Reviews

The Godless Kingdom by Sheila Masterson

rgrace89's review

adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

bookedwithbay's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐆𝐨𝐝𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐊𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐝𝐨𝐦 𝐛𝐲 𝐒𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐥𝐚 𝐌𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

𝘽𝙧𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙢𝙮 𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙙. 𝘽𝙧𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙢𝙮 𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙩.

The Godless Kingdom is the perfect conclusion to the series. The rollercoaster this book takes you on, will have you feeling ALL of the emotions. The character development, storyline and details throughout the series is perfection. 

The found family vibes and everyone’s banter is a breath of fresh air throughout the heavy moments and I think this line said it best, “If we can’t laugh about it, it’s just sad?”

There is pain and heartbreak, confusion and grief, but there’s also joy and a lot of hope! I’m sad to be saying goodbye to these characters, but I’m so happy they all ended up where they needed to be. 

These characters and their story will stay with me forever. Infinite stars for The Lost God series!

I received this book as an ARC. 

pageturningseasons's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Firstly, a big thank you to Sheila for letting me be part of her arc team. 

I knew this book was going to be *emotional damage* as soon as I got it in my hands. The Lost God series has truly been an emotional rollercoaster of a journey, from book 1 through to the final instalment, book 4. I felt that there were elements of character re-birth for nearly all the characters in The Godless Kingdom, and I came away feeling an immense amount of closure, given the tense point we'd got to in the previous book, The Storm King.

The absolute love I have for all these characters is truly unmatched. The Godless Kingdom guides us through heartache, rebellion, court intrigue, self development arcs, the power of remembering, and we learn that the body, really does - truly remember. For me, Xander's character redemption arc was all I ever wanted for our Storm King, and I appreciated it greatly as I had been a Xander girly right from the very start. He goes through so much growth in The Storm King and the The Godless Kingdom, his self-awareness of his own mistakes was something that really stuck with me throughout this book.

I finally understood what all the fuss was about with our full-of-surprises Rainer McKay. Listen, if you don't fall in love with him by the final book then there really is no hope for you. In fact, I'm pretty sure I'd fallen in love with Rainer by the time we got to The Storm King and not a moment before. What this man goes through - the trauma, the relearning who he is, and everything else that is throw at him. I don't think anyone could've coped with this other than Rainer. He's honestly unmatched.

To Cece, girl - will you ever NOT go through something? seriously, her unwavering strength and determination through this book FLOORED me. I was in absolute bits at multiple chapters for her. I had faith in her throughout, no matter what happened. Who knew that stories and fairytales would always be the light in the dark to bring us back home.

To Evan and Sylvie, you held things together more than you will ever know.

This series ended the way I dreamed it would always end, with the closure that every single character deserved. I sobbed, I laughed, but most of all it reminded me of why we should trust in stories and hold them close to our heart no matter what happens.

Ps. nothing could've prepared me for THAT plot twist.

kelmer07's review

adventurous challenging hopeful tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

This one had some intense scenes that kept me on the edge of my seat. Plenty of swoony moments and a sweet conclusion for our MCs. I really enjoyed this debut series from Sheila!

candeanne's review

emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Sheila Masterson brings The Lost God series to an emotionally satisfying close with The Godless Kingdom. She does what I wish more series did—gives the reader time to sit and bask in the happily ever after with the characters that they fought so hard for. 

Anything she writes is an automatic purchase for me & I am excited to see what’s next now that TLG series has concluded.

tinaturnsthepages's review

adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

This entire series has been EVERYTHING I could have hoped for on a reading journey. There are too many moments to note where the love and romance between the characters took my breath away, but trust that you will swoon, cry, and feel every bit of longing and adoration that you read on the pages. The banter and exchanges were some of the funniest to date. The feminine rage and friendships were as beautiful as they were empowering. The found family was most endearing. All the moments leading up to the last pages were done just right.

This was hands down the best way to end this most enchanting adventure . It took me three days to muster up the gumption just to write this review. I am still recovering and every time I think about the epilogue I cry. It's so bittersweet to think about parting with these characters that I fell so much in love with, but if I can keep this story in my memory until the stars fall then I'll know they won't go where I can't go. Okay, and now I'm crying into my coffee cup again. 

Sheila is a master of her craft and I feel like it was the greatest fortune to read her books and catch a glimpse into that sparkling wild mind of hers. Thank you, Sheila. It was a gift from the gods to join the ARC team and have the privilege to read this final book of The Lost God series. I will be forever grateful for the healing and hope found within your writing.

crooks_book_nook's review

5.0

I can't believe this series is over...this is been one of the most emotional journeys I've ever been on while reading. It has been such a pleasure to be an ARC reader for Sheila.

