Mercy Thompson has been hailed as “a heroine who continues to grow and yet always remains true to herself.”* Now she’s back, and she’ll soon discover that when the fae stalk the human world, it’s the children who suffer…
Tensions between the fae and humans are coming to a head. And when coyote shapeshifter Mercy and her Alpha werewolf mate, Adam, are called upon to stop a rampaging troll, they … stop a rampaging troll, they find themselves with something that could be used to make the fae back down and forestall out-and-out war: a human child stolen long ago by the fae.
Defying the most powerful werewolf in the country, the humans, and the fae, Mercy, Adam, and their pack choose to protect the boy no matter what the cost. But who will protect them from a boy who is fire touched?
*Library Journal
From the Hardcover edition.
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I always go back at least a couple books when a new one comes out to bring me back into Mercy’s world. Fire Touched for me was an emotional journey. the walking stick has always been a favorite of mine along with zee…. after this story even more so. So many new characters and I love the direction the pack is headed. As always Mercy’s ability to be both compassionate and fair, not to mention deadly, brings so much to this story. I am not one to give plots and book reports -spoilers – when I review. I will say bonds are broken, secrets revealed and sadly loved ones are lost. You will laugh, you will feel the pain but I believe most of all you will treasure this journey. Turn off your phone, close the door and live the adventure. NUDGE
Hooked on the Mercedes Thompson series. Mercedes is gritty and feisty and always lands on her feet.
ORIGINALLY POSTED TO THE PURE TEXTUALITY PR BOOK BLOG:
https://puretextualitypr.com/2016/05/06/review-by-jena-fire-touched-mercy-thompson-9-by-patricia-briggs-mercys_garage/
Ugh…..I missed Mercy.
The one thing that sucks about having a great author pen two different fantastic series are the times when we have to skip a year between releases. The last Mercy Thompson book was released in March 2014. Can you believe that? It doesn’t feel like it was that long ago, but there is it. Anyway, with the release of an Alpha & Omega book in between, it’s been a long wait to get back to Mercy and the Columbia Basin pack.
But I feel it was totally worth it.
Fire Touched brings back some of the old Mercy we’re familiar with, while still maintaining forward momentum in the development of the character. She seems to have settled into her role as the alpha’s mate a little more. Fire Touched gives us a much more candid view into the workings of the pack magic and how she fits into that puzzle. She’s understands the reservations some still hold, but remains confident that she deserves to be there, which I think it important for the character to maintain her place. She doesn’t waste any time waxing poetic about how tough it is to be her, which is one of my favorite things about the character.
I will say that I still feel like the heat between Mercy and Adam is just limping along. Now, I don’t say that to claim that they’re doomed or anything like that. They have a deep connection and love each other fiercely. I’m just saying that their honeymoon period is most definitely over. They’ve settled into their own kind of comfort (as comfortable as one could be in a house full of werewolves). Their relationship is warm and sweet, but that tension they used to have is gone. I would love to see what happens between these two when they come to a moral crossroads where they don’t share a viewpoint. Something to really rock the foundations of their relationship. I mean, I imagine it has to happen at some point. They’re both stubborn as shit. It would be interesting to see how they navigate something that threatens their view of one another.
The story arc in this book focuses on a boy who is “fire touched” following being kidnapped by the fae years back (none of this is a spoiler as it’s in the synopsis). This new character was a fun one to watch. He’s a little odd, and has very little understanding of how to interact with our crew, which makes for some relatively hilarious moments and some seriously tense moments. Declaring pack protection over the boy forced the pack into some very tough decisions, and how they came to the declaration in the first place kind of took me a little by surprise.
Overall, this was an awesome book. There were a few spots where it got a little sluggish for me, but for the most part, the pace of the story moves quickly. I would recommend this one for fans of true urban fantasy. As I’ve said in the past, if you like the Kate Daniels series by Ilona Andrews, you’d love Mercy Thompson.
As one side note, I will say I listened to the audio book. This one is narrated by the always-awesome Lorelei King (she narrates the rest of the series and also narrates the Charlie Davidson series by Darynda Jones). This chick is an fantastic narrator. I love listening to her work.
And the saga continues. There’s an intriguing character addition with Aiden, the fire touched boy who’s really hundreds of years old. You cannot go wrong with Patti Briggs. Fire Touched started out a bit on the slow side, but before long it was vintage Briggs kicking some serious you-know-what. I love her depictions of the Fae.
I received a copy of this book from NetGalley for an unbiased review.
I have loved the Mercy Thompson series from the beginning. Like all great series, the characters continue to evolve and get more interesting; and the world building is fabulous. Mercy is a coyote shifter married to Adam, the Alpha of a werewolf pack in Eastern Washington. It was wonderful to see Mercy and Adams relationship continue to grow and mature.
In earlier books in the series, we were introduced to members of the Fey community including Zee, Tad, Uncle Mike and the Grey Lords. All the Fey are scary, and because they refuse to play nice with others they have voluntarily moved into Reservations.
When a troll arrives in the Tri-Cities and is destroying vehicles and people on one of the bridges, Mercy and the wolves come to the rescue. At the last minute Zee and Tad show up to help and have a boy with them. It turns out that everyone in the Fey community wants this boy, Aiden, because he, a human child was stolen many, hundreds? of years ago. Aiden has escaped from Underhill, and has the ability to control fire.
