Hounded by Kevin Hearne

Hounded (The Iron Druid Chronicles, #1)

by Kevin Hearne

The first novel in the New York Times bestselling Iron Druid Chronicles—the hilarious, action-packed tales of a two-thousand-year-old Druid pursued by ancient gods in the modern world

“A page-turning and often laugh-out-loud-funny caper through a mix of the modern and the mythic.”—Ari Marmell, author of The Warlord’s Legacy

Atticus O’Sullivan is the last of the ancient druids. He has been on the run for more than two thousand years and he’s tired of it. The Irish gods who want to kill him are after an enchanted sword he stole in a first-century battle, and when they find him managing an occult bookshop in Tempe, Arizona, Atticus doesn’t want to uproot his life again. He just wants everything to end one way or another, but preferably the way in which he can continue to enjoy fish and chips.

He does have some small hope of survival: The Morrigan, the Irish Chooser of the Slain, is on his side, and so is Brighid, First Among the Fae. His lawyer is literally a bloodsucking vampire, and he has a loyal Irish wolfhound with opinions about poodles.

But he’s facing down some mighty enemies: Aenghus Óg, a vengeful Irish god, plus a coven of witches and even the local police. On top of all that, Aenghus has a direct line to the firepower of hell. Atticus will need all the luck of the Irish and more if he’s going to stay alive.

Don’t miss any of The Iron Druid Chronicles:
HOUNDED | HEXED | HAMMERED | TRICKED | TRAPPED | HUNTED | SHATTERED | STAKED | SCOURGED | BESIEGED

Reviewed by Linda on

5 of 5 stars

Share
This review was originally posted on (un)Conventional Bookviews
Hounded was a fantastic story, with really well done mythology, character development, action, and plot!


Story:


I did a buddy listen of Hounded with Carole @ Carole's Random Life. We both agreed that Oberon was our favorite character. The overall story really appealed to me, because it had a druid main character, Atticus. And, as I said to Carole at one point, it was refreshing to have a male protagonist in adult Urban Fantasy. I know there are others, but it's been a while since I've read or listened to one.

Hounded starts off with showing the readers what this universe is like, there are gods - from all pantheons - fae, vampires, shifters, witches, and of course out druid. Plus, it was clear from the very beginning that someone was after Atticus. Or, at least something Atticus had in his possession. And this someone would stop at nothing - scheming, lying, taking too much power from the earth, consorting with demons. And through it all, Atticus and Oberon did the best they could to be alive tomorrow.

Characters:


Atticus is a very old druid, he looks like he's only twenty-one, and he's very strong. One of the things I enjoyed the most about him was his patience. Some of the spells he's worked on to protect himself took over seven hundred years to accomplish.

Oberon is Atticus' Irish wolf hound. And he can speak to Atticus mind to mind. And I just loved how Luke Daniels dealt with Oberon's thoughts and hilarities.

Leif is Atticus' vampire / viking lawyer, and I loved him. He had the stiff way of vampires I expected, and at the same time, he was very funny.

There are several other characters who are important to the story, but the two I think I really have to mention are Mrs. MacDonagh who is Atticus' elderly neighbor, and Granuale, a bartender at Atticus' fave bar.

Writing style :


The flow was really good, and the story unfolds in first person point of view from Atticus' perspective. There are some great dialogues and one-liners, and I was immersed from start to finish.

Narration :


Luke Daniels made this whole universe and all its characters come alive. Oberon sounded like I think my dogs would sound if they could talk. And I found that he did good voices all around. I am ready for book 2. Right now.

Feels :


Hounded was an exciting story to listen to. There's a lot of action, so I almost had to hold my breath at times.

Last modified on

Reading updates

  • Started reading
  • 18 April, 2018: Finished reading
  • 18 April, 2018: Reviewed