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Book: “Winter Lost” by Patricia Briggs
Publishing Info: Ace, June 2024
Where Did I Get this Book: Edelweiss+
Where Can You Get this Book: Amazon | IndieBound | WorldCat
Book Description: In the supernatural realms, there are creatures who belong to winter. I am not one of them. But like the coyote I can become at will, I am adaptable.
My name is Mercy Thompson Hauptman, and my mate, Adam, is the werewolf who leads the Columbia Basin Pack, the pack charged with keeping the people who live and work in the Tri-Cities of Washington State safe. It’s a hard job, and it doesn’t leave much room for side quests. Which is why when I needed to travel to Montana to help my brother, I intended to go by myself.
But I’m not alone anymore.
Together, Adam and I find ourselves trapped with strangers in a lodge in the heart of the wilderness, in the teeth of a storm of legendary power, only to discover my brother’s issues are a tiny part of a problem much bigger than we could have imagined. Arcane and ancient magics are at work that could, unless we are very careful, bring about the end of the world. . .
Previously Reviewed: “Moon Called,” “Blood Bound,” “Iron Kissed,” “Bone Crossed,” “Silver Borne,” “River Marked,” “Frost Burned,”and “Night Broken” , “Fire Touched” , “Silence Fallen”, “Storm Cursed”, “Smoke Bitten” and “Soul Taken”
Review: Man, every time I put together a review for the next Mercy Thompson book, I look at that “previously reviewed” section and am kind of blown away by just how many books I’ve read in this series! There have been highs and lows, though I’ve been happy with the last several books. Let’s see where this one falls on the spectrum!
So, to answer that question right off the bat: this was a fairly middling entry into the series. It wasn’t my favorite, but it was by no means my least favorite either. To start with the good, however, I was happy to see that this book focused strongly on Mercy and Adam. Their relationship is really the main factor for my continued interest in this series, so I was overjoyed when I realized the plot was maneuvering them into a situation where they would be largely alone. Or, at the very least, away from all of the greater cast of characters we’re familiar with. Don’t get me wrong, I like a lot of these side characters. But more and more, as the cast has increased, so much of each book becomes devoted to catching up with them all that our main characters seem to fall to the side. So here, with Mercy and Adam off on a mission into rural Montana where they are immediately stranded in a massive blizzard? *chef’s kiss* And, as usual, both of these characters are excellent in their own right, and I enjoyed getting to spend so much time with just them.
For the most part, I also liked the primary mystery at the heart of the story. There were some interesting new uses of magic and a new group of magical beings, essentially. There were some interesting tie-ins to mythology and folklore throughout. I was particularly interested in following the repercussions from the events of the previous book with the damage that was done to Mercy and her magic. And, while it was a bit convoluted, I did think this aspect of the story was managed well.
And that convolution was one of the problems I had with the book. Thinking back to review this book, I felt that it was both overly complicated and also, at the same time, very little seemed to happen. Much of the plot, especially in the final quarter of the book was simply explaining how everything got to be where it was, who manipulated the situation how, etc. But as far as actual actions, there was little to be found. We had maybe one or two action scenes, and then much of the rest of it was a variety of scenes with characters meeting new characters and compiling facts. And then in the very last few chapters, the characters essentially sit around and explain how it all worked, and that’s the climax of the book.
Also, while Mercy had the majority of chapters, with Adam coming in second, as would be expected with a plot that so heavily focused on these two, there were also random chapters from various other characters sprinkled throughout. And almost all of these were very strange. There was nothing wrong with any of these chapters, necessarily, but they all very much read like the sort of “bonus content” that you’d see added on to the end of a special edition of the book. In that, none of them were necessary to the plot of this book, all of them were from characters who were largely disconnected from the story, and they each focused on themes and interactions that, while amusing on their own, served no larger point in the overall plot. They were like brief, little snippets into random side characters’ lives. I honestly began wondering if the author wrote out the book, realized it was incredibly short, and then simply padded it with these random-feeling chapters. It was odd. And like I said, I’d have no problem reading these chapters as bonus content, as some of them were solidly entertaining on their own basis, but they also served no purpose to this story and, at times, only broke up the plotting and pacing of the main narrative.
So there you go. I liked the heavy focus on Mercy and Adam, particularly Mercy’s ongoing struggles after the events of the last book. But the plot itself is very thin and it felt like the author was forced to pad things out with random chapters and interactions that felt largely irrelevant. Long time fans of the series will want to check it out for the progression of our main characters’ storyline, but on its own merits, this one was a bit weaker than others.
Rating 7: While I loved the heavy focus on Mercy and Adam and their relationship, the actual plot and mystery of this story was on the weaker side.
Reader’s Advisory:
“Winter Lost ” can be found on this Goodreads list: Musical Instrument on the Cover.
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