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What Monstrous Gods
Centuries ago, the heretic sorcerer Ruven raised a deadly briar around Runakhia's palace, casting the royal family into an enchanted sleep - and silencing the kingdom's gods.
Born with a miraculous gift, Lia's destiny is to kill Ruven and wake the royals. But when she succeeds, she finds her duty is not yet complete, for now she must marry into the royal family and forge a pact with a god - or die.
To make matters even worse, Ruven's spirit is haunting her.
As discord grows between the old and new guards, the queen sends Lia and Prince Araunn, her betrothed, on a pilgrimage to awaken the gods. But the old gods are more dangerous than Lia ever knew - and Ruven may offer her only hope of survival.
As the two work together, Lia learns that they're more alike than she expected. And with tensions rising, Lia must choose between what she was raised to believe and what she knows is right - and between the prince she is bound to by duty...and the boy she killed.
Born with a miraculous gift, Lia's destiny is to kill Ruven and wake the royals. But when she succeeds, she finds her duty is not yet complete, for now she must marry into the royal family and forge a pact with a god - or die.
To make matters even worse, Ruven's spirit is haunting her.
As discord grows between the old and new guards, the queen sends Lia and Prince Araunn, her betrothed, on a pilgrimage to awaken the gods. But the old gods are more dangerous than Lia ever knew - and Ruven may offer her only hope of survival.
As the two work together, Lia learns that they're more alike than she expected. And with tensions rising, Lia must choose between what she was raised to believe and what she knows is right - and between the prince she is bound to by duty...and the boy she killed.
368 pages, Hardcover
First published March 5, 2024
About the author
Rosamund Hodge
27 books4,866 followersCatholic. Writer. Lay Dominican. I write books about gods & death & girls with knives. Next: WHAT MONSTROUS GODS, coming 03/05/2024.
Goodreads policies: I do read messages. I seldom friend people. I never comment on reviews of my own work.
Goodreads policies: I do read messages. I seldom friend people. I never comment on reviews of my own work.
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January 23, 2024Every book I write is "the book of my heart" in some sense, because writing a book is an awful lot of work, so I'm not gonna make it through unless I have A LOT OF FEELINGS on the matter.
But this book is, maybe, my most personal one yet. I wrote it because, once upon a time, I was a teenaged Nice Catholic Girl trying to figure out what it meant that I was irrevocably in love with pagan gods due to all the Greek and Norse mythology I had read. And I wrote it because, in my twenties and thirties, I was a Nice Catholic Girl learning to reckon with all the sins that had been committed in the name of my faith.
I also wrote it because, back in mid-2017, I couldn't stop reading Reylo meta, even though at the time I was still fooling myself into believing I didn't ship it. So I said to myself, "I don't ship Reylo, but I love this dynamic that people are proposing, of enemies joined by a psychic link that makes them confront their shared loneliness, which leads to them falling in love. That will definitely never happen in THE LAST JEDI, so why not use it as an inspiration for my new novel?"
Reader, I absolutely played myself. But not only did I learn to just admit when I want the space wizards to kiss, I ended up with a novel that I'm very proud of, so no complaints here!
But this book is, maybe, my most personal one yet. I wrote it because, once upon a time, I was a teenaged Nice Catholic Girl trying to figure out what it meant that I was irrevocably in love with pagan gods due to all the Greek and Norse mythology I had read. And I wrote it because, in my twenties and thirties, I was a Nice Catholic Girl learning to reckon with all the sins that had been committed in the name of my faith.
I also wrote it because, back in mid-2017, I couldn't stop reading Reylo meta, even though at the time I was still fooling myself into believing I didn't ship it. So I said to myself, "I don't ship Reylo, but I love this dynamic that people are proposing, of enemies joined by a psychic link that makes them confront their shared loneliness, which leads to them falling in love. That will definitely never happen in THE LAST JEDI, so why not use it as an inspiration for my new novel?"
Reader, I absolutely played myself. But not only did I learn to just admit when I want the space wizards to kiss, I ended up with a novel that I'm very proud of, so no complaints here!
March 26, 2024
The short of it is: There's a significant disconnect between what this book promises and what it actually delivers.
The long of it is: The plot has three serious problems as well as minor annoyances that may or mayn't annoy other readers too, based on taste and tolerance levels. Let's focus on only the problems instead and leave the trifling ones untouched here.
We start with the incredible and implausible ease with which the female protagonist starts and finishes her quest successfully. So easy it feels insulting. We have this adolescent aspiring nun who has been raised by the sisters of the goddess Nin-Anna and tasked with destroying the super-powerful sorcerer that has cursed the royal family to sleeping for 500 years and created a thick bramble of murderous thorns around the castle. We never see this novice, Lia, be trained or do anything that would make you think she has any chance at success, we're simply told she has the Gift, a forbidden magic we don't even know much about, and then she's sent into the bramble on a rescue and kill mission.
In principle, a gender-swapped Sleeping Beauty retelling in which it's a girl who must fight to enter the castle and awaken the dormant cursed is nice, isn't it? But this book managed to make such a refreshing premise into an insultingly anti-climactic struggle in which Lia faces no harder challenge than being spooked by a skeleton hanging on the thorny hedge. I have a harder time going to the organic shop for whole-wheat bread than this because I have to deal with the neighbour's dog and remember the sidewalk's inclination lest I land on my nose for forgetting! But Lia enters the castle in a blink, and, of course, doesn't even get lost in the maze of rooms in an unknown castle or has to look for the evil wizard in the massive place, because said evil wizard is sitting right there as soon as she puts a foot inside the castle. And what does this silly girl do upon meeting the evil sorcerer? She notices he's handsome.
It's a truth universally acknowledged that if by the 10% mark a girl remarks on how handsome the evil mofo she must kill is, it is going to be a shitty romance.
And on top of that, the evil mofo she must kill starts doing the awful Villain Monologue 'splainin', to let the silly girl (and the readers) know he's either Not Really Evil or Justified Evil and that She's Stupid and Has Been Lied To.
And for an extra helping of absurdity, the silly girl kills the evil mofo with . . . can you guess it? Distracting him by sitting on his lap! That's right, her butt on his groin is the secret weapon. She slits his throat whilst the evil mofo is too busy doing his monologue and Having A Conversation with his own ego. It's so comically and incompetently done that I couldn't even laugh. I almost threw the book out after this scene, and it was only 10% into the plot.
But a Lannister always pays her debts and et cetera. I had to power through, already aware of the shitshow What Monstrous Gods was going to be.
