Book Report Monday: Hounded

Title: Hounded, Iron Druid Chronicles #1

Author: Kevin Hearne

Genre: Urban Fantasy

Synopsis: 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 sexy 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.

(from Goodreads)

Why did I pick it  up?: It sounded pretty fun and it was available as an ebook at the library. Plus, the guy on the cover is pretty cute.

Favorite Line: "Monty Python is like catnip for nerds. Once you get them started quoting it, they are constitutionally incapable of feeling depressed."

My Review: Very fast paced and fun reading. It reminded me of the Stephanie Plum novels. If Stephanie Plum was a demon hunter instead of a bail bonds person. There are a lot of characters mentioned but none that I really got attached to. I didn't feel like there was enough time to develop any emotional connection to Atticus or his cohorts, which include some rare Gods and Goddesses. The coolest of which I thought was the Morrigan, who is the Goddess of war and/or death in ancient Irish mythology. Appearing as a crow or a woman in one of three forms: beauty, mother or crone. The Morrigan is also mentioned in A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray when Miss Moore takes them to see the cave drawings. With so much Greek and Roman Deity focus it's a nice change up.

Of course, I did think the dog was pretty awesome. Atticus has an Irish wolfhound who he can communicate with telepathically. It makes for some humorous conversation to say the least. Sometimes I imagine what a conversation with my dog would be like, and while I hope he'd have some wisdom to drop, I suspect it'd mostly be about him getting more treats and belly rubs. Though maybe there is a different kind of wisdom in that...

Overall I enjoyed Hounded, albeit in a superficial way. Not that superficial reads are bad. I may prefer when a book pulls me in and makes me laugh out loud or cry in public (I'm looking at you George RR Martin), but every book can't do that. Besides sometimes it's nice to read something lighter. And I personally get a lot of satisfaction out of completing a book, so short fast reads are always okay by me. I'll definitely read the rest of the series. I think it would be great for the beach or even for a weekend spent lazing on the couch.

Recommendation: Adult fantasy fans or anyone who likes fantasy but doesn't like 1,000 page books. It is marketed toward males, that doesn't stop me from recommending it to women.

For Next Week: The Dovekeepers by Alice Hoffman

Book Report Monday: The Last Werewolf

Title: The Last Werewolf

Author: Glen Duncan

Genre: Adult Fantasy

Synopsis: Meet Jake. A bit on the elderly side (he turns 201 in March), but you'd never suspect it. Nonstop sex and exercise will do that for you--and a diet with lots of animal protein. Jake is a werewolf, and after the unfortunate and violent death of his one contemporary, he is now the last of his species. Although he is physically healthy, Jake is deeply distraught and lonely.

Jake's depression has carried him to the point where he is actually contemplating suicide--even if it means terminating a legend thousands of years old. It would seem to be easy enough for him to end everything. But for very different reasons there are two dangerous groups pursuing him who will stop at nothing to keep him alive.

Here is a powerful, definitive new version of the werewolf legend--mesmerising and incredibly sexy. In Jake, Glen Duncan has given us a werewolf for the twenty-first century--a man whose deeds can only be described as monstrous but who is in some magical way deeply human.

One of the most original, audacious, and terrifying novels in years.

(from Goodreads)

Why did I pick it up?: Sometimes books just won't leave you alone. I first added The Last Werewolf to my Goodreads "To Read" list when I saw it on the New York Times' 100 Notable Books of 2011. I kept hearing about it and finally got it from the library.

Favorite Lines:  "There are beautiful women in Manhattan who would have married me on the spot for the charm I had over their mutts."

"Just live in it and let it bring what it brings."

My Review:  I was hooked by the opening scene. It wasn't the devil may care, intelligent, snarky tone of the narrator, Jake Marlowe-werewolf, womanizer, scotch drinker. Though all of that played a part, it was more personal. Jake was relaxing with some fancy booze and a Camel filter while his friend smoked a Gauloises. Fortunately, for my lungs and lifespan, I quit smoking years ago. But while still full of bad habits, I enjoyed both brands.

I started smoking heavily during my semester in Italy because, well do I need to explain? I tried Gauloises because they were recommended by a cute bartender. They're a French brand, not sold in the States. I figured if you're going to smoke, it might as well be French cigarettes and if you're going to have the hots for a bartender, he should be infuriatingly aloof and Dutch.

Marlowe is a werewolf James Bond...who eats people. This isn't a monster with a morally-instituted Vegan diet. Make no mistake about it every month when the moon gets full, Marlowe gets an appetite for a human being. Nothing else can satisfy him. Despite this, I was rooting for him to find his will to go on living another 200 years, to kill and eat thousands of people.

