Monday, February 27, 2012

Hexed.


Title/Author: Hexed by Kevin Hearne.

Narrated by: Luke Daniels. 

Genre: Urban Fantasy. 

Publisher: Ballantine Books.  

Source: Library.

Favorite character: Atticus and Oberon (his dog).

Synopsis:  Atticus O'Sullivan, last of the Druids, doesn't care much for witches. Still, he’s about to make nice with the local coven by signing a mutually beneficial nonaggression treaty when suddenly the witch population in modern-day Tempe, Arizona, quadruples overnight. And the new girls are not just bad, they're badasses with a dark history on the German side of World War II.   With a fallen angel feasting on local high school students, a horde of Bacchants blowing in from Vegas with their special brand of deadly decadence, and a dangerously sexy Celtic goddess of fire vying for his attention, Atticus is having trouble scheduling the witch hunt. But aided by his magical sword, his neighbor's rocket-propelled grenade launcher, and his vampire attorney, Atticus is ready to sweep the town and show the witchy women they picked the wrong Druid to hex. ~Goodreads.com

My Thoughts:  I picked up this audio book from the library because of the front cover.  I'm kind of a sucker for Celtic tattoos and he looks dreamy.  Once I read the synopsis I figured I would give it a try.  I thought it would be perfect for a few Reading Challenges too.  

The story is the second in the Iron Druid Chronicles (I didn't read the first one ) and while a few pieces were missing, it didn't hinder the story in any way.  The character explains when something occurs that pertains to the first book.  However, there is a lot of backstory and telling.  I enjoyed it more when the book concentrated on the here and now.  

The narrator, Luke Daniels, is hands down the best performer in an audio book I've ever encountered.  His delivery is perfect!  Absolutely perfect!  The humor shone through and I was cracking up at one word sentences.  "Hello," and "Hey!" come to mind.  The accents used are convincing and even the voice for his dog Oberon, is cute.   I will probably listen to anything this guy does.  

One of the other things I liked about this book is the way that the magic is explained. Atticus doesn't simply allow his apprentice to see through his eyes with a snap of his finger, he explains what he's doing.  Changing energy or molecules or whatever, then binding her aura to his.  But this relates to something I didn't like about the book. That Atticus seems to be able to do SO much and therefore get out of some serious scrapes. Even though he is a druid who is several hundred years old, it was hard to swallow everything.

The main thing that bothered me is the portrayal of the Goddess Brighid.  She comes off as needy and a little petty and I love the Celtic Pantheon so I have them up on a pedestal. But this is only one scene in the book and does not overshadow the positive aspects.  

I usually don't always enjoy smart alec, talking dogs, I did enjoy Oberon, his Irish Wolf Hound.  He was funny and silly in only a way a dog can be.  I especially loved when Atticus told him about the 60's, Oberon would indulge in hippie phrases.

This is a fun, action packed story with a lot of magic.  I'm not sure I would have enjoyed it as much in print form, but I would definitely listen to more in this series, especially if Luke Daniels is the narrator.

Challenges:







5 comments:

Missie, The Unread Reader said...

Right?! Luke Daniels is a freaking amazing narrator! His voice is so sexy and such a perfect match for Atticus. I listened to all these books on audio and loved them. And Kevin Hearne also just announced that Luke Daniels will be doing the audios for the next three books too!

Kimberly @ Caffeinated Reviewer said...

A talking dog? I am a sucker for Celtic stuff too...great review...i am going to ck out book one

Kate @Midnight Book Girl said...

Okay, normally I wouldn't even think about reading this... until you mentioned that the talking dog was an Irish Wolf Hound! Consider me sold on this book! :)

Bookish Brunette said...

I've been waiting to read this FOREVER!!! *sigh*

Jenny said...

I got the first book in this series for Christmas and I can't wait to read it! Missie and a bunch of other awesome bloggers are hosting a read along for it and I'm hoping to do that along with them:) Are you signed up for it? Glad to know the story was easy to follow even without having read Hounded.

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