Scourged

★ ★ ★ ★ 1/2 (rounded up)
This originally appeared at The Irresponsible Reader.
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So, in a fast 265 pages Kevin Hearne gives us: Ragnarok; a lot of dead vampires; environmental crises; a friendly sloth; puppies; send-offs to many, many characters; shocking deaths; less-than-shocking deaths; surprise non-deaths; and more discussion of poots (elven and jaguar) than one'd expect in this kind of book. The amount that he accomplishes here is really staggering. Some of it, alas, could've been deeper – explored more thoroughly – if he hadn't set out to do so much or if he'd taken more time with some things (and less time with others). Still, this was a heckuva way to end the series.

This is not the book to start this series with, go back and read Hounded if you're curious (one of the best series kick-offs around), and I'm not going to get into the plot much. It's Ragnarok. We've all known it was coming and now it's here – ‘nuff said. Along those lines, however, Hearne also gets bonus points for including a “where we are in the series” introduction, summarizing the first 8 novels and the short stories/novellas that got us to this point. Again, this should be a requirement for long-running series.

There's no easy way to say it: there was just too much of Granuaile and Owen. Yes, it's the best use of Owen since his introduction, don't get me wrong. But it's the Iron Druid Chronicles – fine, use the others if you want, but they shouldn't get equal time to the Iron Druid here in the last book. Especially given the number of things – and scope of action – that had to be accomplished in Atticus' story, it really should've had more room to breathe. That said – for End-of-the-World Showdowns featuring deities from multiple pantheons? This rocked. He wrapped up the story he kicked off in Hammered and Two Ravens and One Crow in a fantastic fashion, full of death, blood and tension. At the same time, he maintained the very idiosyncratic characterizations he'd created for the various gods and goddesses.

Speaking of Two Ravens and One Crow, a small, but fun, point from that comes back in these pages in a way that no one could have expected and added just the right level of fun to the battle.

Hearne did a great job integrating the short stories from Besieged into this book – I didn't expect to see so much from them carry over to this. It all worked well and set the stage for Hearne to get in to the action of Scourged right away and he took full advantage of that.

There were more than a few things that seemed like they needed better explanations – doesn't the convenient dog sitter find the way that Atticus spoils his dogs more than a little strange? Given that they've known the clock was ticking on Ragnarok, why did Atticus wait until the last second to give Granuaile and Owen their assignments? I mean, it works out well for dramatic purposes, and allows certain plot points to be triggered, but that's not a good reason for the characters to work that way. At the very least, why weren't his former apprentice and his former teacher pestering Atticus to lay out his plans long before this? While I eventually saw what Atticus and Hearne were up to, in the moment, a lot of the plan just didn't make sense. When the world is falling apart, why set someone up for an extended training session (for one example)?

I'm not giving away anything about anyone dying – or living – but we know this is the finale, so we're seeing the end of stories for these characters. Some good, some shocking, some disappointing, some sad. In no particular order: Laksha got a nice send-off, I really didn't expect to see her here – and I really appreciated what Hearne did with her. It's not honestly the ending I've had wanted for Atticus – but it's the kind of ending that Hearne's been building to for a while now, so it's fitting. I can appreciate the way that Hearne accomplished his goals, even if I think Atticus deserved better. Owen's ending was everything you could've hoped for. Granuaile's story was fitting for her – and a good reminder that I stopped liking her a few books ago (seriously, why couldn't she adopt an attitude similar to Owen or Flidias when it comes to their assignments during the battle?). I would've liked to have seen Perun one more time, but he got a good send off in Besieged.

Oberon was sidelined for most of the book – I understand why: Atticus wanted to keep his buddy safe, and Hearne needed to keep things ominous, dramatic and threatening, which is hard to do with everyone's favorite Irish Wolfhound putting his two cents in (it's hard enough with Coyote around). Still, we got some good Oberonisms, and he elicited more than one smile from me – and you could argue he saved the day ultimately. If I didn't know that Hearne was writing one more of Oberon's Meaty Mysteries, I'd be despondent over not seeing him again.

