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A review by sgbrux
The Shadow of the Gods by John Gwynne
5.0
4.5/5 stars. I've also published a non-spoiler video discussion here.
The Shadow of the Gods is an action-packed saga following three very different people: Orka, warrior turned mother living a quiet life on her steading; Varg, runaway thrall who finds himself among the legendary Bloodsworn while seeking to find out what happened to his sister; and Elvar, daughter of a Jarl who escapes the deadend expectations set upon her shoulders by joining the notorious Battle-Grim mercenaries.
Three stories about family, loyalty, honor, and vengeance, and I'm here for all of them.
John Gwynne balances character and plot and seamlessly constructs the rich world of Vigrid, the Battle-Plain, while giving us epic battles and visceral, high-adrenaline fight scenes. Packed with powerful women, monsters and creatures galore, fallen gods, and three characters with nothing more to lose, you'll immediately get hooked and be rooting for Orka, Elvar, and Varg.
I docked half a star because my brain struggled to process the names of all the characters—which all looked similar on paper—against the quick chapters that jumped from POV to POV; the read-through was very jarring for me in that sense, taking me a little longer to read the book than is normal for works of this length. Some clunky structure/phrasing here and there, but these were very minor compared to all the pros I had with Shadow of the Gods. Well-worth the read—compelling characters and riveting battle scenes.
I'm already anticipating book 2: Dead Gods Rising!
The Shadow of the Gods is an action-packed saga following three very different people: Orka, warrior turned mother living a quiet life on her steading; Varg, runaway thrall who finds himself among the legendary Bloodsworn while seeking to find out what happened to his sister; and Elvar, daughter of a Jarl who escapes the deadend expectations set upon her shoulders by joining the notorious Battle-Grim mercenaries.
Three stories about family, loyalty, honor, and vengeance, and I'm here for all of them.
John Gwynne balances character and plot and seamlessly constructs the rich world of Vigrid, the Battle-Plain, while giving us epic battles and visceral, high-adrenaline fight scenes. Packed with powerful women, monsters and creatures galore, fallen gods, and three characters with nothing more to lose, you'll immediately get hooked and be rooting for Orka, Elvar, and Varg.
I docked half a star because my brain struggled to process the names of all the characters—which all looked similar on paper—against the quick chapters that jumped from POV to POV; the read-through was very jarring for me in that sense, taking me a little longer to read the book than is normal for works of this length. Some clunky structure/phrasing here and there, but these were very minor compared to all the pros I had with Shadow of the Gods. Well-worth the read—compelling characters and riveting battle scenes.
I'm already anticipating book 2: Dead Gods Rising!