Book - Godkiller

Book - Godkiller

Is book 1 in series Fallen Gods. 

By: Hannah Kaner

Score: 8/10

Year: 2023

Publisher: Harper Collins

ISBN 978-0-06-334828-8 (digital edition) 

based on 978-0-06-334827-1 (print edition)

Pages : 291 (digital) (based on print edition 304)

Language: English

Prologue. Kissen’s family are killed during a war opposing gods to gods, with humans in the crossfire - having taken sides with their favorite deities. Now, she makes a living killing gods, and enjoys it. That is until she finds a god she cannot kill: Skedi, somehow bound to a young noble.

They're on the run from unknown assassins, so Kissen takes on a personal protection mission and they're all joined by a group of pilgrims, they set on a travel to the ruined city of Blenraden, seeking old gods for private favors. 

In this story, we dive into a world full of gods - a general term for both genders, not using goddesses to distinguish. As the novel progresses, we learn about the particular mechanics of the relationships between gods and other gods, as well as to humans. 

Although there are quite a few characters from both ends, the novel concentrates mostly on 4 of them, Kissen, a gruff woman on a personal quest that unravels from the Prologue to the very end of the novel. We learn that she's disabled as a result of the events in the prologue, introduced quickly as a bisexual in a queer-normative way, in a world where other characters are either hetero, bi or many lesbian couples are formed, and these are only part of who they are, never criticized for it. 

The overall narrative was well paced over its 37 chapters, but a few passages felt a tad too heavy ; a couple times I was told what the emotions were, instead of being shown, or made feel them with the characters - something I pay more attention after I'd read a portion of a nonfiction book about writing emotions into novels. * As most occasions, however, these feelings and sentiments were nicely portrayed, with a system that, although seems inspired from the pseudoscience of auras, worked in its originality of color to emotion associations where all descriptions are individual, and not generalized. 

What I found really difficult to read where fishing, hunting and food preparation scenes from these actions, as well as emetophobia triggers - see details in the TW section. 

I enjoyed the overall reading - far from meal times - and the author's style, mostly in third-person limited. I wanted to know what would happen to the main cast, and despite some answers, a lot of mystery remains, even after the open-ended conclusion (we now know a sequel will be released next month, and will form the Fallen Gods series). 

If you want to discover a fantasy that is a tad different, and where romance is not at the center of everything, despite its predictability, I do recommend Godkiller. I especially enjoy the title and the implications of a main protagonist whose job is to kill gods and she earns money for her chosen deicides ; it's so deliciously blasphemous, albeit on a lesser degree than Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett's Good Omens, since the latter had dealt with judeochristian myths, whereas the deites in Godkiller are their own invented mythology. 

Fallen Gods book 2, Sunbringer, will be released in its original English on 12 March 2024. 

* this is The Emotion Thesaurus, of which I have read enough to direct towards decyphering narrative avenues. I read its original version, in English (up to 34%, you will see in a future review).

3rd book completed since the last club de lecture en eau douce Book Club meeting, completing the bibliobook challenge for the 3rd time in a row. 

Also my "jeu de la PAL" (a card-based book-prompt redeem I took in the stream) fulfilling the 2nd card (engagé pour une cause = committed to a cause) and 3rd (guerrière = warrior) - but not the 1st card, which was for neurodivergent. 

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TW section (page numbers based on ebook version)

Not veg-friendly passages

34% in (99-101) an extended scene with fishing and preparing the fish for the meal 

40-41% (115-119) hunting and preparing rabbits 

49% (142) market and s-house related descriptions

51% in (148-149) a gross fish-based food

57% in (165) scene in a market

Emotophobia and copropbia trigger words :

49% (141) ; 55% (160) ; 72% (210) ; 95% (274) ; 98% (284)