Hammered (The Iron Druid Chronicles, #3) in SOS: Serious Overload of Series

Oct 17, 2011 D.G. rated it liked it

Shelves: urban-fantasy, awesome-narration, reviewed, audiobook

**3.5 stars**

I’ve enjoyed this series a lot: the mix of humor, action and mythology are lots of fun plus I also prefer men as main characters, especially if those books are told in the 1st person and I have to live in their heads. But something was missing in this book. I think we have reached a point where we need to know more about Atticus and I don’t see that coming. I’m not sure if this is intentional or if the author just hasn’t developed Atticus' past properly. This is a man who has lived **3.5 stars**

I’ve enjoyed this series a lot: the mix of humor, action and mythology are lots of fun plus I also prefer men as main characters, especially if those books are told in the 1st person and I have to live in their heads. But something was missing in this book. I think we have reached a point where we need to know more about Atticus and I don’t see that coming. I’m not sure if this is intentional or if the author just hasn’t developed Atticus' past properly. This is a man who has lived for 2,000 years so after 3 books, I expect to know a lot more about his past than I do now.

At first I applauded Mr. Hearne’s decision to make Atticus a long-lived easy going guy because it’s clearly out of the norm. In fiction, most characters that have lived hundreds of years are broody, bored and melancholy because they have witnessed the deaths of loved ones. I was glad that Atticus was different but to believe it, I need to how he reached the conclusion that living in the moment was the best way to go on. There must be an explanation because most people would be out of their mind after so much loss but so far, Atticus doesn’t seem to have a care in the world. Worst, in this book he made the breezy assertion that he’s had at least (view spoiler) If we are to believe and care about Atticus, we must have an explanation as to how he’s learn to cope with all that.

It also seemed to me that this book was an attempt to reach a bigger male audience. There was bathroom humor which I don’t remember from previous books and the male bonding situations continued. I don’t necessarily mind this but you can definitely feel the shift.

Luke Daniels was marvelous as usual. The editing/digital remastering was inconsistent though (some parts of the audio sounded different. his voice was deeper in some sections.)

I’m continuing with the series (I bought Tricked the day it came out) but I hope the author has us learn more about Atticus’ past. If it continues as it goes, I think I’ll treat this series as a funny diversion and stop expecting more. ...more

7 likes · Like · see review

Jul 08, 2012 Kelly (Maybedog) rated it really liked it

Shelves: what-male-protagonist, what-modern-fantasy, what-dogs, what-mythology, what-vampires, what-shifters, why-favorite-author, why-favorite-series, what-gods

You feel differently about a book when you read it aloud, especially when it has a ton of "big" words and unpronounceable names and you're reading it to a sort of special ed teenager. But she really enjoyed it, despite not being into fantasy. I liked it of course, so the fact that both of us got into it says something about the book.

I don't know how this one compares to others in the series. I was concentrating too hard on pronouncing all the Norse names and remembering the voices I put to each ...more

3 likes · Like · see review

Apr 29, 2013 Logan rated it liked it

Shelves: audiobook, urban-fantasy, 2013-books-read, 2014-books-read

This is my least favorite in the series, but I love Atticus so much that I can't give him less than 3 stars. The humor was on point, the action was great, but too much of this book took place away from all of the beloved side characters. It didn't feel like Atticus was doing the right thing by going off on this major quest to kill Thor, even if he did promise Leif. The death and destruction that will continue to haunt him after this book just didn't seem worth it, which frustrated me as a reader ...more

2 likes · Like · see review

Jan 01, 2012 Kalynn rated it liked it

For the first 180 pages, this was a solid 4 star plus read for me. This is saying something, considering that I found Hounded uneven and outright disliked Hexed. In the first two books, the main character didn't work for me. he was like frat boy who occasionally turned condescending and pedantic. I actually intended to stop reading the series, but I had Hammered on hand, so I decided to give it a go.