And was this a shitshow! Let me tell you what the second big problem is: the monarchy here, all of them. They spent 500 years sleeping, and they suddenly wake up with no sense of proportion or consequences to suffer. We're not even shown how exactly they woke up, just told that they are now awake through Lia's memories after a time jump. And as soon as the royal family wake up, they're back to being as domineering and out-of touch as always. The Queen is back in her functions as if she'd just taken a 50-minute nap, and betroths Lia to her heir, and somehow this heir takes to being her caring puppy with no questions asked? There's no consequences for the overlong slumber, either. We're told that much has changed in 500 years, but we're not shown anything. The world doesn't seem as if the royals were gone for half a millennium. The royal family, especially Prince Arunn and his sister, know well what world they're in as if they never slept for a day. It's all so unrealistic and off-putting. Hodge doesn't seem to grasp proportions and the passage of time well. If our world isn't the same as 50 years ago, how are we supposed to believe 500 years went by if we see this little to no change? I'm starting to believe Hodge must suffer from the same numbers-in-proportion issue as George R. R. Martin, who has 8,000-years-old unbroken dynasties in his books. Catholics and their weird sense of proportion...
Then we find out that, oh surprise, the evil sorcerer isn't dead. How convenient. How bloody convenient. Who would've seen this amazing and never-before-seen plot twist coming? You enter the cursed castle with no challenge, remark on sight that the evil sorcerer is so handsome, and do a lapdance to distract him with your butt so you can slit his throat, and it turns out he's not dead? Oh, yeah, shocking plot twist, very shocking.
It just kept getting worse and worse. Lia and her princely sweet doormat are sent on a royal progression across the kingdom to heal it from the plague. From the very start, she is followed by Ruven, the evil sorcerer, who is now a ghost that banters cringily with her and it becomes too evident that these two will fall in love in a bit. There's zero chemistry, no time to build up their connection, and the dialogue between them is often eye-rollingly comical. Both Lia and Ruven are teenagers, but as is usual for teenagers written by adult authors, they don't sound like their age, in a bad way. And, of course, even though we didn't see their feelings grow and develop, by the end they're declaring their love for each other after the queen and the prince are dealt with. There's more of a good rapport between Lia and the superior of her convent than between these two.
I won't even bother breaking down the whole "monstrous gods" arc, it's exhausting pseudo-philosophical hackery pretending to explore faith and service to divinity, very heavily drawn from Catholicism and inelegantly sprinkled with some Eastern mysticism. Hodge always overdoses on inspirations she draws from and mashes different and often incompatible lore that harms her otherwise interesting ideas. Her previous books have the same problem, but this one is by far the worst. If Protestant authors' mistake when doing Fantasy Catholicism is perpetuating the stereotypes and myths, the Catholic authors' mistake when doing Fantasy Catholicism is insane theological mess-ups and nonsensical mash-ups that'd make Father O'Sullivan at school raise his eyes to the ceiling and say that us of the new generation have more creativity than common sense.
Unfortunately, this book is going to be the last by this author for me. It seems that good premises are, in the end, the "pretty cover" trap I keep falling for, but at some point you have to cut your loses and this has been the third book by Rosamund Hodge I've not enjoyed.
I received an ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
The long of it is: The plot has three serious problems as well as minor annoyances that may or mayn't annoy other readers too, based on taste and tolerance levels. Let's focus on only the problems instead and leave the trifling ones untouched here.
We start with the incredible and implausible ease with which the female protagonist starts and finishes her quest successfully. So easy it feels insulting. We have this adolescent aspiring nun who has been raised by the sisters of the goddess Nin-Anna and tasked with destroying the super-powerful sorcerer that has cursed the royal family to sleeping for 500 years and created a thick bramble of murderous thorns around the castle. We never see this novice, Lia, be trained or do anything that would make you think she has any chance at success, we're simply told she has the Gift, a forbidden magic we don't even know much about, and then she's sent into the bramble on a rescue and kill mission.
In principle, a gender-swapped Sleeping Beauty retelling in which it's a girl who must fight to enter the castle and awaken the dormant cursed is nice, isn't it? But this book managed to make such a refreshing premise into an insultingly anti-climactic struggle in which Lia faces no harder challenge than being spooked by a skeleton hanging on the thorny hedge. I have a harder time going to the organic shop for whole-wheat bread than this because I have to deal with the neighbour's dog and remember the sidewalk's inclination lest I land on my nose for forgetting! But Lia enters the castle in a blink, and, of course, doesn't even get lost in the maze of rooms in an unknown castle or has to look for the evil wizard in the massive place, because said evil wizard is sitting right there as soon as she puts a foot inside the castle. And what does this silly girl do upon meeting the evil sorcerer? She notices he's handsome.
It's a truth universally acknowledged that if by the 10% mark a girl remarks on how handsome the evil mofo she must kill is, it is going to be a shitty romance.
And on top of that, the evil mofo she must kill starts doing the awful Villain Monologue 'splainin', to let the silly girl (and the readers) know he's either Not Really Evil or Justified Evil and that She's Stupid and Has Been Lied To.
And for an extra helping of absurdity, the silly girl kills the evil mofo with . . . can you guess it? Distracting him by sitting on his lap! That's right, her butt on his groin is the secret weapon. She slits his throat whilst the evil mofo is too busy doing his monologue and Having A Conversation with his own ego. It's so comically and incompetently done that I couldn't even laugh. I almost threw the book out after this scene, and it was only 10% into the plot.
But a Lannister always pays her debts and et cetera. I had to power through, already aware of the shitshow What Monstrous Gods was going to be.
And was this a shitshow! Let me tell you what the second big problem is: the monarchy here, all of them. They spent 500 years sleeping, and they suddenly wake up with no sense of proportion or consequences to suffer. We're not even shown how exactly they woke up, just told that they are now awake through Lia's memories after a time jump. And as soon as the royal family wake up, they're back to being as domineering and out-of touch as always. The Queen is back in her functions as if she'd just taken a 50-minute nap, and betroths Lia to her heir, and somehow this heir takes to being her caring puppy with no questions asked? There's no consequences for the overlong slumber, either. We're told that much has changed in 500 years, but we're not shown anything. The world doesn't seem as if the royals were gone for half a millennium. The royal family, especially Prince Arunn and his sister, know well what world they're in as if they never slept for a day. It's all so unrealistic and off-putting. Hodge doesn't seem to grasp proportions and the passage of time well. If our world isn't the same as 50 years ago, how are we supposed to believe 500 years went by if we see this little to no change? I'm starting to believe Hodge must suffer from the same numbers-in-proportion issue as George R. R. Martin, who has 8,000-years-old unbroken dynasties in his books. Catholics and their weird sense of proportion...
Then we find out that, oh surprise, the evil sorcerer isn't dead. How convenient. How bloody convenient. Who would've seen this amazing and never-before-seen plot twist coming? You enter the cursed castle with no challenge, remark on sight that the evil sorcerer is so handsome, and do a lapdance to distract him with your butt so you can slit his throat, and it turns out he's not dead? Oh, yeah, shocking plot twist, very shocking.
