@@Yesica1993 Malice was weak to me as well, and a friend of mine nearly quit it. I got him to read the second one and he fell in love with the series. It's worth giving the second one a try.
why the f did the author had to choose varg as a name! It means wolf wich I was gonna use for my book but know I have to come up with somthing new, aaaa shit.
In all my videos about Gwynne I've said he has found that secret sauce of getting maximum character investment in the shortest amount of page time. He's the most efficient writer in fantasy!!
Gwynne's writing is pretty impressive, I do think that the second series was better than the first, it showed a lot of improvement. Don't get me wrong, I love both series, but to me it was a bit more refined.
John Gwynne is becoming one of our favorites as well! We just finished Malice & can't wait to jump back into the Banished Lands! And MAN you got us EXTRA hype for Shadow of the Gods! Pre-ordered!
John Gwynnne is one of those authors that I always heard of but never read till I decided to take the dive. It was the best decision I ever made because oh my god The Faithful and the Fallen series is one of my all time greats. His character work is top notch and his writing just out does itself with each following book in the series. Welcome to the club🔥
I'm soooo excited for The Shadow of the Gods. I *loved* The Faithful and the Fallen and I was pretty happy to find out he had a new book coming out this year. Plus, he's a sweetheart!
Daniel I must say, whenever I get home and I’m exhausted, I always search to see if youve uploaded. Your vids always relax me after school just wears me out, and you are my number one youtuber for enjoyment. Thank you
This is why you need to carry on after malice with John Gywnne every book gets better and Malice was his debut and you can really see how he gets better and better. Easily my favourite author, my number one most anticipated release and I’m so excited
I feel like pre-ordering hasn’t been talked about so much on booktube? Advantages and disadvantages? Maybe it signals to publisher: “more stories like this please!” I just recalled. Only disadvantage is having to wait with paid money for a book at a later date to arrive. Oh that makes sense too.
@@genghisgalahad8465 honestly I have never pre ordered a book before we shall see how this goes! I know with games I strictly avoid it. but I think at 20ish CAD even if the books "ok" its not a big of a deal vs buying a 8 hour game for 79.99 CAD that is broken at launch is unacceptable. At least I know an editor at least tried to help make the book readable XD
I love the direction Murderbot takes in Fugitive Telemetry. I totally agree with you on being invested in its mind. I find it interesting that you mention that it feels more scary when Murderbot gets hurt because I didn’t realize that I felt the same way until you said it. Especially after Network Effect 😭 Congrats on your new home and bookshelves, they are so pretty!
I finished the second Murderbot book a little while ago and this review has gotten me so hyped to continue. Sounds like my biggest issue with book 2 (relationships) is not really an issue later in the series. That's awesome.
Oh boy, I can’t wait till you finish the rest of the Banished Lands Saga by Gwynne. Of Blood and Bone may be even better than The Faithful and the Fallen
I do not like the dual review format, but I'm here for your opinion on Murderbot!! (Those books have been gathering dust on my TBR for a long, *long* time now!!) Damiel, your enthusiasm specifically is what sold me on reading Murderbot, actually!! (But then I started the Wheel of Time, and the Expanse, and Wild Cards, some long-ass series!!)
Sounds like I will definitely be reading Shadow of the Gods! Mike’s Book Reviews always hypes up JG so I think it’s time I finally give him a try Also, those bookshelves are lookin cute 🥰
I read Fugitive Telemetry back in October and I honestly think it’s my favorite since the first one. I loved the mystery aspect and watching Murderbot solve crime was a lot of fun. I just started The Shadow of the Gods and I’m 40% into it rn and it’s blowing my socks off - it’s already made me cry. I am so, so impressed that he is able to make me care about a character so much in less than 200 pages that I can already cry over them. Orka is hands down my favorite - it’s refreshing to see a slightly older woman and mother at the heart of a bloody fantasy epic.
I heard about The Shadow of the Gods for the first time literally just a couple of hours before you posted this review. I'm taking this as a sign to pre-order!
Love both of these authors but Shadow of the Gods is my most anticipated book of the year, John Gwynne is easily my favourite fantasy author for epic fantasy. Even after a few re-reads over the years, his books still give me all the feels. His character work is top notch and his action scenes are the best I've read. I have this book pre-ordered and cannot wait for it to a) be delivered to my kindle and b) be delivered physically so I can see that amazing cover in person!
