I felt the wonder, the camaraderie between the characters and I just did not want to leave Vigrið. I laughed, I exclaimed in surprise, frustration and triumph. I’m only putting down what this novel made me feel. I’m sure there are better reviews than mine. John Gwynne’s world came alive to all my senses, as I heard the creaking of the dragon ships, smelled the sea, the smoky mead-halls and felt the jolt of shield clashing against shield in battle. From the slave seeking revenge, to the noble woman seeking fame and the bloodiest of all, the warrior seeking her child. Each of the characters were compelling for their own reasons. I finished this masterpiece in a day, I just couldn’t put it down. Feel the burn of your muscles as you row around the fiords and battle in the shield-wall.

Step into a world of blistering carnage, mercenaries in search of battle fame, legends in the making and ancient Norse inspired gods. For me this book would have been better as a lore encyclopedia, just cut out all the meaningless characters and their time wasting adventures. The world is somewhat interesting once the characters start to explore the mythical lands and creatures, but since it's so hard to care for the empty characters the adventures are boring.

It's just a bunch of typical DnD human fighters that you hear jokes about. There is nothing to tell about their personalities. First character - bad ass warrior smashing skulls to get her son back Second character - bad ass warrior smashing skulls to get renown for smashing skulls (and a glimpse of daddy issues that don't play a meaningful part) Third character - a warrior having a limited understanding of the world, untrained but talented in smashing skulls. Problem is that the characters are totally bland, they have no interesting conflicting virtues or interests. It gets more interesting with about 6 hours remaining. Took me 5 or seven attempts to get rolling and listening to this book regularly.

Shadow of the gods john gwynne