Godblind (The Godblind Trilogy #1) by Anna Stephens
For fans of Joe Abercrombie, Scott Lynch, and Mark Lawrence comes a brutal grimdark fantasy debut of dark gods and violent warriors.
The Mireces worship the bloodthirsty Red Gods. Exiled from Rilpor a thousand years ago, and left to suffer a harsh life in the cold mountains, a new Mireces king now plots an invasion of Rilpor’s thriving cities and fertile earth.
Dom Templeson is a Watcher, a civilian warrior guarding Rilpor’s border. He is also the most powerful seer in generations, plagued with visions and prophecies. His people are devoted followers of the god of light and life, but Dom harbors deep secrets, which threaten to be exposed when Rillirin, an escaped Mireces slave, stumbles broken and bleeding into his village.
Meanwhile, more and more of Rilpor’s most powerful figures are turning to the dark rituals and bloody sacrifices of the Red Gods, including the prince, who plots to wrest the throne from his dying father in the heart of the kingdom. Can Rillirin, with her inside knowledge of the Red Gods and her shocking ties to the Mireces King, help Rilpor win the coming war?
My Blurb
When I picked this book up, I thought it was a stand alone. When I got around halfway and things still did not progress to enable a satisfying ending in this book, I started to get a bit confused. It was around then that the Goodreads’ page was updated to reflect that this is the first book of a trilogy. I was rather upset…
Nevertheless, it was an interesting but very very dark book. It was also so very violent (I am thinking of one particular incident from which I literally winced & I think all males may just have run to the bathroom and vomit from imagining it only). So, yea, this author was certainly NOT shy! I haven’t read all the books in the world so I can’t say if it’s ever happened anywhere else or if any male author would have written such a scene. Can you tell that it’s totally shocked me?
The beginning was quite slow but then again there’s a new set of world being built. There were also quite a number of perspectives from a number of different locations. It wasn’t that easy to get into but a couple of the characters were easily likeable so that helps. When the battles begin, the rest of the book flew by in what felt like minutes.
If you like your fantasy dark and full of action, I’d recommend this first book of The Godblind Trilogy. It’s a brutal world filled with bloodthirsty power-grabbing villains with a vision to rule the world. I’m definitely keeping an eye out for the sequel (warning: a bit of a cliffhanger of an ending).
Thanks to HarperCollins Australia for copy of book in exchange of honest review
About the author
Anna Stephens works in corporate communications for an international law firm by day and writes by night, normally into the small hours, much to her husband’s dismay. Anna loves all things speculative, from books to film to TV, but if you disagree keep it to yourself as she’s a second Dan black belt in Shotokan Karate.
Godblind is Anna’s first novel.
Find her on: goodreads | website | twitter | facebook | instagram
Tien's Blurb 