While there are actual monsters stalking the world that Kissen and her companions inhabit, their fellow people are often the worst of them. Godkiller has twists and turns, deceits and deceptions, and Kaner crafts a narrative that drags you along at a breakneck pace. This is meant as a compliment, as while the narrative races it takes you with it for the ride.

The world-building is subtle, Kaner references aspects of the world to build up a picture of it, but there is no heavy handed exposition. I enjoyed the way characters backstories are used to develop the world around them, especially with regards to the Gods War. Bits of background are dropped in through conversations and story-telling, in a way that feel natural and unforced.

One interesting aspect of the novel for me was the lost limb that Kissen lives with. We are shown the trauma of the loss early on, but it does not become a major character point for her. It is something that she lives with, and while there are occasional referenced to the self-care aspects, or the way she adapts to work around the limb and prosthesis, it is not portrayed as an all-encompassing aspect of her persona. This type of representation is so important, as too often we are shown as disability as the entirety of someones life or personality; Kissen is a breath of fresh air.

While the ending ties up a number of narrative threads from the novel, it does something that a lot of fiction seems to these days, and leaves some areas open to further exploration. While I appreciate the reasons for this, and would very much like to revisit the world of Godkiller, it can be very frustrating as a reader to not get the whole story.

I'm so happy to say that I finally found fantasy I enjoy and I'm excited for! Godkiller was very hard for me to put down and I enjoyed it so much!
We follow Kissen the Godkiller, Elogast the retired knight now baker, Inara a noble girl and Skediceth, the God of white lies who is somehow tied to Inara. I enjoyed the different POV's and I loved to get to know the characters. I found them to be very dynamic and I very much enjoyed their relationships to each other.
The journey those four main characters follow reminded me a lot of The Witcher which I'm not mad about.
The world building and pacing was very well done in my opinion and I'm keen to find out more about the world, gods and people.
Please don't let me wait too long for the next book!

Thank you to Hannah Kaner, Harper Collins and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Thanks to Netgalley and Harper Voyager for the advance copy of Godkiller. It’s been a pleasure and a great reading.

Godkiller is Hanna Kaner’s debut. An epic, adult fantasy book full of fire, gods and one of those stories that you can’t stop reading.

I don’t know if I’m going to be able to explore all the topics I like about this book, however I will try the best I can.

First of all, I would like to say that this is one of those books that stays with you even when you have finished it. A story that is beautifully written and moves you from inside out. I keep thinking about the story, the characters and that beautiful prologue that kept me hooked up from the very first second. A five-star read from the beginning to end.

Narrated with 4 voices, you get to know these morally grey characters really well, which can sometimes be difficult in a book with just over 300 pages. With one of the characters I was bit reluctant because she is a 12-year-old girl and usually I don’t connect with kids/teenagers, but I have to say Nissa has the best arc of the story and she’s the one that grows up more. Her story is full of secrets and I’m sure she will have a lot to say in the next book.

Kissen was also a very interesting character. She’s not the classic heroine. She’s rude and ugly, fierce and badass, but at the same time she’s caring, fearful and sometimes a coward. She’s extremely human and you can connect with that since the beginning.

The pacing of the story is fast and sometimes confusing, but that creates a perfect atmosphere for the book. You know as little as the characters do and travel with them through their nightmares and sorrows.

The gods narrative is brilliant, and you can see these holy beings as selfish and greedy. Kaner creates a new imagery for gods that fascinated me and blew my mind. This was absolutely my favourite part of the book.

If I must mention something I didn’t like I would say I expected this book to be more queer. However, this didn’t bother me so much as the romantic relationships weren’t as important as in other books. Although THAT ONE SCENE had me screaming. If you know which one I mean…

This is a truly remarkable start to a trilogy and I’m counting the days until the next one.

I wouldn’t miss it for the world.

Godkiller was one of those books that from the moment I first heard about it, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on it. I was so excited when I got an ARC of this one and couldn’t wait to dive in. I had such high expectations for this book and unfortunately it didn’t meet all of them. That’s not to say I didn’t enjoy Godkiller, I really did, but there were pacing issues that really reduced my love of it a little bit.

Godkiller has such a phenomenal premise. Right from the very first chapter I was hooked. This book starts with a bang, and you’re so intrigued about what is going to happen you really cannot put it down. Our main character is a godkiller, but when we meet her we see her family is favoured by one of the gods. I was really intrigued to find out what happened to her to make her go from favoured to hunting them down. The premise and the whole world building of the different gods and what they do is amazing. I absolutely loved this aspect of the book.