It just kept getting worse and worse. Lia and her princely sweet doormat are sent on a royal progression across the kingdom to heal it from the plague. From the very start, she is followed by Ruven, the evil sorcerer, who is now a ghost that banters cringily with her and it becomes too evident that these two will fall in love in a bit. There's zero chemistry, no time to build up their connection, and the dialogue between them is often eye-rollingly comical. Both Lia and Ruven are teenagers, but as is usual for teenagers written by adult authors, they don't sound like their age, in a bad way. And, of course, even though we didn't see their feelings grow and develop, by the end they're declaring their love for each other after the queen and the prince are dealt with. There's more of a good rapport between Lia and the superior of her convent than between these two.
I won't even bother breaking down the whole "monstrous gods" arc, it's exhausting pseudo-philosophical hackery pretending to explore faith and service to divinity, very heavily drawn from Catholicism and inelegantly sprinkled with some Eastern mysticism. Hodge always overdoses on inspirations she draws from and mashes different and often incompatible lore that harms her otherwise interesting ideas. Her previous books have the same problem, but this one is by far the worst. If Protestant authors' mistake when doing Fantasy Catholicism is perpetuating the stereotypes and myths, the Catholic authors' mistake when doing Fantasy Catholicism is insane theological mess-ups and nonsensical mash-ups that'd make Father O'Sullivan at school raise his eyes to the ceiling and say that us of the new generation have more creativity than common sense.
Unfortunately, this book is going to be the last by this author for me. It seems that good premises are, in the end, the "pretty cover" trap I keep falling for, but at some point you have to cut your loses and this has been the third book by Rosamund Hodge I've not enjoyed.
I received an ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Want to read
January 17, 2020I've always been a fan of Rosamund's darkly elegant fairytale retellings, but a HERETIC SORCERER GHOST?! It’s an understatement to say I’m quiiiiiteeeee interested
Read
March 8, 2024With any other author I would have side-eyed this book with a couple of eyebrows aslant, sure it would be yet another genre novel in which Evil Priests in Red are Evil because Religion is Evil. I mean look at that title.
But what I got was a story of a passionately determined young woman who grits her teeth and does what she has been taught was right--which is no less than murder--while seriously examining faith, divinity, and destiny...
And things get interesting from there.
Lia was a terrific heroine. I loved her passion and her honesty. Even when when she's lying to others as well as to herself, she is at core honest, and the lying-to-survive tears her up. I loved her quest to understand the gods and to discover what faith is. How faith can be used for ill as well as for good...and what good is. All the big questions are here, and the reader is not told what to think.
Meanwhile, the stakes keep rising as a royal progress around a plague-stricken kingdom happens, with death threats right and left. Oh, and Lia is haunted by the ghost of the young sorcerer she killed. I enjoyed the very offbeat courtship of two intelligent, extremely traumatized young people. I really liked the complexities of the royal family, and there were scenes that took my breath away (usually when Lia encountered a new god).
It was utterly unpredictable, a fast, vivid read that tackles some of the big questions without grinding the same old axes that I've seen repeated over the past fifty years. When I closed the book, I thought, you know who I bet would totally get into this? Tim Powers.
But what I got was a story of a passionately determined young woman who grits her teeth and does what she has been taught was right--which is no less than murder--while seriously examining faith, divinity, and destiny...
And things get interesting from there.
Lia was a terrific heroine. I loved her passion and her honesty. Even when when she's lying to others as well as to herself, she is at core honest, and the lying-to-survive tears her up. I loved her quest to understand the gods and to discover what faith is. How faith can be used for ill as well as for good...and what good is. All the big questions are here, and the reader is not told what to think.
Meanwhile, the stakes keep rising as a royal progress around a plague-stricken kingdom happens, with death threats right and left. Oh, and Lia is haunted by the ghost of the young sorcerer she killed. I enjoyed the very offbeat courtship of two intelligent, extremely traumatized young people. I really liked the complexities of the royal family, and there were scenes that took my breath away (usually when Lia encountered a new god).
It was utterly unpredictable, a fast, vivid read that tackles some of the big questions without grinding the same old axes that I've seen repeated over the past fifty years. When I closed the book, I thought, you know who I bet would totally get into this? Tim Powers.
April 19, 2024
Such a long wait. So disappointed. DNF @60%
~~~~~~
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A dark retelling of the Sleeping Beauty by Rosamund Hodge.
Me: Is it my Birthday day already?
First art of the characters:
source: https://twitter.com/NicoleDealArt/sta...
March 31, 2024
Superb - a delectably dark and passionate fantasy for everyone who's ever grown up to question the gods they love.
--
When I first read an earlier draft of this book it easily became one of my favourite reads of the year. WHAT MONSTROUS GODS has had a bit of a glow-up since then and I love it even more now.
Readers approaching this book might need to manage their expectations, though. Like all intensely personal books, WMG speaks to some very specific experiences. You might be expecting a romantic YA fantasy, and this book certainly includes all the tropes of such a book - we've got a girl on a mission to save her kingdom from the 500-year-old sorcerer who took away the magic of the gods, and finds herself unwillingly bound to him and eventually falling for him. But that's not quite what the book is about. You might, with a little more forewarning, expect a story of religious trauma and deconstruction, which is much nearer the mark, but in that case you should be warned that this is a story of sticking stubbornly by your faith, refusing to abandon it even as you disentangle the lies, half-truths, and old wounds that have become a part of it.
(It's also, of course, about how to love the gods of pagan mythologies even while acknowledging their cruelty. It's one of the rare books by Christian authors to properly celebrate judgement and justice as acts of righteousness. It's about preaching to the spirits in prison. It's about liberating people from performing acts of devotion for which they have no calling. It's about how the servant of all will be the greatest of all, and how you have to love a thing to have authority over it.)
This is what makes WHAT MONSTROUS GODS so incredibly powerful for me, and one of my favourite things Hodge has ever written. This is a weird, introspective, deeply theological book with the most powerful and joyous eucatastrophe of anything Hodge has ever written, and for best results you might need to have been a theology-and-mythology-nerd homeschooler who has grown up to do a little deconstruction. I feel sure that even if you've never had that experience you'll find the book entertaining, relatable, and thought-provoking - but if you have had that experience, even if from a different stream of belief (I'm Protestant; Hodge is Catholic) I think this book is going to be just as wildly cathartic and joyous for you as it was for me.
--
When I first read an earlier draft of this book it easily became one of my favourite reads of the year. WHAT MONSTROUS GODS has had a bit of a glow-up since then and I love it even more now.
