Another arc reader here and I just want to chime in for all the people in the comments- I completely disagree with everything he’s said and I gave this 5 stars. I cried multiple times. The battles felt masterfully done they lasted a long time because they integrated character work during the battles. I think it was phenomenal. Don’t let one persons negative review dissuade you. If you’ve read the other two and loved them it’s definitely still worth your time to pick it up!! Books are subjective and your experience and enjoyment will be different than anyone else’s 💗
I totally agree. I was influenced by many reviews and hesitated to read some books. They were gems and became my all time favorites. Books are subjective and I won't lower my expectations or excitement because of a not so good review
@@josephwilson-doan4163 im saying if you already loved the other two books in the series, decide for yourself what you want to do either way. and just pointing out that i read the same book and felt differently about it. you can do whatever you want but im just saying dont like 1 negative review completely turn you off if you had already been interested in the other books or this series. its free speech i can say or do whatever i want just like ANYONE else so people can ignore me or they can be like "oh cool someone else loved it ill still check it out" :) you see?? they have a choice!! :D hope that helps xoxo
@@reading_faerie Im not being an antagonist here. Just looking for discussion and clarification. Which youve kindly given me. Im very happy you enjoyed the book. ❤️
I appreciate you giving an honest review when you didn’t want to and giving blind praise would have been so easy. Kudos for sticking to your real thoughts.
Really appreciate the honest review. John Gwynne has been on a years-long hot streak for you, so not surprising that eventually he’d not hit a home-run in your eyes. Happens to the best of them. I’m sure his next book/series will redeem him.
I felt the EXACT same way about the covers. "Why would you do this? 2/3 books have a MAJOR late event spoiler." Please don't ever do that again publishers. The art is beautiful but I don't ever want spoilers on my covers ):
Just finished the book, and I mostly agree with you here. I thoroughly enjoyed it - but 100% agree, we needed some time to breathe. The non-stop action was a bit much for me, I was longing for the slower character moments and they barely came.
I enjoyed fury so much! I can see why some people may not and while some things weren’t what I expected I still laughed and cried and didn’t want the book to end.
Although I typically fall in line with you taste wise, I’m still looking forward to this one. This definitely may be a case of super high expectations so if anything I think this’ll improve my experience. Cheers Matt !
Gosh YES. When the cover came out I was so excited!! But then when I read the book and I got to the point where it was relevant, I was really sad it was spoilt already. I would’ve wanted to feel that excited while reading the story, not upon seeing the cover.
Strongly agree about the battle scenes going on forever without actually being much of anything with substance. I swear that first huge battle with the Bloodsworn and all those boats about a third of the way through the book felt like it was 10 chapters long, it was so tedious and such a slog. Now yeah the final battle and all the quick cuts to each character having their 1v1 was a little cheesy, a little clunky, but ultimately it was some solid payoff for some often comically despicable villains. I also agree about the endings for these character arcs being a mixed bag. Without giving too much away, yeah absolutely a few arcs felt super rushed with clunky endings, some stuck the landing emotionally at the end of the day anyway, while others did not. It's so weird to say about a Gwynne novel that there was too much fighting because normally its so well written that I don't care, but despite the quality of writing still being high I felt like too lengthy fight scenes got in the way of a lot. My crackpot theory is that Gwynne really had enough material for two bulkier novels, but editors had it split into 3 moderately thick novels. So to make up for the content gap he crammed a ton more fighting into the 3rd for padding. Some fighting passages went on for so long and blended together across chapters that it's actually really easy to forget who is where and why anything was happening. There were several different points where I had to stop and reread some passages to just try and piece together how all the moving pieces were fitting together. As for the complaints about the cover... sorry dude but that's just stupid. It is literally not a spoiler in the first book as we have no idea at all that Lik Riffa is alive, and in fact for the vast majority of the book were led to believe she, uniquely among the other gods in this world, was never confirmed to exist by people. So, yeah she's on the cover but up until she bursts out of the ground she's a myth, a hook to bring all these plots together in the book just as she is on the cover a hook for readers to join in this quest. Now because we're