I'm not sure if I can comment on this, as I've only read the Thompson series once, but I don't think Briggs intends to trivialize rape, as she has had her Mercy protagonist dealing with it over several books. Because there are so many ways women and men deal with serious abuse of any kind, especially sexual, bringing that topic up with a character is probably not going to work for everyone (no matter how it is handled.)

I've re-read the A&O novella and CRY WOLF, and it's revealed that Anna doesn't remember a lot about her abuse, because her wolf protected her from most of it. When the wolf exerts itself to control its human, it can be powerful -- remember when the wolf silenced Charles at one point from saying something a human might have tried to use to shut down a topic (to attempt to spare all spoilers.) We also see several scenes over several books, both from Anna's POV and Charles's, where Anna's wolf is in charge, and she deals with the sexual aspect of the relationship. Anna is still inclined to freeze if someone grabs her wrist, for example, or if she feels a male, even Charles, becoming tense or repressing anger. Her mind was sheltered, but her body remembers. The men in both series are different in how they approach the struggle the women they love are dealing with, but both cannot make the type of aggressive, even playful moves they might otherwise occasionally choose.

We may not like how Briggs is handling it, but I don't think she means to toss it off.

I'll be interested to see how Dana strikes me, when re-reading HG. After I finished it, and from the elves in the Mercy Thompson series, I felt like for Briggs the elves are physical personifications of the elements, primal forces of emotion and nature. Sort of like the Greek gods were for their people. I'm curious about Ariana becoming a character. With the exception of the mechanic, his son, and a certain oak tree, the Fae world is definitely seen as mercurial and dangerous for humans. How Ariana will fit in to the werewolf view of the world -- and the walker view of the world -- will hopefully be good!

I think her take on Fae is very much stronger in the Mercy Thompson books, and I also think the aftermath of rape is handled much more realistically there. I remember Briggs as being quoted that because her villain was the way he was, he had to rape Mercy - and I agree. I do think she could have used another villain just as effectively, instead of an egotistic megalomaniac.

My best angst-filled drama urban fantasy heroine example (as a comparison to Mercy) is Kate Daniels in the Ilona Andrews series. There really is doom and gloom in her personal future preshadowed and she has suffered through all kinds of things, but she hasn't been raped yet.
For that matter none of the Ilona Andrews heroines have been raped in any of their books.

I would probably have more patience with the "female wolf took over, so she doesn't remember" bit, if she didn't have Anna casually thinking to herself something like "oh it was more than once, but I better not mention it, because he would go mental", when Charles relates her background to someone in Home Ground.

The overwhelming fear reaction when she first met the collected alphas in that book in that corporate office room worked very well for me. My personal impression still feels that the rape should have been more sensitively treated her, but it wasn't "tossed off", agreed.

Re: Ariana - I think Samuel should get his own one-off novel at least, or maybe another series ^^. And I so love the svartalfar, but I think he's also dangerous to humans when he wants ^^ - he's just got a soft spot for Mercy and his family.

Yes, agreed -- he's a tremendously dangerous Fae, but he's decided he likes Mercy. After all -- she loves metal as he does, and she is an outsider with odd Gifts in the paranormal world, as is he (at least he may be one of the last of his breed -- we can't know for sure.)

I could definitely see a book for Samuel, but I know from personal experience that you cannot force the back and side stories -- they won't ring true if you do that. The little bit I've seen suggests that the next Mercy book is primarily about Mercy & Adam, and Mercy's father's family that she knows little to nothing about. So, maybe Pat is giving Samuel's story time to settle.

If I were dealing with A&O, and had to deal with what is already set up, I think that I would have Anna's wolf slowly start leaking memories to Anna, as Anna feels more stable and comfortable with Charles and in her new pack. Bran will be patient, but he needs her whole, if she is to be as useful as he probably hopes. (OF course, if she never does anything else, pulling Bran back and saving Charles's bacon a few times is worth her entire existence.) Anna will have to slowly keep dealing with what happened to her, and its aftermath. It did steal her musical life, her children, her future -- it's got to be dealt with.

In fact, I would probably have a point where Boyd contacts Bran for permission to kill one of the wolves who raped her -- that even knowing the rules and being given a chance, he's still too unstable, too dangerous. Bran might bring the guy out to Montana to give him one more chance -- with both Anna and Charles having to deal with that.

But I don't know Pat Briggs personally and have no inside knowledge. That's just off the top of my head, having read the two novels and ON THE PROWL.

"And I so love the svartalfar, but I think he's also dangerous to humans when he wants ^^ - he's just got a soft spot for Mercy and his family."

Katharine wrote: "Yes, agreed -- he's a tremendously dangerous Fae, but he's decided he likes Mercy. After all -- she loves metal as he does, and she is an outsider with odd Gifts in the paranormal world, as is he ..."

A more personal focus on Adam and Mercy would be great (I did not like the months she spent in that Fae Hall in the last book), and whatever she'll give me with Samuel and his re-found lady love will be gratefully received ^^.