Readers approaching this book might need to manage their expectations, though. Like all intensely personal books, WMG speaks to some very specific experiences. You might be expecting a romantic YA fantasy, and this book certainly includes all the tropes of such a book - we've got a girl on a mission to save her kingdom from the 500-year-old sorcerer who took away the magic of the gods, and finds herself unwillingly bound to him and eventually falling for him. But that's not quite what the book is about. You might, with a little more forewarning, expect a story of religious trauma and deconstruction, which is much nearer the mark, but in that case you should be warned that this is a story of sticking stubbornly by your faith, refusing to abandon it even as you disentangle the lies, half-truths, and old wounds that have become a part of it.
(It's also, of course, about how to love the gods of pagan mythologies even while acknowledging their cruelty. It's one of the rare books by Christian authors to properly celebrate judgement and justice as acts of righteousness. It's about preaching to the spirits in prison. It's about liberating people from performing acts of devotion for which they have no calling. It's about how the servant of all will be the greatest of all, and how you have to love a thing to have authority over it.)
This is what makes WHAT MONSTROUS GODS so incredibly powerful for me, and one of my favourite things Hodge has ever written. This is a weird, introspective, deeply theological book with the most powerful and joyous eucatastrophe of anything Hodge has ever written, and for best results you might need to have been a theology-and-mythology-nerd homeschooler who has grown up to do a little deconstruction. I feel sure that even if you've never had that experience you'll find the book entertaining, relatable, and thought-provoking - but if you have had that experience, even if from a different stream of belief (I'm Protestant; Hodge is Catholic) I think this book is going to be just as wildly cathartic and joyous for you as it was for me.
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February 26, 2024
⤅ Deeply theological, incredibly intense, and utterly gripping.
It's been exactly five months since I first picked up this book, and writing a review after so much time has elapsed really throws into stark relief what I liked about this book. I don't generally have a great memory for books (I've been able to reread some thriller books multiple times because I literally forget the plot twists...) so when I remember something after this long, it definitely left an impression.
And my main impression is this: the heroine is AWESOME.
17-year-old Lia Kurenava has grown up an orphan, raised by nuns in a world where the royal family has been deep in an enchanted for hundreds of years. It's Lia's destiny to breach the enchanted hedge circling the palace and break the curse, unleashing a new golden age for Runakhia. And how will she break the curse? By killing Ruven, the wicked sorcerer who first infiltrated the palace on that sunny day centuries ago. He, too, is still inside the palace - only unlike his victims, he's not asleep. He merely can't get out.
But it's no time for sympathy. Lia dispatches him easily, and as foretold the royal family awakens. It's all rejoicing from here on in, and Lia's even rewarded with a betrothal to Prince Araunn. To her horror, however, the ghost of Ruven still lives on, and none can see him but her. Even worse, she's playing a dangerous game: she's pretending to have the magic of the gods, and pretending to have their blessing. In truth, she's nothing but a fraud - and if she's exposed, she's dead.
The world-building in this book is INCREDIBLE. A possible unpopular opinion: I feel like religious authors often have the best fantasy world-building, and certain religions or denominations (such as Catholicism, which is Hodge's) have such rich histories and rituals that there's a lot to draw on. This whole book is deeply steeped in not just religion but religious matters, such as what exactly does it mean to show devotion to a god? And can I truly be worshipping a god without obeying them? There's a sprawling pantheon of gods here with some truly unique traits (no stale old Greco-Roman-inspired deities to be found) and the novel's interplay of gods and saints, devotees and sinners, compulsively propels the whole story forward. Were I still a YA reviewer for Publishers Weekly, I'd probably recommend this got a star for that alone.
Lia is also a wonderful heroine. Smart, determined, manipulative, selfless, quick-tempered - I can't remember the last time I encountered an antiheroine who enchanted me more. She's the only heroine I can ever remember ACTUALLY assassinating the hero when it was her mission to. In contrast, Ruven is woefully ill-fleshed-out, and the romance does suffer because of it. I almost wish this had been a duology, which it easily could have been, so that the romance wouldn't have suffered.
⤅ Overall
This seems to be a standalone, but the world is so fantastic I sincerely hope there'll be more stories set in it. A great read.
Want to read
April 12, 201904/12/2019
this book has over a year and a half before it's released, doesn't even have a cover, but people just dropping those 1 and 5 stars to mess with the ratings... STOP PLEASE
this book has over a year and a half before it's released, doesn't even have a cover, but people just dropping those 1 and 5 stars to mess with the ratings... STOP PLEASE
February 7, 2024
I've been sitting on this review for months, unsure where I stand with this book. I was expecting a more plot-heavy book when this is a character study. Lia is struggling with deep religious trauma and trying to forge her path with the gods.
The two main religions are Catholicism and then polytheism of some kind. Despite researching, I couldn't directly correlate the latter to any current/historical faith, so I found it odd that one was inspired by a practiced religion and the other not. There is also evidence of the gods and magic, but it's not explained how those who are Catholics see those works and have faith in one God. The difference between the two sects didn't make sense. Overall, the belief systems were underdeveloped and needed more fleshing out.
The book takes way too long to explain key points. I kept flipping back and forth, sure I had missed something. The magic system, historical facts, and plague aren't explained til the second half. At around 37%, I was sure I was skipping pages. It was all so confusing. The author shouldn't explain everything from the get-go, but the reveals were too late. By that point, I was frustrated with the half-baked world.
I did like Lia. She has tenacity and grit and is very determined throughout the book. Even when the world starts falling apart, she still holds her ground. I love a storyline around religious trauma, so it was interesting how Hodge wrote about Lia falling away from her faith while desperately trying to please her gods. It was well done.
The ending was rushed and unsatisfying. All that angst and tension throughout the story resolved way too quickly.
If you go in ready to be a little confused and with a love for storylines of girls working through trauma, I think you'll enjoy this one.
Thank you NetGalley and HarperCollins for the advance copy. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.
———
Who needs friends when HarperCollins can give you arcs
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I truly am a simple creature. Show me a beautiful cover and tell me it's fairytale-inspired and I want it.
The two main religions are Catholicism and then polytheism of some kind. Despite researching, I couldn't directly correlate the latter to any current/historical faith, so I found it odd that one was inspired by a practiced religion and the other not. There is also evidence of the gods and magic, but it's not explained how those who are Catholics see those works and have faith in one God. The difference between the two sects didn't make sense. Overall, the belief systems were underdeveloped and needed more fleshing out.
The book takes way too long to explain key points. I kept flipping back and forth, sure I had missed something. The magic system, historical facts, and plague aren't explained til the second half. At around 37%, I was sure I was skipping pages. It was all so confusing. The author shouldn't explain everything from the get-go, but the reveals were too late. By that point, I was frustrated with the half-baked world.