adults with working brains we can figure out the likely twist of her showing up after some light foreshadowing, and so the cover makes sense. With Ulfrir in the second book... does he not come back to life within like 5 chapters? It's super early on. If you're so sensitive to "spoilers" that hearing about something that happens on like page 15 in advance ruins your ability to enjoy a story then I don't know what to tell you. Go live under a rock and have someone bring every book to you with all the covers and review endorsements/dust jacket descriptions/content warnings torn off so you're as blind as possible to every possible element of something that might get revealed before the exact moment you read it. I can understand seeing Snutka on the cover and being somewhat disappointed knowing he was going to appear, since the covers established a pattern, but that should have faded quickly. Just like with the first two covers its not so much knowing when this god will appear, but the broader context that makes it interesting. Now as you're reading you're also thinking about how whatever it is that's happening could lead to this bonkers revival of this monster of this scale. If I could rearrange things in the plot I would have Orna's resurrection happen at the start of book 3 so we can slap her on the cover and let the Snutka reveal happen more organically, even if it is foreshadowed in much stronger ways than even Lik Riffa was in book 1. You just don't like fantasy books with smaller scales. That's fine, I totally get that. I personally loved how Viking centric everything was. Getting immersed in that was a huge part of why I enjoy this series. That's not for everyone and some people want a more wide ranging quest with wildly different environments and that's fine. I imagine it was quite frustrating for you and other readers who are more into that sort of story structure for fantasy to have the Bloodsworn leave Iskidan so quickly.
I loved this book and gave it 5 stars. I hear other ARC readers voice similar criticisms as yours. I found it to be quintessential Gwynne and just the style of finale I would expect. Seriously satisfying for me. I could see why others like you may look for something different depending on mood, expectations or where you’re at in your reading journey. You raise valid points, they just didn’t damper my enjoyment of this awesome book like they did for you. Gwynne is an amazing author and person and I hope everyone watching this video buys and reads this book!
Just finished it, I'd give it a solid 4/5. My main gripe is the plot armor on fight scenes for all the semi-main characters and how during fights right before some would be about to die it would change character POV and the fight would progress but the previous POV is still fine. It just felt a little choppy. Overall though I really liked the setting of these books, the camaraderie between the clans was great too.
I seldom disagree with you on most reviews, in fact pic a lot of books to read due to them. However, I wholeheartedly disagree with this one. It’s an easy 5 star read for me.
Dude I actually agree completely but I might be a bit more forgiving. From the first book in this series I could tell the world and story weren't super deep. I was kinda regarding it as more pop fantasy just to be fun. Which you are regarding it as that is great. But if you wanted something more than just a fun time I can see someone being disappointed.
I haven't read bloodsworn. Everything that Matt is saying is exactly what I felt while reading The Faithful and The Fallen and the last book Wrath. Protagonists facing off against their Nemesis, singular culture (even while there are multiple species!), and too many battles. Maybe when Matt rereads TFaTF he may feel this again.
I give Fury 3.5 stars. Final books in a trilogy for me tend to fall short of the momentum the first two build. The battle scenes were great but I almost would have preferred them to be scaled back to get some more scenes with the characters before and in between these pivotal awesome battles. Emotions were not as high as they should have been. Great action but I have to agree with you.
Finally an unbiased and very fair critique of this book. Im noticing a lot of reviews on booktube where the reviewer will bring up some of the same issues with the story that you have, and say its not their favourite Gwynne book but still give it a 5 star rating.
Just finished this. This was a perfect 5 star book for me. I could not put it down. But to each their own! There is nothing wrong with having a different opinion.
Just finished this book. I gave the previous 2 books 5 stars, but this is a 4.5 stars for me. Not a 5 stars but I still loved it. Looking forward to more stories in this world 🤘
I haven’t read this book yet, but what you’re saying reminds me of how I felt about Wrath. I love Gwynn, and loved The Faithful and the Fallen series. I’d recommend TFaTF to everyone. But the end of Wrath didn’t work for me. Gwynn built the ending up to a massive battle with overwhelming, really overwhelming odds against our heroes, and it ended almost too quickly and too easily. Of course this is just my opinion.
