Setup from the first novel gave us a slam dunk in the second. I can honestly call myself a new fan of this author. I am already aching to sink my teeth into the third. What I am most pleased about is the well rounded line-up of gods and baddies to do battle with, not that these books are entirely a type of beat-em up fiction. He does a great job with that, but more important is the much better character development. I was already planning ahead for it in the first novel, expecting some great stuff later, and of course it's always a pleasure to be satisfied. It is a shame that the novels aren't bundled together, but that can also be expected for later. It's pretty obvious the third is very closely tied to the first two. I'm reminded of Butcher's Dresden, that is also clumped together naturally. 
 I'm really enjoying this guilty pleasure series. :)