I did like Lia. She has tenacity and grit and is very determined throughout the book. Even when the world starts falling apart, she still holds her ground. I love a storyline around religious trauma, so it was interesting how Hodge wrote about Lia falling away from her faith while desperately trying to please her gods. It was well done.
The ending was rushed and unsatisfying. All that angst and tension throughout the story resolved way too quickly.
If you go in ready to be a little confused and with a love for storylines of girls working through trauma, I think you'll enjoy this one.
Thank you NetGalley and HarperCollins for the advance copy. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.
———
Who needs friends when HarperCollins can give you arcs
--------
I truly am a simple creature. Show me a beautiful cover and tell me it's fairytale-inspired and I want it.
April 19, 2024
Not a book for an atheist, yet this atheist found things to admire in it - while also being completely unable to understand the main character's tumultuous relationship with her monstrous gods. Kick 'em all to the curb, I say. But the gods in this book are far from loving and abstract: they transform people into saints who are all doomed to die in particular and horrible ways ("His saints grow an ever-widening hole in the center of their foreheads until they die").
The gods have been severed from the land of Runakhia by a heathen sorcerer, who still lives in the castle, now surrounded by a thick briar hedge. But this nod to Sleeping Beauty quickly goes off the rails when Lia, charged with killing the sorcerer and restoring the sleeping royals and gods, actually manages to do so within the first 36 pages...and finds that, indeed, the price of getting what you want is getting what you once wanted.
Sherwood Smith's review initially caught my eye, and I'm occasionally in the mood for Rosamund Hodge's girls with sharp knives. I was initially iffy about Lia (future nun, very pious and certain), but her determination to do the right thing, even as her certainty about what exactly that was faltered, won me over. Religion is not a monolithic good or evil here, and I appreciated the level of nuance in the book's engagement with religious faith, worship, sacrifice, and heresy (). I'm extremely wary of religious didacticism (I can never reread Narnia, alas), and I did not feel it here.
The writing is serviceable, rarely noteworthy but also not terrible.
I could see how this might be the perfect book for someone, though it wasn't for me. Even so, I never knew where What Monstrous Gods was going, and it's been a long time since that happened with YA fantasy. I found myself quite anxious about the ending (how could any of this possibly end well?), and flipped pages hastily until I finished.
The gods have been severed from the land of Runakhia by a heathen sorcerer, who still lives in the castle, now surrounded by a thick briar hedge. But this nod to Sleeping Beauty quickly goes off the rails when Lia, charged with killing the sorcerer and restoring the sleeping royals and gods, actually manages to do so within the first 36 pages...and finds that, indeed, the price of getting what you want is getting what you once wanted.
Sherwood Smith's review initially caught my eye, and I'm occasionally in the mood for Rosamund Hodge's girls with sharp knives. I was initially iffy about Lia (future nun, very pious and certain), but her determination to do the right thing, even as her certainty about what exactly that was faltered, won me over. Religion is not a monolithic good or evil here, and I appreciated the level of nuance in the book's engagement with religious faith, worship, sacrifice, and heresy (). I'm extremely wary of religious didacticism (I can never reread Narnia, alas), and I did not feel it here.
The writing is serviceable, rarely noteworthy but also not terrible.
I think of the herbs I grew in the convent garden, the sharp joy I felt at each new sprout. I spread my hands, brushing my fingertips agains the golden threads of power, and I remember the damp, warm smell of newly planted earth.
Grow, I think, and curl my fingers into fists.
For a heartbeat, the room is silent and still. Then I see a green haze on the floor, and know it is seedlings. The next moment, the seedlings have grown into full plants, leaves opening, flowers blossoming.
I could see how this might be the perfect book for someone, though it wasn't for me. Even so, I never knew where What Monstrous Gods was going, and it's been a long time since that happened with YA fantasy. I found myself quite anxious about the ending (how could any of this possibly end well?), and flipped pages hastily until I finished.
Want to read
December 19, 2022Here's hoping this releases around my birthday! :-D Cruel Beauty is a book that continues to inform and shape my own writing - Hodge's use of religious symbolism, complex characters, and folkloric world-building inspires me to no end. I plan to read her backlist, but my love for Cruel Beauty alone is enough to make me want to read this novel. So yeah. Maybe one day I'll write an essay about it. ;-)
Want to read
July 13, 2018The moment I saw that Rosamund Hodge had a new book deal, I got heart palpitations.
March 29, 2024
Thank you for the eARC, NetGalley and HarperCollins.
I really liked Cruel Beauty and Crimson Bound by Rosamund Hodge, so I was looking forward to What Monstrous Gods.
I wish I'd liked it more, but it wasn't my cup of tea, sadly. Part of it is probably due to how much it focused on religion and belief. There were some interesting points on that, but there were just too many discussions between the main characters about their religions, and how one is better than the other.
The plot didn't really hold my attention, and I don't feel we got to know the characters enough, or that they had enough reason to fall in love.
It reminded me a bit (a lot?) of Wicked Saints by Emily Duncan. I think readers who liked that and maybe The Wolf and the Woodsman (more in terms of vibes and focus on religion) will also enjoy What Monstrous Gods.
Overall, I didn't think it was bad, it just wasn't for me - 2.5 stars.
I really liked Cruel Beauty and Crimson Bound by Rosamund Hodge, so I was looking forward to What Monstrous Gods.
I wish I'd liked it more, but it wasn't my cup of tea, sadly. Part of it is probably due to how much it focused on religion and belief. There were some interesting points on that, but there were just too many discussions between the main characters about their religions, and how one is better than the other.
The plot didn't really hold my attention, and I don't feel we got to know the characters enough, or that they had enough reason to fall in love.
It reminded me a bit (a lot?) of Wicked Saints by Emily Duncan. I think readers who liked that and maybe The Wolf and the Woodsman (more in terms of vibes and focus on religion) will also enjoy What Monstrous Gods.
Overall, I didn't think it was bad, it just wasn't for me - 2.5 stars.
December 12, 2020
It's her best one yet - full of Feelings, Big Questions, Hard Choices, and the deft and subtle worldbuilding that's a hallmark of Hodge's fantasy. I can't wait for it to be out in the world more broadly!
March 25, 2024
1.5/5 ⭐
Had a lot going on - Catholicism, heretics, religious trauma, anti God and a sorcer ghost. Unfortunately, it didn't work together. The themes felt incohesive, the romance or whatever it was at best vain and unbelievable, the lore or what was supposed to be didn't feel monumental enough to raise the stakes and the Gods were truly as good as scriptures. I didn't enjoy it and simply pushed through it. It did get me out of my slump.
