Smoke Bitten / Patricia Briggs

Smoke Bitten by Patricia Briggs
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

How I love a little jaunt in the Mercyverse! I always have fun there. This newest offering is no different, there are a number of Bad Things that need to be dealt with and, as usual, there is a kink in the Mercy-Adam relationship that makes this more difficult. Mercy has to wrestle with mate issues while dealing with Fae monsters and vampires who have been reading too much stalker literature.

I am always pleased when Kyle, the sharklike human lawyer, grabs a gun and gets to protect his werewolf hunny bunny, Warren. And I think Warren is too, that not-so-gruff old cowboy. I’m also glad to spend time with British Ben, foul mouth and all. He is just the gift that keeps on giving. This is one of the reasons that I love urban fantasy with the power of a thousand burning suns. It's a group effort. Mercy may be the unwilling catalyst for so much of the trouble that rolls into the TriCity area, but she also has good ideas about how to deal with the Big Bad. Being Coyote's daughter is a blessing and a curse. However, there is no reason that she has to do any of it alone. No lonely Batcave for her! She has Adam and the werewolves, a tibicena (see Fire Touched), plenty of Fae friends and almost-friends, plus one awesome vampire in her Scooby gang. Oh, and a magical walking stick, made by Lugh himself, that shows up whenever it's necessary (or it just wants to) to help Mercy out.

The Fae are perennial favourites of mine. I love their “I can lie by telling the truth" elusiveness, their elemental power, their tricky relics, and their dedication to obfuscation. It might not be fun in real life, but its great for fictional folk to figure out. I also adore Mercy's vampire pal, Stefan, and I'm thrilled when he makes an appearance in a novel. He didn't feature nearly enough in this volume, but he always makes me smile. As does creepy Wulfe, the vampire/witch/sorcerer who has taken a predatory interest in our coyote girl. Wulfe is always threatening, always enigmatic, and frequently in the right place at the right time. I think he's jealous of Stefan and doesn't know how to forge a friendship with Mercy, so he is reduced to stalker behaviour. Perhaps he became a vampire too young to have developed good social skills. Maybe Aidan, the young Fae refugee from Underhill can teach Wulfe a thing or two as he matures.

And here I am, talking about all these characters as if they were real people! But by now, twelve books into the series, they feel like old friends whom I can't wait to see again. My only complaint about these books is that they pass so quickly. One day's reading and then I must wait for many months for the next hit of my favourite drug.

The wait for lucky thirteen begins today.


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