The Hunger of the Gods: A Book Review

I'm surprised how quickly I settled into this book. John Gwynne's epic-fantasy writing style was instantly recognizable, and while I didn't love it in the first book, I really enjoyed it in The Hunger of the Gods. I also enjoyed the faster pacing of the plot and all the points of view we got, especially from unreliable narrators and the people on the "evil side." 

But the best part of this book is undoubtably the Viking setting, culture, and details. The fighting scenes are incredibly detailed and accurate as far as I can tell, and I love learning about the different weapons and all the cultural sides too. Gwynne also does a great job incorporating gods and their magic through their bloodlines. It's not too heavy handed, and the gods don't overpower the characters or the plot. 

Also, this book ends on a cliffhanger, so I definitely need the last book now!!! And also I LOVED having a section at the beginning that details all the events of the first book so you could remember. Seriously every sequel needs this. 

Writing Aesthetic/Style: 4
Plot/Movement: 4
Character Development: 4
Overall: 4

Thank you, Orbit Books, for the ARC!

Content/Trigger Warnings: tons of detailed violence and torture, death, kidnapping, slavery, innuendos, closed door scenes

For more ratings and reviews and to see what I'm currently reading, visit my Goodreads page here!

Wind Daughter: A Book Review

Joanna Ruth Meyer's writing is so dreamy and definitely fitting of a fairytale. I enjoyed being back in the same world as Echo North, and Wind Daughter felt very much like a sequel rather than a companion novel. We get to see the main characters from Echo North and see Satu finish what they started. I would definitely recommend reading Echo North first.

I will say that I appreciated seeing a sensitive character rep in Satu, but it made her voice feel extremely young. I felt like I was reading a middle grade fantasy rather than YA (Satu seemed much younger than seventeen). And I thought this book was extremely predictable. The romance was also underdeveloped with the main characters being enemies most of the book and insta-love towards the end. It just didn't work for me. 

Overall, I liked it because it continued on the magic and lore of Echo North and we got to see Echo and Hal living their lives after. I liked the pacing of the book and the magic. But a lot of things fell short for me with the characters and romance. I think this might be my last Joanna Ruth Meyer book. While I like her writing style, her recent books haven't lived up to my expectations. 

Writing Aesthetic/Style: 4
Plot/Movement: 3
Character Development: 3
Overall: 3

Thank you, Page Street, for the ARC!

For more ratings and reviews and to see what I'm currently reading, visit my Goodreads page here!