I don't even know how to start talking about this book.  It's insane.

I first heard about it from Irresponsible Reader and I've been enjoying Kevin Hearne's Iron Druid Chronicles for a few years.  And it's subtitle sold me:

Once A Pun A Time...

So I was expecting a funny read and I was expecting the puns, but I wasn't at all expecting the sheer enormity of innuendo and entendres: double, triple - possibly quadruple, but I suspect some of it went over my head as I struggled now to drown in the Monty Python-esque silliness of it all.  Examples include a chapter involving the band of unlikely heroes traveling through the elven Morning Wood, with more innuendo, puns and entendres than you can possibly imagine, and later in the book a trip to a pub called Balzac's, where the chef is the famous "wrinkled Balzac", and the house speciality is candied nuts.

It's quite frequently over-the-top, but it's still hilarious and sometimes sweet and a little bit shocking in unexpected ways.  My favorite character was Gustave, the talking goat, by a large margin, though the rest of the band of unlikely adventurers all have their own charms too.  

It's incredibly well-written and it's obvious the authors had a good time writing it, but Luke Daniels did an exceptional job narrating this book.  This is one of those rare instances where I think the reader would lose something by reading a physical copy.  Daniels owns this book and the characters in it, reading it like a dramatisation.  I recommend the audio unreservedly for anyone looking for a goofy good time.

I started the book in August, but it was due back at the library before I was half finished, and I didn't get it back until after Halloween Bingo started, so it qualifies. As there were scenes involving necro-bees and acid leeches, I'm going to use this for the Creepy Crawly square.

This review can also be found at Carole's Random Life in Books.

I am in love with Oberon! It is no secret that I am a dog person. I have three dogs and would probably have more if the county I live in didn't set limits. So I am always drawn to stories involving dogs but Oberon is a special kind of dog and I just love these short pieces that are told completely from his point of view. I think I started smiling as soon as I hit play on this audiobook and didn't quit smiling until it was over because it was just that much fun.

This story starts with Oberon, Orlaith, Starbuck, and Atticus taking a ride on a train. There is a squirrel on the train and the dogs are not happy about it. Once they reach their destination, they run into some bigger problems. There is a dead man that looks just like Atticus. This had me wondering who the real target was and I completely understood why Atticus and Oberon needed to get to the bottom of the mystery.

I thought that the mystery was really well done. It was fairly complex considering this is a pretty short piece. I found myself guessing until the very end and was surprised by a few things that developed along the way. Atticus and the dogs make a wonderful team and I love how much help the dogs were in finding the clues.

Luke Daniels does a fantastic job with this series. I couldn't imagine experiencing this story in any format other than audio. I really love the way he is able to bring Oberon to life and I feel that he is able to capture his canine way of looking at life. He delivers all of the more humorous parts of the story wonderfully as well as the more serious scenes. 

I would recommend this series to others. I do think that readers of the Iron Druid Chronicles will appreciate this tale from Oberons point of view. I think it could also probably work as a stand-alone. I kind of jumped ahead a bit by reading this one now but had no issues keeping up with the story. I can't wait to read more of this wonderful series!

Initial Thoughts
This was fun! I love Oberon so getting an entire story from his point of view is just a delight. I was really intrigued by the mystery in this one and thought it was really well done. Plus now I know that some squirrels really are evil. Luke Daniels does a fantastic job with the narration of this series as always. I couldn't imagine experiencing this story in any other way than audio.

Book Source: Audible Purchase

This review can also be found at Carole's Random Life in Books.

I liked this book. I do have to admit that it was not my favorite book in the series so far but it was still good. This is the fourth book in the Iron Druid Chronicles which is a series that really has to be read in order. I have found the entire series to be rather entertaining and this book was no exception.

The book started out really strong. Atticus needs to disappear so a plan is developed to make sure that everyone thinks he is gone for good. I really enjoyed the parts of the book that dealt with Atticus and Granuaile leaving their old life behind. Atticus finds himself owing Coyote a favor which Coyote cashes in quite wisely. Coyote is such a sneaky character which I find a lot of fun. 

I will say that this book felt a bit uneven to me. There were parts of the book where I was hanging on to every word because I was totally into the story. There were other sections that I wanted to drift off so I had to focus so that I didn't miss something important to the story. This was never a book that I didn't like but I did find a few sections to be a little slow. 

Luke Daniels continues to do a fabulous job with this series. I really could not imagine experiencing this series in any other way. He is the voice of Atticus but he also is able to encompass all of the other characters. I think that my favorite voice is probably the one he uses for Oberon. It is really quite brilliant. Luke Daniels has quickly moved to the top of my list of favorite narrators and I can't wait to listen to him bring the rest of the series to life.

I would definitely recommend this series to others. I think that it is a really well-done series filled with great characters and exciting situations. My rating of this book is really closer to 3.5 stars and I did enjoy it quite a bit. I can't wait to see what happens next in the series!

Initial Thoughts
I am not sure maybe 3.5 stars? I am going to have to think about whether to round up or down a bit. I liked this one but I liked parts of it more than others. I felt like I was a little more prone to my mind wandering while I listened to this one than the previous books in the series. There were some things that happen in this one that I feel will have a significance in later books. The narration was fabulous as expected. I look forward to reading more from the series soon.

Book Source: eStories Purchase