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A review by sergek94
The Shadow of the Gods by John Gwynne
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This was the pick of The Fantasy Guild Book Club for the month of April 2022.
“There comes the shadow-dark dragon flying,
The gleaming serpent, up from Dark-of-Moon Hills;
He flies over the plain, and in his pinions
he carries corpses.
The Voluspa”
In a world divided by feuding jarls and where powerful people are trying to amass enough power to absorb more and more lands into their domains, life is anything but safe. Apart from the ever-power-hungry humans, the woods are crawling with all sorts of dark creatures, and the bones of the gods who fought amongst themselves to extinction still dot the land, carrying with them immense power that could cause disaster if they fall into the wrong hands. To make things worse, children have begun mysteriously disappearing throughout, and in many cases, their families brutally murdered.
“Pride and shame, she thought. Both enemies of a long life. He needs some ice in his blood, to see more clearly.”
In all this chaos, we have 3 characters, Orka, Varg and Elvar, each having to navigate through this harsh reality. Orka is trying to leave her tumultuous past behind and live peacefully in her corner of the woods with her husband and son, but political changes involving the territory she's living in being handed to a power hungry queen is making it impossible for her to stay out of trouble, and on top of all that, she has to protect her son from the increasingly common kidnappings around her. She's a fierce warrior not to be trifled with, and the difficult situations she's placed in make her have to find a balance between kindnessand cruelty. Varg, a former Thrall (slave) who managed to free himself, is seeking a witch who might perform a dangerous ritual that will reveal the last moments of his twin sister before she was brutally murdered, so he can find out who killed her and exact his vengeance. His path leads him to join forces with unexpected allies and be at odds with formidable opponents. His loyalty will be tested throughout, and he has to find a balance between honouring the new bonds he has built and finding a way to avenge the death of his sister without severing these ties.As for Elvar, a well-esteemed member of the Battle-Grim, a group of people that take on missions for money that lead them to bloody situations which have no short supply of bloodshed and battle fame, she is hell-bent on defying her family and the future they have mapped out for her, which involves a marriage of convenience and a loss of her autonomy, something she can never accept. She ignores her father's request to quit the Battle-Grim and come back home, and instead, she joins them on a mission that has extremely high stakes, venturing into hidden lands that might hold the key to bringing back destructive old gods to the playing field.
“Now that thirst and hunger were not screaming at him, questions were starting to gather in his head, circling like a murder of crows.”
When I saw that Robin Hobb gave this book 5 stars, I instantly had high expectations, since she is one of my favourite fantasy authors, and it's safe to say I wasn't disappointed in the slightest. This book delivers on every aspect of fantasy that I find to be enjoyable.The political intrigue here is given in spades, and the constant tension in the air from the jarls scheming against each other and preparing for bloody battle and the power struggles present between different factions, each with their own complex agendas, makes this book quite a thrilling experience. The characterization here is superb, each POV having its distinct flavour. Orka was definitely my favourite character, and is someone I had constant anxiety over throughout the book, because the well-being of her and her family were always at stake, and when I find myself worrying so much about a character, it means the author did a great job in writing her.Elvar was my least favourite POV, an opinion other readers also share, but her perspective was a crucial one in the development of the story. I really appreciated the Scandanavian influences utilized in this work, and I loved the fact that John Gwynne doesn't shy away from actually including fantastical creatures as a forefront of the story.I always notice that many fantasy books just give a sprinkle of these creatures, but that is definitely not the case here. I love that we have actual trolls, frost spiders, and all sorts of other strange creatures roaming this rich world.The writing was also beautiful, and John Gynne's choice of words made this book difficult to put down. The pacing was pretty good, and most chapters never lacked an exciting moment, almost each of them building up tension and releasing it with action-packed events.
I definitely recommend this book if you're into gritty and bloody fantasy. The world here is a rough one, and the atmosphere reminds me of "Vikings", the TV series by the History Channel, in a fantasy setting. I'm very excited to read the next installment, and I already miss Orka!
