Review--Tricked by Kevin Hearne

Druid Atticus O’Sullivan hasn’t stayed alive for more than two millennia without a fair bit of Celtic cunning. So when vengeful thunder gods come Norse by Southwest looking for payback, Atticus, with a little help from the Navajo trickster god Coyote, lets them think that they’ve chopped up his body in the Arizona desert. 

But the mischievous Coyote is not above a little sleight of paw, and Atticus soon finds that he’s been duped into battling bloodthirsty desert shapeshifters called skinwalkers. Just when the Druid thinks he’s got a handle on all the duplicity, betrayal comes from an unlikely source. If Atticus survives this time, he vows he won’t be fooled again. Famous last words.        

I am almost caught up in Kevin Hearne's The Iron Druid Chronicles! 1 book to go and then I am set for the June release of Hunted! Tricked, once again, picks up where we left off in Hammered. Thor is dead, defeated by Leif who is still recovering. Atticus and Granualie are getting themselves prepped for running away and in fact are in Tuba City, Arizona.  

We begin the story by seeing Atticus die. Or a version of Atticus. The clever druid makes a deal with Coyote to take his place when the gods from Asgard come to exact some revenge. Coyote is a clever trickster and doesn't truly die, so he can play dead in the meantime and give Atticus a chance at normal life for a Druid, hopefully.  

Before Granualie can start her official training as a Druid, Atticus has yet another task he must perform. He must repay Coyote for the task he did for him. In exchange, Coyote has asked Atticus to basically move some gold to be in a particular mine. By now you would think Atticus would know not to fully trust the trickster to say exactly what he means, for he is soon overcome by a group of skinwalkers. 

Another issue that pops up during all this fiasco is that the widow returns and we learn exactly who is possessing her. Hel, another death deity and she wants Atticus to join her in her evil quest. Naturally, Atticus refuses and this will definitely become a problem for him further down the road. But first, he has to take care of some shapeshifters.  

Also, Leif is having issues trying to gain control back of Arizona. His master vampire is in town to "help" out but he's getting a little too cozy and more vampires continue to pop up. Leif wants Atticus to drop everything and help him take care of his issue and when Atticus declines...well, you know how it is, more problems for Atticus pop up. Leif betrays Atticus in the worst way and someone doesn't walk away unscathed!  

Yet again, Kevin Hearne writes a totally enjoyable novel! Atticus is definitely a favorite hero of mine! I especially love Oberon! That dog brings so much humor and light to the dark surroundings Atticus tends to find himself in. Life will always be grand as long as there are sausages...and poodles!  

There's still a strong layer of tension between Granualie and Atticus. Atticus is definitely crushing on her, but keeps trying to tame it since she's his apprentice. There were a few blunders in talks of romance--not between them--and it didn't end well for Atticus! Granualie is definitely her own woman and I love that about her character. She's strong and fierce in her own right and while not doing the major ass-kicking, still contributes when she can.  

Kevin still manages to amaze me with all the culture he weaves into his books! I feel like I walk away a tad smarter. He explores different kinds of cultures in each book, even expanding further on one we already dealt with before. True, there's still the wonder how much is fact rather than fiction, but I just get the sense that quite a bit of it is based on fact! There's also some knowledge shared on medicines and poisons. All very educational stuff here immersed into a tale complete with action, adventure and humor!  

The Iron Druid series definitely rocks!    


Overall Rating 5/5 stars