Had a lot going on - Catholicism, heretics, religious trauma, anti God and a sorcer ghost. Unfortunately, it didn't work together. The themes felt incohesive, the romance or whatever it was at best vain and unbelievable, the lore or what was supposed to be didn't feel monumental enough to raise the stakes and the Gods were truly as good as scriptures. I didn't enjoy it and simply pushed through it. It did get me out of my slump.
March 7, 2024
This might have had the worst romantic arc I’ve ever read. There’s no attraction between them, no time spent to cultivate a relationship and yet. Somehow they both admit they love each other. Shocked pikachu face.
March 28, 2024
*cries in Catholic guilt* Well worth the wait and more.
Want to read
January 15, 2024Wow I need this book SO MUCH LIKE GIVE IT NOW.
March 25, 2024
Update I have read the final version and it blew my socks AND shoes off. It is so POWERFUL. Both an enemies to lovers story and a coming of age finding your place in the world story BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY a deep meditation on what it means to worship, what we worship, what is WORTHY of our worship and devotion, and WHY.
***
I have kept this on my want to read shelf because I wanted to know EXACTLY when it was coming out but now that the time is IMMINENT, here we go.
I read this book in beta and it blew my socks off THEN. I cannot WAIT to read the final, fierce version and write a longer in depth review BUT. Safe to say I HIGHLY HIGHLY recommend this book.
***
I have kept this on my want to read shelf because I wanted to know EXACTLY when it was coming out but now that the time is IMMINENT, here we go.
I read this book in beta and it blew my socks off THEN. I cannot WAIT to read the final, fierce version and write a longer in depth review BUT. Safe to say I HIGHLY HIGHLY recommend this book.
January 21, 2024
I always thank NetGalley and publisher for letting read books early because cmon. They are pretty awesome
But this time around I wish I can unrequest this book. Honestly. I have no idea what I just read.
Beside the bad unclear writing, choppy scenes, weird religious views and absolutely “let me just put words on the page” world building, I wish I can unread this.
I don’t even care half of the words I used are not real. That’s how bad this book was.
But this time around I wish I can unrequest this book. Honestly. I have no idea what I just read.
Beside the bad unclear writing, choppy scenes, weird religious views and absolutely “let me just put words on the page” world building, I wish I can unread this.
I don’t even care half of the words I used are not real. That’s how bad this book was.
Want to read
April 26, 2019See Rosamund Hodge?
Click the button.
It's that simple.
Click the button.
It's that simple.
Read
December 30, 2020I'll post a full review when this book is about to come out, but I just want to note it for my 2020 reading numbers and also say how excited I am to see this reach the hands of readers.
November 3, 2023
An e-ARC was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions remain my own.
The gods—and the royal family that serves them—have been asleep for hundreds of years. Lia, an orphan raised in a convent, is tasked with waking them up. But to do so, she must brave the dangers of a cursed briar and slay the sorcerer Ruven who resides inside. And she does kill Ruven, awakening the royal family. For a few moments, it’s something out of a fairytale; the royal family stirred from a cursed slumber and the kingdom was saved. But then Ruven’s ghost starts haunting Lia, and the stories she believed about the gods may be nothing more than pretty lies. But with the eyes of the world watching, Lia has no choice but to pretend that everything is perfect, even as the world she’s always known comes crashing down around her.
What Monstrous Gods by Rosamund Hodge has the makings of a truly epic fantasy. I loved how divinity was toyed with so expertly and the contrast the author created between unwilling saints and hopeless martyrs. It’s rare to see a YA novel tackle such complex themes of divinity and what it means to believe in god(s), especially in a fantastical setting. While I certainly give Hodge credit for attempting to deal with moral complexities, I felt that the novel’s ending undermined the point the book was trying to make. At times, I wasn’t sure whether the story was trying to warn me against the evils of Catholicism or convert me to the religion. I usually don’t like books that are trying to preach at me—whether that be religious or social preaching—-but I didn’t find it too bothersome in this novel because the main character was dealing with a crisis of faith. Unfortunately, Hodge’s argument about divinity got lost in Lia’s contradictory actions and the anticlimactic ending.
The best part of What Monstrous Gods by far was Lia. She’s a heroine who is constantly forced to question everything she knows, and her reactions feel realistic and true to her character. Her character was never undermined by a religious message, and I adore watching her struggle to redefine what she wanted divinity to be. Ruven was a wonderful assistant to the process, and while I didn’t necessarily buy into their romance, I still enjoyed their interactions.
Beyond the characters, the aesthetic and tone of the novel were incredible. I could see every visceral image Hodge described, and it was easy to get lost in a world of wicked gods and the people who couldn’t help but worship them. The world had strong foundations, as did the novel’s religion. It never felt like the author was info-dumping, even as her complex worldbuilding unfolded. In general, the plot wandered, but that fit in well with the tone of the novel. Overall, I’d recommend What Monstrous Gods for fans of Vespertine who wanted more romance and those looking for an early winter read with a bit of teeth.
The gods—and the royal family that serves them—have been asleep for hundreds of years. Lia, an orphan raised in a convent, is tasked with waking them up. But to do so, she must brave the dangers of a cursed briar and slay the sorcerer Ruven who resides inside. And she does kill Ruven, awakening the royal family. For a few moments, it’s something out of a fairytale; the royal family stirred from a cursed slumber and the kingdom was saved. But then Ruven’s ghost starts haunting Lia, and the stories she believed about the gods may be nothing more than pretty lies. But with the eyes of the world watching, Lia has no choice but to pretend that everything is perfect, even as the world she’s always known comes crashing down around her.
What Monstrous Gods by Rosamund Hodge has the makings of a truly epic fantasy. I loved how divinity was toyed with so expertly and the contrast the author created between unwilling saints and hopeless martyrs. It’s rare to see a YA novel tackle such complex themes of divinity and what it means to believe in god(s), especially in a fantastical setting. While I certainly give Hodge credit for attempting to deal with moral complexities, I felt that the novel’s ending undermined the point the book was trying to make. At times, I wasn’t sure whether the story was trying to warn me against the evils of Catholicism or convert me to the religion. I usually don’t like books that are trying to preach at me—whether that be religious or social preaching—-but I didn’t find it too bothersome in this novel because the main character was dealing with a crisis of faith. Unfortunately, Hodge’s argument about divinity got lost in Lia’s contradictory actions and the anticlimactic ending.
The best part of What Monstrous Gods by far was Lia. She’s a heroine who is constantly forced to question everything she knows, and her reactions feel realistic and true to her character. Her character was never undermined by a religious message, and I adore watching her struggle to redefine what she wanted divinity to be. Ruven was a wonderful assistant to the process, and while I didn’t necessarily buy into their romance, I still enjoyed their interactions.
