Frost Burned
Patricia Briggs
Mercy and Adam tangle with US politics
In this installment of Patricia Briggs's Mercy Thompson series Mercy and Adam Hauptman, the alpha of the Columbia Basin Werewolf Pack, are living together as husband and wife. Adam comes with a stepdaughter, Jesse. Jesse and Mercy were already good friends before the marriage, and when the story begins they are happily Christmas shopping together, until, with a shock, Mercy loses her connection to Adam. Normally, as his mate and a member of his pack, Mercy can feel Adam's presence and even communicate with him.
It transpires that Adam and almost every member of the pack have been kidnapped. They have been kidnapped by rogue members of a government agency, CNTRP (Combined Nonhuman and Transhuman Relations Provisors, pronounced "cantrip"). This agency was formed for the purposes of Fay-human relations when the Fay came out of hiding, and its remit was extended to Werewolves when they also came out.
Adam, however, is a star. He was one of the first out-and-proud werewolves, advises the US government on security, and is the media's first choice for a werewolf when they want to interview one. Darting him and kidnapping him, along with the rest of his pack, is not something that ought to happen, or is even legal.
Thing is, though, many people fear Werewolves and Fay. Why? C'mon man, have you met humans? There's a political agenda behind this action, and, it transpires, more than that.
I should mention, by the way, that Frost Burned was published 5-Mar-2013. If you're thinking that this all sounds sort of relevant to current (22-oct-2026) US politics, then you have to chalk that up to luck or extraordinary foresight. on Briggs's part, or maybe you're just imagining it.
This is the first novel in the series that really places nonhumans in a US political environment, although Iron Kissed did hint at some of this. It is also the first novel where we see Mercy really functioning as a member of the Columbia Basin Werewolf pack. That will be a theme going forward.