We are not just his parents, we are his teachers, too.” “It is a hard world, and we will not always be here to protect him from it. Yes, family, camaraderie, the pursuit of fame, and loyalty in superbly-written characters are still vital in Gwynne’s storytelling. But with that in mind, then you’ll also know that the key elements that made Gwynne’s books so damn lovable are all evident in this phenomenal start to a series. Seriously, if you’ve read Gwynne’s previous books in The Banished Lands Saga, you should know how bloody this book is when I said that. This is one of Gwynne’s bloodiest books so far that’s saying a lot.
John gwynne book series series#
Ever since I finished reading The Faithful and the Fallen in early 2017, I’ve mentioned several times that it would be amazing if Gwynne one day decides to write a Norse-inspired epic fantasy series well, here we are. Their storylines of blood, death, battle-fame, and vengeance are seemingly separate for almost the entirety of the book, but rest assured, their paths eventually converged, and my god, it was such an electrifying convergence. The Shadow of the Gods revolves around three different main characters with their own respective quest in the new age of storm and murder: Orka, Varg, and Elvar. Picture: The Shadow of the Gods by Marcus WhinneyĪfter the gods warred and drove themselves to extinction, the cataclysm of their fall shattered the land of Vigrið. So yes, you’re safe to start here if you haven’t read any of Gwynne’s books before you will be missing one of the greatest epic fantasy series, though. It is a new series in a completely new world that differs from The Banished Lands. The Shadow of the Gods is the first book in The Bloodsworn Saga series by John Gwynne.
This book is evidently as epic as the cover art. I have spread gospels about Gwynne’s books for four years now, and as always, there’s no sign of this stopping ever. Yes, it was that painful to me! My expectations and anticipations for The Shadow of the Gods were as high as Yggdrassil, and Gwynne exceeded them. Honestly, I did think of deleting my social media for a while due to being triggered seeing so many people receiving The Shadow of the Gods much earlier than I did. I have done the beyond-epic cover reveal-illustrated by Marcus Whinney-to The Shadow of the Gods, and this novel was easily my number one most anticipated book of the year.
I will be the course.”īy this point, does it still come as a shock that I ended up loving this? I’ve read all of Gwynne’s books-twice for The Faithful and the Fallen-and I have absolutely loved them all every book by Gwynne is on my favorites shelf, and this one is no exception. We are swept along in a current not of our own choosing… I will be the current. Reading The Shadow of the Gods is equivalent to witnessing a new brilliant legendary Norse-inspired epic fantasy series in the making.
Published: 6th May 2021 by Orbit (UK) and 4th May 2021 by Orbit (US) Genre: Fantasy, Epic Fantasy, High Fantasy Series: The Bloodsworn Saga (Book #1 of 3) I have a Booktube channel now! Subscribe here: ĪRC provided by the publisher-Orbit-in exchange for an honest review.