Hounded: The Iron Druid Chronicles
Kevin Hearne
Del Ray
2011


Product Description-Atticus O’Sullivan, last of the Druids, lives peacefully in Arizona, running an occult bookshop and shape-shifting in his spare time to hunt with his Irish wolfhound. His neighbors and customers think that this handsome, tattooed Irish dude is about twenty-one years old—when in actuality, he’s twenty-one centuries old. Not to mention: He draws his power from the earth, possesses a sharp wit, and wields an even sharper magical sword known as Fragarach, the Answerer.

Unfortunately, a very angry Celtic god wants that sword, and he’s hounded Atticus for centuries. Now the determined deity has tracked him down, and Atticus will need all his power—plus the help of a seductive goddess of death, his vampire and werewolf team of attorneys, a sexy bartender possessed by a Hindu witch, and some good old-fashioned luck of the Irish—to kick some Celtic arse and deliver himself from evil.

I really loved this first book of a back-to-back trilogy-it was more fun than I've had for a long time! Atticus is a great character, one who has seen it all in his twenty-one centuries of life, yet manages to keep himself young in body through his magic, and young in mind through total immersion in pop culture. He is the last of the Druids and plans to keep on living despite being on the hit list of several fae baddies, primarily Aenghus Og, the Celtic God of Love. The book opens with an ambush by fae hit men and the action never stops. Along the way we meet the Morrigan, Bridget and many others in the Celtic pantheon.

While Atticus is a strong character, the supporting cast is as well drawn and fascinating as he is. Especially his Irish Wolf Hound, Oberon, with whom he has a speaking mind bond. The exhanges between hound and master are not only humorous, but endearing. Any dog lover would enjoy the relationship, and wish for a bond like it. Full of laughs and action, this is a feast for the urban fantasy lover, despite what I saw as a couple of small holes in the plot. The best part is that the next two books are coming soon!


Rating-4 1/2 Druid Staffs