Hounded tells the story of Tony Setanta, a nerdy 13-year-old boy who plays the harp but wants to play soccer. His mother, a world-famous harpist, is afraid he’d get hurt. His father says he is too clumsy and should use his brain—not brawn—to become a lawyer like him. When Tony is tricked into running drug money in exchange for soccer tickets by Ferdy, a former—and older—friend, he is arrested. At the police station, the two meet again.

“You set me up,” Ferdy screams, as police officers forcibly restrain him. “I’m gonna kill you!”

The threat hounds Tony and his parents. They decide to have him use his middle name, Colin, and send him and his wolfhound Finn McCool to a remote town in the Adirondacks to live with his 70-year-old grandaunt Alba. Unbeknownst to them, Alba is a master of the Celtic martial art known as bataireacht [BA ta- rokt]—shillelagh stick fighting. She also dabbles in magic. Alba teaches Colin to defend himself by emphasizing the importance of discipline and self-reliance. That training is put to the test under a red sky at dawn.

Bonus content includes illustrations by William E. Green III, a study guide, and the first chapter of Ghost Girl.

Hounded is the second book in the Companion Moon series. Although it is not a sequel to Ghost Girl, it shares a setting and several characters with that novel.