Sheila has done a fantastic job immersing us into the story by making us feel all of these emotions. You laugh, you cry, you celebrate, you mourn...you feel everything. All of these characters go through so much, and I was happy to see how everything works out for them in the end. Even though there is a lot of heavy going on in this book, there is still quite a bit of comedic relief, and it was really refreshing. 

If you're looking for a great, well written series that makes you feel, you're definitely going to want to pick this one up.

🌶🌶.5

smalltown_smutlover's review

adventurous challenging emotional hopeful tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️♾️
🌶️🌶️🌶️
ARC Review
Release Date: June 3, 2024

“𝙄’𝙫𝙚 𝙛𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙗𝙚𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙨𝙢𝙖𝙧𝙩 𝙞𝙨 𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙞𝙣𝙫𝙤𝙡𝙫𝙚𝙙. 𝙄𝙛 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙠 𝙣𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜, 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙜𝙖𝙞𝙣 𝙣𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜.”

Your local angst dealer is back for one more Lost God review 😎

We left our Found Family in quite a pickle at the end of The Storm King, and they have a lot of work ahead in order to un-pickle themselves.

Brain Scramblies have returned, and it is maddening and heartbreaking to watch Rainer try to remember who he is. Cece and Xander try to play Rafiki to his Simba, but their deal with Cato puts up a lot of roadblocks. On top of that, they have to try to save the two kingdoms - YET AGAIN - this time from a psychopathic, usurping piece of trash. Have I mentioned how much I ✨hate✨ Vincent Savero? Like, maybe even more than I hated Cato. 

This book is such a beautiful, terrifying, heartbreaking, hopeful, and funny end to The Lost God series. I cannot recommend this series enough, but please be sure to hydrate and keep the tissues handy 🥲

“𝙔𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙩 𝙞𝙨 𝙬𝙧𝙖𝙥𝙥𝙚𝙙 𝙖𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙙 𝙢𝙞𝙣𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙣𝙤 𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙝𝙖𝙨 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙖𝙠𝙚𝙣 𝙨𝙪𝙘𝙝 𝙜𝙤𝙤𝙙 𝙘𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙞𝙩.”

pausb00kshelf's review

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

ARC REVIEW
♡♡♡♡♡/5
❦❦❦/5

how do i write a review to this amazing end to the lost god series, if  i'm still processing everything that's happened?? honestly, i don't have a clue but this is me trying! i don't think i'll ever shut up about how this book (the whole series actually) has wrecked me time and time again, and put me back together by the end. in all honesty, when @tayrosereads suggested the lost god as a read for her discord's bookclub i was expecting it to be a cutesy romantasy and in no way did i saw coming the trauma and the depth in topics these books would reach but i will forever be thankful to her because they're now a comfort read for me (yes, despite all the pain and suffering sheila has put me through!!)

to see certain someone fall in love all over again with the love of their life despite having no recolection of their story whatsoever has been one of the most painful but hopeful things i've ever read and, though i can't say much more as to not spoil anything, i don't think i've ever been this happy with how an author has closed up a series, there's not a single dot i would change in how everything turned out.

few things make me happier than found families coming together to bring down an evil king and save one of their members despite the suffering, the losses, the heartache... and to see the sorority and braveness of every woman in these books??? chef's kiss

also, if you hate love-triangles let me tell you it's simply because you haven't read the masterpiece that is cece's relationship with both rainer and xander, the conclusion to their lovestory was so beautifully written and is nothing but a poem dedicated to hope and different types of love (as is the whole series in itself) i can't thank sheila enough for caring about every single one of her characters this much, and for giving them the hopefully ever after they deserve ♡

so, what will you find in this book?:
🌼mental health rep
🗡️strong female characters/friendships
🌙angst & yearning
🌼soul bond
🗡️femenine rage
🌙muktiple povs
🌼found family
🗡️grumpy warrior
🌙2nd chance romance

✨complete series on kindle umlimited

nelliereadsalot's review

5.0

My heart hurt during most of this book, which is a testament to how much Sheila made me care about these characters through the last 3 books. I said in my review for The Storm King that our trio had been going Through It™️, but I didn't even know what was in store for me. So much angst, so many feels. Sheila is great at forcing us to deal with our discomfort (the characters were definitely more uncomfy) to make the story feel real, despite being a fantasy. The resolution was so so satisfying, and I did a literal excited fist up in the air when it all started to fall into place. I appreciated the care that Sheila took in addressing difficult subject matter and also how she wrote characters who were not immediately "fixed" with the completion of plot points. A lot of healing would need to be and was shown. Whew, what a ride.

Thanks to Sheila for an eARC of this book for an honest review.