So this book took me so long to read, and I have absolutely no idea why considering that I really liked this book. It takes place in modern day Arizona (a weird place but whatever) but has a lot of Celtic history embroidered throughout. I've been on an urban fantasy kick, putting historicals to the wayside and this was the perfect book to read during it. I didn't go into it with my usual speculations and actually did not try to guess what happens (which is a bit weird)

Atticus is great, somewhat gentlemanly but also with the knowledge of centuries past. While I feel he is a tad bit overpowered and somewhat perfect it does not bother me as much as I feel like it should. He constantly gets played by the other characters in the book, but it sort of ends up okay in the end. I wish I would have read this back when it first came out as it would have added to the suspense of finale, but it did not take away from the conclusion. I do wonder what the second book would be about, especially if we take into consideration how this book ends. I know there are a couple of minor loose ends that the book didn't wrap up, but I can't see what the overall story would be, given that there are 8 books currently in the series it has to be big. ( )

Sometimes I come across a novel that should be perfect for me - an interesting premise, a genre I typically love, potentially fascinating characters… it should have the makings of a real winner. And then all that amazing promise fizzles with every turn of the page.

Unfortunately, that’s what happened with HOUNDED. I should have loved it. I wanted to love it. Instead, I was at times bored, annoyed, and frustrated. Not to mention, I rolled my eyes way too often while reading.

The characters were lackluster overall. Atticus is supposed to be several centuries old, but he comes across as seriously clueless about anything that really matters: women, relationships, even religions that aren’t part of his particular pantheon. You’d think anyone who’s lived through a few centuries would learn a thing or two about other people’s cultures. And I quickly got fed up with him wanting to sleep with just about any woman he came across - mostly incredibly powerful Goddesses who apparently have no one better to get it on with than this guy. It’s as though the author took every guy’s Bond fantasy and transferred it to Atticus: magic, women, violence - a frat boy’s perfect read. Plus, Atticus is practically invulnerable, and he knows it. He scoffs in the face of any threat that comes his way, and then when he battles these supposedly super powerful gods and their minions, he takes them out without breaking a sweat.

And let’s talk about the many - many, MANY - deities who kept popping up at every opportunity. They were all one dimensional, self-centered and uninteresting. I mean, these are Gods and Goddesses with entire mythos built up around them, and they were all such bores! I wanted to like Oberon, I really did, but his dialogue exchanges with Atticus were so juvenile they made me roll my eyes pretty far into the back of my head.

I also got super frustrated by the fact that it was so incredibly easy for Atticus and his friends to hide the evidence of massive battles that often took place right in the middle of a city street. How convenient then that no one ever drove, walked, or rode by - and that on the occasion someone noticed something, the problem was easily solved with a literal flick of the wrist and muttering some magical mumbo jumbo.

Maybe I’m simply the wrong audience for this book, but I just couldn’t get into it at all. ( )

Celtic gods - Check
Old Irish grandmother whom I'd love - check
Man's best friend with a sense of humor - check
quirky oddball cast that should be at war but get along - check

I was in a fantasy reading slump..... I started reading a few other fantasy books and couldn't get into them. This was one of the best urban fantasy books I've read in a long time. Only time will tell how the series goes. I started the book because it was on my to-read a long while so figured why not. I read it all in a few sittings, it's that good. You won't be disappointed.

( )

Some flaws, some bonus

Normally this would get a solid 3 for overall good story craft: Some hilarious parts throughout, with just a couple plot flaws. However, since this edition also included 2 bonus short stories, and the first couple chapters of a different series by this author, and all for $2, I bumped it up for value. ( )

In fuga è un romanzo molto divertente e piacevole che, per quanto mi riguarda, è stato – ahimè – penalizzato dalle mie letture parallele. Non gli ho dedicato il tempo che meritava e l'ho letto ogni tanto tra la fine di un libro e l'inizio di un altro.

Comunque sia, le vicende di Atticus O'Sullivan, al secolo Siodhachan Ó Suileabháin, ultimo druido rimasto in vita (con molti intelligenti espedienti, nonché una certa conoscenza di una dea della morte, Morrigan). Il nostro druido vive in Arizona, dove la possibilità di incontrare divinità&co è molto ridotta. Sì perché, nel mondo di Atticus, tutte le divinità esistono, così come molte creature magiche (le streghe, ad esempio: tipe dalle quale guardarsi le spalle). E tra tutte le divinità esistenti, Atticus ha fatto imbufalire proprio il dio celtico dell'amore, Aenghus Óg, che gli dà la caccia da secoli e secoli e ancora secoli (un tipo piuttosto rancoroso).

Una lettura perfetta per l'estate: non richiede grande interazione da parte dei vostri neuroni ed è capace di farvi ridere. ( )