At around the 40-50% mark, the plot started to slow down a little and honestly for a good chunk of the second half of the book I was a little bit bored. This is where there is a lot of talk between the characters and talking about the journey they are going on with not much else happening. As a plot driven reader, this really bored me. There were many times I was thinking about putting it down, but then something plot driven would happen and hook me right back in. Despite the pacing issues in the middle of the book… holy hell can Hannah write an ending. The last 100 pages of this book were on fire! Absolutely phenomenal. There were twists I never saw coming (and I always see them coming), there was just action and plot constantly and I sat there thinking YES! This is what I have been waiting for.

I truly believe that my issues in this book around the pacing was all of this character development that looking back was vital. I am definitely going to re-read this one at some point and see if my feelings around the middle part of the book change. I will absolutely be reading the second book. I cannot wait. The ending absolutely shocked my to my core and I am dying to find out what happened next. Even though I had my issues with this one I did really enjoy it, and if you like a good fantasy book with morally gray characters then this one is definitely not to be missed.

It was the stunning cover and premise that drew me to this book.

Godkiller is a wonderful, immersive read with a diverse cast. The respectful representation made me so happy.
Queer characters, disabilities and trauma for once not used as plot devices.

I enjoyed the development of Kissen’s story throughout the journey of the books and grew to love her and the rest of the cast as we get to know them through their POV. The worldbuilding and gods were so vivid and beautifully described, I wish I could explore it more!

Honesty...is it too early to want the sequel?

When she was a child, Kissen’s family were killed as sacrifices to a god of fire. Now she makes her living by killing gods, until one day she is approached by a young girl who is somehow bound to a god: Skedi, god of white lies. Unable to kill the god without harming the girl, Kissen must travel to the destroyed city of Blenraden to ask for help from one of the remaining wild gods.

I really enjoyed Kissen as the determined and battle-hardened protagonist. She’s feisty and aggressive, but also has a soft side which is how she finds herself so committed to helping Inara and separating her from Skedi. I thought that Kissen and Inara vibed really well together, and the addition of Elogast joining their group worked really well. I also loved Skedi, and I appreciated the insight into the power-hungry nature of a god, tempered in this case by his love for Inara.

The portrayal of the gods in this story is really exceptional. The real, physical existence of these gods makes them easy to picture as characters, and I liked that they were willed into being by the beliefs and needs of humanity. This created a really excellent range of truly powerful gods, where some offer comfort and assistance to their worshipers, while others feed off of pain and sacrifice.

There’s plenty of action, some fabulous scenery, and a good amount of banter and character growth. Set in really well-developed world and with some shocking twists, Godkiller is a top-tier fantasy adventure.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for proving an ARC so I could read and review this book.

Godkiller is a stunning fantasy debut. An Incredibly refreshing take on fantasy that blew me away. This is absolutely one of the most anticipated fantasy books of 2023 for good reason.

All the characters were very interesting and written well. Their interactions with each other were a particular highlight. The world building is outstanding and conveys a rich, unique world without use of information dumps. While the plot is relatively standard as far as the fantasy is concerned, the ending has left me hooked for book 2.

This book kept me on my toes. The premise is super interesting and it kept me wanting to know what would happen throughout. It was an easy world to fall into, gods = evil and greedy. The book has a slowish pace and I was keen to move forward in some bits - but overall for the first book in a series, I am eager to find out what happens next.

Kissen, the main character reminded me of Geralt of Rivia, just without slaying monsters- she wonders the country slaying Gods.

The bond between Inara and asked I reminded me of the bonds between a person and their Daemon in His Dark Materials by Phillip Pullman.

I liked the MC Kissen, but the other characters fell a little flat for me. I am interested in seeing Inara’s power grow but it was hard to read a perspective from a younger child.

While I really enjoyed and was interested in learning about all the different gods and their shrines, I found the book to be slow moving/not keeping me interested, until around 80% when some action happened.

Thank you to NetGalley for this E-Arc.

World of Warcraft, meets Monster Hunter, meets His Dark Materials!

This beautiful debut by Hannah Kaner will keep you on the edge of your seat from the very first line. Such a beautiful prose, with such melodic writing. I can only describe it as a cosy high fantasy! The characters are so rich and will quickly have you feeling dear to them. The first book was wrapped up splendidly, leaving readers gagging for the next one. I can’t wait to see the story continue with book two!

What a fantastic gem of a book.

