Hammered: The Iron Druid Chronicles, Book Three [Mass Market Paperback]

Kevin Hearne (Author)

Book Description

Release date: July 5, 2011 | Series: The Iron Druid Chronicles

BOOK 3 IN THE IRON DRUID CHRONICLES

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Thor, the Norse god of thunder, is worse than a blowhard and a bully—he’s ruined countless lives and killed scores of innocents. After centuries, Viking vampire Leif Helgarson is ready to get his vengeance, and he’s asked his friend Atticus O’Sullivan, the last of the Druids, to help take down this Norse nightmare.

One survival strategy has worked for Atticus for more than two thousand years: stay away from the guy with the lightning bolts. But things are heating up in Atticus’s home base of Tempe, Arizona. There’s a vampire turf war brewing, and Russian demon hunters who call themselves the Hammers of God are running rampant. Despite multiple warnings and portents of dire consequences, Atticus and Leif journey to the Norse plain of Asgard, where they team up with a werewolf, a sorcerer, and an army of frost giants for an epic showdown against vicious Valkyries, angry gods, and the hammer-wielding Thunder Thug himself.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"It may be possible that Hearne and Atticus could be the logical heir to Butcher and Dresden."--SFFworld.com

"Hearne provides lots of zippy plotting and rocking action scenes...fans will be thrilled."--Publishers Weekly

“A page-turning and often laugh-out-loud funny caper through a mix of the modern and the mythic.”—Ari Marmell, author of The Warlord’s Legacy

“Celtic mythology and an ancient Druid with modern attitude mix it up in the Arizona desert in this witty new fantasy series.”—Kelly Meding, author of Three Days to Dead

“Kevin Hearne breathes new life into old myths, creating a world both eerily familiar and startlingly original.”—Nicole Peeler, author of Tempest Rising

About the Author

Kevin Hearne is a middle-aged nerd who still enjoys his comic books and old-school heavy metal. He cooks tasty omelets, hugs trees, and paints miniature army dudes. He lives with his wife, daughter, and doggies in a wee cottage.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Del Rey; Original edition (July 5, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345522486
• ISBN-13: 978-0345522481
• Product Dimensions: 4.2 x 0.9 x 6.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (184 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #18,143 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Kevin Hearne is a middle-aged nerd who still enjoys his comic books and old-school heavy metal. He cooks tasty omelets, hugs trees, and paints miniature army dudes. He lives with his wife, daughter, and doggies in a wee cottage.

Amazon Author Rankbeta 

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#27 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Genre Fiction > Action & Adventure

#31 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Action & Adventure

#31 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Fantasy

#42 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Fantasy

#52 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy

#27 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Genre Fiction > Action & Adventure

#31 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Action & Adventure

#31 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Fantasy

#42 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Fantasy

#52 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 35 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Phenomenal Modern Day Odyssey. July 7, 2011

By anne-marie

Format:MP3 CD

Odysseus Who? Atticus continues his modern day odyssey in Hammered, and Hearne's druid is making Homer's hero look like a little punk with his epic adventures. After all, even Odysseus didn't go after a full fledge god like Thor.

Too bad Dos Equis isn't an Irish brew because Atticus could definitely win the bid for the Most Interesting Man in the World. Delight in the oddities and misfortunes that have become Atticus' life. Drinks with Jesus. A Shakespearean duel with a vampire. Suggestive salad spinning with a young beautiful apprentice. A bareback ride on a giant squirrel. And getting slapped around by the Morrigan. Sounds like just another day for Atticus O'Sullivan.

The Iron Druid is a man of his word, and it's time to make good on some promises he made. Even if it kills him. First he has to retrieve a golden apple for a certain witch. Then Atticus is to escort Leif to Asgard to take on the patron God of Jerks. They'll pick up some backup along the way and introduce us to some new and endearing characters all with a grudge against Thor. And honestly when someone like Jesus concedes your a thundering D-Bag, you probably deserve the angry lynch mob coming for you.