Seeing you gush over Gwynne's characters has made me even more excited to delve into this new book! I also cant wait for you pick up Valour! Keep up the good work
John Gwynne got me hooked on the Fantasy genre, Terry Goodkind almost killed that love then Sanderson saved the genre for me. I have a special love for Gwynne because he made me see how amazing the Fantasy genre is.
I wouldn’t say you were “wrong” to not get excited about Norse mythology, but now you know how cool it can be! I’m currently reading this one at your recommendation! Thank you!
I preordered it the other day despite not having read John Gwynne and was really wondering what I had gotten myself into. Now I’m thinking about reading it after I finish my current book.
Hearing you heap praise on his character work just has me yelling “Keep reading The Banished Lands!!!!” I was so meh on the first book but I was so in love with every character by the end.
Because of you praising it so much I started reading shadow of the gods and just finished it yesterday and loved it! I was especially fond of the characters and the writing style (which felt so fresh somehow) and the lore… actually everything
Glad to hear you say that about Gwynne. I had the same feeling when I read Malice.....it felt like someone that was 'new'. I am excited to see this latest work.
@@ChristmasLore I think Daniel picks and choose authors for different reasons that not involve talent (mainly popularity). While those authors are not bad (some are great) talent is more appreciated by the community than fame.
Question. What is a good High Fantasy series that has these qualities?: -A fantasy world that is its own mythology -Epic fight scenes and wars -Intense magic battles -A hugely expanded magic system(both soft and hard) -The archetypical hero’s journey -Dragons, Unicorns, Griffins, Sea Monsters, Phoenixes, and other known mythical beasts -Stunningly beautiful and smart female characters and love interests -Romantic story arcs that involve love and sex -Conflicts involving politics -Themes and elements of faith and religion -Spiritual and psychological themes -Elves, Dwarves, Goblins, Ghouls, Vampires, Merfolk, Fairies, Centaurs, and other non-human races -Different languages that are spoken by non-human languages -A feared and all-powerful dark lord who is after the main hero -the archetypal wise wizard -a community of wizards and sorceresses -Dark themes of tragedy, corruption, betrayal, and genocide -A tone that turns into being dark and gritty while always being mature from the start -Characters that are realistic and relatable in personality -Light and positive themes of faith, love, friendship, loyalty, honor, sacrifice and optimism
Little off topic but Im reading Wheel of Time thanks to you. Currently on the second entry and after that slog of a first book, book two by comparison is thouroghly awesome so far. Im so happy to finally have a book series I can loose myself in again. Thanks goblin lord.
Goblin Father, if youre looking for something easy to read in between the house move and Breach of Peace stuff, try Steven Erikson's Willful Child trilogy, It feels like Douglas Adams does classic Star Trek with a sprinkling of Diskworld and I have a strong feeling you will like it based on your love for those series. While Erikson is continually praised for his Worldbuilding, Spectacle and Themes I feel like the humour in Malazan gets continually underrated and its good to see him lean fully into that aspect of his writing with these books.
I'm only 50 pages into The Shadow of the Gods and man, it's legit amazing. Was curious to the reviews on YT and I'm glad to see I'm not wrong about this one, great review!
I watched your video about Eisenhorn the other day and since it's been years since I read it myself I decided to read it again along with the Ravenor then Bequin books. I've read probably a hundred or more warhammer 40k/Horus Heresy books and still think Eisenhorn is top 10. Thanks for reminding me.
Great seeing the Gwynne love! Shadow of the Gods is my most anticipated read of the year and Gwynne should absolutely be talked about in larger circles than he currently is. He's easily in the top 5 of current fantasy writers.
I keep reading Orka’s name as Okra (downfalls of living in the south) and it’s causing SO MANY PROBLEMS. I love your reviews and they always add so much to what I get out of the books.
It's okay. I talk to my books sometimes too. It's mostly asking questions and then picking up the book and it sometimes answers. "I'm never gonna write this good." Yo, I feel this deep in my soul. Thousands upon thousands of pages written, 100x more read and I never feel like I could reach these levels of quality and emotion.
Daniel, just started following you and find your criticism entertaining and useful! Although I am a SF (mostly short story) reader - rather than a Fantasy Guy, I would recommend to you read some L. Sprague De Camp, a Golden Age Author. Very interesting guy...wrote entertaining and often funny SF (The Gnarly Man, Language for Time Travelers, A Gun for Dinosaur) - but was more noted as a Fantasy Writer. He also wrote a number of Outstanding Historical Novels - to include the Bronze God of Rhodes, An Elephant for Aristotle, etc. He had an excellent background in the Classics and Ancient History, which really helped him with his work. Perhaps its because of my Age (I am 56, and a retired CIA Officer), but my reading in the late 1970s of course was mostly Golden Age stuff..... If you want to read THE outstanding SF Anthology - check out Del Rey's "The Best of ....." series. Authors included Fredric Brown, Fred Pohl, James Blish, Hal Clement, De Camp, Gallum, and many others.....
