Reviews with content warning for Death of parent - Godkiller

This was a fun read with lots of rich world-building. The system of gods and humans felt both wondrous and intuitive, often making me curious about just what other gods there are out there and how much their power stretches (which I suppose I should simply read the next book sooner rather than later, then). I also enjoyed the characters in the story, from the lovable side characters to our main cast of heroes. Their voices all felt starkly unique to each other and I appreciated how their bonds grew over time.

That being said, I did have some critiques of the narrative and style.

First, I felt that Skediceth’s point of view—while it shed light on a god’s perspective—did take away from the pain of his betrayal to Inara. Instead of feeling surprised by his takeover of her mind and body, I saw it coming a mile away and therefore didn’t feel as stunned or hurt by it as I think I could have, had his POV chapters not foreshadowed it so heavily.

In that regard, I do wish she had perhaps limited her use of POVs to just Inara, Elo, and Kissen to maintain more suspense. Secondly, the big reveal of

Arren’s betrayal also felt a bit lacking due to how intensely evil he was upon Elo sacrificing himself. I would have liked to see him struggle a little more when faced with the reality of his selfish power grab in front of someone who I do believe he must have loved at some point.

That came across a bit superficial or disingenuous if only because it leaned more towards a place of “aha! the mask is off, muahahah!” as opposed to a hard hitting betrayal.

I do feel that Kaner really brought the story together for a very engaging end, however, and it certainly kept me wanting to see what happens next! Despite the few things I was a bit dissatisfied with, I felt that there were many more things to be excited about. Kissen, for one, is a breath of fresh air. I’ve read quite a few “angry women” protagonists now at this point, but I really loved Kissen’s flavor of it. She’s both down to earth and wildly spontaneous, and that combination made her an extremely fun character to follow. I also adored Inara, and think that she was a cool spin on the “naive girl discovering the world” trope. Her power and individuality made it easy to root for her and exciting to imagine what she will become.

I’m looking forward to reading Sunbringer, even if I’m nervous about the fates of our favorite found family!

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missgarceau's review against another edition

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adventurous funny reflective tense medium-paced

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

3.75

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beckyremillard's review against another edition

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adventurous 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

4.0

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mazomazli's review against another edition

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adventurous 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

4.5

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megang519's review against another edition

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adventurous dark medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

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hflh's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious tense slow-paced

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

2.75

Cool world with good character potential diminished by a slow plot (and I usually like slow) and the most mustache-twirly villain speech I’ve seen in adult fiction.

That being said, the world is very compelling and I like the characters. I’m hoping this is a good set up for a stronger second book.

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barbarella85's review against another edition

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3.5

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quitegood's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional sad medium-paced

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

3.5

I did like this book, and I'm curious to see it continue, its just that I had issue with certain bit of the narrative's structure and with how the themes were executed, and to discuss them will require spoiler, so the non-spoiler version is; good but not great, falls short in places, am interested in the sequel.

So the twist where it turns out Arren is evil does not work because Arren has showed up once at the book's beginning, so finding out he's actually been corrupted by the god who saved him carries very little weight. We're meant to feel as heartbroken as Elo, to know the man he loved has truly gone, but we can't because we don't know who Arren was. Secondly, I love the theme of overcoming hardship and disability, and living to just live, not because you need purpose. But I wish it hadn't been loaded into the final 20% of the book. I know Kissen and Elo are very private characters, but you could have had small moments peppered through out the journey. These are nitpicks, I'm aware, but in that spirit, why'd they have to fuck? I get it, I'm ace, but bloody hell you normies think with your genitals too much!

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