**Visit Dark Faerie Tales today for her Deadly Destination tour of Adrian Phoenix’s Bayou Cyprés Noir from Kallie Rivière & a chance to win BLACK HEART LOA**
Our guide for today’s Deadly Destinations tour is a bit older than our previous guides. He’s pushing the two millennium mark, not that you’d know it to look at him. I’m talking about Kevin Hearne's Atticus O’Sullivan from The Iron Druid Chronicles. Atticus and I hit it off earlier this summer when he told me about his adventures in HOUNDED. He recently went up against the Norse god Thor in HAMMERED (available now) and will be showing us around the land of Asgard today. Thanks to the wonderful people at Del Rey Books, three of you who comment on this post will win a copy of the book! See details below
Atticus O’Sullivan’s Guide to Asgard
by
Kevin Hearne
Hey there. It’s Atticus O’Sullivan, the Iron Druid. Heard you like to travel—well, do I have a place for you to check out!
If you’re a plane hopper and you’d like to visit the fabled Norse land of Asgard, there’s more than one way to get there. In Hammered, the third book of The Iron Druid Chronicles, I used the secret back door suggested by Norse mythology, and you can use it too. The Bifrost Bridge is guarded (rather anally, I might add) by Heimdall, and I tend to avoid customs agents of all stripes whenever I can. Use the back door and you don’t have to declare anything. Nobody’s guarding it now.
You’ll arrive at the base of Yggdrasil, the World Tree, and you’ll have to trek across the Plain of Idavoll to really get anywhere significant. The plain itself is lovely, don’t get me wrong, but I’m the kind of fella who likes pheasants and prairie voles and wind whispering across the tops of grasses. You might hanker for the delights of civilization.
If you head south you’ll get to Vanaheim, home of the Vanir, and perhaps you’ll run into the goddess Freyja’s hall, Fólkvangr. Gotta warn you, though, she’s kind of a cat lady and the ancient Norse didn’t have scent-masking kitty litter. Head northwest and you’ll be in Alfheim, home of the elves, and I’ll let you know right now that they don’t look like the ones in Lord of the Rings or Elfquest. Directly west, on the other side of the Asgard Mountains, lies Asgard itself. Gladsheim, home o’ the gods, is a majestic place that Hamlet would have thought “fretted with gold and fire,” and you’re definitely going to want to stand in front of it and have your picture taken. There will probably be some random gods and goddesses walking about who will be happy to pose with you if you buy them a tankard or two.
If you’re especially intrepid, you could travel further west and visit Valhalla, fabled resting place for so many brave, dead Vikings. If you catch them at the right time, they might let you join in their nightly feasting. They have this mead that 
apparently fountains from the teats of a goat named Heiðrún, and since it’s a fair bet you’ve never tasted any other goat-tit mead in your life, it might be worth the trip if you’re on the lookout for culinary adventures. If your timing is atrocious, however, you’ll arrive while the Einherjar are on the Field of Vigrid, practicing for Ragnarok and busy hewing down anything standing in front of them. You might accidentally stand in front of them and then you’d be doomed, so it’s a tough call—you have to balance your death against the possibility of scoring the warm, sweet nectar of a goat udder.
There’s a convenient map to consult on page 82 of Hammered with additional details if you’d like to visit places like Bilskirnir, Thor’s hall, or perhaps visit the idyllic hall of Freyr in Alfheim. Take warm clothing and praise Odin early and often.
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About Kevin Hearne
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Kevin is the author of The Iron Druid Chronicles, an urban fantasy series published by Del Rey Books. The first three books of the series will be released in May and June of 2011. An Arizona native, Kevin got hooked on comic books at an early age and embraced his inner nerd. Later he got hooked on coffee, but that did nothing to ameliorate his nerdhood. He spent time as a singing waiter in college and also contributed to the college newspaper as an editorial cartoonist and feature columnist. It was during this time he got the writing bug, thanks to Ken Kesey's One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. He now teaches high school English, reads lots of fantasy, and paints miniature dwarfs because the redundancy amuses him. He's currently working on the fourth book in The Iron Druid Chronicles |
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Giveaway provided by Del Ray
3 copies of HAMMERED by Kevin Hearne
Available now from Del Ray
Description:
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.
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 | Title: Hounded
 Sexual Content: Kissing. References to sex. Rating:
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Atticus O’Sullivan has been running for two thousand years and he’s a bit tired of it. After he stole a magical sword from the Tuatha Dé Danann (those who became the Sidhe or the Fae) in a first century battle, some of them were furious and gave chase, and some were secretly amused that a Druid had the cheek to defy them. As the centuries passed and Atticus remained an annoyingly long-lived fugitive, those who were furious only grew more so, while others began to aid him in secret.
Now he’s living in Tempe, Arizona, the very last of the Druids, far from where the Fae can easily find him. It’s a place where many paranormals have decided to hide from the troubles of the Old World—from an Icelandic vampire holding a grudge against Thor to a coven of Polish witches who ran from the German Blitzkrieg.
Unfortunately, the very angry Celtic god who wants that sword has tracked him down, and Atticus will need all his power, plus the help of a seductive goddess of death, a sexy bartender possessed by a Hindu witch, and some good, old-fashioned luck of the Irish to kick some arse and deliver himself from evil.
It seems like an urban fantasy prerequisite these days for the protagonist to have a comic relief sidekick. Harry Dresden has a possessed skull named Bob, Rachel Morgan has Jenks the pixie, and Atticus O’Sullivan has an Irish Wolfhound named Oberon. Oberon, more than any of the other well drawn characters in Kevin Hearne’s clever, Celtic mythology infused debut, HOUNDED, was my favorite. He thinks like a dog, but the way Hearne communicated those thoughts was endlessly entertaining. He had a childlike enthusiasm that came across perfectly.