Beyond the characters, the aesthetic and tone of the novel were incredible. I could see every visceral image Hodge described, and it was easy to get lost in a world of wicked gods and the people who couldn’t help but worship them. The world had strong foundations, as did the novel’s religion. It never felt like the author was info-dumping, even as her complex worldbuilding unfolded. In general, the plot wandered, but that fit in well with the tone of the novel. Overall, I’d recommend What Monstrous Gods for fans of Vespertine who wanted more romance and those looking for an early winter read with a bit of teeth.
March 25, 2024
I’ll be chewing and mulling over the theology in this book for awhile. But it’s not your live, laugh, love kind. It’s a truly dark, brutal, bloody, and heart wrenching demand.
If you’ve ever met or have been a theology homeschool kid, you’ll relate to Lia.
If you’ve ever met or have been a theology homeschool kid, you’ll relate to Lia.
Want to read
March 26, 2024Lia must choose between what she was raised to believe and what she knows is right - and between the prince she is bound to by duty...and the boy she killed.
GHOSTS, GHOSTS, GHOSTS!!!
GHOSTS, GHOSTS, GHOSTS!!!
February 29, 2024
3.5
I had to sit with this one for a minute. My kneejerk reaction was that I didn't like it. But that's not true. I actually did like it. And I liked it more than Cruel Beauty, which I read around a decade ago and was left disappointed. What Monstrous Gods was not disappointing, but was unlike anything I expected.
I didn't expect the entire book to be so theological. My bad, I know the title is literally about Gods, but I don't know what to tell you. I guess I'm used to religion in fantasy existing in a quieter way. There's no way for it to be quiet here, where we follow Lia who is completely devoted to the Gods and wants nothing more than to serve them and others through their blessings. It's impossible for it to be quiet when we are directly faced with these Gods and their power. And unlike in other fiction where religious deities and their following can feel abstract in a way, as though it's just magic with very little recognizable ties to religion, this always feels religious.
What took me longer to really have sink in is how heavily this book deals with religious trauma and questioning faith. The fact that these occur for characters while knowing for certain the Gods exist adds a layer of depth to the subject matter that I really enjoyed. Characters ask, Are these Gods worth loving? Worth following? Are they owed that of me? while in the shadow of these Gods' very real presence, it makes the notion of questioning those things in our own world, where you aren't going to receive that overt confirmation of existence, feel more consequential.
The Gods that Hodge created for this world are truly wondrous and terrifying. I thoroughly enjoyed each of their descriptions. And holy hell, the saints for each God? I thought it was brilliantly done. I did find myself incredibly curious when it came to the heretical faith - which was clearly modeled after Catholicism. Is the implication that in any multitude of universes this God exists because it is the true, overarching creator of all? Or is the world we're reading set in an alternate past or future of the earth we, the reader, live on?
Of course, I can't finish this review without mentioning the ~love story~. This element was most similar in reading experience to that of Cruel Beauty in that I remember feeling like the pacing and connection of it was off in that book, and I can say the same thing here. Less so, maybe, but nonetheless. Lia and Ruven could have used more development, without a doubt. They had the tension to be truly phenomenal but the helm of the story was Lia and religion not Lia and Ruven. Ultimately I still enjoyed them, but they could have been so much more!
Overall, this was unlike most anything I usually read and I'm glad I gave it a chance. It made me ponder and kept me thoroughly engaged. It even managed to surprise me a couple times. I think there was untapped potential left behind, but the bones are good.
I had to sit with this one for a minute. My kneejerk reaction was that I didn't like it. But that's not true. I actually did like it. And I liked it more than Cruel Beauty, which I read around a decade ago and was left disappointed. What Monstrous Gods was not disappointing, but was unlike anything I expected.
I didn't expect the entire book to be so theological. My bad, I know the title is literally about Gods, but I don't know what to tell you. I guess I'm used to religion in fantasy existing in a quieter way. There's no way for it to be quiet here, where we follow Lia who is completely devoted to the Gods and wants nothing more than to serve them and others through their blessings. It's impossible for it to be quiet when we are directly faced with these Gods and their power. And unlike in other fiction where religious deities and their following can feel abstract in a way, as though it's just magic with very little recognizable ties to religion, this always feels religious.
What took me longer to really have sink in is how heavily this book deals with religious trauma and questioning faith. The fact that these occur for characters while knowing for certain the Gods exist adds a layer of depth to the subject matter that I really enjoyed. Characters ask, Are these Gods worth loving? Worth following? Are they owed that of me? while in the shadow of these Gods' very real presence, it makes the notion of questioning those things in our own world, where you aren't going to receive that overt confirmation of existence, feel more consequential.
The Gods that Hodge created for this world are truly wondrous and terrifying. I thoroughly enjoyed each of their descriptions. And holy hell, the saints for each God? I thought it was brilliantly done. I did find myself incredibly curious when it came to the heretical faith - which was clearly modeled after Catholicism. Is the implication that in any multitude of universes this God exists because it is the true, overarching creator of all? Or is the world we're reading set in an alternate past or future of the earth we, the reader, live on?
Of course, I can't finish this review without mentioning the ~love story~. This element was most similar in reading experience to that of Cruel Beauty in that I remember feeling like the pacing and connection of it was off in that book, and I can say the same thing here. Less so, maybe, but nonetheless. Lia and Ruven could have used more development, without a doubt. They had the tension to be truly phenomenal but the helm of the story was Lia and religion not Lia and Ruven. Ultimately I still enjoyed them, but they could have been so much more!
Overall, this was unlike most anything I usually read and I'm glad I gave it a chance. It made me ponder and kept me thoroughly engaged. It even managed to surprise me a couple times. I think there was untapped potential left behind, but the bones are good.
October 8, 2023
》ARC Review: What Monstrous Gods《
What Monstrous Gods was a read that left me deep in thought upon completion. I absolutely felt positive towards it— happy to have read it, but I wasn’t sure if I truly unlocked all it offers, because it offers so very much. It’s the type of book that I think, if I read again I will develop a deeper understanding and a greater appreciation. But for this first go I can sum it up that I felt a lot towards this book. A lot of intrigue and a lot of love. It surprised me, in a very good way.
It wasn’t always easy to traverse through the journey presented, but it’s one I’ll look back on fondly.
》The Leads《
Lia. Lia is our protagonist. Sent on a mission to kill one with the purpose to heal all else, Lia accomplishes said mission right away at the start of the book, an action that will haunt her for the rest of the story. Lia is not a warrior, nor aggressor, she intends on being a nun, on being blessed to heal others. But the action she was raised to do comes with great consequence, altering her expected destiny, making her question who she is.
