Home of the Alpha Showdown, and one-stop shop for urban fantasy, paranormal romance and fantasy news and reviews.
It’s that time again. I spent far too much time attempting to whittle down the 100+ books reviewed on VBC this year to the absolute best. So, as those Amazon and B&N gift cards start rolling in, just use this list as your shopping guide. I personally promise the extreme awesomeness of all the novels listed below. Also, at the very end you’ll see the VBC Readers’ Choice winner (which allowed me to leave it... 
After my mad gush-fest on Kristen Painter’s Blood Rights yesterday, I’m encouraged to move forward with an overhaul to the VBC recommendations page. I know you guys use it quite a bit, and I try to make sure it only has the best of the best. If it’s on that page, I’ll personally vouch that it rules. But I’d like to be able to showcase more books via our recommendations page. Right now it’s mostly a... 
I fell in love with the vivid world Kevin Hearne creates in his Iron Druid series. From early in Hounded, I wanted to hang out with the characters …and was a little jealous I couldn’t read my dogs’ minds. While I can’t sit a spell with Atticus or the widow MacDonagh, Kevin was kind enough to indulge my questions. Read on to hear his thoughts on friends for Atticus, getting inside Oberon’s mind and what we... 
Hexed (Iron Druid #2) Kevin Hearne Published: June 7, 2011 (Del Rey) Purchase at: Book Depository, Barnes & Noble or Amazon Rating (out of 5): 4 stars Note: This review is spoiler-free, but may reference events of the first novel Hounded. If you’re new to the Iron Druid series, we suggest you read that review first. There are a number of things I like about Hexed’s main character Atticus O’Sullivan. I...
Last week I reviewed Kevin Hearne’s debut urban fantasy Hounded. The novel, featuring 2,100-year-old druid Atticus, is set in Tempe, Arizona. Mostly in downtown Tempe, which is a dense mashing of bars, indie shops and the best hamburgers ever. I say all this because I lived there for several years there. I attended Arizona State University when the journalism school still resided at its Tempe campus. So,... 
Hounded (Iron Druid Chronicles #1) Kevin Hearne Published: May 3, 2011 (DelRey) Purchase at: Book Depository or Amazon Rating (out of 5): 5 stars Diving into the world Kevin Hearne crafted in Hounded was a treat. When you read as much urban fantasy and paranormal novels as I do, you tend to find commonalities constantly. But Hounded felt completely fresh with twists on magic and mythology that demanded... 
