Oberon’s Meaty Mysteries: The Purloined Poodle

Oberon and Atticus visit the set of the 2000 Christopher Guest film Best in Show.

A friend of mine and I were talking and I told him that I was a complete and shameless Kevin Hearne junkie, reading all of his Iron Druid works like a fat boy gobbling little chocolate doughnuts. He asked, “Isn’t that the fun urban fantasy series with the Irish druid and the dog has all the best lines?”

Yep, that’s it!

Fans of the series have no doubt enjoyed Hearne’s expansion of the narrative storyline to include Granuaile and Owen and now the best addition of all … Oberon has his own story.

And it’s a damn good one!

Oberon and his faithful druid Atticus solve the mystery of some dognapped AKC champions – with the help of some ancient druidic magic.

All good fun and a running joke that many of the dogs are named after Jane Austen characters.

For dog lovers, urban fantasy readers, and of course all the KevinHearnenistas will want to get in line behind me to enjoy this latest selection.

A fun, light mystery featuring Oberon (and Atticus, of course). Oberon obviously watches too much of the right sort of TV (spot the cultural references) but ultimately, of course, they must track down the missing Grand Champion Poodle. And Oberon is the star of the show.

Think cozy mystery meets Iron Druid, but with a canine protagonist, and you won't be far wrong. Expect the usual puns, conversations, meat- and dog-focus. You don't have to have read all the Iron Druid books for this, but there might be some mild spoilers if you're not up to the current one.

I was blessed enough to be approved by the publisher of this book to receive a free ebook copy of book via NetGally in exchange for my honest review which is as follows:

I personally am a big fan of "Oberon" and it was really cool to be able to hear more of his voice/personality, I personally got a little bit confused about some parts of the mystery. I can't wait to see what happens next with everyone, Overall I personally rate this book an 8/10.

Kevin Hearne pulls a fast one in in that it starts Oberon rather than Atticus. While visiting a dog park, the pair discovers that a registered poodle has been dognapped! After finding out about stud fees, Oberon puts on his deerstalker cap, sucks on his pipe and guides Atticus into solving the case so that there would be more poodles in the world! This is much more a light-hearted mystery rather than an action-filled romp most Iron Druid stories are. But the change of pace and character is a very welcome breather that lets Oberon shine. I would welcome more Meaty Mysteries from Oberon!

I love Oberon. It's great to have a story from his point of view. This is very funny, and it is a great mystery.

Kevin Hearne's "Oberon's Meaty Mysteries: The Purloined Poodle" is absolute perfection. For readers of the Iron Druid series, a story told from Oberon the Irish Wolfhound's point-of-view is a dream-come-true. Although there is plenty of commentary from Oberon in the novels, this entire novella is told from Oberon's perspective and it is absolutely hilarious! While visiting a dog park with his druid Atticus, Oberon meets a dog who clearly has some serious issues. When Atticus speaks to the dog's owner, it comes to their attention that someone has been kidnapping prize-winning purebred dogs along the West Coast. Atticus leaves it up to Oberon to decide whether or not they should investigate the matter further and Oberon determines that they need to solve the case and bring the dogs home. With his inability to tell the difference between an hour and a week, his love of all things meat, and his unfailing ability to charm everyone he meets, Oberon is the perfect narrator. I only hope that Hearne will provide up with more "Meaty Mysteries" from Oberon. 5/5 stars.