For the first 2/3 of the book I was so glad I did. It was a fun, often politically incorrect adr ...more

Like · see review

Jul 06, 2011 Jesslyn rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: cat-urban-fantasy, cat-series-ongoing, z2011-kindle-reads

What happened?! I was enjoying the hell out of this book--right up to the last sentence. Wha...? The cliffhanger (seemingly mid-sentence) ending ruined the whole thing for me. Heavy sigh.

Writers, why do you do this? I can't think of one author that I read on a regular basis that has such a weak writing style that they need to rely on this most irritating of trends. I just don't understand it.

It also took away any enthusiasm that I had for reviewing this book so I'll leave it with my favorite quo ...more

Like · see review

Mar 19, 2012 Christal rated it liked it

Shelves: lesser-known-creatures, witches-warlocks-and-mages, magic, male-lead, weres-and-shifters, vampires, urban-fantasy, shamans-and-druids, favorites, gods-and-goddesses

This was a much darker entry into the Iron Druid Chronicles. The storyline propels the overall story forward, but we have to break ties with many of the people/elements that I loved from the first two books.

This novel revolves around Thor and Atticus' promise to Leif to help take him down. I missed having Oberon, Granuaile, and the widow MacDonagh around, but it was nice to see the characters of Leif and Gunnar fleshed out. We also meet some powerful and funny new characters. I did miss the "ur This was a much darker entry into the Iron Druid Chronicles. The storyline propels the overall story forward, but we have to break ties with many of the people/elements that I loved from the first two books.

This novel revolves around Thor and Atticus' promise to Leif to help take him down. I missed having Oberon, Granuaile, and the widow MacDonagh around, but it was nice to see the characters of Leif and Gunnar fleshed out. We also meet some powerful and funny new characters. I did miss the "urban" fantasy setting; it is something that I think Mr. Hearne does really well. The setting of this book was mainly in Asgard so it felt almost like a traditional fantasy.

Atticus was very torn in this novel. He was told by two different gods that his path to kill Thor was a Very Bad Idea. Though at times it seemed liked Atticus agreed, he couldn't go back on his word. This led to more conflicts than he imagined and resulted in a total upheaval of the life he created for himself in Arizona. We lose a few characters in this novel, some more beloved than others. (view spoiler) The repercussions will affect Arizona's magical community for quite a while.

Though darker in overall tone, the novel wasn't missing all its trademark humor. I love when Atticus spouts his pop culture knowledge and thought the scene where he squees over "Neil F@#!ing Gaiman" was hilarious. My favorite exchange referenced LOLcats:

"Oh noes, kitteh haz major angriez!" I said. I turned around to share a laugh with my companions and found them glaring at me. "What?" I asked.
Leif shook a finger and said in a low, menacing tone, "If you tell me I have to talk like an illiterate halfwit to fit into this society, I will punch you."
"And I’ll pull out your goatee," Gunnar added.
"Lolcat iz new happeh wai 2 talk," I explained to them. "U doan haz 2 be kitteh 2 speek it."

All in all, I enjoyed this book. It wasn't my favorite of the first three, but I feel like it was necessary. Atticus likes to reminds us that he has had to pack up and move on many times throughout his long life. Now, we get to see the process and how it affects him. It will be very interesting to see where the fourth book, Tricked, takes our lovable Druid and Co. ...more

Like · see review

Mar 13, 2014 Chompa rated it it was amazing

I really enjoyed this one and I'm so ready to burn through the rest, but I'm trying to pace myself.

Lots of change in this book and it is hard not to dive in and see "What happens next!?"
...more

Like · see review

Jul 15, 2013 Kimberly rated it liked it

Shelves: 2013

I'm not sure how I feel about this one. It was good but not as great as the first two books. Sure there were some laughs at the beginning, but the end was filled with some sadness and the looming consequences of what happened. I'm glad I have the next book handy so I can see what happens next. ...more

Like · see review