Loving Murderbot. Looking forward to this next installment. I think my favorite character in the saga is ART. I wish Murderbot were real so we could bingewatch stuff together.
John Gwynne is easily my favorite fantasy author, so I absolutely love seeing you praise Shadow of the Gods so highly. It is definitely one of my top 3 reads for the year, and I just want everyone to read all of his books!
I was going to order John Gwynne new book later now I'm doing it right now after that review. I would strongly recommend finish his previous work the faithful and the fallen
I just found your channel and am on an epic binge. Great channel. One thing about you just jumped out of this video and slapped me. You have only read Gwynne's Malice so far???? Did I hear that correctly? How in the world could you stop reading The Faithful and the Fallen at Malice? I know you have a lot to do, but you are seriously missing out. Just read them, you will not be disappointed.
Do you think its better to start John Gwynne with Malice or Shadow of the Gods, i havent read any of his books but if he can compete with abercrombie then I HAVE to check his novels out. Also, great vid, your content always lightens up my mood every day. Keep up the good work!!
Depends. Malice (The Faithful And The Fallen) is his first writen novel. The Shadow Of The Gods is a brand new novel set in a different world than the Banished Lands. Tough choice! 😉
Hey Daniel, I picked up Shadow of the Gods before I saw this review and I gotta say, you're making me want to read it even more. I love Norse inspired fantasy and epic fantasy. Though I am putting it on my back burner for the time being as I'm still working through the Dresden Files (on Cold Days, took a break because I was reading nothing else and have since added to my roughly 200 book library) but I'm also reading the Tide Child Trilogy by RJ Barker (nautical war fantasy with some political intrigue, woo woo) and recently finished the Last Smile in Sunder City by Luke Arnold (the first book in the Fetch Phillips Files). But when I finish Cold Days, I'll most likely get into Shadow of the Gods
Speaking of Martha Wells, and I know you've said before you really want to see more new, original fantasy races, you should really check out Martha Well's Books of the Raksura series. No humans in sight, and all original.
Hey there. Thanks for those 2 reviews. You are doing a great job of making me get distracted from reading the Wheel of Time in order to start reading and listening to the Faithful and the Fallen series and the Murderbot series. I really appreciate that. Anyway, I am still working on reading while listening to Winter's Heart. Also, as a pallet clenser, i am also listening to the first book in the light novel series Full Metal Panic and I am reading the second book in the Gray Wolves series Blood Rites by Quinn Loftis. Later on in May, I am going to wrap up reading the manga Cells at Work Code Black. The last volume of that manga comes out in June.
I've read The Faithful and the Fallen series and Of Blood and Bone Trilogy. I really hope that you'll read the rest of John Gwynne's stuff. He's really great!!!!!
Great episode, Daniel. Appreciate your hard work in bringing these reviews to us. One thing I would like you to add is, could you read us the "hook" they print on the book before diving into the review? The hook, as you know, is what a potential reader can use to know a little about the plot, characters, and world. If you are allowed to use these hooks (under fair use, that is), we can also see a little about the world through the author's eyes before purchase.
I myself don’t prefer vikings/norse settings in books, although I really like it in movies and other forms of media so I was hesitant to get into this series but when you said you still enjoyed the book very much and watching you rave about it I have decided to give this a try
Would love to see a review on Jack Vance's Dying Earth series, specifically the first two, The Dying Earth and The Eyes of the Overworld. I think you'll enjoy them!
If I had one real nitpick I'd say its that I wasn't that invested in Elvar's plotline, and felt the book lost some steam with her chapters. Then Gwynne decides to give her a holy-shit epic final chapter and honestly my favorite scene of the book, sooooo.... I think I'll go back and try Malice again. I DNF'd it, but Shadow has given me better insight into how Gwynne plots, so I'll give it another try.
