Frost Burned by Patricia Briggs

Title: Frost Burned

Author: Patricia Briggs

Genre: Urban Fantasy

Series: Mercy Thompson # 7

Publication: January 1, 2013 

352 pages

Source: Personal Library

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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, 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. But she fears Adam's disappearance may be related to the political battle the werewolves have been fighting to gain acceptance from the public - and that he and the pack are in serious danger. Outmatched and on her own, Mercy may be forced to seek assistance from any ally she can get, no matter how unlikely.

MY THOUGHTS

It’s been over ten years since I last read the Mercy Thompson series, so naturally, I decided a re-read was in order. I’m so glad I did; it reminded me just how much I love this world and these characters. Frost Burned is the seventh installment in the series, following Mercy, a coyote shifter, and her husband Adam, the local werewolf Alpha, as they navigate their new mate bond while dealing with the usual highs and lows of supernatural politics.

The story kicks off with a bang when Mercy and Jesse are ambushed during a Black Friday outing, and things only get worse when she discovers the entire pack, except Ben, has vanished. It turns out they’ve been taken by mercenaries, setting the stage for an action-packed ride.

If you’ve ever read this series or really any Urban Fantasy, you’ll know the protagonist rarely gets any downtime, and Mercy is no exception. Even seven books in, I was happy to find that the characters, writing, and plot remain just as strong as when I first started the series. There wasn’t a single lull; I stayed engaged and invested all the way through. I especially enjoyed this plot compared to some of the previous installments, and I liked seeing the mix of both familiar and fresh faces playing active roles in the story.

Now that I’ve finished my re-reads, it’s on to the books I haven’t yet read. I’m excited to see what Briggs has in store for Mercy and the crew.

[Blog Tour] Review: Frozen by Christine Amsden

Title: Frozen
Author: Christine Amsden
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Series: Cassie Scot # 7

Trade Paperback, 209 Pages
Publication: April 11, 2018 by Twilight Times Books

Source: I received a review copy from the author in exchange for a honest review.

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Apparently, life doesn’t end when you get married.

When a couple freezes to death on a fifty degree day, Cassie is called in to investigate. The couple ran a daycare out of their home, making preschoolers the key witnesses and even the prime suspects.

Two of those preschoolers are Cassie’s youngest siblings, suggesting conditions at home are worse than she feared. As Cassie struggles to care for her family, she must face the truth about her mother’s slide into depression, which seems to be taking the entire town with it.

Then Cassie, too, is attacked by the supernatural cold. She has to think fast to survive, and her actions cause a rift between her and her husband.

No, life doesn’t end after marriage. All hell can break loose at any time.

I was sad when the Cassie Scot series wrapped up but Amsden ended up writing a spin-off of Cassie’s best friends Kaitlyn and Madison and I loved those just as much as Cassie’s book…I’d take anything to be able to able spend more time in the magical world of Eagle Rock and with its inhabitants. So when I found out that Amsden decided to write another Cassie Scot novel, I was ecstatic. I fell in love with Cassie and the gang since book one and didn’t need much convincing to read Frozen, the seventh installment in the Cassie Scot series.

Like previous Cassie books, Frozen has a main mystery at its core. A couple was found frozen to death in a cabin and its up to Cassie, Evan and the sheriff to figure out what happen…except there’s no one in town, that Cassie knows of with cold elemental powers, or powers enough to create a localized deep freeze. I really liked the plot and found it engaging but the reason why I’ve always loved this series and found it standing out amongst the Urban Fantasy genre is the theme of family and friends. And Frozen is no exception. I loved that Frozen showcased motherhood, and how its not always about magic. We’ve all heard the good stuff about motherhood, and I’m sure it’s incredible but Amsden also showed us that it’s not always easy and that beyond coming from a strong magical family; she has normal concerns, worries like any other mothers…about children growing up, going to school, leaving the nest, marriage and children etc.

I’ve read all of the Cassie/spin-off books but I gotta say Frozen is the best one yet. I loved everything about it. I can’t wait to see what Amsden has in store for this series and really hope she plans to continue it. I didn’t realized how much I missed the characters until I started Frozen. I am especially excited to see the children develop their powers, specifically Ana, the twin and Christina. They may be minor characters…three of them can’t even talk but are some of the most interesting secondary/tertiary characters I’ve ever read. If you haven’t read this series yet, I highly recommend it!

Magic Breaks by Ilona Andrews

Title: Magic Breaks
Author: Ilona Andrews
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Series: Kate Daniels # 7

Mass Market Paperback, 357 Pages
Publication: March 3, 2015 by Ace

Source: I received a review copy from the publisher in exchange for a honest review.

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As the mate of the Beast Lord, Curran, former mercenary Kate Daniels has more responsibilities than it seems possible to juggle. Not only is she still struggling to keep her investigative business afloat, but she must now deal with the affairs of the Pack, including preparing her people for attack from Roland, a cruel, ancient being with godlike powers.

As Roland’s long shadow looms ever nearer, Kate is called to attend a gathering of leaders from Atlanta’s supernatural factions. When one of the Masters of the Dead is found murdered by a shapeshifter, Kate is given less than twenty-four hours to hunt down the killer. And this time, if she fails, she’ll find herself embroiled in a war that could destroy everything she holds dear...

Magic Breaks is the seventh book in the Kate Daniel Series and the end of the ARC according to the authors, which I can now see having read it. In this latest installment, Kate is left alone to deal with The pack and The People’s affair while Curran is called away on an assignment. A shifter killed a Master Vampire and Kate is sent to investigate or there would be an all out war between The People and The Pack which would bring in Hugh and Roland; something that Kate desperately wants to avoid.

