I love everything I have ever read by Kevin Hearne and "Besieged" is no exception! This collection of short stories, told from multiple characters' perspectives, answers questions that have bugged readers for years and sets the stage for the next chapter of the Iron Druid Chronicles. Brilliant, clever, and nowhere near enough. 5/5 stars.

Besieged is a set of short stories in Kevin Hearn's Iron Druid universe. Each story is told from the point of view of a specific narrator - Siodhachan, Owen, Granuaile, and Perun all take opportunities to talk about specific incidents. Most of the stories are simple fill in a time gap - such as what Granuaile has been doing in Poland since Stakes, what Perun and Flidais have been doing to track down Fand, how Owen became Siodhachan's Arch Druid, and so forth.
I really enjoyed this collection of tales and it was a quick read. The stories are told either during the several years that Siodhachan and Granuaile were training in Colorado, or at a time between major events. The Perun/Flidais tale is intriguing though ends up being a bit sad. The rest of the collection is very entertaining.

Our favorite Druid is back in a collection of short stories. Besieged gathers many of the previously published tales in the Iron Druid Chronicles with appearances by Atticus, Granuille, Owen, Oberon and many more! Here's a quick summary of each story:

The Eye of Horus - Atticus is visited by the Morrigan and sent on a mission that will take him to the Library of Alexandria and change the course of his life. ~Super fun. I'm always a big fan of Egyptian mythology but wish the gods present had some more personality.

Goddess at the Crossroads - Atticus tells the story of how he met a drunken Shakespeare, saved his life and changed Western literature. ~Love this story and the others where readers get to see Atticus interact with other historical figures.

The Demon Barker of Wheat Street - Atticus and Granuille visit her old home town and run into a host of demons who are using a carnival to feed their unholy appetites. ~I enjoyed this update and audio narration much more than the original published version which wasn't performed by Luke Daniels.

Gold Dust Druid - Gold rush era San Francisco suffers biblical consequences. ~This was a fun story, loved seeing Atticus in this environment. Poodles!

The Bogeyman of Boora Bog - It turns out that not all druids make for good neighbors. Owen goes Dirty Harry and winds up meeting a young Atticus in old-school Ireland. ~Interesting adventure plus a little backstory into how Owen meets Atticus.

Cuddle Dungeon - Gods get their freak on. This is very much an adult short story. ~I thought this one narrated by Perun in a BDSM dungeon rather unnecessary.

Blood Pudding - Granuille has the spotlight to herself in this story. Vampires can't be trusted and it's up to her and some thick necked mercenaries to remind some Polish vampires that they aren't at the top of the food chain. ~Granuille always kicks ass. Love her!

Hunted to Devils - Owen and Atticus team up with Owen's new apprentices to prevent the extinction of Tasmanian devils. ~Interesting story and I like the crossover of characters plus the incorporation of the new generation of Druids.

The End of Idylls - The Morrigan pays Atticus a visit and let's him know that the end is nigh. Loki is on the move and Lucifer is his new bff. Fun time is over and he has the talk with Oberon. ~Eek! The last book needs to get here soon! I'm excited. I'm terrified. What will happen? Will Atticus make it back? That almost goodbye with Oberon was too much!

Overall, I adored Besieged and its audiobook, another perfectly narrated confection by Luke Daniels. I cannot imagine the characters any other way!

Final rating: 5 out of 5 stars

This is a short story collection that has some new stuff and some old stuff. Half of this can be read without having finished everything that is out so far but the last half does spoil Staked and there are warnings. This is not all of the short fiction set in this world but most of it. The POV characters do change with some of the stories and the Owen one is really good. The first half fills in time before the start of the first book and some of the time that Atticus was training Granuaile. I like that not all the stories are all Atticus and that other people do not see him the way he sees himself.

This is a great book to read while waiting for Scourged to come out. And tracking down the other stories that were not added to this collection will make the time go faster.

I’ve been a huge fan of Mr. Hearne since the beginning and I am always glad to see a new book in this series, but I do admit I’ve never been a big fan of short stories or stories between books. However, when they are bundled together like this, I love them. And what a great bundle this is! I love going back to different points in the series and re-live some of the best times, and sometimes it’s nice to see what happens between books. And these novellas, of course, have Mr. Hearne’s great writing and great plots that we always expect from his full-length novels. The multiple POVs are nice, too, as we get to see new stories and events from a different perspective than the full-length novels. Atticus is great but it’s nice to see how everyone else feels for a change. If you are a fan of the Iron Druid Chronicles, you need to read these. If you haven’t read this series before, I’d start from the beginning in the regular books because I think you’d miss something otherwise. Highly recommend! Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine for the e-copy of the book which I voluntarily reviewed.

“Besieged” is Hearne’s latest entry in his “Iron Druid Chronicles” as a collection of nine short stories. For fans of Hearne’s IDC, it fills a much-needed void. It has been over a year since his last novel in the series was released, and fans are eagerly waiting on the final novel of the series.

While most of the stories feature the series protagonist, Atticus, other characters share the spotlight. The collection features stories about Granuaile, Owen, and Perun. Hearne provides a brief intro to each story advising who the story is about and where it falls in the IDC timeline. These short stories help readers better understand the characters, a great exercise in character development.

As a devoted reader of Hearne’s IDC, I have appreciated the author’s masterful use of snark, adventure and mythology. He has created one of the best worlds in urban fantasy genre I have yet to read. "Besieged" includes:

“The Eye of Horus“ - Atticus accepts a mission during the time of ancient Egypt and encounters members of the Egyptian pantheon for the first time.

