Title: Hunting Ground

Author: Patricia Briggs

Genre: Urban Fantasy

Publisher: Ace (US)/Orbit (UK)
Publication Date: August 2009 (US)/October 2009 (UK)
Paperback: 304 pages

Stand alone or series: The second full length novel in the Alpha & Omega series, following last year’s release of Cry Wolf, though it’s really the third entry in the series proper (the first story is a novella titled “Alpha and Omega” in the On the Prowl anthology).

Why did I read this book: It’s no surprise I adore Patricia Briggs. I’m a huge fan girl and have been since discovering her fantasy novels in middle school. Then, I discovered her new Urban Fantasy series about a coyote shapeshifter VW mechanic named Mercy, and I was hooked. And last year, I read and loved Cry Wolf, got to interview the lovely Patty Briggs in person, and…well, do you really need any more? Long story short, I was chomping at the bit to get my paws on Hunting Ground.

Summary: (from amazon.com)
Mated to werewolf Charles Cornick, the son – and enforcer – of the leader of the North American werewolves, Anna Latham now knows how dangerous being a werewolf is, especially when a werewolf opposes Charles and his father is struck down. Charles’s reputation makes him the prime suspect, and the penalty for the crime is execution. Now Anna and Charles must combine their talents to hunt down the real killer – or Charles will take the fall.

Review:

The stage is set, and the werewolves of North America are ready to come out of the supernatural closet. Bran, the Marrok, has decided that it is time to formally reveal their existence to the world just as the fae have done before them, but he wants to maintain more control over the situation than the Gray Lords managed. Thus, Bran calls a preliminary conference of the most powerful, important werewolves in the world to meet in Seattle, so that he can allay their concerns and fears, for revealing the existence of werewolves in North America means they will be “outed” everywhere. But, put a bunch of dominant Alpha wolves in a room together, and it’s a recipe for disaster. At least, that’s what Charles, Bran’s son and second in command, tells his father. Fully healed from his trying silver injuries in “Alpha and Omega” and Cry Wolf, Charles is sent to Seattle on his father’s behalf, bringing his new wife and mate, Anna – who also happens to be an extremely rare Omega wolf. With a terrifyingly powerful Gray Lord named Dana Shea (from the Daoine Sidhe) to referee the negotiations, and powerful wolves like Jean Chastel (the maneating Beast of Gevaudan) anxious to cause as much trouble and bloodshed as possible, Charles and Anna have their work cut out for them. And when kidnapping attempts and deaths occur, the stakes are dramatically raised.

While I thoroughly enjoyed “Alpha and Omega” and Cry Wolf, this spinoff series still was clearly second-bill to the Mercy Thompson books in my mind. Much more relationship-driven than Mercy’s series, the Alpha and Omega books were nice and good, but decidedly auxiliary…

Hunting Ground managed to change all that. I still love Mercy first, but with this second novel Alpha and Omega has proven its mettle as a strong standalone series in its own right.

Cry Wolf felt a lot more like a paranormal romance type novel when I first read it – decidedly less-plot heavy and more concentrated on the mate bond between the terrifyingly powerful Charles and the almost-broken Anna. Both characters had a lot of baggage, and struggled to get to know each other after their wolves had selected them as mates. In Hunting Ground, the feeling-out period is over and these two characters have grown much more comfortable and trusting of each other. I have to applaud Ms. Briggs for her ability to move the relationship forward, but still keep it in the realm of the realistic – even though Charles and Anna are mated and married, they are still strangers to each other, learning what the other’s signals are, what their fears and needs are, etc. Charles is constantly thinking about how he must be careful not to stifle Anna’s freedom, nor can he be too gruff with her lest he scares her off; Anna simultaneously tries to show Charles that she is not made of glass, that she can stand up for herself, and that she can bear some of his own emotional burden. Both characters are a lot tougher than they were in Cry Wolf, but are still fragile in the way that new relationships are. It’s a very realistic, touching thing to read – Ms. Briggs is unparalleled when it comes to writing these complicated, tentative and yet passionate relationships. The bond between a wolf and its mate is a very complicated thing that we see in the Mercy books, but it’s examined much more in depth in the Alpha and Omega books with these two protagonists. I was also thrilled to see two characters from “Seeing Eye,” the novella by Ms. Briggs in this year’s Strange Brew anthology, make an appearance as secondary characters in this novel. Moira, a scarred, blind white witch who is powerful beyond belief, and Tom, an Emerald City wolf, have been mated after their adventure together in the novella and befriend Anna and Charles here.