This is the beginning of another wonderful adventure, full of warmth, humor, and interesting twists on myths and folklore by Ms. Briggs.
I would highly recommend this book to Urban Fantasy fans from YA on up!
Fire touched focuses on the fae, specifically a human, Aiden, who spent too much time in Underhill and now has fire abilities. I really liked Aiden. He was scared and lashed out in the beginning to protect himself. As the book goes on he grows and learns about family/pack and how making those bonds can make you stronger.
It was interesting getting another glimpse at Underhill. We got a very small glimpse in Iron Kissed but it just made you want to know more about it. It was fascinating and scary, just what you would expect from a fae world.
I am really interesting in seeing how the future of the pack’s territory will be tested.
Also, I need more Baba Yaga. She is great!
Amazing Series, better and better each new installment!
Only one more left until I’m caught up in this series. This one was good. Not as much pack but more from newer characters Joel and Aiden. Briggs does a great job of keeping things fresh and exciting by introducing new characters as she goes along. Not sure if the current one (just out last month) will be the last one in series or not.
A heart-wrenching exploration into the human psyche where black and white meet in a vast realm of gray.
Mercy Thompson books by Patricia Briggs are fantastic!
I really disliked Aiden. The story was great, the characters were awesome, but Aiden drove me nuts.
Another fantastic installment in Briggs’ Mercy Thompson series.
Fire Touched focuses on a boy who escaped from Underhill after centuries of wandering the dangerous magical realm alone, but he didn’t come out entirely human. Now Underhill wants him back, and the fae want him as a bargaining chip to reclaim their old homeland. Mercy and Adam, lovable bleeding hearts that they are, decide to protect the human-looking boy from all the big bads out to get him, and in doing so, claim the entire Tri-cities as their territory to defend against all comers.
I found the beginning of this book a little slow, starting off with a seemingly random scene of Mercy buying products from (basically) an Avon lady. But then a rampaging troll was set loose on the cable bridge and the story took on a more usual pace.
I really liked the character of Aiden, the young-looking boy who isn’t young at all. As always, Briggs’ writing really shines through in her characters. Aiden is powerful, self-assured, and rude while at the same time being just a scared little boy. He lashes out and pushes people away, but really just needs a good solid hug and someone to tell him he’s safe.
The climax and wrap-up felt a little rushed to me, but were still satisfying. Mercy and her pack of do-gooder werewolves will live to fight another day . . and I can’t wait to read about it.
I just adore Mercy so much! This is one of my favorites of the series so far. Adam and Mercy have come such a long way and they were so much fun here. Love the action in this one and all the cute Adam and Mercy stuff. And I have come to adore Honey! I’m deep into this series now and it is still delivering and I love it.
Loved the book..got read!!
Tensions between the Fae and humans are heating up since the Fae declared themselves independent of the government and moved to reservations which promptly disappeared from human sight. Coyote shifter, Mercy Thompson, and her husband/mate, Adam Hauptman, who is the Alpha of the local werewolf pack are called to a bridge where there’s a troll causing massive destruction and killing people. The pack fights the troll but the odds are finally turned when Mercy’s Fae friend and mentor, Zee, shows up with his son, Tad, and Aiden, who looks to be a ten year old boy. All of them have escaped the Fae compound. Aiden asks for refuge and shelter which Mercy grants since Adam is severely wounded. In granting the boy refuge, she unwittingly declares the Tri-Cities as the territory of the pack which causes some problems with the Fae. Can Mercy and Adam prevent a war between the wolves and the Fae?
I love this series and this book is no exception. I had lost track of the series but am catching up by binge reading the books I missed in order to be prepared for the newest release I mid-March. The book’s well-written with well-rounded characters. Mercy is a wonderful character and I enjoy reading about how she handles things as her actions come from her heart. I was drawn into this book from the start and kept hooked until the end. I highly recommend both book and series which I suggest you read in order.
I love Mercy and her werewolf family!
I love Mercy so much! This is one of those series that I just can’t get enough of and Ms. Briggs keeps introducing new characters that just make me love it all the more. (view spoiler) Add onto that, the fabulous dashes of political intrigue as she really delves into what the country would look like as it tries to adjust to having these supernatural creatures walking among us.
Another brilliant book in a brilliant series. The only problem I’ve got now is that I’m jonesing for another story from Mercy and now I’m back to the waiting game.
love this world. pat briggs is a wonderful world builder. love her characters. i’d buy anything she writes
Borrowed from the library.
I didn’t love Fire Touched as much as the previous book, Night Broken. But, it was still an entertaining read. I wasn’t dying to finish this one, so I didn’t go out of my way to make time to finish it fast. Once I picked the book up for that day or reading session or whatever, it did manage to keep me entangled in the story for a bit.
Aside from the ending 100 or so pages of the book, I had one favorite scene but I don’t want to spoil things so I’ll just say this particular scene made me absolutely adore Adam. Head over heels, no going back, he’s an amazing character.
I really enjoy the Mercy Thompson series. She is a mostly human whose world always spins out of control. The characters come and go, crossing books throughout the series. Some you like, some don’t but they are all well rounded individuals with real personalities. She kicks butt and often gets her butt kicked. She is grumpy, quirky, funny, loving and loyal. I would like her as a friend, well, maybe a long distance friend.