Review: Iron Kissed - Patricia Briggs

It wasn't hard to follow the scent of blood to the living room where the fae had been killed.  It had been a violent death, perfect for creating ghosts.

Mercy Thompson enjoys being a mechanic, but life is never simple given her increasing closeness to the local werewolf pack, and her ability to change into coyote form at will.  And when a member of the fae community calls in a favour, needing her skills for a covert murder investigation, she jumps into the hunt.

But the dangers multiply and she clashes with shadowed creatures of great power.  When her old boss Zee is charged with a brutal assassination, Mercy finds herself fighting alone.  There are those who love her, who would keep her safe, but she is wary and holds her freedom precious.  Until, that is, she has nothing left to lose but her life...

Mercy Thompson Series:
Moon Called
Blood Bound
Iron Kissed
Bone Crossed
Silver Borne
River Marked (Spring 2011)
For more information visit Patricia Briggs' website

Review:
When Mercy is asked to investigate the murders of several members of the fae community she is happy to help thinking this is a relatively easy way for her to repay her debt.  Things take a turn for the worse when Zee is charged with murder and none of the fae seem willing to come to his aid even though Mercy knows he is innocent.  Not one to leave her friends in trouble Mercy takes it upon herself to prove Zee's innocence and in doing so will come across her most dangerous enemy yet. 

First I must say that if you're new to this series you really should read Moon Called & Blood Bound before starting Iron Kissed.  This is a well written urban fantasy series and one that I would highly recommend.  Iron Kissed is a great addition to the series so if you're already a fan I'm sure you're going to enjoy this book.  I'll warn you now that this one is a lot darker than the first 2 books but it is so well written that you won't be able to put it down.

I love Mercy, she isn't the strongest supernatural character, in fact compared to the werewolves she is physically quite weak but she has a tenacious attitude and is determined to stand up for herself and make her own decisions.  In Iron Kissed this will end up getting her into a lot of trouble, the choices she makes mean she ends up facing a monster she couldn't have imagined in her worst nightmares but will her friends arrive in time to save her?  There are a few scenes here where my heart was in my mouth & I couldn't quite believe what was happening.  The writing was fantastic though & I especially loved the scene with Ben towards the end of the book - I now have a much better understanding of him and have really grown to like and respect him despite the fact that I wasn't a fan of his before this book.

I love the fact that the love triangle between Mercy, Samuel & Adam is resolved in this book.  I often find with urban fantasy series that the love triangles continue for too long & start to bore me but I think Patricia Briggs timed things perfectly.  I was very happy with the outcome but I'm not going to say any more than that - you'll have to read the book to find out who she chooses!  As far as I'm concerned this series just gets better with each book & I'm really looking forward to getting my teeth into Bone Crossed.

Source: Library

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