NB: I received a promotional copy of this book from the Goodreads First Reads program, but it has not affected the content of my review.
I’d been wanting to try this series for a while now, for a bunch of reasons: the author is local (books aren’t often set in places I know and recognize, and it’s exciting!), a bunch of people whose opinions I respect love it, and after finally finishing the Dresden Files last year, I was in need of another long urban fantasy series with a smart, sassy-mouthed hero. In a bit of a weird coincidence, about a week after I finally broke down and bought myself a copy, I won my first Goodreads giveaway in almost three years. First, I was very excited. Then I was a bit shouty, because dammit, I just paid $9 for that same book!
Anyway, no matter how I got a copy, I very much enjoyed the book.
Hounded, the first book of a projected nine in the Iron Druid Chronicles, follows 2,100 year old Atticus O’Sullivan (real name Siodhachan O Suileabhain). Atticus is the last of his kind, an honest to blog druid from the old country, and one who has known gods and goddesses personally. Now he’s hiding out in the deserts of Arizona, running an occult bookshop, with only his enchanted Irish Wolfhound, Oberon, knowing who he really is. The plot of the book is pretty standard urban fantasy, really. Monsters and gods and witches and such are real, living in hiding amongst humans. There’s a lot of action and sassiness, and Hearne adds in one secondary character in particular who it looks like is going to stick around permanently, and I pretty much loved her right away. The book was a bit shaky in parts, but I was expecting that with a first novel, and all told, knowing how these kinds of series can evolve over multiple books, it’s a very promising start. My main evidence for this is my initial apathy/near dislike of the Dresden Files, which has since morphed into extreme love. (And I liked this first book much, much more than I liked Storm Front.)
I had to force myself not to run out and get the next couple of books in the series, and that’s evidence enough of my liking for it. I have way too many books I still want to read this year, so the rest of these puppies will have to wait until 2015. I shall anticipate doing so. (Anticipation is delicious.)