Hounded

The Iron Druid Chronicles, Book 1

By: Kevin Hearne

Narrated by: Luke Daniels

Length: 8 hrs and 6 mins

Publisher's summary

The first novel in the Iron Druid Chronicles - introducing a cool, new, funny urban fantasy hero

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 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.

Don’t miss any of Kevin Hearne’s phenomenal Iron Druid Chronicles novels:
Hounded | Hexed | Hammered | Tricked | Trapped | Hunted | Shattered | Staked

©2011 by Kevin Hearne. (P)2011 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved.

Critic reviews

"Hearne, a self-professed comic-book nerd, has turned his love of awesome dudes whacking mightily at evil villains into a superb urban fantasy debut.” (Publishers Weekly)

“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)

“Kevin Hearne breathes new life into old myths, creating a world both eerily familiar and startlingly original.” (Nicole Peeler, author of Tempest Rising)

Love Fantasy set in current times?

Where does Hounded rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Hounded is one of hte better fantasy books I have read. Its got a great story, great characters, good humor and a world that works quite well.

Which character – as performed by Luke Daniels – was your favorite?

Oberon is just awesome. He is the comic relief of the first two books and adds a great deal to the book. The writer does a good job of talking and acting in dog think. Makes it even funnier.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

“She's kind of like a Mary Poppins just before she turns to the dark side of the Force," Oberon said. He was still behind the counter, but he had a good lok at her as she exited. "Let go of your anger, Malina! There's still good in you! The Emperor hasn't driven it from you fully!”

Any additional comments?

Fun book, but if you would not do well with a book that is less than respectful towards gods of well about every religion, including Christianity, it may not be for you. The book is wildly entertaining and the characters are awesome, but the main character is a Druid from the Celts. He comes with all the baggage that a person who went through christian and roman persecution for a few hundred years would have. Its well done but it does not have much, if any reverence for deity and that may offend some readers.

amazing

this book (also the person reading it) does a phenomenal job of keeping serious and comedy mixed together in a somewhat historical peice. i lived it

If only it wasn't so short!

If you could sum up Hounded in three words, what would they be?

Short mythological fun

What was one of the most memorable moments of Hounded?

Oberon and his obsessions.

Have you listened to any of Luke Daniels’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No I have not but he does such a GREAT job in this book.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes

Any additional comments?

The single basic concept inherent in this series of books, that all the

Great effort

I love Druid stories and this is an exceptional piece. I look forward to the rest of the series!!

Good enough to buy the next in series if on sale

Some other reviewers noted he's not as intelligent and deep as you'd expect a 2000+ year old being. That said, it was entertaining enough to keep me through the whole book. While I won't add the series to my wish list or spend a credit on the next one, I would pick it up if it's on sale for ~ <$5.

Very entertaining and great characters!

What made the experience of listening to Hounded the most enjoyable?

This was a good story with good narration that helped to bring it to life

Who was your favorite character and why?

Atticus is a really good character. He is very likeable. Smart, funny and fair to everyone.

Have you listened to any of Luke Daniels’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No, this is my first but I liked him very much.

Any additional comments?

I liked this book a lot and bought the next two books in the series.

A very good book once you get use to the humor

Would you consider the audio edition of Hounded to be better than the print version?

I have always enjoyed audio over printed, but I have not read the printed version

Who was your favorite character and why?

Oberon the dog was my favorite character, his "thoughts" were funny.

Which character – as performed by Luke Daniels – was your favorite?

Again the dog was my favorite but all the voices where very good

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes, most definitely and I did in 2 sittings

Any additional comments?

Like the tile said, the humor is a bit quirky and the plethora of God's names and the like made me weary at first but I enjoyed it once I got use to the humor.

Modern Tales of Ancient Gods

An enjoyable fantasy... Kind of reminded of Jim Butcher's wizard novels.
A druid hides in Tempe, running an occult bookstore, apothecary and tea counter, out smarting his would-be assassins as he works with werewolves, vampires, Gods and Goddesses to figure out how to survive an attack by one of the most powerful Gods in his pantheon.

Enjoyable listen

While not to the level of the Jim Butcher, it is still a great diversion. Will be interesting to see if the world he has created develops into more.

Clever, interesting and engaging - a great listen!

I listen to a lot of audio books and have found this series (am currently finishing up the third book) to be highly entertaining. The writing is both precise and 'compact' in that there are not a lot of wasted words - every sentence is descriptive and moves the story forward. The main character is interesting, intelligent, witty and very current. Plus, Oberon (his dog) is my new favorite literary character!
I highly recommend all three (if you like this sort of genre).