But even more than just the characters, Hunting Ground bests its predecessors by virtue of its storytelling. In this second novel in the series, Ms. Briggs is back to her trademark style with a tight, fast paced, impeccably written plot. Charles and Anna as growing characters and their relationship is the heart of these books, but Hunting Ground has so much more, such as the mystery of who is behind the murders and for what reason and the intoxicating power politics of dominance in the world of the wolves. The latter, especially, is fascinating to me – and it’s something that the Mercy books could never really delve into because narrator Mercy is inherently an outsider, as a walker and coyote. In Hunting Ground we learn even more about what it means to be an Alpha wolf and especially what it means to be an Omega. Anna totally, completely rocks. She may be timid because of her time in Chicago with her brutal first pack, but she is anything but weak. As she tells a new wolf she meets in Seattle, Omegas are Alphas – but they’re incredibly zen.

As for the overall mystery, well, for fear of spoilers I won’t say much other than it is fabulously written. There’s an excellent mythological twist that underlies the novel that Ms. Briggs carries out flawlessly. One thing I love about her writing is her ability to tell a story simply, without expanding into unnecessary melodrama or tedious extra pages to protract the novel, and Hunting Ground is no exception.

I loved this book. Though Mercy still holds first place in my heart, Anna and Charles have carved out a niche of their own. Highly recommended.

Notable Quotes/Parts: It’s the little things that I love about Ms. Briggs’ writing; her ability to make simplicity beautiful. For example:

His voice, when he spoke, was a lot more powerful than his frail body.

“I’m gonna sing something for you,” he told their audience — and everyone in the room looked up from their meals. It was that kind of a voice. He paused, milking it. “You’ll have to forgive me if I don’t dance anymore.” She waited until the laughter he’d invited died away before she began.

Usually, when she first played a piece with someone she didn’t know, especially if the piece was one she knew well, it was a mad scramble to make her version fit with the person’s perception of how the song should feel. But except for the very beginning, it was magic.[...]The old man’s voice was just right. It, the beaten-up piano, and Anna’s sweet self all combined in one of those rare moments when performance and music blended to make something more.[...]The old man took Anna’s hand and made her take another bow as well. he kissed her hand, then let his grandson escort him back to his table in triumph. His family rose around him, fussing and loving as they ought, while he sat as a king and took his due.

Anna pulled the protective cover over the keys and looked up and saw Charles. She hesitated, and it made his heart hurt that he’d made her afraid of him. But she lifted her chin, her eyes still full of the music, and strolled up to him.

“Thank you,” he told her, before she could say anything. He wasn’t sure if he was thanking her for leaving the room when he’d asked, for staying in the restaurant instead of leaving him, or for the music — which had reminded him that this whole thing wasn’t just about the werewolves.

It was about the humans they shared the country with, too.

You can read a full excerpt of chapters 1 & 2 online at the author’s website HERE.

Additional Thoughts: Based on the positive reaction to Mercy Thompson: Homecoming, Alpha and Omega: Cry Wolf is also being made into a comic adaptation from the Dabel Brothers (who’ve also done the comic adaptations of Jim Butcher’s Harry Dresden series) this summer.

I’m not crazy about the art – Anna looks just like the crappy comic version of Anita Blake:

No? I’ll still check out an issue though.

Verdict: Much stronger than Cry Wolf, Hunting Ground is Patricia Briggs at her best. Charles and Anna’s touching story keeps getting better and better, and I cannot wait for their next book. Essential for any Briggs fan.

Rating: 8 Excellent

Reading Next: Forest Born by Shannon Hale

Since this is a pretty big event, we are bringing you the interview in two parts. Continuing from where we left off yesterday, we give you the conclusion of our interview with Patricia Briggs!

Remember, we are also giving away a copy of Bone Crossed–details follow at the end of the post.

But now, back to the interview!

The wonderful Patty Briggs!

Thea: There’s also an overwhelming response to Bran, from Cry Wolf because he’s so powerful, and are we ever going to explore his relationship with Leah?

