyalty should be to Adam.

We get lots of Adam this time around. :) His patience with Mercy sometimes makes me forget he's a werewolf, an alpha used to being obeyed. I love reading about Mercy and Adam and their developing relationship. Silver Borne added more layers to Mercy and Adam. Both as individuals and as a couple. The fact that Mercy lived with Bran's pack helps her deal with her feelings for Adam and her conflicting feelings where his pack is concerned. The pack still hasn't accepted Mercy with open arms, something that Mercy knows is highly unlikely. Add to that the friendship she maintains with Samuel and tension stays high.

Samuel is a lone wolf. He's also standing on the edge and about to go over. He's been barely hanging on, about to lose control to his wolf. All that changes when he makes a decision that forces Mercy to come to his and his wolf's aid. Sam (Samuel's wolf) is such a fascinating character to read. I loved seeing this side of Samuel. We usually don't see much of the animal side of shape-shifters in UF or PNR unless they're in attack mode. That wasn't the case here. Sam is a wolf that can interact with others without going into attack mode. The war of power play that we see between Samuel the man and Sam the wolf gives the reader a view of what goes on inside the shape-shifters. The difference here is we get to see it played out, in person, with Samuel and his wolf.

I've always liked Mercy and that hasn't changed. She still works hard at her garage and doesn't want special treatment because she's Adam's mate. Although, it would be nice if some of the pack didn't treat her with such disdain. We again see Mercy's determination and loyalty regarding her friends. She is determined to help Samuel/Sam and her loyalty makes things difficult when she must side-step questions from both Adam and Bran about Samuel. She has to tread a fine line when skipping around the truth with the two alphas.

As I mentioned the fae figure heavily when Mercy tries and fails to return a book and gets caught up in a fight over the book. The tension in Adam's pack hits a peak and Briggs shows us one way that conflicts are dealt with in the pack. I loved the parts with the pack and learning more about the inner workings. Mercy also takes a more active role as the alpha's mate which also helped with the story arc. I was glad to see this since I felt something needed to happen with regards to Mercy's standing in the pack. She couldn't maintain her distance without weakening Adam's control over the pack.

While I liked learning more about the fae, I did feel that and the romantic element regarding Samuel were the weakest points of the story. There was a lot of build up to the finale' of Mercy vs. the fae which is why the defeat was anticlimactic for me. And Samuel's love interest wasn't what I was expecting. I found myself wishing it had been fleshed out more. It felt too much like a quick fix to Samuel's problem. But even with all of that I still loved the book. Still stayed up until 2am reading it. Weird I know, but I think it just goes to the power of Briggs writing that while I had a couple of minor problems they didn't dampen the overall enjoyment of the book.

If you want to read a really great review of Silver Borne, head over and read nath's review. :)

Rating: A-

ReRead Challenge Review: Bone Crossed

Bone Crossed
Patricia Briggs
Urban Fantasy
Mercy Thompson/Book 4
ACE/February 2009
Library book

From the inside cover ~

By day, Mercy is a car mechanic in the sprawling Tri-Cities of eastern Washington. By night, she explores her preternatural side. As shapeshifter with some unique talents, Mercy has often found herself having to maintain a tenuous harmony between the human and the not so human. This time she may get more than she bargained for.

Marsilia, the local Vampire Queen, has learned that Mercy crossed her by slaying a member of her clan -- and she's out for blood. But since Mercy is protected from direct reprisal b the werewolf pack (and her close relationship with its sexy Alpha), it won't be Mercy's blood Marsilia is after.

It'll be her friends'.

The exceptional Mercy Thompson series switches to hardcover with Bone Crossed and jumped into the realm of library reads for me. At least for now. I'm still debating if I'll buy the next, Silver Borne, in hardcover. It's suppose to be "Samuel's book" per Patty Briggs. I love Samuel so we'll have to see if I have the patience to wait. :)

I've been in a Patty Briggs kind of mood lately. Listening to Cry Wolf wasn't enough, I needed to do some reading too. I first read Bone Crossed last year, after reading the first three books in the series, pretty much back to back. I soaked up Briggs' writing. The flow of words, the descriptions of places, characters' thoughts and feelings, all made for a fascinating world that sucked me in and hasn't let go.

Bone Crossed follows up with the disturbing and upsetting events at the end of Iron Kissed. Mercy was brutalized and raped by a sick bastard who was then killed by Adam. It's been only days since events in Iron Kissed so Mercy is still on the road to recovery. Not so much physically, she sore with a few stitches and bruises. It's the mental and emotional recovery that's going to take a long time.

Mercy has a unique friendship with Stefan, a local vampire that she has known for 10 years. Her friendship with Stefan has complicated her life by putting her on the wrong side of Marsilia, the head of the local vampire seethe. Marsilia is powerful and hates Mercy. When Stefan is severely tortured and literally dump at Mercy's feet she realizes that she needs to do something before Marsilia begins torturing anyone else that Mercy cares about. An opportunity presents itself and Mercy heads out of town to the home of an old college friend for some ghost hunting. *cue spooky music*

But this is Mercy's world and things are rarely what they seem. Mercy finds that there's something more than a typical haunting going. It amazes me how much political intrigue there is when it comes to supernatural beings. You would think they would be more basic in dealing with their enemies. See an enemy, kill the enemy. But trying to fit into the human world causes the weres and the vamps to sometime resort to more subtle approaches. The vampires are very powerful and yet they have to be careful because if humans knew they existed the humans could wipe out their seethes in a matter of months. But one on one is a different story.