I'm at the half way point, and right now I completely agree with you. The first book is the best IMO. Fury does seem kind of rote. And one battle in particular is waaay too long. I find myself skimming sections, and that is never good.
Sold me. I don’t think a book can go too big. I want huge long battles. I hope the arcs have good endings but I doubt I’ll be complaining about it being too epic.
Looking forward to the release of this book!! The timing of this review, a few days before the books release in my opinion is bad timing. Still going to go out and purchase :) (not deterred)
I read the first two books in the Bloodsworn saga and found the world to be lacking, despite it's massive potential. I felt so peaked by its lore and mythology that Gwynne set up, but in both instances I finished both books feeling like there could be more. Or rather, there should be more. It felt like he only lightly rubbed the surface of something even grander that would enrich the tale and really hook me in. It might be that he's saving that for later books but still, I remember feeling disappointed. I'm uncertain I will give the third book a try
To be fair. There are only 4 to choose from (without WaT) the the first 3 are all pretty much loved equally. Oathbringer might be my favourite, or Way of Kings, but I can't be mad at that take.
I need to re-read the first book and continue on now that the trilogy's complete. This will be my first John Gwynne finale so I'm curious to see if I agree/disagree with your thoughts.
I haven't reread the first 2 since the years they came out, is there a recap at the start of Fury of the Gods? or do you think a reread is maybe a necessity? There are multiple sequels or completions I haven't gotten to this year because of needing rereads. 😟
@@MattsFantasyBookReviews are they as good as the recaps at the beginning of Eragon? I absolutely love those, You can pick up a book after years, and know exactly what was happening and all the important details without spoilers. And to me it shows how good of an author he is
@@joedoe7572 Haven't read Eragon, but they are extremely detailed. They cover the general plot, as well as specific sections for every POV character. It's very well done.
Interesting and fair points, but if you gave Trials of Empire 3 stars, then this can't also be 3 star. ToE was way more flawed than Fury of the Gods. My criticism of this book is that certain scenes we've been waiting so long for did feel rushed and cookie cutter as you said. Also at times the gods outdo each other too easily. I wouldve liked these scenes to be more drawn out. Despite that criticism, this is still a fantastic book and in no way sours the trilogy as a whole, which is very different from how we both felt about Trials of Empire. This is also my 1st Gwynne series so I cant compare this to his other works I give this one 4 stars and the fist 2 books are fivers for me.
Literally most of Wrath was battle. And not expecting the gods to return when its the entire selling point of the series is bizarre. You should have expected it regardless of what was on the cover as it happens in every previous book. Both times I felt it was obviously telegraphed and I don't think its a bad thing just delivering on expected narrative promise. Love your channel regardless, just a big disagree from me. Keep up the great work.
This review was really helpful, as I can relate to many of the sentiments in other novels, and was recently considering starting this series. Please do keep speaking your mind!
I read the book and thought it was brilliant. I am yet to find a Gwynne book I would rate anything less than a 4 out of 5. Give this a read everyone it is great.
He is the one author I am still hesitant about trying for a couple of reasons: 1) I have too many other fantasy books to get to; and 2) the positive reviews of his books on the Tube and the Tok seem a little inflated.
Gwynne is a decent journeyman fantasy writer, but no more than that. The reviews on UA-cam and online tend to be wildly inflated imo. If you're still interested, his best series is his first, which i had an ok experience with.
100% agree with the 1v1 revenge battles at the end. Very repetitive and boring, took a lot of momentum out of the ending. Very formulaic, very glad I'm not the only one who felt like this.
Finally finished it so it's time to watch the review. I enjoyed it. I'd probably give it a 4/5. Some moments and deaths felt a bit rushed, but I very much enjoyed it. I liked the Bloodsworn Trilogy more than I liked Of Blood and Bone. Blood and Bone felt like more Faithful and the Fallen, but worse to me. I loved the more viking aesthetic.