Patty: Absolutely. It’s really fascinating, that relationship. It’s kind of a lonely and an unhappy one, but one that he chose on purpose because it was unhappy. So it’s an interesting mindset to play with. I don’t know that I would do anything about it, we’d have to see how the story works and what I want to do with it. I think Leah in many ways is a tragic heroine but she also has a tragic flaw and causes her own problems. Bran really does care about her, and he doesn’t want to. So…yeah there’s a lot of potential in there.

Thea: The Alpha and Omega books versus the Mercy Thompson books, they seem much more romantic and relationship driven. Was that intentional?

Patty: Yes, that was on purpose. I actually envisioned it almost as a paranormal romance, but it’s not quite. It’s still Urban Fantasy, but it is much more relationship driven. We’ll keep that going because this is an important part about who she is.

And, this will come about in the Mercy books too. She and Adam have a long way to go, I mean, they have a LOT of problems. They have a lot of things to work out, because just something so simple as are they going to get married? Both of them are really uncomfortable with a non-married relationship because of their own personal issues. Adam because he’s older, and in his generation, people didn’t just shack up. It’s a ‘you are who you grow up to be’ kind of thing. Mercy because she grew up basically as an orphan in the wind, people passed her back and forth. Very good people and she never had any abuse issues or anything, but she just kinda got passed from one family to another to another, so she has some issues with it too. But if she does, if she marries him, then she’ll move into the house with him and leave Sam by himself.

Thea: Oh, she can’t do that!

Patty: She can’t. And he can’t live with her and Adam! I have to work that out.

Thea: Would Mercy want to move in with Adam? She’s so independent and she loves her cars and her trailer…

Patty: And her job! She’s not gonna give up her job. Yeah, so its real relationship stuff.

Thea: Verrrry interesting. So, you’ve written a lot of traditional fantasy, do you have any plans to return to that genre?

Patty: I’m under contract for the unpublished sequel to Masques with Wolfsbane, so I still have to do that. I have a story for Ward in my Dragon Bones series that I’m gonna have to do. I have Raven stories, a sequel for When Demons Walk in my head–

Thea: OH that was my favorite! [an inner aside: *squeeee*]

Patty: Mine too, yeah for many years it was. Until I met Ward! Ward is so different and such a fun character to write. He’s so different on the outside from what he is on the inside, so that’s fun. I can’t see not writing traditional fantasy. I still read it, I still love it, but I have a lot of books under contract that have to get done, so it will be a few years probably.

Thea: Well, it’s good to look forward to! Also, they’re pulling out new covers for your traditional fantasy books, right?

Patty: Yeah, and in many ways I’ve been blessed by the good cover fairy from the beginning. I’m really kinda sad to see the old covers go.

Thea: Oh I loved them, with the girl hanging off the pole dramatically–

Patty: [laughs] The girl cutting off her leg. My agent always joked, “that’s the one with the girl that’s gonna cut off her leg, right?” [laughs] But they are dated, and the new covers are great.

Thea: Plus, new readers will discover them too. So, how about you as an author. Who are some of your influences?

Patty: All over the board! When I die, if I keep getting better and I work really hard at my craft, I want to write as well as Lu [Lois McMaster] Bujold. Jayne Ann Krentz–I read her for conversations because her conversations just sparkle. When my people are talking and bogged down, I go and I read her work and try to see, “How do you do that?” and get that rhythm. I read everybody and most of them I like. I read cross genres, I read romance a lot, I read westerns. Anything by Louis L’Amour I’ve probably read thirty times because he’s a terrific storyteller! He tells the same story over and over again, and it just wouldn’t matter. The books had terrible typos, you know he would get up from fights twice or shred his shirt again, or whatever but it doesn’t matter. He was such a good storyteller, you didn’t care.

For mysteries, Dick Francis is a great favorite of mine. I love his mysteries. Anything with a character focus. I don’t read as much literature as I used to before I had kids, which was 20 years ago. With literary fiction, I need quiet and contemplative space, and I don’t seem to have that! [laughs]

One thing I really like, one of the perks is getting to read books before they come out. Nalini Singh has a terrific book coming out in March, Angels’ Blood. And Ann Aguirre has one coming out too with Blue Diablo and she’s a terrific writer.

