Shattered (Iron Druid Chronicles #7)

Description: Atticus’s apprentice Granuaile is at last a full Druid herself. What’s more, Atticus has defrosted an archdruid long ago frozen in time, a father figure (of sorts) who now goes by the modern equivalent of his old Irish name: Owen Kennedy. And Owen has some catching up to do. Atticus takes pleasure in the role reversal, as the student is now the teacher. Between busting Atticus’s chops and trying to fathom a cell phone, Owen must also learn English. For Atticus, the jury’s still out on whether the wily old coot will be an asset in the epic battle with Norse god Loki—or merely a pain in the arse. But Atticus isn’t the only one with daddy issues. Granuaile faces a great challenge: to exorcise a sorcerer’s spirit that is possessing her father in India. Even with the help of the witch Laksha, Granuaile may be facing a crushing defeat. As the trio of Druids deals with pestilence-spreading demons, bacon-loving yeti, fierce flying foxes, and frenzied Fae, they’re hoping that this time, three’s a charm.

Review: I completed the Iron Druid Chronicles earlier this year and enjoyed the ride. I am, however, behind on reviewing the last few books in this series. Shattered is full of action as Atticus is running away from a peeved Loki, Granualie is a fully fledged druid, and the archdruid Owen from ancient Ireland has awoken. Unlike the previous books in the series thus far, Shattered is narration is split in three sections as Atticus, Granualie, and Owen are off to their separate adventures until they converge in the last half of the book. The point of views was a little jarring at first because I was not expecting it, but each character has a distinct voice so it was easy to tell which chapter belonged to our three main characters.
  It was wonderful to see Granualie kick butt and be a strong character instead of being in the shadow of Atticus like she has been. She is on a personal mission and we get a glimpse of her back story and her desire to become a druid. I also loved the foul mouthed Owen as he tries to navigate the modern world and understand English idioms. His confusion and commentary on the modern word provides the humor in the story. There is no time to be bored in Shattered as the story moves at a fast pace and there are plenty of action scenes and mythological characters to keep this book fun and entertaining. A handy summary of the book allows new readers to join in, but I would definitely recommend reading the previous books to get a better hold on the characters and the interesting world Hearne has created.

Rating: 4 stars

Words of Caution: There is strong language and violence throughout the book. There are also allusions to sex in the book too. Recommended for older teens and adults only.

If you like this book try: Staked by Kevin Hearne (Iron Druid Chronicle #8), Age of Misrule trilogy by Mark Chadbourn