But O'Sullivan's actions aren't without consequence. Not everyone will come out of the fray alive and with the possible relocation of the local coven, pack upheaval within the werewolf community, and vampire unrest in Arizona the cost of revenge could be too high. The wait for the next installment definitely too long.

Again I have to reccomend the audiobook version of this series. Hammered was just as excellently performed as Hounded, and Hexed. Kevin's words are pure magic when Luke Daniels is narrating them. He did another outstanding job with Atticus and company. I particularly liked his rendition of a giant squirrel which sounded a lot like a cross between the Chipmunks and Gollum. Lets face it Hearne doesn't make it easy on Daniels who has to voice multiple accents and languages. I love that a new deal is going to give us more Atticus, Kevin, and Luke to come.

Hearne's third effort is yet again another gem, embodying all that is awesome. Fans of the first two books will be pleased with Kevin's usual wit and candor. But he steps things up a bit, with the addition of some different POV's that shows Hearne's more serous side. The pace is a little slower than in the past but I think that is because of the grandeur of the task Atticus has to achieve. There's plenty of the action and unexpected quirkiness that comes with Hearne's twisted imagination, and his ability to blend mythos, theology, folklore, and pop culture is pure genius. As always you can tell Hearne did extensive homework for Hammered, or that he's an amazing literary con artist, either way the words he puts down on the page are completely believable.

With all the delicious threads planted for future tomes, the end will have you trying to conjure up more pages, and cursing the long year wait ahead.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars I Wanted to Love This Book April 29, 2012

By E. L. Sapp

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

Books 1 and 2 were amazing, and I had such high hopes for book 3. Sadly, this one does not live up to the previous 2.

It seems like Atticus does not do anything in this book. He's involved only because his friends need him to be, but without his own dog in the fight, he just sort of drifts along though the plot. It was great to find out why Thor had to die, but that could have easily been covered "off-stage." The fight with the Norse gods, which was supposed to be the climax of the book, was over too fast, and little was done about the character deaths. ** SPOILER ALERT ** Those deaths were just glossed over; more time was spent trying to put Leif's head back together than was spent discussing the death of Gunnar! He just dies and Atticus goes on to the next step, as if the loss of his friend was nothing. (He seemed more concerned about how Hal would react to being alpha than he did about the fact his friend was killed in front of him.)

Also, Oberon, who was my favorite character in the previous books, barely appears in this one. I understand why Atticus could not take him, but not having the dog's comments left a hole in the book.

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Sooo awesome August 2, 2011

By J.J. Macken

Format:Mass Market Paperback

I wasn't sure Kevin Hearne could keep up the awesomeness of of the Iron druid chronicles all the way through three novels, but boy oh boy did he deliver!
I am deeply depressed that I now have to wait at least a year for the next book! Noooo, how oh how shall I endure?
I am one of those strange beasts who loves a good cliffhanger but my friends, the end of Hammered is pure torture, I must find out what happens next. I must!

Hammered is more epic than the last two installments, the stakes have never been higher and Atticus is in for a hella wild ride. I love that the world that our favourite druid lives in isn't static, there are far reaching consequences for everything that he has done and Atticus and his peoples have to adjust and change to deal with everthing. I don't want this to be a spoilery review, so I will just say, that if you enjoyed the previous two iron druid chronicles, then this one will BLOW YOUR MIND!
If you are new to Kevin Hearne's books, I implore you to start with the first Hounded: The Iron Druid Chronicles It'll be too hard to follow if you don't start from the beginning.

I am in awe of the sheer breadth of mythology and characters and craziness that Kevin Hearne perfectly weaves into a gripping, fast-paced adventure. I read Hammered in one sitting, I simple couldn't put it down... I couldn't. I'm going to have to lie to my brother and tell him that I havent finished it yet, so I can do an immediate re-read before he gets his grubby mits on my favourite Urban Fantasy series of the year.

Read this book. YOU WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED.