
Narrator: Lorelei King
Length: 10 hrs 9 mins
Series: Mercy Thompson #9
Published by Ace on March 8, 2016
Genres: Urban Fantasy
Pages: 352

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I received this book for free from Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
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 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?
I think Mercy is one of the greatest shapeshifters yet. She’s a coyote playing with the big boys, but yet her strength isn’t lessened by her size. We’ve seen her really progress into a really confident person who deserves her position in life as the Alpha’s wife.
I love how the relationship between Adam and Mercy has grown. Especially after everything that happened in the previous book with Christy. They really work as a team and I am so glad that Adam grew a pair and stood up for her to his pack. They needed to know they couldn’t get away with treating her like shit.
The situation with the multi level marketing mom needs to be mentioned. Seriously, I thought I was going to pee myself laughing. I will never hear the word “nudge” again and not laugh.
Mercy puts her pack in an uncomfortable position after their confrontation with the troll. It puts everyone in a real predicament with the fae. Not only has she put the werewolves in a certain position in the Tri-Cities, but she also gives protection to something the fae really want. That gives the fae two reasons to go after the werewolves. Despite the danger this puts everyone in, Adam steps up and supports Mercy in her decisions.
I was glad to see Zee and Tad again to know they are safe. The little boy, or not so little boy, they bring with them definitely causes some issues. His links to the fae bring on a firestorm (haha get it?) of trouble for the pack.
It may have been the length of time it took me to read the book, I just felt like the serious action I was expecting wasn’t there. There were only a couple of instances where we really see some good conflict, and the rest was meetings trying to come to agreements with the important leaders of the fae. I was really surprised by Underhill. I thought there was going to be a huge, knock down fight. The resolution seemed to be relatively calm.
The conflict throughout the story was well organized and included just enough of everything to make the book very enjoyable. I absolutely loved aspects of the pack that just make them seem so close and fun. Their new addiction was hilarious and how the whole pack got involved made it even more fun. This book does open up the job of a LOT of politics between the factions in the Tri-Cities which will keep Adam and Mercy very busy.
I am loving Mercy and the pack so much. Especially after Adam’s stance in Fire Touched. Now it is like one big family. Christy makes a very nice exit and hopefully she’ll meet some nice Cabana boy and stay where she is.
The playing field is wide open for possible conflicts, and I’m not sure where to look for the first hit. I will definitely be watching carefully to see who is going to make the next move in the next book.