What I enjoyed about Lia was she is not without flaws. She is very flawed, in fact. She can be envious, insecure, stubborn, and even ignorant. She is vulnerable and unsure of herself. But she is always full of love, of hope, of desire to better the world. To do good. To learn to regret and reconsider her actions. Even if it takes a while (a too long while at times), she reflects in a ways not all YA leads will do. Oftentimes, YA leads seems invulnerable to wrongs and flaws, they tend to stand on the right side whilst everyone else is in the wrong; so it’s refreshing to witness a heroine who doesn’t always get it right. And how to internalized those wrongs and question the right next step.
Ruven. Ruven may not be a POV co-lead, but he is a major play nonetheless. He is in every way Lia’s foil. What she considers blasphemy, he considers truth, and vice versa. Their perspectives of the world far differs one another, but at the same time they come to deeply understand one another because they see each other reflected in the other. They are an imperfectly perfect complement. They were born to be weapons without realizing it and they understand the inner plight that realization wrought within their souls. I really enjoyed when Ruven would interrupt Lia with his observations and stances of the newly (re)created world she seemingly saved. I enjoyed his character immensely.
》The Romance《
The romance is very understated in the book, and a slow burn. I was part satisfied, part wanting more. Much more. I wanted more focus on the complex, complicated love story than the plot featuring gods, saints, and royals. The connection between our leads is immediate and undeniable, their falling in love doesn’t surprise me, but it also didn’t wholly satisfy. I mean, Lia killed Ruven, his blood is literally on her hands. Their is so much complicated history between them, and while that aspect is well navigated, how it jumps to falling in love felt a bit too sudden. I wish it would have developed more overtly.
》The Caveat《
I did struggle navigating the world-building: the theology, the magic, all of it. However, I felt this was more an issue with me than the book. I just couldn’t unlock it even as everything was laid out for us. To put it bluntly, I didn’t feel smart enough for it, so it went right over my head most times. While this did hinder my enjoyment at times, I wouldn’t say it affects my rating.
My only prominent caveat was Lia’s actions, or inactions should I say. For as much as I enjoy seeing a lead be flawed and vulnerable, I became frustrated by her clearly willful ignorance. Even as the truth seeped in to the point of obvious, Lia still denied it as much as she could. On one hand, I appreciate the internal struggle, I massively, massively appreciate seeing a lead who isn’t perfect, who isn’t always right, but I wish she was more decisive for the right things a lot quicker than she demonstrated. I was frustrated a bit too often for my liking.
But I still loved Lia, flaws and all, while I’d change that aspect, I wouldn’t change the rest.
》The Conclusion《
This book intrigued me, it was a slow burn in many ways, not just in romance but also in build up. It allows the reader to take their time in unrolling all they feel as they read along. I’m still going through the emotions but I know this a book I won’t forget any time soon— and one I plan to happily purchase to rest upon my shelves.
Thank you NetGalley and HarperCollins for providing me an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.
What Monstrous Gods was a read that left me deep in thought upon completion. I absolutely felt positive towards it— happy to have read it, but I wasn’t sure if I truly unlocked all it offers, because it offers so very much. It’s the type of book that I think, if I read again I will develop a deeper understanding and a greater appreciation. But for this first go I can sum it up that I felt a lot towards this book. A lot of intrigue and a lot of love. It surprised me, in a very good way.
It wasn’t always easy to traverse through the journey presented, but it’s one I’ll look back on fondly.
》The Leads《
Lia. Lia is our protagonist. Sent on a mission to kill one with the purpose to heal all else, Lia accomplishes said mission right away at the start of the book, an action that will haunt her for the rest of the story. Lia is not a warrior, nor aggressor, she intends on being a nun, on being blessed to heal others. But the action she was raised to do comes with great consequence, altering her expected destiny, making her question who she is.
What I enjoyed about Lia was she is not without flaws. She is very flawed, in fact. She can be envious, insecure, stubborn, and even ignorant. She is vulnerable and unsure of herself. But she is always full of love, of hope, of desire to better the world. To do good. To learn to regret and reconsider her actions. Even if it takes a while (a too long while at times), she reflects in a ways not all YA leads will do. Oftentimes, YA leads seems invulnerable to wrongs and flaws, they tend to stand on the right side whilst everyone else is in the wrong; so it’s refreshing to witness a heroine who doesn’t always get it right. And how to internalized those wrongs and question the right next step.
Ruven. Ruven may not be a POV co-lead, but he is a major play nonetheless. He is in every way Lia’s foil. What she considers blasphemy, he considers truth, and vice versa. Their perspectives of the world far differs one another, but at the same time they come to deeply understand one another because they see each other reflected in the other. They are an imperfectly perfect complement. They were born to be weapons without realizing it and they understand the inner plight that realization wrought within their souls. I really enjoyed when Ruven would interrupt Lia with his observations and stances of the newly (re)created world she seemingly saved. I enjoyed his character immensely.
》The Romance《
The romance is very understated in the book, and a slow burn. I was part satisfied, part wanting more. Much more. I wanted more focus on the complex, complicated love story than the plot featuring gods, saints, and royals. The connection between our leads is immediate and undeniable, their falling in love doesn’t surprise me, but it also didn’t wholly satisfy. I mean, Lia killed Ruven, his blood is literally on her hands. Their is so much complicated history between them, and while that aspect is well navigated, how it jumps to falling in love felt a bit too sudden. I wish it would have developed more overtly.
》The Caveat《
I did struggle navigating the world-building: the theology, the magic, all of it. However, I felt this was more an issue with me than the book. I just couldn’t unlock it even as everything was laid out for us. To put it bluntly, I didn’t feel smart enough for it, so it went right over my head most times. While this did hinder my enjoyment at times, I wouldn’t say it affects my rating.
My only prominent caveat was Lia’s actions, or inactions should I say. For as much as I enjoy seeing a lead be flawed and vulnerable, I became frustrated by her clearly willful ignorance. Even as the truth seeped in to the point of obvious, Lia still denied it as much as she could. On one hand, I appreciate the internal struggle, I massively, massively appreciate seeing a lead who isn’t perfect, who isn’t always right, but I wish she was more decisive for the right things a lot quicker than she demonstrated. I was frustrated a bit too often for my liking.
But I still loved Lia, flaws and all, while I’d change that aspect, I wouldn’t change the rest.
》The Conclusion《
This book intrigued me, it was a slow burn in many ways, not just in romance but also in build up. It allows the reader to take their time in unrolling all they feel as they read along. I’m still going through the emotions but I know this a book I won’t forget any time soon— and one I plan to happily purchase to rest upon my shelves.
Thank you NetGalley and HarperCollins for providing me an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.
April 2, 2024
Just like most girls, I do not breakup with an author when it's clear we are not gonna work out anymore either.
Want to read
August 11, 2023August 10th 2023: Got the ARC - can't wait to read it.
I really hope this is more along the lines of Cruel Beauty and Crimson Bound.
I really hope this is more along the lines of Cruel Beauty and Crimson Bound.
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