The Amount of love that John Gwynne has been receiving makes my heart glad. I purchased the Faithful & the Fallen on a whim and Gwynne exceeded almost everything I had hoped for by the end of Wrath. Then he did it again and again and again with Of Blood & Bone. I've just picked up copies of the Legacy series by Matthew Ward... because they received commendation from Papa Gwynne. If there's one author alive right now that I want to share a meal with? it's John Gwynne. The statement: "I'll never be so great a writer", could not be more true; and It wasn't until I immersed myself in the Banished Lands that I found the inspiration to continue my own project. Added to my bucket list: Write something that John Gwynne likes.
Dammit Daniel you've done it to me again...another brick in the tbr wall is placed. It's The Shadow of the Gods then, and I will have to shuffle the lineup so I can get to it soon
When I read malice I thought..” wow” this has a chance, I read both of his series with no disappointments. He has been getting better and better.!bout to start shadow of the Gods!! Had to finish wisdom of crowds first! Joe never disappoints
“Ohhh I’m never gonna write this good.” Feelin that myself right now. Man that book was good. Will we be getting a more in depth review now that the book has been released?
As far as I’m concerned The Faithful & the Fallen series should be held in the same regards as ASOIAF, Stormlight and First Law in terms of the greats of modern fantasy
It's interesting that you say Murderbot is not for the Dune lovers and yet one of my favorite things about Dune is the presentation of characters' thoughts.
I finished Malice last week and it's my favoriete book now and I can't wait to read The Shadow of the Gods when I've finished The Faithful and the Fallen serie. 😁
Get the books here:
The Shadow of the Gods: amzn.to/3tJIBhQ
Fugitive Telemetry: amzn.to/3vaxGxL
Daniel: It's norse inspired.
Me: [Preorders The Shadow of the Gods]
I may have been distracted or something when I read Malice. It didn't work for me. But I may have to get this one.
YUP same hahaha
Yup tiptoed over to Book Depository and pre-ordered.
I actually closed RUclips and opened kindle immediately, even though it wasn’t out yet, and said: can I have it now please?
@@Yesica1993 Malice was weak to me as well, and a friend of mine nearly quit it. I got him to read the second one and he fell in love with the series. It's worth giving the second one a try.
Hearing you heap praise onto Gwynne literally has me so happy.
why the f did the author had to choose varg as a name! It means wolf wich I was gonna use for my book but know I have to come up with somthing new, aaaa shit.
Why he only read Malice? The series is soooo good.
Just finished faithful and the fallen and blood and bone. So damn good! Also- Greene’s reviews are fantastic!
I can see it now on the back cover -
“This is a naughty little boy right here.”
- Daniel Greene, RUclipsr and author of Breach of Peace
Not biased whatsoever when we say we LOVE John Gwynne... welcome to the warband Daniel😊
Ed
😆
"Oh I'm never gonna write this good"
Can relate
right? that's my #1 anxiety when it comes to my writing. just not being good enough.
@@CharlieThunder24 What do you mean? You're the best WittyWhittler36 I know.
In all my videos about Gwynne I've said he has found that secret sauce of getting maximum character investment in the shortest amount of page time. He's the most efficient writer in fantasy!!
BIG FACTS!
@@QandTG yes!
Oooh. That piques my interest.
@@katieamarsh it's definitely worth a shot 😁
Gwynne's writing is pretty impressive, I do think that the second series was better than the first, it showed a lot of improvement. Don't get me wrong, I love both series, but to me it was a bit more refined.
U have a cozy office. I love the vibes
John Gwynne is becoming one of our favorites as well! We just finished Malice & can't wait to jump back into the Banished Lands! And MAN you got us EXTRA hype for Shadow of the Gods! Pre-ordered!
John Gwynnne is one of those authors that I always heard of but never read till I decided to take the dive. It was the best decision I ever made because oh my god The Faithful and the Fallen series is one of my all time greats. His character work is top notch and his writing just out does itself with each following book in the series. Welcome to the club🔥
Loved all 7 of his previous books
@@jonathank2796 what are the ideas that are discovered in Malice?
That Gwynne cover is completely badass.
I'm soooo excited for The Shadow of the Gods. I *loved* The Faithful and the Fallen and I was pretty happy to find out he had a new book coming out this year. Plus, he's a sweetheart!
There is also The Of Blood and Bone Series which is a sequel to Faithful and the Fallen and is fantastic
@@danielkoselka2839 I just haven't had the opportunity to read it yet, I've basically had to take a few months off of reading fiction for my degree
Daniel I must say, whenever I get home and I’m exhausted, I always search to see if youve uploaded. Your vids always relax me after school just wears me out, and you are my number one youtuber for enjoyment. Thank you
Same. I work overnights and he’s such a great break.
