Bone Crossed (Mercy Thompson, Book 4) by Patricia Briggs

I was thrilled when I found out this series was breaking out into hardcover. Not thrilled about the expense, but happy her work has spread so far as to deserve the honor.

Mercy Thompson, coyote shapeshifter and mechanic, is still recovering mentally and physically from the brutal rape she sustained in book 3, Iron Kissed. Local Were Alpha Adam has declared Mercy his mate and she wants to be his mate, but her spirit is still recovering from her brutal attack.

So when an old college friend appears on Mercy's doorstep asking for help with a ghost, Mercy feels the space may do her some good. It will give her time to think, even if she isn't a ghost buster. When Mercy meets up with the ghost though, something isn't right. And the local Vampire Master showing up the moment Mercy does seems too coincidental.

Briggs has set the bar for urban fantasy in my opinion. She has taken leaps and bounds into territory some fear. She does it with wit, humor, and sensitivity. I absolutely love this series and just wish Briggs wrote faster.