Probably the biggest influences are the early people I read. Andre Norton, she was my first science fiction and first fantasy book and she made sure I made it through adolescence. She and Simon and Garfunkel. [laughs] Also, and things like The Black Stallion. Here’s this dangerous beast, and he loves me. He’ll take care of me, because he loves me. It doesn’t mean he’s not a dangerous beast. And to me that’s the essence of what a vampire is in the modern urban fantasy. Or a werewolf for that matter. Here’s something powerful and destructive, but because he loves then he can tone it down–even if it’s just for one person. It’s a very empowering thought; it’s a very empowering thing.

Then there’s Black Beauty, you know, do kind unto others and take care of the people around you.

So as you can see, it’s all over the place. [laughs]

Thea: If you were stranded on a desert island, what five books would you bring with you?

Patty: Oh that’s awful! [laughs] The Complete Works of Shakespeare just because it’s that big. The Vor Game by Lois McMaster Bujold, which is just awesome and I can read it over and over again. Laurell K. Hamilton, probably Bloody Bones [...] anywhere from book 3 to Obsidian Butterfly. Anything by Jim Butcher, it doesn’t matter, I can read it to pieces. And then…I don’t know. Maybe an encyclopedia.

Thea: Any letter? “X”?

Patty: Yes! I would know more about the letter X than anybody else.

Thea: We Book Smugglers are faced with constant threats and criticisms from our dear significant others concerning the sheer volume of books we purchase and read—hence, we have resorted to ‘smuggling books’ home to escape any scrutinizing eyes. Have you ever had to resort to smuggling books?

Patty: No, because my husband is just a doll. After this last move, he bought me a Sony E-book reader because he said he’s really tired of moving boxes of books. [laughs] But no, he’s always been terrifically supportive. When I said, “No I can’t get a real job honey I have to write my books,” and making much less than I would working at Wal-Mart, he said that’s just fine, that’s ok. He’s just the world’s best guy.

Thea: And that’s about it! Thanks so much again for everything, Patty. It was a blast!

Me again, with the awesome “Mercy’s Garage” patch! I’m still recovering from the awesomeness that is Patricia Briggs.

Patricia Briggs lives in Washington with her husband, children and six horses. For more information about Patty and her books, check out her website: www.hurog.com.

———-

And now for the Giveaway!

We are offering one more copy of Bone Crossed for a lucky winner. The contest is open to everyone, and will run until Tuesday at Midnight PST. To enter, leave a comment! We’ll announce the lucky winner on Wednesday.

Good luck!

Patricia (“Patty”) Briggs is a writer that needs no introduction. Author of traditional fantasy novels, Patty turned her skills to the growing Urban Fantasy genre back in 2006 and started a little series about a shapeshifting mechanic named Mercy. Three years and three NY Times bestsellers later, Mercy has become one of the most beloved heroines in the genre today.

I have been a reader of Patty’s books since middle school (my favorite? When Demons Walk), and absolutely love her Mercy Thompson books–they’re in my top 3 favorite Urban Fantasy series’ of all time. Bone Crossed was one of the most highly anticipated books of 2009 from SFF and romance readers alike, and in my opinion was the best book of the series so far! Needless to say, I’m a huge fan. When offered the opportunity to meet up with Patty and interview her–IN PERSON!–I pretty much had a massive coronary. We’ve never interviewed anyone face to face (the anonymity of the internet is so alluring!), but we would not let inexperience stop us intrepid Book Smugglers! Of course, I quickly accepted (with encouragement from the oh-so-cheeky Ana) and promptly began freaking out about what questions to ask, what to wear (in honor of Mercy, I went with my pink wolf shirt), and the mechanics of conducting an in person interview without the safety net of a keyboard and monitor.

Me, with the *really* bright tie-dyed wolf shirt and kickass “Mercy’s Garage” patch from Patty!

This morning was the big day–and I’m proud to report that the interview was awesome. Patty is one cool, sweet, amazing woman, and I managed not to say anything too stupid or droolingly fangirly (I hope!). Not to mention the interview was incredibly informative. Want to know about Adam and Mercy’s relationship and where it might go? Will Sam find inner peace at last? Which preternatural creatures may star in the next Mercy book? How the Alpha and Omega books fit in with the Mercy timeline? We have these answers, and many, many more.