Scourged wasn't perfect, but it was very satisfying. If I have to say good-bye to these characters, this is a pretty good way to do it. There was enough excitement, drama, and happenings to fill a couple of books and Hearne got it all into one – no mean feat – and it was a great read. It's not easy letting go of most of these characters and this world (I mean, apart from re-reads), but I'm glad Hearne got out when he did and the way he wanted to. I'm looking forward to his future projects.

Some minor spoilers are ahead. I will attempt to not ruin the story, but ye have been warned.

Scourged is the ninth and final novel in the “Iron Druid Chronicles” by Kevin Hearne. Hearne did it, he ended it, and we are sadly at the close of Atticus, Oberon, and more. At least for now. Hearne has been quoted in saying that he may visit these characters in the future, but for right now their story arc is completed. Sadly, all I can say is book nine was weak sauce. It is easily the worst of the nine.

Book nine starts with a funny conversation between Atticus and his hounds. “Yes, Food!”

“Ragnarok will begin in the next few days, and it won't end well for anyone, because apocalypses tend not to include happy endings.”
― Kevin Hearne, Scourged

They are lovingly talking about the joys of meats and gravies. Which most readers will agree with. Myself included. The almost impromptu conversations that flow between Atticus and his hounds throughout the series are Kevin Hernes's writing at its best. Oberon's commentary is a welcome addition to almost any scene in previous novels. Sadly, Oberon was sidelined for most of book nine. His missing analysis was sorely missed and the levity it brought.

Now into the meat of the story. Ragnarok is happening, and Loki is letting forth his pent-up daddy-issues upon the world. It is time to marshal the troops in opposition. The gods and goddesses of various pantheons join together for the fracas. Thus enters some pretty interesting characters we have met before: Sun Wukong who is also known as the Monkey King, Granuaile, Owen, Coyote, Flittish, Laksha, the Morrigan. Each has a specific role to play in this war, both predestined and not. Here is where I think the story begins to go off the rails. Kevin Hearne wrote this book to be single fight scenes or dialog scenes that are strewn across the world. All happening at different times with the span of a few days. Loki's actions have affected the world at large, not just small segments of it. Thus the main characters are needed in various parts of the world. These scenes feel chaotic and disjointed. Instead of exciting and climatic scenes, we get boring, unessential, and insignificant ones. The action scenes, which in previous novels where trim and concise, are so irregular and hardly understandable that it knocks the reader right out of the story. They are literally scratching their heads and saying “what the f$%?”

The denouement of some of these characters is a complete train wreck. At some point between book eight and book nine of this series, Hearne decided that a complete rewrite was needed for their personalities. It feels like he was very done with writing these characters. Especially Granuille. Her ending was ridiculous. It felt vicious, cold, and mean-spirited, in a very “kick them when they are down” kind of way. Which is out of character for her. There must have been a better way to carry out the meat of that scene without making her seem so coldhearted. Atticus made her into what she is primarily, and she kicked him while he was at the lowest point in his many centuries. I suppose there is a school of thought that says writes owe their readers something when it comes to their characters. That's not true. Writers owe their readers nothing. But it is in bad form for the author to take such a beloved character like Granuille and weirdly ruin her for many people. Bad form man, bad form.

Atticus deserved a lot of what was heaped on him, and I understand what Kevin Hearne was attempting to write regarding Atticus's end of the journey. But instead of the bittersweet ending, he was looking for, it came off as a whole lot of bitter, and absolutely nothing sweet. Except for maybe his interactions with his hounds at the end. This is a sad end for this series. It really felt like the proverbial punch in the gut.

Conclusion
I have no idea what to tell you to do. If you have loved this series as I have through all eight books and side stories, you will want to go on and finish the series. There is nothing for it, you need an end. But that ending will feel like someone dropped a load of rocks on your big toe while simultaneously stealing your wallet and telling you are ugly. If you haven't started the series yet, I still say go for it. It is a fun and wild ride till the end where you will unceremoniously have rocks dropped on your toes, your wallet stolen, and be emotionally injured with name calling. You are seriously damned if you do or don't.