From a fantasy standpoint, it was refreshing to read a werewolf-centric story. Too often they are bit players in  the vampire show.

Duncan walks the line of werewolf mythology pretty closely. He addresses how one becomes a werewolf and the effects of silver and wolfsbane. He makes a few alterations as well. Most notably that a werewolf not only eats people but consumes their life. The description reminded me of vampires who absorb memories of their victims through blood.

After centuries of monthly feasts, he carries thousands of lives with him, giving dual meaning to his pronouncement, "I just don't want any more life."

Recommendation: Not for the faint of heart. Some scenes are as bloody and scandalous as an episode of True Blood. In my opinion, the novel would appeal to non-fantasy readers who enjoy smartly written and/or darkly comic novels.


Next Week: The Paris Wife by Paula McLain

Books: Now Even Better With Friends

In elementary school all my friends read The Babysitter's Club and together we watched the amazing movie. I personally always connected with Mallory, maybe it was the glasses. Or it could have been all that reading and writing she did...

Next came Harry Potter. One by one my friends and family jumped on the Hogwarts Express and we bonded over theoretical discussions like so many games of exploding snap. At times there were fierce arguments, mostly about Snape's true allegiance. By the way, I was totes right and there was really no reason to get so hostile. You know who you are. I held parties where I turned the dining room into the Great Hall complete with dangling paper candles. We decorated t-shirts, consumed pumpkin cookies, treacle fudge and more recently pumpkin margaritas which were actually quite tasty.

It was only natural that when Twilight came out my friends-who read it first-demanded I join them in their discussions. I obliged and read all four books the weekend Breaking Dawn was released. While Twilight will never be what Harry Potter is to me, I don't regret it one bit. The saga has provided similar discussions and celebrations. For example, Twilight came out in theaters and we had an epic thread of Facebook messages going for weeks after.

Tonight I'm going to see Breaking Dawn Part One with two friends from college. But before the movie we will be making Red Velvet Whoopie Pies-because they are the color of blood and delicious. There will also be a Breaking Dawn Signature cocktail, it's basically a hurricane with plenty of grenadine. The idea being Bella drinks blood to stop her unborn fetus from slowly killing her, so we shall drink blood-tinis to dull the pain to our ears when teenage girls emit high pitched shrieks in the audience. I love teenagers, but why do they do that at the movies?

I chose not to go the straw and sippy cup route.

As I write this blog post, two friends and family members are reading The Hunger Games. I think they are among the last of my circle to read the series and I am bouncing on my heels waiting for them to finish. I need to discuss. I need to relive the series again-this time with friends.

With the official Hunger Games trailer just released on Monday for the movie coming out in four short months, I am preparing for yet another book series to movie series string of social events. I mean look at that trilogy-so many food and drink options for themed-parties.

Who knows what will be next? It will be a while, but I am gonna cast my vote for Divergent.

Do you have any guesses for the next big book series to tackle the silver screen?



Have a great weekend and if you happen to make it out to see Breaking Dawn let me know your thoughts. We can discuss.

Book Report Monday: Forever, The Wolves of Mercy Falls #3

Title: Forever, The Wolves of Mercy Falls #3

Author: Maggie Stiefvater

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

Synopsis: In Maggie Stiefvater's SHIVER, Grace and Sam found each other. In LINGER, they fought to be together. Now, in FOREVER, the stakes are even higher than before. Wolves are being hunted. Lives are being threatened. And love is harder and harder to hold on to as death comes closing in. (from Goodreads)

Why did I pick it up?: I love werewolf love.

Favorite Lines: All the Rilke poetry and Sam's lyrics.

My Review: Something I appreciated about the series was that the main characters, Sam and Grace, assume typically reversed roles. Grace is very analytical and approaches problems from a logical place and Sam is emotional and sensitive, always playing his acoustic guitar and thinking up song lyrics to express his tortured feelings. As an analytical girl, I dug it.

Stiefvater's werewolves seem more wolf than werewolf to me. At times the series reads like a work of science fiction rather than fantasy, despite being fantasy. Sam, one the main protagonists, discusses whether the act of becoming a wolf is magic or science or both. Cole, a new wolf in Linger-the second book, tackles werewolfism from a scientific standpoint. I thoroughly enjoyed his growth and his narrating. Perhaps all magic is just science we do not understand yet.

Each book in the series is printed in colored text matching the covers. Also, the story is told from many different point of views. The trade off is generally smooth, though at times when I was reading through quickly I missed that the story had changed hands. But I think that was my failure to observe the name at the beginning of each chapter rather than an abrupt change in the storyteller.


Recommendation: If you, like me, love werewolves and teen romance grab it!

Next Week: Passion, #3 in the Fallen Series by Lauren Kate