Hounded Re-read - Week 5

Here are the links to date: Intro, Week 1, Week 2, Week 3,  and Week 4.  This week's entries are hosted by TheUnreadReader here. Read on!

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1. In a moment of anger, Atticus reveals something about himself that he usually keeps very secret, for his own benefit. Has something similar ever happened to you? Have you ever spilled a closely guarded secret in a moment of excitement or anger or absent-mindedness? 

I don't really have any crazy secrets, and I don't have much of a temper either, so I've never really been goaded into this kind of situation before.  Boring, I know.

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2. Atticus tells Mrs. MacDonagh, "the universe is exactly the size that your soul can encompass. Some people live in extremely small worlds, and some live in a world of infinite possibility." Then he asks her what she is going to do with the new information she has discovered. What would you do if you found out that other beings were among us? Would you deny it or embrace it?

I don't think I could deny it.  I'd just have lots of questions.  In some stories of this genre, once you know, you can't help but see, and the spooky stuff knows you can see them.  That doesn't seem to be an issue in the Hearne-verse, so I would probably be able to stay out of trouble for the most part.

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3. So far, Atticus has revealed a few of his powers and has even shared some power by putting bindings on Granuaile. What do you think has been his coolest or most helpful power so far? 

I think his coolest power is shapeshifting.  There's just something awesome about being able to change into an animal and experience life in a completely different way.  His most useful power is the healing touch of the earth.  Hearne does a good job finding ways to (temporarily) keep him away from open earth for story tension, but in real life that would be the power you would get the most use out of.

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4. Atticus gets pretty pissed when he finds out that Aenghus Óg is drawing power from the Earth and, in turn, killing it. That's when Atticus decides he must fight the old Fae for committing such a heinous offense. What is something you would fight for, even if it meant you might die trying?

The easiest answer is family and friends.  I think if the US were invaded/usurped by some kind of totalitarian regime (and this isn't some veiled political reference, I mean real bad guys, not just the latest politician from the party you don't like), I would be prepared to go Red Dawn.

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5. What did you think of the final showdown between Atticus and Aenghus Óg? Did it go down the way you expected? Was there anything about their battle that surprised you?

I can't say I expected exactly what happened to Atticus, but it also didn't surprise me.  By the time I was that far into Hounded, I knew that Hearne was a pretty clever guy who likes to subvert expectation, so when Atticus went down I thought "of course, this is perfect".

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6. What was your favorite/least favorite part of Hounded? Who was your favorite/least favorite character?

I don't remember having any real issues with the book.  The only characters I disliked were the ones I was supposed to hate, like Aenghus.  In this first book, I think Oberon is definitely the breakout star, and all of the scenes with Atticus and Oberon on their own are probably the best for making this feel like a real world with real characters you'd like to hang out with.

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7. What do you think is coming up next for Atticus? Will you continue reading this series, and if so, what do you hope to see happen in the next book?

I read the entire opening trilogy as they came out last summer, so I'm not really sure how to answer this.  I will say that I'm definitely planning on continuing the series, I've had Tricked pre-ordered on Amazon since it was first posted.  I'm also going to one of Kevin's signings for Tricked this summer.  I have some thoughts on what's to come for the Iron Druid, but I think I'll keep them to myself to avoid spoiling any new readers in our midst.