This is why you need to carry on after malice with John Gywnne every book gets better and Malice was his debut and you can really see how he gets better and better. Easily my favourite author, my number one most anticipated release and I’m so excited
Me casually trying to buy the book everyone’s gushing about.....oh it’s out in may.... pre order time!
I feel like pre-ordering hasn’t been talked about so much on booktube? Advantages and disadvantages? Maybe it signals to publisher: “more stories like this please!” I just recalled. Only disadvantage is having to wait with paid money for a book at a later date to arrive. Oh that makes sense too.
@@genghisgalahad8465 honestly I have never pre ordered a book before we shall see how this goes! I know with games I strictly avoid it. but I think at 20ish CAD even if the books "ok" its not a big of a deal vs buying a 8 hour game for 79.99 CAD that is broken at launch is unacceptable. At least I know an editor at least tried to help make the book readable XD
@@genghisgalahad8465 In the Amazon ebook store we pay only when the book is out on our kindle
I love the direction Murderbot takes in Fugitive Telemetry. I totally agree with you on being invested in its mind. I find it interesting that you mention that it feels more scary when Murderbot gets hurt because I didn’t realize that I felt the same way until you said it. Especially after Network Effect 😭
Congrats on your new home and bookshelves, they are so pretty!
I finished the second Murderbot book a little while ago and this review has gotten me so hyped to continue. Sounds like my biggest issue with book 2 (relationships) is not really an issue later in the series. That's awesome.
I hope this review will get you back into Faithful and Fallen. He improves a crazy amount from book to book. The last books are phenomenal.
Oh boy, I can’t wait till you finish the rest of the Banished Lands Saga by Gwynne. Of Blood and Bone may be even better than The Faithful and the Fallen
I'm so relieved that the story measures up to that EPIC cover art.
I do not like the dual review format, but I'm here for your opinion on Murderbot!!
(Those books have been gathering dust on my TBR for a long, *long* time now!!)
Damiel, your enthusiasm specifically is what sold me on reading Murderbot, actually!! (But then I started the Wheel of Time, and the Expanse, and Wild Cards, some long-ass series!!)
The title and cover alone make me want to read Shadow of the Gods. But your review has me even more excited to read it!
Both these authors are so high on my tbr very hyped for both these series. Also the Shadow of the Gods cover is BEAUTIFUL!
Currently reading the blood and bone series so John Gwynne is quickly becoming a favorite author :)
Same here as a new reader im find these books a blast
I’m at Time of Dread
I just finished A Time of Blood so I’ve only got one book left in the banished lands. John Gwynne is an absolute legend. Truth and courage!
I stopped after a time of dread. Sick of everyone dying and I heard it gets worse
Sounds like I will definitely be reading Shadow of the Gods! Mike’s Book Reviews always hypes up JG so I think it’s time I finally give him a try
Also, those bookshelves are lookin cute 🥰
It makes me so happy to see reviewers praising John Gwynne, he deserves it and more, tfatf is my favourite series
I read Fugitive Telemetry back in October and I honestly think it’s my favorite since the first one. I loved the mystery aspect and watching Murderbot solve crime was a lot of fun.
I just started The Shadow of the Gods and I’m 40% into it rn and it’s blowing my socks off - it’s already made me cry. I am so, so impressed that he is able to make me care about a character so much in less than 200 pages that I can already cry over them. Orka is hands down my favorite - it’s refreshing to see a slightly older woman and mother at the heart of a bloody fantasy epic.
Daneil about Murderbot: "This is more for the Dresden enthusiasts."
Me: Ack! I feel seen.
So, would you say it's not a left turn, but a right turn for Murderbot?
..... I'll see myself out now.
🤣🤣🤣🤣
I heard about The Shadow of the Gods for the first time literally just a couple of hours before you posted this review. I'm taking this as a sign to pre-order!
Love both of these authors but Shadow of the Gods is my most anticipated book of the year, John Gwynne is easily my favourite fantasy author for epic fantasy. Even after a few re-reads over the years, his books still give me all the feels. His character work is top notch and his action scenes are the best I've read. I have this book pre-ordered and cannot wait for it to a) be delivered to my kindle and b) be delivered physically so I can see that amazing cover in person!
Seeing you gush over Gwynne's characters has made me even more excited to delve into this new book! I also cant wait for you pick up Valour! Keep up the good work
John Gwynne got me hooked on the Fantasy genre, Terry Goodkind almost killed that love then Sanderson saved the genre for me. I have a special love for Gwynne because he made me see how amazing the Fantasy genre is.
