The Shadow of the Gods is unconnected to anything that the author has written before, and is set in the world of Vigrið, the Battle-Plain. Let’s take a moment to appreciate the majestic grandeur that is the cover art by Marcus Whinney. At the end of this story, I was once again in awe at witnessing a master completely comfortable in executing an epically captivating and exciting tale.

On such a foundation The Shadow of the Gods had much to live up to and I tried to curtail my hopes a little.

And while I am nowhere near well-read on the subjects, I squeed like any fan worthy of the title at the idea of a favourite author shaping a story from the fertile ground that is the Norse culture. I believe that mythologies always appeal to a wide fan base, with Norse and Greek, in particular, being personal favourites. Nevertheless, no book is a certain thing as writers are only human beings, but I could not contain my excitement when I read that this latest venture of Mr Gwynne was another epic fantasy story, this time with Norse ink in its veins. Both The Faithful and the Fallen and Of Blood and Bone are masterpieces in my estimation and occupy treasured spaces on my shelf and within my heart. In all honesty, this book had as good a chance as possible of becoming a favourite of mine, for I am without a doubt an ardent reader and supporter of John Gwynne and his books, having read and loved all of his previous works. This is the fantasy I’ve been waiting for. The Shadow of the Gods is the new benchmark in Norse mythology-inspired stories.

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) ARC provided by the publisher-Orbit-in exchange for an honest review.

Shadow of the gods by john gwynne