I am impressed with Hearne’s knowledge of magic. As in the first book in this series, HarassedThis fantasy is intriguing as the hero, a 2000-year-old druid living in present-day Arizona, battles the forces of evil.

We learn the power of spells and the time it takes to bind and create them. We learn the power of the earth that flows through the druid while he is barefoot on the grass. We learn that witches and werewolves, who live disguised as seemingly normal consultants and lawyers, have different powers and need to turn to each other to fight the demons unleashed in the city.

However, there is too much violence in this story. The first book of Chronicles had less unnecessary brutality. Here the author exceeds in the fight, even to conquer evil. And there is less plot and too obvious a setting for the third book in the series. However, as before, something draws me to read the next installment.

I love the fact of Druid’s insistence on caring for the land that was burned in the first book. Despite the threats to his life, and yes, even a 2,000-year-old being can be extinguished, he insists on staying in the area to restore the land. We need more, or a few, of today’s Druids to tend our land and re-cultivate the areas we have ruined. Atticus O’Sullivan’s moral strength is one of my draws to the story.

Another is that the character makes me laugh. I always admire authors who can do that. Atticus loses his ear in a violent fight, but one of the attractive witches he has known for many years restores him. However, the price he pays is for rough sex with this old woman. With sex often on his mind, Atticus is drawn to the breasts of his aid, a druid-in-training, and must focus his thoughts on baseball statistics to distract his attention. The disguised witches who live in Arizona make their living working as consultants, and through their spells they simply make the corporations think that they do work for the large compensation received. I admire all of Hearne’s humor and creativity.

An event that made me sit and think involved the druid asking a religious friend to pray to the Virgin Mary to help him in one of his endeavors to rid the city of threatening demons. Her faith shows Maria that she agrees, after much negotiation, to help by blessing the arrows needed in the fight, which only someone with her powers can do. Hearne understands that prayers are answered if we believe. What is familiar to us is what works. All religions are valid and there are powers within each that are necessary and necessary. What a nice thought.

Magic, humor, caring for the earth, the power of the earth, the power of faith, and the strength of powers combined add up to a creative fantasy. Despite its flaws, the story allows us to imagine a different world. We need to do that more often.

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