I'd love an A&O book structured on your idea in general lines, we can hope. It would make me feel much better about how the gangrapes were treated.

She's bound to put up an excerpt from RIVER MARKED soon! Although I think she's late on this one, embarrassing for the writer but sometimes it happens. (We hate it, we do....)

Well, it hasn't been ten years, and considering how popular her series are, I'm sure the fans will forgive her ;-)

Well, Harlan Ellison is never going to release that anthology. And I will do a sequel to KINDRED RITES as soon as I get Hidden Fires up. It's started -- I just had trouble getting the specifics down, and I was trying to sell it on spec.

It's at the last spec try. If this editor doesn't buy, I am seriously considering creating a subscription for it, or doing like Miller & Lee did for FLEDGLING, and posting sections as payments come in. Then printing a trade at the end, if no one buys the book before the finish. Depends on how spastic my agent is at the thought. I still need him, if I'm going to be a Big Name Author.... ;^)

Katharine wrote: "It's at the last spec try. If this editor doesn't buy, I am seriously considering creating a subscription for it, or doing like Miller & Lee did for FLEDGLING, and posting sections as payments come in. Then printing a trade at the end, if no one buys the book before the finish. Depends on how spastic my agent is at the thought. I still need him, if I'm going to be a Big Name Author.... ;^) "

Okay I actually have ananswer to that written down, but I'm having second thoughts in that I'm being my pessimistic, direct German self there. And I don't know your online self well enough yet to be sure if you want that.

So I'll only message it to you, if you give me permission ^^

Well, you can message, if you need to get it off your chest, so to speak. I'm pretty sure that you think that publishing did Allie wrong from the beginning, and are not sanguine about anyone picking up the series. Because this editor really liked the Allie books, I figure if there is a chance she can make money for her line with it, she'll try it.

Teen books are selling very well. There's no sex yet (and probably never, written on this level, although sensuality will arrive with maturity), but there's enough terror or threat of violence to keep a teen's attention.

But I realized recently that a lot of books haven't been started or written because I could not get someone to go spec with me on them. And I'm too old for that. I want to write what I want to write...so, I need to get that third book done. The market will determine if there's any books after that. Then I can do the new works I've been researching and looking forward to exploring!

Sent message! I'm sure every author needs to work with what the muse is telling them right now - I remember Robin McKinley regularly getting quite exasperated with all the people who are wishing for a follow-up to Sunshine.

I so hope it works out in the way you'd like it to. And if the third Allie book reads great as a stand-alone, maybe there will be demand for the prequels to be reissued.

I try to make all my books stand-alone. By the time I hit publishing, it was apparent that you might have the first book of a series go OOP before the last one came out. So that's the goal!

Ganbatte! ;-)

Sometimes I tell people I am "crossing toes" for them, since I should be writing with my fingers!

Alternatively you could press your thumb to your other fingers, since that allows you to type ^^ - except when you need to hit space, of course...
(although the German gesture actually involves enfolding the thumb by all the other fingers and pressing it, then showing it to the person you're wishing success for).

Here that might be seen as threatening, or very Italian and also threatening.... ;^) Like a cluster where the tips could be dipped in ink and make a flower on paper? Or lower on the fingers, like making a talking puppet that is momentarily silent?

I love learning slight cultural differences! They fascinate, and help me learn more about people I don't know! (Like argh, I have to find a birthday card to go with the cool food I'm taking somewhere and do I have time to do Early Voting first?) Midwest cultural -- bring food to party, bring a card for a friend who is not a gifting friend but is important and needs a card, plus do another useful thing on your way to said party. American! (Midwestern American, though I live in Texas...)

Like this basically:
http://www.adpic.de/data/picture/deta...

Yes, we do cards much less here in Germany. I remember being amazed at the culture of Christmas cards and their presentation in the family home when I was an au-pair in the UK.

We bring food to a party only when it is implicitly stated during the invitation, if someone says "I invite you to my party" that means all the food and drinks are provided by the host.

There was no requirement to bring food to this -- it was just her 60th BD, she's my doctor, and she knows a lot of cool people, some who have weird food requirements like me, so I wanted to bring something fun for her. I hope she got a bite -- I brought Pecan Chocolate "macaroons" (no coconut but made like macaroons with pecan meal) and they were excellent!

I did tend to bring something to a party I go to every other week -- not elaborate, but a sack of tangerines, or a bottle of wine. Last year the hostess told me I was not allowed to bring anything for a calendar year unless I was trying to get it eaten up! Since I had no money to bring stuff, I behaved. Have brought things a couple of times this year, but not crazed. My mother comes from Pennsylvania Dutch background, and you always bring food when you're a guest (sleeping over, yes, but I knew a lot of people got lazy and didn't bring stuff to this party, so I just kinda went overboard, there.)

The German side of my family tends to bring something small when sleeping over, too. Or if you haven't seen the people in quite a while.