I must say, looking back on it, this is probably the weakest novel of the series…even compared to the last book which many found to be silly with too much teenage angst going on. It’s still a good book overall but not the usual best I’ve come to expect from Andrews. Let’s start off with what I liked. Kate has always and will be a kick-ass heroine. Let that be known. She can hold her own no matter the circumstance she is thrown into. While it sucked that Curran wasn’t around for the majority of the story, it also spotlighted Kate and everything she’s capable of; and it showed readers, The Pack and everyone else that she can lead without Curran. And I loved that we got to see more of Derek and Ascanio, espeically Ascanio, our handsome, reckless Bouda, whom readers haven’t seen for awhile. I was so happy that he had plenty of page time. Derek and Ascanio together was a riot! I love their chemistry together and thanks to them, there were many laugh-out-loud moments. I think it’s safe to say that everyone has probably read this novel already if they follow the series; that one Ascanio scene had me on the verge of tears! I’ve become so attached to these characters, I can’t imagine ever loosing them. Talk about a close one! And Desandra, whom we met in the previous novel makes herself a regular as she travels with Kate. I must say, Desandra is starting to grow on me. I love her blunt, no-filter attitude; it brings a smile to my face.

Now, the things that I didn’t like. As many readers mention, Magic Breaks definitely felt like a filler novel with a lot of unnecessary scenes that didn’t really help progress the story line. With how everything started, The People accusing a shifter of killing one of their men and unless the culprit is capture, they risk an all out war…the ending turned out to be very anticlimactic. I read it last week and now I can’t really remember how it ended. That says a lot. And from the very start, we are told how scary and ruthless Roland is, a god among men. But I gotta say, he wasn’t what I expected. He seems so calm, logical, reasonable most of the time. This is the Roland’s first appearance and though he doesn’t seem so scary, we’ve yet to see what he’s truly capable of or exactly what his motives are involving Kate. Who knows, I could be totally wrong and he turns out to be the evil god Kate was warned about. Just gotta wait and see how things play out in the last three books!

Overall, another solid addition to the series but not without flaws. Looking forward to see what else is in store for Kate and the gang. 

Chimes at Midnight by Seanan McGuire

Title: Chimes at Midnight
Author: Seanan McGuire
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Series: October Daye # 7

Mass Market Paperback, 346 pages
Publication: September 3, 2013 by DAW

Source: Purchased for my own reading. 

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Things are starting to look up for October "Toby" Daye. She's raining her squire, doing her job, and has finally allowed herself to grow closer to the local King of Cats. It seems like her life may finally be settling down...at least until dead changelings start appearing in the alleys of San Francisco, killed by an overdose of goblin fruit.

Toby's efforts to take the problem to the Queen of the Mists are met with harsh reprisals, leaving her under sentence of exile from her home and everyone she loves. Now Toby must find a way to reverse the Queens decree, get the goblin fruit off the streets--and, oh, yes, save her own life, since more than a few of her problems have once again followed her home. And then there's the question of the Queen herself, who seems increasingly unlikely to have a valid claim to the throne....

To find the answers, October and her friends will have to travel from the legendary Library of Stars into the hidden depths of the Kingdom of the Mists--and they'll have to do it fast, because time is running out. In faerie, some fates are worse than death.

October Daye is about to find out what they are.

 

Yah know I’m starting to run out of ways to describe how awesome the October Daye series is. Like seriously, this series is beyond amazing and it truly gets better with each installment...which leaves me a bit lost for words. Just when I think I’ve seen it all, or that surely the last book is the BEST, McGuire surprises me yet again. Chimes at Midnight, the 7th in the October Daye series answered many of the questions readers had since book 2 but unsurprisingly it also gave us a whole lot of new ones. Chimes at Midnight takes place approximately 3 months after the events of Ashes of Honor. With life going seemingly well October and the gang do the occasional stake out on the streets of San Francisco to monitor the distribution/movement of the Goblin Fruit after hearing of changelings going missing. Goblin Fruit is an addictive berry with drug-like qualities that are deadly to changelings and humans alike. After finding a dead changeling in an alley, October learns the hard truth that Changelings aren’t missing but they’re dead/or dying due to Goblin Fruit. And October only hope to stop the drug and protect the secrets of Faeries is to ask for help from the Queen in the Mist. But instead October learns that the Queen is the distributor and instead of helping, the Queen banishes October from the realm.

I really enjoyed the plot this time around, more than all the others. I’m a sucker for stories with lost prince/princess, a rebellion and political pandemonium…and Chimes at Midnight had all three!  Readers get to learn a lot more about the last king in the mist and will obviously meet his children that no one in Faerie knew about. Also we get to see first hand the affects of Goblin Fruit on a changeling. We’ve heard about Goblin Fruit since the beginning but never actually see it in effect; I thought that was pretty interesting (and crappy as heck).  And finally the big one, the mystery of Quentin’s fostering.  Many readers have speculated that Quentin comes from a rich-noble family but I was totally surprised at the big reveal. To be honest, I never thought much of his background…not till the last book at least lol.  His fostering is supposed to be hush-hush, but with the cat-out-of-the-bag, I’m excited how things will play out in subsequent books. There’s also a short-story at the end of the book that corresponds to a scene in the book, when Toby takes The Luidaeg’s blood pills and catches snippets of her memories (which involves Toby’s mom). Although it was a short-story, it left me wondering what did The Luidaeg know about Toby’s future that made her wait seven years to interfere with her sister and what IS Toby’s big destiny? I can’t wait to see where McGuire takes Toby’s new story arc! 

I highly recommend this series for those that haven’t read it yet, and to start at the beginning with Rosemary and Rue to see the full characters and world building development/growth (don’t recommend reading this series out of order). This series doesn’t disappoint, and if you’re looking for the best Urban Fantasy series out there, look no further because this is it! Now, on to the next October Daye novel, The Winter Long!