Terry Goodkind is bad and mean
I wouldn’t say you were “wrong” to not get excited about Norse mythology, but now you know how cool it can be! I’m currently reading this one at your recommendation! Thank you!
I preordered it the other day despite not having read John Gwynne and was really wondering what I had gotten myself into. Now I’m thinking about reading it after I finish my current book.
I started up FATF and I’ve been blown away by Gwynne. I have shadow of the gods on preorder and I’m soooo pumped to read it
Hearing you heap praise on his character work just has me yelling “Keep reading The Banished Lands!!!!” I was so meh on the first book but I was so in love with every character by the end.
Absolutely buzzing you are loving Gwynne! Even more excited for this book now!
Because of you praising it so much I started reading shadow of the gods and just finished it yesterday and loved it! I was especially fond of the characters and the writing style (which felt so fresh somehow) and the lore… actually everything
Gwynne got me into writing fantasy through the Faithful and the Fallen and he deserves all the praise he gets.
Oh boy Imma be reading The Shadow of the Gods 100% now
Glad to hear you say that about Gwynne. I had the same feeling when I read Malice.....it felt like someone that was 'new'. I am excited to see this latest work.
If you like so much Gwynne maybe you should continue with The Faithful and the Fallen.
Yeah, that series is in another level of epic. Not even Joe Abercrombie can match the insanity that happens in those books.
He's so late on that train...
People have been telling him so for years at this point.
@@ChristmasLore I think Daniel picks and choose authors for different reasons that not involve talent (mainly popularity). While those authors are not bad (some are great) talent is more appreciated by the community than fame.
Question. What is a good High Fantasy series that has these qualities?:
-A fantasy world that is its own mythology
-Epic fight scenes and wars
-Intense magic battles
-A hugely expanded magic system(both soft and hard)
-The archetypical hero’s journey
-Dragons, Unicorns, Griffins, Sea Monsters, Phoenixes, and other known mythical beasts
-Stunningly beautiful and smart female characters and love interests
-Romantic story arcs that involve love and sex
-Conflicts involving politics
-Themes and elements of faith and religion
-Spiritual and psychological themes
-Elves, Dwarves, Goblins, Ghouls, Vampires, Merfolk, Fairies, Centaurs, and other non-human races
-Different languages that are spoken by non-human languages
-A feared and all-powerful dark lord who is after the main hero
-the archetypal wise wizard
-a community of wizards and sorceresses
-Dark themes of tragedy, corruption, betrayal, and genocide
-A tone that turns into being dark and gritty while always being mature from the start
-Characters that are realistic and relatable in personality
-Light and positive themes of faith, love, friendship, loyalty, honor, sacrifice and optimism
@@ANT96-x8d Middle Earth. Is the only one that ticks all those boxes.
Little off topic but Im reading Wheel of Time thanks to you. Currently on the second entry and after that slog of a first book, book two by comparison is thouroghly awesome so far. Im so happy to finally have a book series I can loose myself in again. Thanks goblin lord.
Goblin Father, if youre looking for something easy to read in between the house move and Breach of Peace stuff, try Steven Erikson's Willful Child trilogy, It feels like Douglas Adams does classic Star Trek with a sprinkling of Diskworld and I have a strong feeling you will like it based on your love for those series. While Erikson is continually praised for his Worldbuilding, Spectacle and Themes I feel like the humour in Malazan gets continually underrated and its good to see him lean fully into that aspect of his writing with these books.
Love when I see folks giving flowers to their peers.
I'll be reading this book tomorrow
Finished The Shadow of the Gods and literally could not agree with you more. Def would love to see future videos on it. 🎉
I'm only 50 pages into The Shadow of the Gods and man, it's legit amazing. Was curious to the reviews on YT and I'm glad to see I'm not wrong about this one, great review!
I watched your video about Eisenhorn the other day and since it's been years since I read it myself I decided to read it again along with the Ravenor then Bequin books. I've read probably a hundred or more warhammer 40k/Horus Heresy books and still think Eisenhorn is top 10. Thanks for reminding me.
Shadow of the Gods is on the TBR and this is so aesthetically pleasing I need a bookish corner in my life
Hears the words “Norse mythology”
Immediately adds to tbr
Great seeing the Gwynne love! Shadow of the Gods is my most anticipated read of the year and Gwynne should absolutely be talked about in larger circles than he currently is. He's easily in the top 5 of current fantasy writers.