“It is a dark world, and dark deeds rule it, drag us down a white-foamed river we cannot resist.”
“There comes the shadow-dark dragon flying,
The gleaming serpent, up from Dark-of-Moon Hills;
He flies over the plain, and in his pinions
he carries corpses.
The Voluspa”
In a world divided by feuding jarls and where powerful people are trying to amass enough power to absorb more and more lands into their domains, life is anything but safe. Apart from the ever-power-hungry humans, the woods are crawling with all sorts of dark creatures, and the bones of the gods who fought amongst themselves to extinction still dot the land, carrying with them immense power that could cause disaster if they fall into the wrong hands. To make things worse, children have begun mysteriously disappearing throughout, and in many cases, their families brutally murdered.
“Pride and shame, she thought. Both enemies of a long life. He needs some ice in his blood, to see more clearly.”
In all this chaos, we have 3 characters, Orka, Varg and Elvar, each having to navigate through this harsh reality. Orka is trying to leave her tumultuous past behind and live peacefully in her corner of the woods with her husband and son, but political changes involving the territory she's living in being handed to a power hungry queen is making it impossible for her to stay out of trouble, and on top of all that, she has to protect her son from the increasingly common kidnappings around her. She's a fierce warrior not to be trifled with, and the difficult situations she's placed in make her have to find a balance between kindnessand cruelty. Varg, a former Thrall (slave) who managed to free himself, is seeking a witch who might perform a dangerous ritual that will reveal the last moments of his twin sister before she was brutally murdered, so he can find out who killed her and exact his vengeance. His path leads him to join forces with unexpected allies and be at odds with formidable opponents. His loyalty will be tested throughout, and he has to find a balance between honouring the new bonds he has built and finding a way to avenge the death of his sister without severing these ties.As for Elvar, a well-esteemed member of the Battle-Grim, a group of people that take on missions for money that lead them to bloody situations which have no short supply of bloodshed and battle fame, she is hell-bent on defying her family and the future they have mapped out for her, which involves a marriage of convenience and a loss of her autonomy, something she can never accept. She ignores her father's request to quit the Battle-Grim and come back home, and instead, she joins them on a mission that has extremely high stakes, venturing into hidden lands that might hold the key to bringing back destructive old gods to the playing field.
“Now that thirst and hunger were not screaming at him, questions were starting to gather in his head, circling like a murder of crows.”
When I saw that Robin Hobb gave this book 5 stars, I instantly had high expectations, since she is one of my favourite fantasy authors, and it's safe to say I wasn't disappointed in the slightest. This book delivers on every aspect of fantasy that I find to be enjoyable.The political intrigue here is given in spades, and the constant tension in the air from the jarls scheming against each other and preparing for bloody battle and the power struggles present between different factions, each with their own complex agendas, makes this book quite a thrilling experience. The characterization here is superb, each POV having its distinct flavour. Orka was definitely my favourite character, and is someone I had constant anxiety over throughout the book, because the well-being of her and her family were always at stake, and when I find myself worrying so much about a character, it means the author did a great job in writing her.Elvar was my least favourite POV, an opinion other readers also share, but her perspective was a crucial one in the development of the story. I really appreciated the Scandanavian influences utilized in this work, and I loved the fact that John Gwynne doesn't shy away from actually including fantastical creatures as a forefront of the story.I always notice that many fantasy books just give a sprinkle of these creatures, but that is definitely not the case here. I love that we have actual trolls, frost spiders, and all sorts of other strange creatures roaming this rich world.The writing was also beautiful, and John Gynne's choice of words made this book difficult to put down. The pacing was pretty good, and most chapters never lacked an exciting moment, almost each of them building up tension and releasing it with action-packed events.
I definitely recommend this book if you're into gritty and bloody fantasy. The world here is a rough one, and the atmosphere reminds me of "Vikings", the TV series by the History Channel, in a fantasy setting. I'm very excited to read the next installment, and I already miss Orka!
“It is a dark world, and dark deeds rule it, drag us down a white-foamed river we cannot resist.”