Trapped (Iron Druid Chronicles #5)

As this is a review of the fifth installment of an ongoing series, spoilers will be present, though I’ve attempted to keep them to a minimum…

Atticus O’Sullivan has been in hiding with his apprentice Granuaile after faking their deaths, and the death of Atticus’s Irish Wolfhound Oberon, for twelve years. At the conclusion of the third novel, Atticus dispatched with the Norse God Thor so such a ruse was necessary to convince the Norse gods he was dead, so in Tricked, Atticus enlisted the help of Coyote, the Navajo Trickster god to help in the ruse. This all leads to Trapped, twelve years later with Atticus ready to finally bind Granuaile to the Earth and make her a full-fledged Druid, doubling the number of Druids in the world. Of course, nothing is every easy for the last Druid.

Atticus realizes people are conspiring against him, even those of the pantheon to whom he allies himself. Once his faked death is out of the proverbial bag, Atticus, Oberon, and Granuaile head off to Tír na nÓg, the plain of Tuatha Dé Danann where he can speak with the otherworldly beings to whom Druids pray and derives his supernatural abilities. From there, Atticus heads to Olympus to bind Granuile. Along the way, and in between interruptions from various deities and supernatural beings, Atticus and Graniule come to a crossroads in their relationship, as things finally boil over between them. Something Oberon (still my favorite character and quite possibly my favorite literary hound) has been commenting on in previous novels and more so here in the Trapped.

Five books deep into a series that appears as if it can go at least double that number provides a writer with a certain level of comfort, as it can for the readers of that series. After all, that’s part of why readers return to successful series and why authors continue to write them. On the other hand, progression and stagnation can enter as the series progresses. Not so with Hearne’s Iron Druid Chronicles, each book builds on the predecessor and most importantly no action Atticus or any other character takes is without consequences. Atticus killed possibly the most recognizable Norse god and two books later, the ramifications of that action (and Atticus’s actions in early novels) and the events surrounding it are plaguing the last Druid. In short, Hearne continues to admirably walk the fine line between safety/comfort and progression/consequences.

An element that’s always been an undercurrent of these novels is Hearne’s reverence for storytelling. Whether in the backstory of Atticus or the short mythic stories other characters tell to Atticus (the stories Väinämöinen’s told in Hammered, the ‘truth’ about the Svartálfar Norse dark elves revealed here in Trapped), the past always ties into current events and provides powerful, resonant, and layered storytelling. Again, the idea of consequences as a powerful theme in these novels becomes more apparent.

Hearne’s great knack for dialogue, interweaving of various global myths and supernatural creatures, and brisk pacing which made the previous four installments so enjoyable are again on full display here in the fifth volume. Tricked (the previous volume) felt a bit of a table setter and breather for the series. Trapped raises the stakes again and sets important events in motion while providing for a wholly satisfying story. If you have been reading The Iron Druid Chronicles, chances are you’ll want to keep reading. Readers who aren’t sure at this point will want to head back to the beginning in Hounded, even though in Trapped Hearne peppers in some details that will allow newer readers to dive in anew with this book.

Recommended

http://www.kevinhearne.com / Del Rey, November 2012
Mass Market Paperback, 320 Pages ISBN: 978-0-345-53364-7 / eBook: ISBN: 978-0-345-53562-7
Excerpt (Chapter 1): http://www.randomhouse.com/book/216986/trapped-the-iron-druid-chronicles-book-five-by-kevin-hearne#excerpt
Review copy courtesy of the publisher

Reviews of previous installments of the series:

1) Hounded

2) Hexed

3) Hammered

4) Tricked

As Atticus and Granuaile are preparing for the lengthy ritual (months!) which will bond her with the Earth spirit, Perun, the Slavic god of thunder, crashes to the earth in flames. Hot on his tail is the Norse trickster Loki who has escaped his prison thus signaling the pending Ragnarok of the Norse myth. Loki was hoping to kill Thor when he escaped, but since Atticus already dispatched Loki’s half-brother, Loki went to the next thunder god Perun.