Since this is a pretty big event, we are bringing you the interview in two parts–Part I is below, and Part II will go up tomorrow. We’re also giving away another copy of Bone Crossed–details are below. Without further ado, I am proud to present you with our very first (and hopefully not the last) in person interview. Ladies and Gentlemen, we give you Patty Briggs!

Thea: First and foremost, thanks so much for taking the time to chat!

Bone Crossed is your newest novel and the fourth installment in your bestselling Mercedes Thompson series. Everyone loves your series, from fantasy fans to romance fans. When you began writing Moon Called (book 1), did you anticipate how successful and well loved this series would become?

Patty: I knew it was going to be bigger than the fantasy novels just because Urban Fantasy is doing better than standard fantasy was. I had no idea it was going to do this. I had a wonderful phone call that for years I had saved on my cell phone (but eventually my cell phone died); one of the head honchos at Penguin called me up and I wasn’t there to answer the phone, and she left me this wonderful message that basically said, “Wow! We’re really surprised you did that well!” [laughs] It was much more polite than that, and she didn’t mean it that way but that’s essentially what she said, and I thought, “Well thank you!” But truthfully no, we had no idea. I just got hit by the good publishing fairy.

Daniel Dos Santos did these awesome covers, aren’t they beautiful?

Thea: They are gorgeous, and really distinct. They don’t look like anything else out there.

Patty: Because the covers were so awesome, they bumped Moon Called up their list. (The way publishing works is they have a list of books that comes out every month, in order of how well the publisher expects the book to do–the first book is hardcover, if it’s not hardcover, then it gets the glittery stuff and advertising push and on down) When the team got a look at the sketch that Daniel did for Moon Called, they said “We need to put glittery stuff on this!” and pushed the book up to number one! Which is awesome. It got the glittery stuff and the media push, and it came out at a really good time, about two weeks before [Laurell K.] Hamilton’s Micah. And I think people looking for Micah early saw this on the shelf and picked it up and they liked it! And I think that’s what happened, and it was really cool. I’m very happy, it means I can write two books a year. And that’s really fun.

Thea: Bone Crossed is your first hardcover, and it’s a big jump! It’s very cool and must be exciting.

Patty: It scared me to death when they told me they were gonna do this in a hardcover, I thought, Oh I’m gonna lose so many readers. But it doesn’t seem like it! At the book signings, the hardcovers are easier to sell than the paperbacks!

It’s a beautiful book too. People say don’t judge a book by it’s cover, but I’m a reader, and I can tell you that a book with a beautiful cover is more fun to read. And if it’s a good book, that’s even better!

Thea: Definitely! I love that Urban Fantasy is getting this bigger push and we’re seeing more hardcovers. So, on to Mercy. I love Mercy, and she’s one of my favorite Urban Fantasy heroines because she is so level-headed and the way she knows how to stand up for herself without crossing the line into annoying bravado territory. Part of this stems from the fact that she is a Walker in a world surrounded by much bigger and badder creatures. Why did you decide to make Mercy an outsider as a walker as opposed to a werewolf, or some other paranormal creature with an arsenal of superpowers?

Patty: When I write I start with little things and then implications. I was under contract to write a paranormal Urban Fantasy with a female protagonist, with a complicated love life that involved werewolves and vampires. She herself didn’t have to be a werewolf or vampire, but she had to be a part of the supernatural community. And that’s what they gave me, because that’s what was doing well. My editor asked me if I could write a book like this, and I said, “YEAH! I’d love to!” My editor and I exchange reading lists, and she knew what I liked to read before she asked me. I like under-powered characters. As a writer they’re more fun, because it’s easier to get into danger and the risk is obviously much bigger, and they have to be smart to get out of it. They can’t just bully their way through, and it makes, for me, a much more interesting story.

So I thought: wolf…coyote. I thought, wow OK! And that automatically meant that she had to be Native American, because coyotes are a native species. Werewolves and vampires are European, well in my world they came over here, and in folklore they’re European. So I thought, OK, she’s a shapeshifter coyote. She’s Native American and that works because Native American mythology has tons of shapeshifters. That’s just a given, that the Native American world is much more cohesive than the European world. Europeans traditionally try to say or think they’re different from everything around them, and Native Americans say no we’re all the same, we’re all part of the same whole.

