⭐⭐⭐⭐ Was I hooked by that book? Yes. Hammered delivers nail-biting action and brings to life the Norse mythology like you’ve never seen it before.

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.

MY THOUGHTS

I quite enjoyed all the mythological references in these books, and the premise that all these gods only exist because people believe they do, even if there is only one believer. And I ended up researching many of these references myself, which led to an entirely separate adventure.

Leif and Gunnar are two fairly well-known characters by now and I’ve always liked them, but in Hammered we get more insight into their thoughts and motivations. I especially liked the fireside stories from each of the men who accompanied Atticus, that painted a dismal picture of Thor’s fickle character.

The action sequences were riveting, but so many of the deaths felt senseless and just like Atticus at one point, we are left wondering if it was all worth it. This book definitely had a more somber feel to it in comparison with the first two books. Hammered made me much more aware of what drives the characters to make the decisions they did and I was left feeling that Atticus was acting more out of self-interest and less because he is fighting on behalf of the “greater good”.

The author skillfully used clever metaphors throughout and successfully extended them over several events/conversations. The ending was packed with shocking surprises and more than one cliffhanger.

I am reading this series as part of a read-along hosted by Anne on Books Of My Heart. I can recommend this entire series if you like magic, magical creatures, and mythology. It is best to read these books in order.

Were you hooked by that book? Let me know in the comments below.

Genre: Fantasy
Sensuality Rating: None
Series: The Iron Druid Chronicles
Other books in the series: Hounded, Hexed