I requested this from Netgalley, having heard a few good reviews but not overly knowing much about it. Turns out, it was just my cup of tea.

There are The Witcher influences for sure, expect we kill gods in this book, not monsters. Fans of The Blcktongue Thief will enjoy this too. The humour is witty and with a dark edge.

The world feels fresh. Things are off kilter to what we usually expect. In this world, gods are not good. They are greedy. They demand gold, worship, sacrifice. Wars are started by gods, lives are ended. As such gods are now to be killed… forbidden… it makes sense… but some people can’t let go of their gods and some gods can’t let go of their desire to be worshipped.

Thus enters, Krissen, a fierce godkilling warrior – whose whole family was killed by a god. She kills for money, but also pleasure – and is really quite hilarious at times too.

We also have Inara – a child who for some reason has found herself bound to a god who has no memory of who he is or where he come from – other than he is the god of white lies.

And then there is a former knight, Elo, who takes on a secret quest for an old friend.

These three characters are an unlikely group and yet they bounce and play off each other really well. The prose it snappy and fresh – and the story whips along at speed. No flab or extra padding here. No, Krissen is much to impatient for that!

I’d also like to highlight how well it deals with disability and LGBTQ+ characters. It feels very seamless – much like Priory of the Orange Tree – and I found that wonderful. More of this please.

I believe this book is out this week! Excellent! Buy and devour! You will enjoy it.

I found this to be a thoroughly enjoyable read. The premise of gods and shrines is perfect in that it encourages endless variety as the series goes forward.
I can't say I figured out much before it was revealed either, and to pair that with being satisfied by these revelations, I'd say we've got a remarkably clever author on our hands.
I have 6 copies on order for my store to start, and I'm looking forward to having it on my recommended reads shelf!

Well written, and with an intriguing plot, but unfortunately this book failed to grab me. Slow pace and characters that just didn't stand out to me at all. Simply not for me!

This book wins all the awards for its cover - stunning. But I really struggled with this book unfortunately. I pushed myself through it and by the end I was waiting for the big pay off that just didn’t seem to come.

There’s a few parts of the book I really did enjoy - mostly Elogast, but otherwise I just didn’t really grasp the concept of the gods in this (not to begin with anyway), and the overall story has still left me a little baffled.

I found the pace of the book to be incredibly slow, there were parts I read and I was like are we *still* here?

I enjoyed a lot of the representation in the book and the World building was good even if I did struggle a little to imagine it in my head.

My main gripe is the big plot twist everyone is talking about in their reviews and I’m really not sure what it is… I will probably give this book another read before the sequel is released to see if I’ve missed something really obvious as to why I struggled so much with this. But I would pick a sequel up to know what happens next.

For now though, I’d probably rate this 2.5*

Godkiller had an addictive writing style that had me devouring the entire thing in one single sitting, and I’m not mad about that! The writing was immersive and beautiful, and the atmosphere gave me everything I wanted.
We’ve got a godkiller (a veiga), a young noble girl with a god attached to her, and a former knight. This is a cast of characters I can absolutely get behind!

Character wise, Kissen was my favourite perspective to read from. She is such a badass, and I loved how she slowly softened to Inara and Elo without losing any of her badass personality. She has vengeance on her heart, and she makes that clear. Then you have Inara, in the beginning she’s naive and easily led (looking at you Skedi) but by the end she’s confident in her own self and abilities. Finally, Elogast, the single most loyal and honourable knight turned baker that I adore.

Also, I massively appreciated all of the diversity that was in this book. I loved how many queer characters there were, including the lead, but also how this wasn’t the main storyline. There were also multiple forms of disability rep, from a MC who has a prosthetic leg, to the use of this world’s sign language, I just loved how inclusive this book is.

This was a world that I can’t wait to delve back into in the future, the way everything has been built and presented means there’s so much more to be explored, and I’m really intrigued as to where the next book will take us…especially after that ending!

(Thank you so much to Netgalley, Harper Voyager and the author for providing me with an e-arc of Godkiller in exchange for an honest review).

Intense. Heart stopping. Jaw dropping, Kaner has just secured her place on the best fantasy debut list!!

"What happened to us does not define us, what we do next is what matters."


A mesmerising epic fantasy full to the brim of secrets, lies and betrayal, a unique and gripping story that will leave you still captivated long after closing the last page.

Hannah Kaner's writing is outstanding and her attention to detail paints a Vivid world that is a pleasure to get lost in, Godkiller is an amazing debut and I cant wait for more from these characters and author!