The mechanic part came in because we had two dead Opal GTs in the backyard that my husband was working on and we had VWs for years. We had this awesome guy who was running a VW repair shop who used to help us out all the time because we were too broke to pay him to fix the car. He’d sell us the parts at his cost and tell us how to fix the car. And when my husband ran into trouble, he could call up and he’d tell him what to do. I mean, these guys were just terrific, and very good people. And they had awesome stories, and we had some fun things going on. So, I thought, OK, she’s a Volkswagen mechanic, and everything else comes from that. What kind of person would do that, and you get…

Thea: Yeah, like in the first chapter she’s all grimy and she can never get the grease off her hands, her t-shirts are dirty, etc.

Patty: Yeah!

Thea: So, Mercy’s learning a little more about what it means to be a walker. In book 2, I think, she first sees a ghost and starts talking to her, which is actually abnormal, right?

Patty: Right, I try to make it clear that she always saw ghosts, and she thought everyone else did too. It’s not until a little bit later that she figures out, wait that’s weird!

Thea: Are we gonna meet another walker at some point?

Patty: Absolutely. She’s not unique–there are more walkers out there, they’re good at blending in, as she is. And they’re aware of her. They knew her father, and they’re aware of her, but they kinda want to see what she’s gonna do. And they’re not really organized, you know they’re pretty laid back and yeah she’s gonna run into one of them. I don’t know if it will be in the next book, which is, we have a title for it! SILVER BORNE–and I’m gonna deal a lot with Samuel in this one because I think he’s suffered enough. Of course he’s gonna suffer some more [laughs] but I think we’ll bring things straight in the next one.

Thea: Speaking of Samuel, let’s talk about the triangle. There was Adam and Sam and Mercy–something we’ve noticed on our blog is that most folks were rooting for Adam. But there was lots of love for Sam too! In Bone Crossed I kinda got the feeling that there was something still between Mercy and Sam, as she wondered if love would be enough for them. Is there ever gonna be backtracking that way?

Patty: No, I don’t think so. Mercy is pretty straightforward. You know it’s funny when you write, because really until I wrote Iron Kissed I REALLY didn’t know who she was gonna pick. But once she picked him, I thought “Oh yeah, that’s absolutely right”. She’s always kinda known that. She just didn’t want to say no to Samuel because she was afraid what would happen because he’s so fragile right now, and she knows it. And that was part of it. And also because bone deep she’s really still a little scared of Adam. Samuel she grew up with, and she knows him inside out and backwards–she thinks. She’s finding out things she didn’t know about, and who wouldn’t when you’re that old, you know he puts up a good front! But Adam is still a little bit of an unknown, and it’s like any relationship. That really happens, as you change the relationship you go “do I really know you as well as i think i do?” so there’s some of that too. But no, I’m not gonna backtrack on that. I think that Sam will find his. Maybe.

Thea: Or at least be happy?

Patty: Or at least he’ll find a happier place!

Thea: On that note, in Cry Wolf, we actually see Sam and he’s such a mess! I mean, I knew he was kind of damaged from the Mercy books, but I never saw how much of a mess he was and how scared everyone was for him. So that’s pretty cool with crossing over…

Patty: I have a great time doing this second series in the third person. I can tell you a lot more about Some of the things that are going on and I really enjoy it.

Thea: It definitely adds another layer of information that we wouldn’t ever see from Mercy’s perspective. Back to Bone Crossed for a second–there’s Stefan who comes back big in this book. Everyone loves Stefan and the vampires!

Patty: I love Stefan. He’s really fun to write too because he really is a very good person in a really horrible situation, and he’s been there for a long time. He really loves Marsilia, and he really believes in what she’s trying to do and he really loves her. And she really destroys him in this book.

Thea: Oh gosh, yeah.

Patty: It’s really horrible as a writer to go “YES!!!!” [laughs] But happy content people don’t make good stories, and they aren’t necessarily strong people either because they don’t have to be. I would like to be a happy content person and I would never want to star in a novel!

I really hate thousand year old critters that feel like they’re 20. Because I really think there’s a lot of stuff in there–and Marsilia and Stefan and Andre grew up in the renaissance in Italy, which was a scary place to be. There’s all sorts of these machinations going on, and I figured, they’re STILL going on, so that’s where that comes from.

Thea: So can we expect more from the vampires in the next book?