I keep reading Orka’s name as Okra (downfalls of living in the south) and it’s causing SO MANY PROBLEMS.
I love your reviews and they always add so much to what I get out of the books.
It's okay. I talk to my books sometimes too. It's mostly asking questions and then picking up the book and it sometimes answers.
"I'm never gonna write this good."
Yo, I feel this deep in my soul. Thousands upon thousands of pages written, 100x more read and I never feel like I could reach these levels of quality and emotion.
Daniel, just started following you and find your criticism entertaining and useful! Although I am a SF (mostly short story) reader - rather than a Fantasy Guy, I would recommend to you read some L. Sprague De Camp, a Golden Age Author. Very interesting guy...wrote entertaining and often funny SF (The Gnarly Man, Language for Time Travelers, A Gun for Dinosaur) - but was more noted as a Fantasy Writer. He also wrote a number of Outstanding Historical Novels - to include the Bronze God of Rhodes, An Elephant for Aristotle, etc. He had an excellent background in the Classics and Ancient History, which really helped him with his work. Perhaps its because of my Age (I am 56, and a retired CIA Officer), but my reading in the late 1970s of course was mostly Golden Age stuff.....
If you want to read THE outstanding SF Anthology - check out Del Rey's "The Best of ....." series. Authors included Fredric Brown, Fred Pohl, James Blish, Hal Clement, De Camp, Gallum, and many others.....
I was already excited just because of the cover and now I can't wait to read it!!!
Loving Murderbot. Looking forward to this next installment. I think my favorite character in the saga is ART. I wish Murderbot were real so we could bingewatch stuff together.
i think i found this channel because of the first murderbot novella review. just finished fugitive telemetry. I liked it a lot.
i just bought the shadow of the gods (literally earlier today) and i’m so excited to read it because of your high praise!
Just finished shadow of the gods, loved it. Starting hunger of the guards today
So happy I have The Shadow of the Gods pre ordered, sounds amazing
Okay picking up shadow of the gods asap. That cover is straight fire too🔥🔥🔥
Really how to see you reviewing John gywen can't wait till you complete the faithful and the fallen
John Gwynne is easily my favorite fantasy author, so I absolutely love seeing you praise Shadow of the Gods so highly. It is definitely one of my top 3 reads for the year, and I just want everyone to read all of his books!
I was going to order John Gwynne new book later now I'm doing it right now after that review. I would strongly recommend finish his previous work the faithful and the fallen
I just finished Shadow of the Gods too and it was soooo good. Gonna start Malice right away!
Say what you will about John Gwynne, his covers are the best in the genre!
I just found your channel and am on an epic binge. Great channel. One thing about you just jumped out of this video and slapped me. You have only read Gwynne's Malice so far???? Did I hear that correctly? How in the world could you stop reading The Faithful and the Fallen at Malice? I know you have a lot to do, but you are seriously missing out. Just read them, you will not be disappointed.
Do you think its better to start John Gwynne with Malice or Shadow of the Gods, i havent read any of his books but if he can compete with abercrombie then I HAVE to check his novels out. Also, great vid, your content always lightens up my mood every day. Keep up the good work!!
Depends. Malice (The Faithful And The Fallen) is his first writen novel. The Shadow Of The Gods is a brand new novel set in a different world than the Banished Lands. Tough choice! 😉
Can't wait to get my hands on some more John Gwynne books
Hey Daniel, I picked up Shadow of the Gods before I saw this review and I gotta say, you're making me want to read it even more. I love Norse inspired fantasy and epic fantasy. Though I am putting it on my back burner for the time being as I'm still working through the Dresden Files (on Cold Days, took a break because I was reading nothing else and have since added to my roughly 200 book library) but I'm also reading the Tide Child Trilogy by RJ Barker (nautical war fantasy with some political intrigue, woo woo) and recently finished the Last Smile in Sunder City by Luke Arnold (the first book in the Fetch Phillips Files). But when I finish Cold Days, I'll most likely get into Shadow of the Gods
Speaking of Martha Wells, and I know you've said before you really want to see more new, original fantasy races, you should really check out Martha Well's Books of the Raksura series. No humans in sight, and all original.