Throughout out Bone Crossed we see how Mercy is still dealing with her beating and rape. She suffers flashbacks and panic attacks. Adam's reaction is very much the understanding mate. There to support her however she needs. What I found myself wondering is if Adam had let out his rage over what happened to Mercy after the fact. He went ballistic on Tim, the rapist. Adam literally tore him apart. But I kept wondering how he is dealing with it now. We know he feels guilty for not keeping Mercy safe. We know this because Mercy tells us. Adam is a rock for Mercy, there to sooth her when she needs it and backs off when she needs space. Since we only get Mercy's POV it was hard to know how Adam was dealing with the aftermath of the rape. It was one of those times that I wish we had Adams POV.

Mercy and Adam's relationship continues to more forward with their mating. Adam does an admirable job of giving Mercy comfort and still being the strong pack Alpha. He lends her his strength and his knowledge of the pack dynamics. Mercy completes Adam. He seems so much more vibrant and approachable than he did in book one.

I found the ghost plot interesting and it added another side to Mercy. We don't know much about her college life but through Amber, her friend, we get to know a little bit of Mercy's college social life. The mystery surrounding the why of Amber's ghost was done well, with Briggs keeping the world building tight while adding more knowledge of the vampires and the wolves.

Overall another solid addition to the series. I am very much looking forward to the next book, Silver Borne, release date March 30.

Rating: A-

Cover Love ~ Silver Borne

From Patricia Briggs Website ~

This will be the fifth Mercy Thompson novel. I may be premature putting it up, but a number of people write wanting to know if Bone Crossed was the last in the series. Happily, ACE has contracted for a total of seven Mercy novels, and it's possible the series could go even longer.

Another awesome cover by Dan Dos Santos. Thanks to Orannia over at Walkabout for the heads up. This is definitely one of my favorite UF series. I do hope we get more than seven Mercy books. It's one of those series that I could read for a very long time. It does amaze me how big the author's name gets as the sales increase. :) Silver Borne is set for release in hardcover on March 30, 2010.

Review: Moon Called

Title: Moon Called

Author: Patricia Briggs

Genre: Urban Fantasy

Series: Mercy Thompson/Book 1

Published: February 2006

Mercy's Garage. It seems like a ordinary place owned and run by an ordinary woman. But nothing and no one is what they seem in Mercy's life. She's not what she seems. Sure, she a great mechanic. She's also a skin walker but she won't tell you that. Just like she won't tell you her sexy neighbor is the local werewolf pack's alpha or the VW van at her garage is owned by a vampire. And her former boss is a Fae. No, Mercy likes to keep her secrets and is a just woman who sometimes changes into a coyote. Fluffy tail and all.

This is one of those series that has been sitting on my TBR pile for what seems like forever. After reading all the great reviews for Ms. Briggs latest book in the series, Bone Crossed, I thought it was about time to start reading Mercy's books before I got too far behind. Can I just say to anyone who's been putting off reading this series ~ start now!

Mercy is a woman that likes to "fly under the radar". She doesn't want to call attention to herself. She'd rather be left to work in her shop and mind her own business. In spite of this it was surprisingly easy to get to know and like her. Which is kind of strange since she likes to keep people at a distance. She seems to be wary of getting too close to anyone. It's not that she doesn't care about people, she just prefers to care from a distance. This all begins to change when a newly made werewolf comes by the shop looking for work. Mercy knows that she should send him on his way but she's a softy at heart. So she feeds him and gives him some work. She's able to send the new werewolf, Mac, to the local Alpha, Adam Hauptman, who can help Mac through his early years of learning to control his wolf.

Adam is such a multi-layered character. He's a Vietnam veteran who still holds many ideas from that era. Times have changed but Adam hasn't completely changed with the times. But he's learning. He is also a divorced father with a teenage daughter. Now how often do you hear about a divorced werewolf? But Adam comes complete with an ex-wife and a wonderful daughter named Jesse. She knows who and what her dad is and she's really cool about it. The other thing about Adam is that he reminds me of Roarke from the In Death series (this is a good thing). Both very alpha, smart, successful businessmen attracted to strong, independent women.

If things weren't getting complicated enough in Mercy's life there's Samuel. Samuel is the Marrock's son. The Marrock, Bran, is the Alpha over all of the North American Alphas. Bran is also the head of the pack that Mercy grew up in. So you could say that Samuel is Mercy's high school sweetheart, except that Samuel was long out of high school when Mercy came along. I'm not totally sure what I think of Samuel. He's a very old werewolf who is also a doctor. The thing about the werewolves in Briggs' series is that they all have regular jobs. Doctors, teachers, businessmen, computer techs... it just seems so normal.

The vampires in the series do not seem normal at all. Oh, they seem normal for vampires just not the types to take up jobs and blend with the human populace. The vamp with the van at Mercy's is Stefan. He's... not sure how to describe him. He's a kinder, gentler vampire. We don't see too much of him in Moon Called but what we do see is that he does have certain feelings for Mercy. He's still very much a loyal subject to his Mistress who is also his maker but he does look out for Mercy. Poor Mercy, two werewolves and a vampire after her.

The world that Briggs has created is diverse and complex with not only the weres but also vampires and beings of the Fae in the mix. The Fae came out to the world a few decades before. They downplayed their abilities and pass themselves off as harmless beings who only want to help mankind. The weres and vampires still maintain anonymity but the time for humans to find out who their neighbors really are is closing in fast.

Count me a fan of this series. I've already read Blood Bound, the second book and have Iron Kissed in my TBR pile and Bone Crossed on order from the library. I'm really looking forward to seeing what happened next to Mercy, Adam, Samuel and Stefan.

Patricia Briggs is not new to the publishing world. She is the author of a number of science fiction/fantasy novels. She also has another series set in the same world as the Mercy Thompson series. It's the Alpha/Omega series and features Charles and Anna. More information about Ms. Briggs can be found at her website.


Rating: A-