Scourged (The Iron Druid Chronicles, #9)

by Kevin Hearne

[EBookObsessed]

Ragnarok is here. The battle is on as all the various Gods join forces with our favorite red-headed druid to protect Gaia from the destructive power of Loki and Hel. This is the final chapter of the Iron Druid Chronicles and I loved and hated every moment. *ugly cry*

When we pick up the first book of a new series, we both long for and dread that final book. We cannot wait to see how it all turns out. Yet to get that answer, we know we have to say good-bye to the characters we have grown to love. As a late-comer to the Iron Druid Chronicles, I had the pleasure of binging on this series and immersing myself for quite awhile in the world of the last living druid, Siodhachan “Atticus” O’Sullivan.

This 2,000 year old druid survived the purging of the druids by the Romans with stealth, his own creation of Immortali-Tea and it might have helped to have made a friend of the Morrigan, the Celtic Chooser of the Slain, who helped keep him safe. Atticus managed to duck the Romans since he was already hiding from the Celtic God of Love, Aenghus Óg. All for stealing his magical sword called Fragarach. This series begins when Aenghus Óg finally locates Atticus where he has been hiding in Tempe, Arizona for a decade. It was after this confrontation that Atticus decides he has had enough of hiding, but it was a decision that changed his life completely and unfortunately, tripped him into the path of many unhappy gods from just about every Pantheon. It seemed each time he extricated himself from a situation, he pissed off another god. In the various stories, Atticus has had to confront witch and vampires. He crosses the God Bacchus, thereby bringing the Olympians into the fracus, and that was just the beginning.

Hammered was a turning point in the series and Atticus’s destiny was forever changed when he snuck into Valhalla with Leif Helgarson and a few others to get vengence on that asshat, Thor. But when he climbs the world tree into Valhalla, Atticus finds the Norn waiting for him…and he might have had to kill them (accidently?) in order to keep his arrival a secret, except killing the Norn (who predicted Ragnarok), as well as a few other Norse gods who were prophesized to protect the world from Loki, has started the countdown and has also thrown the old prophecy out the window. The only reason Odin doesn’t kill Atticus is because Odin now needs him to fight with the Norse gods against Loki.

Not everyone hates Atticus, just the fae, and the Olymipians, and the Norse, and the vampires and…well, you get it. Along the way we have met Atticus’s trusty Irish wolfhound, Oberon and thanks again to Immortali-Tea, Oberon has been Atticus’s trusty companion for over thirty years and they have enjoyed story-telling, pop-culture and various meats and gravies through the years. They have even had a few mysteries to solve along the way.

Atticus also took on an apprentice after centuries of being the last druid and trained Granuaile McTiernan the way of the druid. She has become a warrior in her own right and has fought and learned by Atticus’s side against the growing dangers.

And as the master was once the student, we eventually see the return of Atticus’s Arch Druid, Eoghan O’Cinneide (now Owen Kennedy) who has much to learn about these modern times from his former student, and he too is training a new generation of druid.

Narrator Luke Daniels once again does another amazing job at presenting the story and bringing the characters to life. I have become as much a fan of his as author Kevin Hearne.

And no, I am not planning to discuss Scourged with you. This is the last book of the series and the final battle has begun. Fans of the IDC would not be happy if I gave away any details of this story. And if you haven’t tried The Iron Druid Chronicles, then pick up a copy of Hounded and email me when you catch up if you wish to discuss it.

I will tell you that we will see the return of many favorite characters from prior stories who will come and join the fight, some of whom we will lose and some we will not. And some who sacrifice themselves for the survival of the world. I loved it and I hated it. I laughed and I cried. And I will very much miss the stories of Atticus O’Sullivan and his faithful hound, Oberon.

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