Hey there. Thanks for those 2 reviews. You are doing a great job of making me get distracted from reading the Wheel of Time in order to start reading and listening to the Faithful and the Fallen series and the Murderbot series. I really appreciate that. Anyway, I am still working on reading while listening to Winter's Heart. Also, as a pallet clenser, i am also listening to the first book in the light novel series Full Metal Panic and I am reading the second book in the Gray Wolves series Blood Rites by Quinn Loftis. Later on in May, I am going to wrap up reading the manga Cells at Work Code Black. The last volume of that manga comes out in June.
I've read The Faithful and the Fallen series and Of Blood and Bone Trilogy. I really hope that you'll read the rest of John Gwynne's stuff. He's really great!!!!!
Great episode, Daniel. Appreciate your hard work in bringing these reviews to us. One thing I would like you to add is, could you read us the "hook" they print on the book before diving into the review? The hook, as you know, is what a potential reader can use to know a little about the plot, characters, and world. If you are allowed to use these hooks (under fair use, that is), we can also see a little about the world through the author's eyes before purchase.
Love having these double feature reviews. Keep it up. 👍
have it on hold at my local library, dear god this thing needs to come you're driving me nuts, fucking stoked to get into it
Thanks for the Recommendations! Buying the shadow of the gods now!
I just pre-ordered Shadow of the Gods!! How could I resist after this?
I was glad to see today that red letter media followed your lead and invested in an explosions animation pack 😂
Could you elaborate? This sounds funny
Totally can't wait to read this book so far I am loving his books 🥰😃🤗 when are you going to read the other books in the faithful and the fallen series
Wow I gotta read the second Murderbot, I loved the first entry. I need to read them all
Just finished shadow of the gods last night and I couldn’t agree with you more. I loved it!
I myself don’t prefer vikings/norse settings in books, although I really like it in movies and other forms of media so I was hesitant to get into this series but when you said you still enjoyed the book very much and watching you rave about it I have decided to give this a try
You really need to read the rest of the faithfull and the fallen "ruin" (the 3rd book) is one of my favorite books ever.
Would love to see a review on Jack Vance's Dying Earth series, specifically the first two, The Dying Earth and The Eyes of the Overworld. I think you'll enjoy them!
I simply can't wait for my copy of Shadow of the Gods to ship!
If I had one real nitpick I'd say its that I wasn't that invested in Elvar's plotline, and felt the book lost some steam with her chapters. Then Gwynne decides to give her a holy-shit epic final chapter and honestly my favorite scene of the book, sooooo....
I think I'll go back and try Malice again. I DNF'd it, but Shadow has given me better insight into how Gwynne plots, so I'll give it another try.
The Amount of love that John Gwynne has been receiving makes my heart glad. I purchased the Faithful & the Fallen on a whim and Gwynne exceeded almost everything I had hoped for by the end of Wrath.
Then he did it again and again and again with Of Blood & Bone. I've just picked up copies of the Legacy series by Matthew Ward... because they received commendation from Papa Gwynne.
If there's one author alive right now that I want to share a meal with? it's John Gwynne. The statement: "I'll never be so great a writer", could not be more true; and It wasn't until I immersed myself in the Banished Lands that I found the inspiration to continue my own project.
Added to my bucket list: Write something that John Gwynne likes.
Damn Daniel out here giving shadow of the gods the wheel of time treatment it must be good
Dammit Daniel you've done it to me again...another brick in the tbr wall is placed. It's The Shadow of the Gods then, and I will have to shuffle the lineup so I can get to it soon
I wasn't planning on buying a new book but shadow of the gods has something to say about that.
When I read malice I thought..” wow” this has a chance, I read both of his series with no disappointments. He has been getting better and better.!bout to start shadow of the Gods!! Had to finish wisdom of crowds first! Joe never disappoints
“Ohhh I’m never gonna write this good.” Feelin that myself right now. Man that book was good. Will we be getting a more in depth review now that the book has been released?
Love me some MurderBot! Really looking forward to this entry.
As far as I’m concerned The Faithful & the Fallen series should be held in the same regards as ASOIAF, Stormlight and First Law in terms of the greats of modern fantasy
As characters I found Varg and Orka to be the most engaging characters, but Elvar's surrounding story was the most interesting to me.
Preordered The Shadow of the Gods! I’m so excited
It's interesting that you say Murderbot is not for the Dune lovers and yet one of my favorite things about Dune is the presentation of characters' thoughts.
watched for 13 min :maybe ill put it in my TBR
BONES OF DEAD GODS THAT CONTAIN POWER: SOLD cant wait for it to release
I finished Malice last week and it's my favoriete book now and I can't wait to read The Shadow of the Gods when I've finished The Faithful and the Fallen serie. 😁