I found this such an easy, immersive read — I don’t know if it was the simple but committed set-up, the flow of prose, or the characters so diverse yet not even once reduced to poster children for disabilities/queerness/trauma — but it went down like a good drink.
It was simple but thoughtful, colorful without leaning into purple prose, and impactful because it sets the clear boundaries of expectations for each character, setting up well any climactic transgressions. The cast was charming, I kind of liked everyone, really: Kissen’s badassery came in flavours that reminded me of Witcher books, Inara and Skedi put me in mind of Lyra and Pan (but make it both kinder and more messy), and Elogast who should embody the tired knight trope yet manages to make it humane and likable. (Is it the baking? It must be the baking). And yet they are all their own characters — don’t be put off by similes, they read very much like a wholly their own persons, and following their journey was very pleasurable. The story arcs were pretty contained and streamlined, but left plenty of room to expand the scale of conflict and bring more layers to it.

Thank you #Netgalley for a copy of the #Godkiller (and is it too early to clamour for a sequel when the book won’t be released until the next year?)

I'd literally heard nothing about this book before I came across it on Netgalley (this is unusual for a trad published genre book) and picked it up on the strength of the fantastic cover and intriguing blurb alone. I'm so glad I came across this, as it's one of my favourite books this year so far.

The basic premise of Godkiller is that it's set in a world which is pretty much riddled with gods of all sizes, large and small, who understandably become more or less powerful depending on belief and worship. We first meet one of our protagonists when she's a child and her family is killed as a sacrifice to a particular god, who is not the one they have a relationship with, so Kissen feels betrayed and eventually ends up as someone whose job it is to rid communities of gods, as at times the gods' demands for sacrifice and humanity's best interests decidedly run counter to one another.

Kissen then ends up finding herself responsible for the welfare of an orphaned child who has a bond with one of the smaller gods, a god of white lies, which means that the two can't be physically separated without both experiencing pain. This means that Kissen's usual role is impossible and the three of them end up heading towards the site of the last major battle with the gods in the hope that separation can happen their. They're joined on their travels by a former knight turned baker, also a veteran of the same wars, who's on a quest of his own to save someone he cares for.

The world-building is nicely done, there's some nice character work all the way through in terms of both the main characters and the supporting cast, and the author mostly avoids taking the obvious route when plotting this (except, perhaps, in getting Kissen and Elo romantically involved which felt a little unnecessary). So, all in all, I enjoyed this a lot and it gets the full 5-star treatment because it's a book I could see myself re-reading and I look forward to seeing where this storyline goes in the rest of the inevitable trilogy.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley. This is my honest review of the book in question.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an e-ARC copy of this book, in exchange for this honest review.


I need a sequel 😫

I loved it the plot, the world building everything was spot on

Kissen is my favourite by far her character is one of the best female characters I have read about in a good while.

The disability rep and LGBTQ+ rep was very well done and didn’t feel forced

I will definitely be purchasing a physical copy!

Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for a copy of this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Godkiller follows three main characters: a knight-turned baker called Elogast, Kissen the godkiller, and Inara - a noble girl with a seemingly unheard of bond with Skedi, a god of white lies. All three of them have to travel to the broken city of Blenraden, which was destroyed in the war against the gods. Inara needs to find Skedi a shrine, so that they are no longer bound together, and Kissen promises to protect her on the journey. On the way they meet Elo, who wants to find a god who can save his dying King.

This book is exactly what I want when I pick up an epic fantasy. I loved the world building. I thought it was super interesting and really well thought out. The lore surrounding the gods (similar vibes to the Silt Verses), the way they worked, and the way they were ingrained in the culture of the world was definitely a highlight for me. I'd love to read more about them.

The three main characters were all likeable in their own ways. I think there was good character development, and I also liked how their relationships grew. All their motivations made sense, and the way they became closer and overcame their mistrust of each other felt natural.

