These are the kind of passages you’ll get with Gudvarr’s POV chapters. Reminiscent of Glokta, right? Please note that while many of these words are directly taken from Norse history, The Shadow of the Gods is a work of fiction. The historical meanings may not exactly translate into the world of this book. The brief definitions provided below however do match up with their use in the book as I see them.

Special thanks to my Patrons on Patreon for giving me extra support towards my passion for reading and reviewing! For millennia much of the world was ruled by emperors: a handful of individuals claimed no limit to the lands they could rule over and no limit to their authority. They operated beyond normal human constraint and indeed often claimed a superhuman or divine authority. In practice they ran the gamut from being some of the most remarkable men who ever lived, to being some of the worst and least remarkable. I also need to talk about Orka. In my review for The Shadow of the Gods, I mentioned that Orka had “the potential to become one of my all-time favourite characters”, and I can firmly say that she has entered my hall of fame! Orka continues to be fierce, compassionate, compelling and complex. Orka’s sheer will and determination to fight for her loved ones is awe-inspiring. Fantasy books need more badass mothers! Este libro abre aún más el telón sobre el aspecto mítico de esta epopeya de fantasía inspirada en los nórdicos. Los dioses emergen. Personajes que avanzan, sufren, mueren y sobreviven.Get moving, Varg No-sense… Or are you waiting for an eagle to swoop down and carry you the rest of the way?” Varg’s perspective is important for spoiler-ish reasons, but he’s entirely focused throughout the majority on finding his sister’s killer and getting vengeance (in a very Viking-like style, there’s quite a lot of that in this book). In a way he kind of falls into the Bloodsworn almost by accident, but as a former thrall he has a lot of character development in the story as he becomes a warrior as the rest of his new family are. Reading The Shadow of the Gods is equivalent to witnessing a new brilliant legendary Norse-inspired epic fantasy series in the making.

One of the characters gave me Abercrombie characters vibes and I really enjoyed it. The Gods are a big part of the story in this entry which made the world-building and magic systems more complex and I am here for that. Prepare to dive into a dark and powerful Norse-inspired fantasy with the incredible and addictive new novel from superstar fantasy author John Gwynne, The Shadow of the Gods. Gwynne is highly regarded fantasy author who has been making some major waves since his 2012 dark fantasy debut, Malice, the first book in The Faithful and the Fallen series. Gwynne has so far written two major fantasy series, the four-novel long The Faithful and the Fallen, and the sequel Of Blood and Bone series. His latest novel, The Shadow of the Gods, is the first book in The Bloodsworn Saga, which will follow a group of epic protagonists in a bloody and grim Norse-inspired fantasy world. The next storyline follows the amazing Varg, a former thrall who has run away after killing his owners. In desperate need of magic to avenge his dead sister, Varg attempts to join the Bloodsworn, a highly regarded mercenary company, to make use of their seiðr-witch. After impressing the Bloodsworn, Varg travels with them as an apprentice mercenary, unable to use the seiðr-witch until he proves his worth. His first quest with the Bloodsworn takes him to a remote part of Vigrið to investigate missing villagers. As Varg struggles between fulfilling his oath to his sister and starting a new life, he will experience betrayal, despair, and terrible revelations. This is another excellent storyline which has a lot of awesome elements to it. Not only is there a lot of action and intrigue as the Bloodsworn find themselves in the middle of the chaos infecting Vigrið, but it also serves as a fantastic tale of friendship, redemption, and camaraderie. All three will shape the fate of the world as it once more falls under the shadow of the gods . . . ‘ ReviewVarg is finally getting used to life as a free man, he is also learning how to fight and how better to use his powers, his POV was always refreshing. Sieðr-witch – seiðr (pronounced say-der) a form of magic relating to the telling and shaping of the future, often viewed as similar to shamanism Then there’s Gudvarr who is a morally ambiguous character, he leans more towards villainy than goodness, the only person he loves apart from himself is his aunt, I bet he can screw her over if his life is on the line. The plotline in The Hunger of the Gods starts immediately from where The Shadow of the Gods ended. The three main POV characters—Orka, Varg, Elvar—from the first book have to deal with the aftermath of their respective conclusion. It is worth noting that the three main POV characters in The Shadow of the Gods didn’t have an intersecting storyline or chapters until literally the last chapter of the book. In The Hunger of the Gods, the story, conflicts, and missions of Orka, Varg, and Elvar converged in several sections. Essentially, the three returning main characters embarked upon their own respective rescue mission. The themes of loneliness, found family, forgiveness, courage, glory, and leadership are still dominant in this brutal Norse-inspired fantasy world and series. However, Gwynne has added two new POV characters into The Hunger of the Gods, and I think they added the extra depth that the series needed. But before we get to that, I will tell you what I loved about Orka, Varg, and Elvar’s POV first. The Shadow of the Gods is told from the POV of many different characters with the Titan that created the Man God or at least was the main proponent of creating the Man God being the POV and then his chapter would be followed by the Man God of whom would detail the fall of his life.

And like most good cover art, it gives a really good idea of the kind of book that lies in store. The Shadow of the Gods is a Norse-inspired book from fight-scene aficionado John Gwynne. It features three main POV characters: Orka, Varg, and Elvar. Orka is a warrior, a mother, and her story is effectively a gender-flipped fantasy version of Liam Neeson’s Taken. Varg has recently lost a loved one, and in the process of seeking revenge instead finds himself a family among a band of brutal mercenaries. Elvar was born to a noble father, but seeks to earn her own fame in the field of battle and among friends of her choosing. Chapter 21 Chapter 22 Chapter 23 Chapter 24 Chapter 25 Chapter 26 Chapter 27 Chapter 28 Chapter 29 Chapter 30 The Hunger of the Gods is one of my most anticipated releases of 2022. I loved The Shadow of the Gods and gave it 4.5 stars, and was therefore excited when I received an e-arc of this book. Moreover, the cover art for this series is incredible. These characters are Orka, an ex-warrior who lives with her husband and son at a quiet steading, Varg, a thrall who is running to escape his slave masters, and Elvar, a young warrior who is trying to find battle fame with the monster hunting warband the Battle-Grim. They all have deep and interesting pasts of which we are given more details of as the story progresses. Through the eyes of these characters, I was engrossed from the very first chapter and by about the fourth chapter I was chuffed to see that Gwynne had worked his magic again.All three main characters have battle in their blood, or at least in their future, and we spend a good amount of time in the shield walls and oar benches of the warbands.