Book two in the Bloodsworn Saga series is titled The Hunger of the Gods by John Gwynne. The epic Norse mythology-inspired story continues and it is a great sequel to the first novel The Shadow of the Gods. Keep reading for a brief summary and why you should add this to your reading list!
Since this is the second book in the Bloodsworn Saga series, there will be spoilers from the first book. If you haven’t read it and do not want any spoilers, then stop reading now.
The Hunger of the Gods Summary
Lik-Rifa, the dragon god, has been resurrected by her children, the dragonborn Raven Feeders. Now, she and her followers are journeying across Vigrio and preparing for war. With a dragon leading them, the Raven Feeders are in a good position but Elvar of the Battle-Grim has other plans.
After the death of the leader of the Battle-Grim, Elvar has to pick up the pieces and convince the Battle-Grim to pursue the dragon god and the Raven Feeders and stop them. If she doesn’t, she will die as a result of her blood oath to retrieve Uspa’s child who has been kidnapped by the Raven Feeders. Who will lead the Battle-Grim now? Elvar asks herself if she even wants to be the leader of the crew and if so, why?
Orka Skullsplitter is still trying to find her son Breca who also has been kidnapped by the Raven Feeders. They also killed her husband and she has sworn to avenge his death. A reunion with her old crew, the Bloodsworn gets her a lead that she pursues with some new members to her ragtag crew. Will she find Breca and get revenge against the dragon born that killed her husband?
Varg is getting used to life as a member of the Bloodsworn as he trains daily. The Bloodsworn are on a journey to retrieve one of their members who has been kidnapped and will do so at any cost. Varg intends to avenge his sister and discovers her journey and will get to the bottom of the mystery of who killed her even if it’s the last thing he does.
Commentary
When I first picked up the book, the Shadow of the Gods, I did not know that is was going to be one of my favorite reads of the year. Everything about the book was perfect and I finally got around to reading the second book in the series. Let’s just say, Gwynn does it bigger and better and everything works perfectly.
With the addition of a god in the book, the stakes were higher than ever before. Who can fight a dragon god? The answer is another god. Elvar knows that in order to defeat Lik-Rifa, she will need the help of a god. So, she revives one albeit with chains that forces it do listen to her.
But the book does not stop there. On top of adding gods, Gwynn explores the powers of the gods that some of the characters are born with and we see characters learning how to control it. It is hard to imagine how humans have been able to enslave them when they are very strong.
The book does start off a bit slow but once the characters are in place, all hell brakes loose. There are a bunch of epic battles and new revelations that make you gasp. The addition of gods to a story can tilt the story and ruin it but Gwynne has it all planned out. Book three will have even bigger battles and I imagine some more revelations that will make book two feel like a distant memory.
Conclusion
The second book in a trilogy is a most difficult to write in my opinion. Bridging the beginning and the ending is a delicate task that many authors mess up. But Gwynne masterfully succeeds. Everything is layered and does not feel overwhelming. The world building by Gwynne is handled delicately and I can’t wait for the third book in the series. Happy reading!