In setting up three different storylines, Gwynne covers mercenary fellowships, deserting daughters, revenge quests, found-family, the political ambitions of queens and jarls, the personal vendettas of princes from far-off countries, and, of course, intriguing, often blood-thirsty, fantasy creatures.Īs Orka, Varg, and Elvar set out on different journeys, their fates are entwined by family, revenge and (how could it not be) blood. The author adapts a mythology that holds many in wonder, and uses every moment to remind us that the world is full of monsters, whatever the kind.īut it’s in the way it works its characters that The Shadow of the Gods truly reaches its most epic proportions, as a character-driven journey focusing its characters and the growing (or fraught) bonds between them. Gwynne reimagines traditional tales and beings of myth such as the poisoning-punishment of Loki, the binding of Fenrir, Ragnarök, Níðhöggr, Yggdrasil and its eagle, and many others in which lovers of the richness of Norse folklore may relish. This memory is a double-edged sword that cuts the world while their bones are either plundered for riches or used as strongholds for jarls and queens, their children are enslaved as thralls for their incredible supernatural powers. The god’s memory lives on in their bones and the blood that flows through the veins of their divine offspring. The land of Vigrið is shaped by the remnants of legendary gods, who have long died in an ancient, monumental battle that remade the world and its people. True to promise, The Shadow the Gods introduced me to a Norse-inspired world infused with mythology, vengeance, and betrayal. The author’s loyal fans are as avid as they are cautious, and Gwynne’s work has long been heralded as a portent of both great brilliance…and great pain.įor some yet unexplored psychological reason, that quickly made Gwynne an author whose works I desperately longed to explore, a chance his latest release promptly provided. I’ve long been forewarned of John Gwynne’s ruthlessness.

John gwynne shadow of the gods