THE DEAD GODS ARE RISING. Lik-Rifa, the dragon god of legend, has been freed from her eternal prison. Now she plots a new age of blood and conquest. First of all huge thanks to the publisher and author for approving my request on NetGalley and it goes without saying that this is my unbiased review/opinion. Their hope lies within the mad writings of a chained god. A book of forbidden magic with the power to raise the wolf god Ulfrir from the dead . . . and bring about a battle that will shake the foundations of the earth. The Hunger of the Gods” is a fantastic follow-up to “The Shadow of the Gods”, and the ending, if it reads as it seems to read, will totally rip your heart out in inimitable John Gywnne fashion.

Indescriptible lo que crea este autor desde personajes, momentos y escenas que hay que leerlo para entender lo difícil que es para mi explicar el nivel de detalle y de precisión de John Gwynne. Mejor ni hablemos de lo que engancha. Un propósito como una partida de ajedrez en el sentido de que Gwynne avanza la trama como quiere y a menudo no ves a donde va, o lo ves pero no aciertas. Solo tiene un fallo este libro y es que se termina. Gwynne’s accessible yet lovely prose, evocative, even cinematic writing will continue to delight his fans, as the author paints an incredible landscape of cities built from the carcasses of dead gods, bold heroes, and desperate quests. Gwynne captures the essence of what heroic fantasy should sound, smell, and taste like. My biggest complaint about this book is in the characters. They all have strong motivations, and this book helps us to understand intellectually what their goals and needs are. However, this book does not seem concerned with helping us feel what the characters are feeling. Many of the characters have revenge quests that should feel emotionally charged, and yet the book prioritized the action of the plot over those emotions. In Hunger of the Gods, we’re also treated to two new POVs from villain characters. One character’s arc is pretty standard and mostly serves to provides us insight into the enemy camp. It works fine, but he isn’t as compelling as some of the other characters. Our new perspective comes from Gudvarr, a warrior looking to make a name for himself among the heroes (or villains as the case may be). As the nephew of one of the land’s Jarls he wants to prove himself and Gwynne decides to do something he hasn’t done in one of his books before: give us an internal monologue!

Quintessential Gwynne honed to perfection . . . The Shadow of the Gods is absolutely stunning, one hell of an epic series opener and a spectacular dose of Viking-flavoured fantasy' The Tattooed Book Geek Their only hope lies within the mad writings of a chained god. A book of forbidden magic with the power to raise the wolf god Ulfrir from the dead...and bring about a battle that will shake the foundations of the earth. I was delighted by the beginning of the book, which included a character list and a summary of book 1. Very helpful!

According to Miro Haverinen, the appearance of the city was inspired by the ancient Mesopotamian cultures. These may include ancient civilizations like Sumer, Akkad, Babylon, and Elam (though the Elamites were situated in the Zagros mountains in Persia or modern day Iran).

The first additional POV we get is Biorr, the heinous traitor in the eyes of Elvar, from the first book. Biorr’s despicable deed haunts him, even though he believes it was necessary. The reader will likely feel some measure of empathy and understanding of why Biorr has acted the way he has, even if it can’t be condoned. Biorr’s anger and desire for revenge on his people who have been enslaved because they are Tainted, is reasonable, and one can see why Biorr has chosen to cast his lot in with the rapacious Lik-Rifa. Absolutely nothing.... Maybe I'm a little biased when it comes to John Gwynne but I honestly couldn't find anything wrong with this book. If I have to complaint, only thing I can thing of right now is that there is no book 3. I need it ASAP 😬 First, and most importantly, it was actually gripping and I couldn't put the book down, especially in the last 30%. Things were happening and we had several well-executed battle scenes that kept me on the edge of my seat. As Orka continues the hunt for her missing son, the Bloodsworn sweep south in a desperate race to save one of their own–and Varg takes the first steps on the path of vengeance.

Hunger of the Gods is the second book in the epic Bloodsworn trilogy by John Gwynne and is another amazing entry in the series. When I first read Shadow of the Gods, I was blown away and the well written characters and breathtaking action. Hunger of the Gods delivers more of the same great cast (including a new highlight) but suffers from a few pacing issues and middle book syndrome. (some spoilers for the first book follow) Their hope lies within the mad writings of a chained god. A book of forbidden magic with the power to raise the wolf god Ulfrir from the dead . . .and bring about a battle that will shake the foundations of the earth.Gudvarr is probably the highlight of the book for me. I loved reading his chapters and hear his inner voice as he attempts to rise above his station and yet doesn’t fool most people – this leads to some great moments of humor. He has a clear arc and it’s very enjoyable to read. Okay, incredible story and character development aside, let's talk about some of the fun settings and my favorite sequences. Right at the top of the heap would have to be the tongue creatures that Varg and the crew come across on their way across the ocean. I do not want to give too much away here, but these creatures infect your tongue and slowly rot the body and the mind until you become a shell of yourself and a slave to their will. The description is disgusting, and I had to marvel at the innovative idea. The second would have to be something I can’t say without spoilers. Let’s just say large things are flying that go bump in the night. The third would have to be the infiltration of Galdur Tower. It was brisk, but oh so exciting. The fourth has to do with Vol. I’ll just leave it there. Whew, it was insane. Oh, and one more thing. Can we give a round of applause to the description of the weapons and how they are handled? Also, the shield wall tactics were a fun strategy to learn about, both offensively and defensively. Orka and her story arc was easily the biggest highlight of The Shadow of the Gods for me. It was a simple revenge and rescue story executed magnificently. With that book alone, Orka has become one of my favorite characters in fantasy. It should not come as a surprise that I continue to enjoy reading Orka's POV chapters immensely. Almost every moment of being inside her head was so delightful. Seeing her incredible strength and determination to protect what she loves remains inspiring. Technically, a few moments aside, Orka did not develop much as a character. Considering her relatively older age, prowess, and expertise in war, she was already ahead in wisdom (when she's not too pissed, at least) compared to many other characters in the series. But I just loved reading about the relationships she built with the other supporting characters. Plus, the battle scenes in her chapters—especially the final few chapters—were utterly breathtaking. Also, I am a big fan of the God of War video games. Whether it's the Greek-mythology original trilogy or the newly released Norse-mythology one, I think they're all masterwork in video games. And I know John Gwynne and his family are all fans of the Norse-mythology God of War video game, too. That's why it genuinely made me happy to see this nod to the video game. Another great aspect of Hunger is the action. Gwynne gives us some of the best he’s ever written and it’s here in full force. Limbs are taken off, creatures are fearsome, characters will die and much more. There’s some epic action set pieces here and they deliver on the goods. Some of the moments in this book are truly epic and make me want to continue to read. I can see that would help avoid the pain of betrayal, true enough, but it also stops you feeling the joy of friendship or love.”