Hounded — Kevin Hearne

I am not one to easily go for long series, as I tend to get hooked, but I’d heard a lot of good things about the Iron Druid books for a while and decided it sounded like it would at least be fun.

Hounded is a good, strong start to a solid urban fantasy series. The main character, Atticus, is interesting and likeable enough, and the world itself is the kind of setting I have found myself enjoying quite often – like this world but with a hidden magical otherworld underlying it, one that we everyday mortals do not usually see, full of gods, sprits and other supernatural entities. The story is well paced, full of humour and action, and I adored Oberon, Atticus’s Irish Wolfhound, who can speak with Atticus via magic and often acts as comedy relief sidekick. You can read the first one without being lured into the rest of the series, as it all wraps up quite nicely by the end. Well worth a read if you enjoy urban fantasy. 4/5

Iron Druid Chronicles 2-9 + Short Stories

I got completely hooked from here, as I suspected I would, and binged them all over a few months. If you don’t want to commit to reading the series, you too may find it hard to stop after Hexed. I’m not going to review each individually as I found them all to be equally good stories, well paced and engaging, taking us onward to a looming final conclusion. Other characters are added as the books move forward, and this is a good thing, as Atticus, interesting as he is, could start to get a bit wearing without some other points of view, especially as counterpoints to his way of seeing and doing things.

There are plenty of spirits, witches, vampires, werewolves and other entities to keep an urban fantasy lover happy, with various pantheons of gods and their planes also big features. If you want to binge some good urban fantasy this series may be for you. The short stories are also fun. 4/5

I think if I had to pick a fictional universe to live in, this one might be it. Pretty sure I’d be a druid or a witch!