“Goddess at the Crossroads“ - Atticus shares an adventure he shared with William Shakespeare.

“The Demon Barker of Wheat Street“ - While having never read the original story, this one is an updated version of a previously released story. Atticus and Granuaile return to Granuaile's home town and uncover a carnival of demons.

“Gold Dust Druid“ - Atticus stalks a greedy demon during the San Francisco gold rush era.

“The Bogeyman of Boora Bog“ - Owen undertakes a pre-Druid purge mission encountering another druid, while meeting a future apprentice.

“Cuddle Dungeon“ - Features Perun in a very adult oriented short story.

“Blood Pudding“ - Granuaile takes on vampires in Poland unwilling to honor the newly negotiated Accords.

“Hunted to Devils“ - Owen and his apprentices join forces with Atticus in Tasmania to heal Tasmanian Devils.

“The End of Idylls“ - The Morrigan visits Atticus to warn Ragnarok is near. It is time for Atticus to have a heart-to-heart with Oberon.

This is a must read for fans of Hearne's IDC; however, I do not recommend it for a starting point to new readers. Stories reference events in previous IDC novels.

“Note: An ARC was received from NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review. “

I am a huge fan of the Iron Druid series. It has a satisfying blend of adventure, quirky characters, humour, mythology, wit and drama.

For those of you who haven’t read this series, the Iron Druid Chronicles is a hilarious, action-packed urban fantasy set in a modern world in which all the gods of every pantheon are alive and well. The central character to this series is a 2,000-year-old Irishman/Druid, Atticus O’Sullivan.

Besieged is a collection of short stories involving the main characters of the aforementioned series. Atticus gets the most coverage but Granuaile, Owen, Perun (God of Thunder) and others also get a chance to play a central role in their own stories. The stories cover around 1,300 years of history and provide more in depth background information about the main characters. As you progress through the stories, they become more current and set the stage for the upcoming conclusion of the series, Scourged.

Here's a brief summary of the stories:

The Eye of Horus - Atticus is visited by the Morrigan and sent on a mission to the Library of Alexandria, where he experiences a life altering event.

Goddess at the Crossroads - Atticus describes how he met a drunken Shakespeare and saved his life, thereby altering Western literature due to events experienced on that night.

The Demon Barker of Wheat Street - Atticus and Granuaile visit her old home town and run into a host of demons, parading as carnival people, luring in unsuspecting humans to feed off.

Gold Dust Druid - Gold rush era San Francisco suffers biblical consequences. Summoning demons rarely goes to plan.

The Bogeyman of Boora Bog - Druids don’t always make good neighbours. Owen meets a young Atticus in olden day Ireland.
Cuddle Dungeon – Warning – adult content. Gods get up to mischief. (That’s all I’m saying).

Blood Pudding – It’s Granuaile’s time to shine in this story. Vampires can't be trusted and it's up to her and some thick necked mercenaries to teach some Polish vampires a lesson that they won’t soon forget.

Hunted to Devils - Owen's new apprentices team up with Owen and Atticus to try and prevent the extinction of Tasmanian devils. Mayhem follows.

The End of Idylls - The Morrigan visits Atticus to let him know that the end is approaching. Loki is making his move and Lucifer’s his new best friend. Fun time is over and he has “The Talk” with Oberon.

The stories are imaginatively written and vary in location and time periods, with a variety of supernatural beings included such as werewolves and other shape changers, vampires, ghouls, demons, witches, gods and more with lots of magic, adventure, danger, and mayhem (blood and guts, etc.).

I’m sad that the Iron Druid Chronicles will be coming to an end soon. I’ve gotten quite attached to some of the characters. Do yourself a favour and read the series first, then the short stories in Besieged will make more sense. I have thoroughly enjoyed this series and I hope that you will too.

Are you looking for a nice Iron Druid fix? Then you are in luck! Besieged has nine short tales set in the Iron Druid universe. Two stories ("The Demon Barker of Wheat Street" and "Goddess at the Crossroads") have appeared elsewhere, but that still leaves seven brand-spanking new stories. Atticus narrates five tales, Owen does two, and Granuaile and Perun does one apiece. There tales of Egyptian adventures, Shakespearean inspiration, Gold Rush fun, and a very strange BDSM tale. If you are an Iron Druid fan, do not miss this book, or you will regret the lost opportunity to hear old and new tales. Just don't greedy like Oberon with the sausages and read them all in one sitting!

Oftentimes, short story compilations are sort of a consolation prize while readers wait for the next book -- kind of a greatest hits of cut scenes that don't really move the plot forward. However, Hearne's latest book, Besieged, is not one of these books.

While most stories are told from the viewpoint of Atticus, there are stories told by Granuaile and Owen, too. Each of these stores serves to fill in our knowledge of the characters' pasts or set up for the next novel in the series. It's great to see that all three druids are off doing their own thing, keeping multiple plot points open even as their lives frequently intersect.

It would be wrong to skip over this book while waiting for the next in the series. It's a fun visit to the three druids, and will get readers excited for the next full novel.

Yet another in this FANTASTIC series!! And its among the best yet! THANK you!

Love Kevin Hearne's Iron Druid Chronicles especially Atticus. He's one of my favorite fantasy writers, we always buy him for our library.