Set in a ruthless, cold, Norse-inspired fantasy world, The Shadow of the Gods follows three warriors on their individual journeys as they seek answers, battle-fame, and revenge. Orka, a wife and mother haunted by a mysterious past, seeks vengeance when her life is forever changed in a surprise attack. Varg, an escaped slave, finds himself as part of a warrior band in his search for the truth about his beloved sister. Elvar, a powerful fighter running from the shackles of her last name, chases battle-fame alongside her found family. Each of these warriors traverses a land shattered by a war between the Gods that ended centuries ago, leaving powerful artifacts and violent creatures behind. In their individual quests, each warrior will gain and lose more than they ever expected.

This book was just awesome. Not necessarily awesome in a “the best book I’ve ever read” sense, but literally in an “awe-inspiringly epic” sense. It’s violent, intense, and tragic at every turn. And it was definitely written by a man. You’ll see what I mean in my review… read on!

While the plot was generally well-organized and easy to follow, the pacing felt very off. Most of the “inciting incidents” for the characters happened about halfway in, and until about three quarters through I didn’t even know how the different POVs were going to connect. The book started out establishing the character’s “normal” – a generally great way to start a book – but it holds onto that normal for so long that I truly wasn’t sure what the “big point” of the book was. It actually felt more like a prequel than the first book in a series – if I had known from the beginning what the book was building up to, I would have appreciated the strange pacing a lot more. The ending succeeded in making me want to read the rest of the series, but it definitely took a long time to get there.

I can’t make up my mind on the constant violence in this book. I’ve never been someone who struggles with book violence much as long as it’s necessary, and the author’s style is such that I didn’t have to spend much time imagining the blood-and-guts, but there was just so much. This is what I mean by “written by a man.” Not that women can’t write that much violence, but my personal experience has been that women include more of an emotional and character focus in their books, whereas men tend to rely heavily on action to move the plot along. There’s nothing inherently wrong with either, but I would have appreciated more emotional connection to the characters. I felt like I was missing a lot of the interiority that connects you to a character and makes them complex. That being said, a lot of it really was just awesome. Gwynne writes some strong fight scenes and is not afraid of following through on the stakes. If you can’t handle many, many, maaany deaths – stay away from The Shadow of the Gods.

The book is written in a very simplistic, reserved tone. Gwynne is matter-of-fact in his descriptions and observations. It serves the plot well in that the reader can focus on what’s going on, but I prefer a little bit of literary spice in my fantasy. It kind of reminds me of Brandon Sanderson and his preference for using plain, accessible language for the narrator, but with a little bit of fantasy-world dialect charm in the character’s speech.

The theme seemed to be “the world is cruel and out to get you, so you need to get it first.” Like I said, there aren’t many concerns about morality or right and wrong. The character each have something they care about and they’ll do anything to get it or protect it, but some outside force is intent on taking it away from them. As a Christian, I know the world can take nothing from me that matters (Christ) and I have hope no matter how dark life seems to get, but this theme is probably the only reality for someone living in a world like Vigrið. It makes the book feel kind of hopeless, but I also hope to see things change as the series goes on. Maybe the world will learn how to heal and look out for others. We’ll have to see in the next books!

Based on what I’ve seen so far, it’s a pretty lukewarm take to say my favorite character is Orka, but I’m going to say it anyway. Orka is just so cool. Not only is she a protective mother and loving wife, but also a strong, capable, and impressive warrior. Her love for her son and husband is so strong that she will do anything to take care of them. I haven’t seen warrior moms often in fantasy – she’s honestly everything I want to be lol. The reader gets the most emotional glimpses behind the scenes out of her, which is why I connected to her the most. Elvar and Varg also have interesting – and just as tragic – stories, but again, I would have liked to see more of their inner thoughts and emotions.

If I could, I would give it three and a half stars. Despite the overall middling category results, I actually did really enjoy The Shadow of the Gods. Maybe it was the simple plot and awesome characters, or maybe it was just the fact that I was riding in a car for four hours when I read it and had nothing else to do. Regardless, Gwynne has written a solid fantasy novel with relatable characters and unique worldbuilding that perfectly builds off Norse legends. If you liked Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard or James Islington’s work, this series would be a great step up – if you can handle the mountain of violence it involves.