"When Middren falls to the gods, your kind will be the first to die."

If your a lover of epic fantasy this is an absolute must read!!

All I can say is - oh my god - so GOOD.
The book has such a great diverse cast, with the fluid-sexuality and disability representation.
The overall plot was so interesting, the way that Gods were created, formed, survived - the fall after the war and how they sustained themselves. I will say the pacing for the first 60-70% of the book was slow to medium paced, then the last 30% kicked it up a notch and it got so intense.
I loved the group's dynamics - a child with an attached God, a baker-knight and a Godkiller was such an interesting mix and I really enjoyed all their different POVs and how they really grew to care for each other as they made their journey together. Morally gray, angsty, baddass FMCs will always have my heart, Kissen was such a great character. The ending had me reeling and I cant wait for the next book.

Give me book 2 now.

In all seriousness though, this is probably one of the best debut I’ve read in a very long while. As a matter of fact, I’m surprised this even is a debut. The maturity in the writing with only the necessary words on page to convey the story and feelings that matter is amazing. A great job on the author’s and editor’s part.

It has the ease of writing of a YA fantasy book, while being entirely an adult fantasy in topics and themes.

The world is absolutely fascinating and allows for a lot of depth while bringing in something new and mystical to the already crowded fantasy scene. I really find the different gods fascinating, and the concept of human making them exist through their wishes and offerings.

The characters are all with a past to unravel and depth of character. I rarely like all of them but here I can safely say that all POVs are necessary and give additional perspective on the events occurring in the book. Usually multiple POVs throw me off, as I rarely care for half of what is happening with certain characters but here, as the main protagonists are together for a major chunck of the book, it really helps to understand them rather than showing the reader different plot lines converging which I rather enjoy.

The representation in this one was mind blowing. There is lgbtq+ rep, but also mental health and disability rep. Which when you think about it? In a medieval like magic world with swords, surely a missing leg or a deaf character wouldn’t be totally unheard of, but I rarely see anybody attempting to give that rep to any MC. It’s filled with strong and angry women, who need nobody but who can still be vulnerable and loving when the time comes.

Overall, I loved this book. I’ve read this thanks the NetGalley and the publisher providing me with an early e-arc of this book, I have however already ordered myself a hardback copy as I need to have it on my shelves and will definitely be reading book 2. If you like fantasy and strong women leads with realistic characteristics, please pick this up!

Kissen’s family were killed by zealots of a fire god. Now, she makes a living killing gods, and enjoys it. That is until she finds a god she cannot kill: Skedi, a god of white lies, has somehow bound himself to a young noble, and they are both on the run from unknown assassins.

Joined by a disillusioned knight on a secret quest, they must travel to the ruined city of Blenraden, where the last of the wild gods reside, to each beg a favour.

Godkiller by Hannah Kaner is a thrilling fantasy debut filled with drama and danger. The book gets off to an explosive start where we meet Kissen and her family as they are about to be sacrificed to a Fire God. Thanks to the intervention of a Water God and the swift thinking of her father Kissen escapes with her life, but not with all her limbs. The story then moves on several years, the worship of Gods has been outlawed by royal decree and Kissen is making a living as a Godkiller. When she meets a god she cannot kill because he is somehow bound to a young Noblewoman and killing him would endanger her , she reluctantly agrees to travel with them to the ruined city of Blenraden where the last remaining Gods survive to see if they can be safely separated. Along the way they meet Elogast, a former knight turned baker who is travelling to the city for reasons of his own. As this band of unlikely allies make their way through the countryside they face dangers that will bring them closer together as long as the secrets they are hiding do not tear them apart.
Kissen is a great protagonist, often cantankerous to the point of rudeness but with a steak of compassion and kindess that she does her best to hide. I loved having a main character in a book with such an emphasis on a quest be an amputee, while the author alludes to the difficulties that she faces , she also showcases how it can be a strength. Kissen is also bisexual , but to me the romance subplot with Elogast was one of the weakest aspects of the book, it added nothing to the story. The other character that I was most interested in was Skediceth, the God of Small Lies , I thought it gave an interesting dynamic to have a god and godkiller in such forced proximity,
The writing style was good, descriptive and atmospheric, and I enjoyed the world building and history the author incorporated into the story. On the more negative side I felt that the short chapters and continuous jumping between the four point of view characters made the book feel a little choppy and disjointed.
The ending was very dramatic and certainly left me keen to see where the story is going next.
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own.