(Gods•Revenge•Blood•War)
So, I got round to reading the second book after postponing it for some time. Other books kept finding their way into my sight somehow but when I finally read it, I was still as wowed as I was when I laid hands on the first book of this trilogy and I wondered why I hadn't started earlier. Y’all, I think Orka is dead.😭😭 But first, a quick synopsis of the book.
This book is still set in the Norse-inspired world named Vigrid. In the sequel, The Shadow of The Gods, the author introduced the readers to the world and the characters in it. And in this book, the author did a fresh recap of the places, characters and vaesen(monsters) of the previous book. This helped to refresh my memory.
Lik-Rifa, the dragon god, one of the fallen old gods has been set free from her eternal prison. She was set free by The Raven Feeders who are dragon born. The Raven Feeders were the ones who stole Orka’s child along with other children. They followed the writings of the rat god, Rotta who was the main reason why the war between gods was started. They needed the blood of Tainted before the dragon could be set free. In this book, it is revealed that Rotta is still very much alive and has been waiting for the resurrection of his sister, Lik-Rifa. Lik-Rifa is the creator of the vaesen and she gathers them to her as she plots a new age of blood and conquest.
Orka is still searching for her child and seeking vengeance on the one who killed her husband, Thorkel. Surprisingly, Orka was revealed to be the famed warrior, Skullsplitter who was the former chief of The Bloodsworn crew. In TSOG, while searching for her child, she was accompanied by two brothers named Lif and Mord. Mord was killed by a snivelling drengr named Gudvarr and Lif swore to carry out vengeance for his brother. Orka got reunited with the Bloodsworn crew. And some of them agreed to follow her on her search for her child. In the end, she was able to save her son, though at a costly price.
Varg is still searching for the one who killed his sister, so he can exact revenge on the person. In the previous book, he joined the Bloodsworn crew so he could perform an àkall to find out who the killer of his sister was. Unfortunately, the witch who was supposed to perform it for him got kidnapped. The witch is also the wife of Glornir, the chief of the Bloodsworn. So, the crew sweeps south to find her. Unknowingly, it's leading Varg closer to the killer of his sister.
Elvar is still battling with the grief of getting betrayal where she least expected it. Elvar was a member of the Battle-Grim. In the previous book, the Battle-Grim went in search of Oskutred(the place where the gods fell) and they found it. At the end, Elvar’s lover, Biorr betrayed the crew by killing their chief, Agnar. It was a shock to find out that Biorr was part of The Raven Feeders and had been sent to infiltrate the crew of The Battle-Grim. Biorr is a Tainted. He carried the blood of Rotta, the rat god. He betrayed the Battle-Grim majorly because he hated the way they hunted down Tainted people and sold them as slaves.
Elvar also swore a blood oath to a witch whose son was also stolen by the Raven Feeders crew. In this book, Elvar and the witch raises the fallen wolf god named Ulfrir so that they can have a higher chance of killing Lik-Rifa, the dragon god. She thralls him, along with his daughter, Skuld. Elvar fights a holmgànga(duel) and becomes the new chief of the Battle-grim. She persuades the Battle-Grim crew to follow her on her hunt for Lik-Rifa and to also help her fulfill her sworn blood oath.
In another part, a queen named Helka is preparing for war. She aims to rule the whole of Vigrid but there are other jarls who aim for the same thing. So, she has to fight. Later on, she finds out that Lik-Rifa is free and is set on destroying the world, so she raises the eagle god, Orna. But she was betrayed by that stupid drengr, Gudvarr and his aunt, Jarl Sigrun. The day Queen Helka raises Orna, Lik-Rifa attacks and kills Orna.
So, this saga just got a whole lot more complicated and interesting. The author introduced new characters and fresh perspectives. In Shadow Of The Gods, the author told the story through the perspectives of three people, Orka, Varg and Elvar. But in this book, he tells the story through the perspectives of five people, Orka, Varg and Elvar, along with Gudvarr and Biorr.
I liked that the author let us into the minds of the antagonists. It helped me understand why they did what they did and the reasons behind their decisions. Gudvarr added humor to this story. He’s petty, arrogant, deceptive and sarcastic. Somehow, he always seems to come out from dangerous situations alive. The author used Gudvarr’s character to add humor to an otherwise brutal story. He also showed why Biorr did what he did, why he killed Agnar. And the author made me understand that still, Biorr was having a lot of misgivings and regret about his actions.
I think Orka, my favorite character died in this book. At least, the ending implied that. And I'm so angry. Because she's so strong, fearless, brutal, so lethal and she had to die of what?? Frost spiders?? She didn't even die in battle. But maybe, she will resurrect in the last book?
The characters of Elvar and Varg were developed, and I like the author for that. I take my words back, Elvar is a strong character. She's wise and a good warrior. I mean, she raised a dead god and still had the mind to thrall him. Well, I guess, she might end up being the hero of this book. That's if she kills Lik-Rifa. Varg is now enjoying his freedom and having a sense of belonging among the Bloodsworn. He knows that every member of the crew is Tainted, including him and he embraces that fact. I love that for him. I love his sense of loyalty and the fact that he's willing to risk his life for any member of the crew.
John Gwynne did good work in the world building and pacing. Most times, the characters were traveling from place to place, but there was always action and tension in between. There was a lot of heat and adrenaline in this book and he created the perfect atmosphere for battles. He’s quite adept at describing battle scenes exquisitely, so the reader has no problem imagining. His character development was good and he ensured to reveal details on minor characters. There was no exclusion whatsoever. The book ended on a cliffhanger and I found myself boiling with a lot of questions that I need answered. Is Orka truly dead? Is Orna dead too? Will Gudvarr and Biorr finally dance to the tunes of their treachery? Will another god be raised from the dead? I can now say John Gwynne is among my top three fantasy authors.
Like I said in the previous book review, if you are not a fan of bloodshed, wars and gore, this book is not for you. Cause it's a lot of brutality this time around. But for fans of Vikings and The Last Kingdom, this shouldn't be a problem.🌚 I highly recommend readers to start reading this trilogy. It will keep you at the edge of your seat and you won't stop turning the pages. I rate it 4.7 out of 5 stars.
I hope I lay my hands on the last book of this trilogy very soon.🙃 Thanks for reading my review.
You can read the review of the previous book here
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