There was also some great rep - Kissen is shown in relationships with women and men, and her two best friends are women in a long term relationship. There's a deaf character and conversations in sign language that were written in seamlessly. Kissen lost one of her lower legs and wears a prosthetic. This doesn't at all stop her from being an awesome warrior, which is great to see.

The plot was fairly straight forward, but with plenty of tension and some surprising turns. Book 1 had a good arc, but there's still plenty to explore in the rest of the series.

I can't wait to read the next one!! I also can't wait to own a hard copy with this amazing cover. I requested this arc initially because I absolutely LOVE the cover.

I've struggled to find the right words to write this review, but I'm pretty sure whatever I write will not do it justice.

This book? Extraordinary.

Kaner apparently pitched this as The Witcher meets American Gods, which are some pretty big shoes to fill. From where I'm sitting, she's absolutely nailed it. From Page 1, I was obsessed. I'm not even kidding. I was approved for the arc while I was work. I started reading, just to get the gist, and the next thing I know I'm 20% finished and I had to force myself to put it down. In spite of this, my hand kept creeping back to my kindle of its own accord. I made the decision not to read this in fits and starts, because I really just wanted to wallow in this world. I wanted to sit down and read in one giant gulp.

No matter how you read this, it is wonderful.

The premise was really unique and aimed high. Most importantly, it DELIVERED. The characters were all flawed, well-rounded, realistic, lovable, which is a difficult thing to do. It's even more difficult to get it right. I appreciated how casually diversity was woven throughout this book. There were characters of different races and skin colours, differently abled characters, and several same-sex relationships/attraction (including a MC who is clearly bi.). I loved the setting. I loved the world building. I wanted more! I want a prequel to find out what the world was like when gods held sway. Truth be told, this book reminded me (in the best way) of my all-time favourite TV show from when I was a kid: Xena. Not just for the kick-ass main character, but for all gods and monsters.

I could not have loved this book more. Although it does have a complete arc, it has clearly been left open for a sequel since there are some unanswered questions. I have all my fingers crossed for one, because I want to find out what comes next for Elo, Ina, Skedi and, most of all, for Kissen.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for an e-ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

3.75 rounded up to 4

"A knight and a veiga follow a pilgrim trail and are attacked by gods-made monsters. It sounded like the start of a joke, except no one was laughing."

Overall, this was a really interesting book with a very original world and characters that only grow (on the page and in your heart) as the story progresses.

Some things I absolutely loved about this book:

- the world-building: impeccable. So well formed, with so much lore that wasn't confusing in any way. Bits of information were fed to us (mostly) in a really natural way as you read along, so it doesn't feel like you get too many info dumps
- the gods themselves: I loved the entire idea of the gods, every single one that was described - either in detail or just in passing - was intriguing, and I loved the way they gained (or lost) power through shrines and prayers
- some fantastic LGBTQ+ and disability rep: this didn't feel shoehorned in at all. Kissen has clearly been in relationships with both women and men; there is a healthy depiction of a loving and stable lesbian relationship; there is a deaf character who uses sign language and this isn't made a big deal of and naturally flows into the story; Kissen lost the lower half of one leg during her teen years and is a badass warrior who kills gods - I think her entire character is written so incredibly well.
- the character relationships - I loved seeing the development of the character's feelings towards each other, moving from mistrust and outright irritation, to reluctant affection, to absolute allies.

Some things I felt fell a little flat for me:

- at times some of the information we were given felt a little to 'tell' and not enough 'show'.
- the pacing at times felt a little slow and I found my concentration lagging
- some of the dialogue - and often internal dialogue - felt a little dry and too wordy
- the mixed POVs gave a good insight to the feelings of the characters, but it sometimes felt like it swapped to another POV at a really inconvenient time


I am definitely really interested to see what happens in the sequel (hopefully there will be one!) and feel like any of the little things I've been nitpicky about will probably be resolved in the next book.

Preliminary 5-star review. Will post a full review and adjust the rating accordingly after I finish the book.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an e-ARC copy of this book, in exchange for this honest review.