Patty: Next book I have an awful lot going on. I bring out lots of witches in the next book, and I do Samuel and werewolves and the fey. So the vampires take a second seat until the next book. That’s the good thing bout a series–there’s always a next book!

Thea: I love the fey too, hanging out with Zee and at the local bar, and in this book we meet Baba Yaga, and it’s really cool. I’m excited to see them again!

Patty: I love the opportunities the fey give me for cameos. And I can bring [Baba Yaga] back or not, because it’s ok.

Thea: So your universe has vampires, fey, ghosts, werewolves, walkers and witches. So they’re the next supernatural creature to take the stage in your next book?

Patty: Yeah, they’ve always been in the background, and I’ll showcase them in the next book. I’m still working on Hunting Ground (book 2 in the Alpha and Omega series), so this is all in the ether right now. I always reserve the right to change it if I have a much better idea or a better way to do it! [laughs]

Thea: Of course! Do you do any research for your characters and supernatural creatures?

Patty: I get this question a lot, and I really hate to say yes because research implies you sit down and work. I grew up with fairy tales and stories like this. My mother was the librarian at my elementary school, and I can’t remember not knowing fairy tales. My sister was four years older than I am, used to read them to us so we didn’t have to go to be earlier. My mom would say “Your lights!” And she’d say, “Patty couldn’t sleep so I’m reading her a fairy tale.” “Well ok!” [laughs] So, it’s something I’ve always done. I love fairy tales, I love folklore, I read Katharine Briggs’ Encyclopedia of Fairies for pleasure!

Thea: So, on to Hunting Ground, which is coming out this August. Will it cover Anna and Charles again?

Patty: Yeah, it will cover Anna and Charles again, and the other question I get a lot is will I ever catch up timelines? I really want to because it makes me crazy and I’m sure it makes readers crazy. But yeah, this one still takes place before Blood Bound. I couldn’t just let the wolves ‘coming out’ be offstage. So this book is about Bran bringing the werewolves out to public and they’re not happy about it. He invites them over to Seattle for a conference to discuss the matter–of course we know he’s not going to back down! But he’s gonna tell them what he’s planning to do and that kind of thing. Charles objects, and in the end, Charles and Anna get sent instead of having Bran. Charles is pretty concerned that something is gonna happen to Bran, he doesn’t know what, but something. Could Charles interrupt that? And I just had a great time!

Talking about research, Charles is a pilot and he had to take this little airplane hop over, and I had my husband read it and he said “Nope, that’s wrong!” So I talked to a small plane pilot, and we went out on a small plane to see how it’s done. We took a trip over to Seattle in January and looked around at seeing the sights and what good places there were to hold things…

Thea: Everything seems to happen in Seattle, pacific northwest, that’s where all the supernatural creatures are! [laughs] I need to go!

Patty: Actually there are, you need to see the Troll bridge. Type in “Troll Bridge Seattle” on the internet. But yeah, it makes sense from a standpoint being that some places just don’t have the facilities for a bunch of European werewolves, staying in rinky-dink hotels. And Bran doesn’t really want to bring them into his territory anyways, and Seattle is the nearest big town. Spokane’s not quite big enough. I have a short story coming in Strange Brew, which is a St. Martin’s anthology with Jim Butcher, about a witch and one of the wolves from the Emerald City pack, so that’s a little easter egg.

Thea: Oh how cool–I’ll keep an eye out. There’s also an overwhelming response to Bran, from Cry Wolf because he’s so powerful, and are we ever going to explore his relationship with Leah?

….TO BE CONTINUED TOMORROW!

Yes, I’m terrible, leaving you with this cliffhanger. You want to know about Bran? Or if wedding plans are in the cards for Mercy and Adam? Come back tomorrow for the conclusion of our interview with Patricia Briggs, where she talks more about Mercy, her fantasy novels, and her influences!

The fabulous Patty in our impromptu conference room!

Patricia Briggs lives in Washington with her husband, children and six horses. For more information about Patty and her books, check out her website: www.hurog.com.

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And now for the Giveaway!

We are offering one more copy of Bone Crossed for a lucky winner. The contest is open to everyone, and will run until Tuesday at Midnight PST. To enter, leave a comment either today or tomorrow! We’ll announce the lucky winner on Wednesday.

Good luck!