Atticus too had a great ‘voice.’ He struck just right balance between witty modern vernacular with the occasional ancient colloquialism that it made him 100% believable as a millennial old Druid with the body of a twenty-one year old. He had a laid back coolness factor that belied a razor sharp mind. One of the best debut protagonists I’ve read in a long time.
An Arizona girl myself, it was great fun to read a book literally set in my backyard. I think I’ve been to every location mentioned in HOUNDED and can vouch for the grub at the Rula Bula Irish pub in Tempe. At the same time, because I was so familiar with the setting, it was probably harder for me to wrap my head around the idea of all these supernatural creatures living in and around my old stomping grounds.
But it wasn’t the setting that kept HOUNDED from skyrocketing onto my all time favorites list, it was the plot. It’s pretty thin and takes it’s sweet time getting started. The first hundred pages or so deal primarily with Atticus getting unwanted visitors and introducing us to some of the characters who will no doubt populate the series. An old enemy wants something that Atticus stole from him centuries ago. He sends wave after wave of attackers after Atticus to get it back. That’s pretty much it. If the characters and writing style hadn’t been so compelling, the weak plot would have been a problem.
Overall, a really strong debut full of primary and secondary characters who could all probably carry a series on their own, they are that good. The plot may not have been the strong suit, but the narrative style and voice of Atticus and Oberon more than made up for it. If you like a sprawling pantheon along side the more traditional urban fantasy vampires, werewolves, and witches, you’re going to love this book. The good news is that you won’t have to wait the usual six months to a year for the next Iron Druid Chronicles book. Del Rey is releasing the first three books back to back: HOUNDED will come out May 3, HEXED on June 7, and HAMMERED on July 5. The fourth book in the series is called TRICKED, but does not yet have a release date.
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*Cover Art may not be final*
Click author names to visit their webpages
The Last Twilight by Marjorie M. Liu
| Series: Dirk & Steele #7 Date/Publisher: June 1, 2011 by HarperCollins (Reprint) Cover Artist: N/A Cover Source: Marjorie M. Liu Author Comments: I’m happy to present the reissued cover for THE LAST TWILIGHT, which will come out some time this year, probably around April. Of course, you can read it now as an e-book! My Thoughts: |  |
A young doctor in Doctors Crossing Borders finds herself caught up in a bioweapons plot, and only Amiri—a shape-shifting member of Dirk & Steele—can protect her and win her heart.
![bookdepository_thumb[9]](http://i982.photobucket.com/albums/ae307/AllthingsUF/bookdepository.jpg "bookdepository_thumb[9]")
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Trial by Fire by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
| Series: Raised by Wolves #2 Date/Publisher: June 14th 2011 by EgmontUSA Cover Artist: N/A Cover Source: jenlyn_b Author Comments: Today is an exciting day in Jen Land, because I finally get to show you all the cover for TRIAL BY FIRE, the sequel to RAISED BY WOLVES. The book is due out June 14th here in the U.S., and we've been working on this cover for almost six months now! We've been through a bunch of different versions, but I am very pleased with this one. My Thoughts: |  |
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Hexed by Kevin Hearne
| Series: The Iron Chronicles #2 Date/Publisher: May 24th 2011 by Del Rey Cover Artist: N/A Cover Source: Ellz Readz Author Comments: N/A My Thoughts: |  |
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 non-aggression treaty—when suddenly the witch population in modern day Tempe, Arizona, quadruples overnight. The new girls are not just bad, they’re badasses with a dark history on the German side of WWII.
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.
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Hammered by Kevin Hearne
| Series: The Iron Druid Chronicles Date/Publisher: June 28th 2011 by Del Rey Cover Artist: N/A Cover Source: Ellz Readz Author Comments: N/A My Thoughts: |  |
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. Plus things are heating up in his 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 plane 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 Norse gods, and the hammer-wielding Thunder Thug himself.
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Shattered Souls by Mary Lindsey
| Series: Date/Publisher: December 8, 2011 from Philomel/Penguin. Cover Artist: N/A Cover Source: Shattered Souls Cover! « Mary Lindsey's Weblog Author Comments: Penguin gave me the go ahead to show off my cover for Shattered Souls. I love it! My Thoughts: |  |
A dark and dangerous forbidden love story about a Speaker who helps lingering ghosts pass to the spirit world and the Protector who has pledged to server her. Coming December 8, 2011 from Philomel/Penguin.
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The Darkness Beyond by Alexis Morgan
| Series: Paladins of Darkness #8 Date/Publisher: May 31st 2011 by Pocket Cover Artist: N/A Cover Source: Alexis Morgan Author Comments: N/A My Thoughts: |  |
An online game of cat and mouse leads a Paladin warrior on a deadly rescue mission to claim the irresistible lover who should be his greatest enemy.
D. J. Clayborne has finally met his match. After weeks of playing cyber tag, a mysterious hacker bests D.J.at his own game. His nemesis downloads a top-secret history of the Paladins, forcing him to go on the hunt. The trail leads D.J. straight to Regina Morrison, a woman who is as sexy as she is talented in the cyberworld. Reggie has been working around the clock to stop a legendary computer hacker from accessing her clients’ files, but the last thing she expects is to have D.J. show up at her door. Or that he’s even hotter than his evasive avatar. Soon they’re flirting with a dangerous line between duty and desire. Reggie’s investigation gets her kidnapped by the Others and forced across the hostile energy barrier into an alien world. Now it’s up to D.J. to track down the captivating woman whose ability to break through his firewalls is also breaking through to his warrior’s heart.
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So any new to you covers? Which are your Best & Worst picks?
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