I liked the first two books, read them back to back. I really enjoyed the setting and the work around gender (i.e. that gender roles are basically irrelevant). I also liked the setup of the thrall-system and was curious how it would play out - it was a reason for my dislike of Elvar as a character, and there too I was curious what Gwynne would do with her in the final book. (SPOILERS) I was optimistic at the beginning. But the further I got through Fury the more disappointed I got. Major plot points like the decision around thralls on Elvar's side were not given enough space imo. For me the question of how "tainted" and non-tainted people could live together in this world, given hundreds of years of thralldom, was a main focal point in the story. It seemed absurd that major characters who were very biased against tainted people all their lives would just completely change their worldview in a day. The battle scenes became really repetative and borderline boring. There was rarely anything new or interesting happening in them. I also really disliked the whole Iskedan plotline - it too felt completely irrelevant and just like something for "the final boss" to fight to show their strenght. Overall I liked the series, just not the ending.
I found the first two books okaaaaay. Faithful and the fallen was THE BEST book series I’ve ever read. Made my ugly cry. To me this series was a tale of very similar people (all gruff fierce warriors) all travelling with warbands and all whooping ass. I haven’t read Fury but I just wasn’t super into the first two. The character work isn’t as good as the previous series either but that’s just my opinion!
LOVE Gywnne. One of my favorite authors. However, he needs to cut back on the battles...like A LOT. I don't need 100 solid pages in a row of zero story progression and detailed descriptions of every sword thrust and parry. This book would have benefitted far more from more character development and emotional payoff. Getting through some of these battles felt like a chore.
Battle sequences especially the long ones are my least favorite thing in fantasy books so I don't think he is the author for me! I love character-driven slow-burn stories with minimal action!
I am sad to say I totally agree with your opinion. Still really liked the series but the ending definitly felt rushed, the cover was a spoiler and I also didn't felt for the characters as I was hoping to at the beginning of the series.
Big agree! Just finished it and found that throughout most of the book, I didn’t really care what happened. We didn’t get a lot of one-on-one time with the characters so I didn’t feel the same connection I felt in the first two books.
This was my first series by John Gwynne after so many people praising him to the point that you would be remiss to NOT think of him as a God. Disappointing. Clearly those people need to chill out, and stop rubbing all up on his genitals.
I was wrong you were right Matt, Just finished Fury Of The Gods by John Gwynne 3/5 stars .By far my least favorite book of the trilogy.To much action and not enough character depth in this one.Still a great end to an awesome trilogy! Still would recommend this trilogy to anyone as books 1 and 2 were easy 5 star books and the ending was still great !
I went into Shadow of the Gods expecting to give it 5 stars but I came away disappointed. I’m still gonna pick up 2&3 in the hopes that there’s a great payoff.
You're allowed to have an opinion, but I think it's wiser to let the hype rush calm down. Come back to a reread of the whole series next year, and I'm certain your opinion will change.
Doesn't mean you won't love the third! This is Matt's opinion! I mean his favourite series is Malazan and I hate that series, well I shouldn't say series because I Dnf'd the first book!! So you may have a different opinion. Don't let this review put you off! You may love it.
Not making me excited to continue past the first one…I just thought the first book in this series was just ok. Not as good as Faithful and the Fallen or Of Blood and Bone.
Admittedly, I think he says he wrote this in 3 or 6 months or something. From first draft to the last. I cant put much expectation on authors who pump something out that quickly. There’s gonna be misses. Your critiques of this book remind me a lot of my qualms with Cahill’s stuff. They are very similar authors. Gwynne really does write good action though. I just wish he would slow down some and put some more thought into his pacing, characters, narrative/plot structure, and subverting readers expectations.
If you think his opinions are always bad, why do you watch the videos and troll? If you don’t like listening to people with opinions different from yours, find someone who thinks just like you. I like different view points. Different opinions and viewpoints expand my thinking.
I’m pretty upset with this review Matt,you understand The Poor Man lost his daughter right ? (Would explain different tone etc)And then somehow found the strength to write and finish this series…that alone is something I can’t even imagine being able to do..I absolutely loved this book and usually align with your views but complete opposite on this one my friend.
I don't change scores based on the personal lives of authors. That's kind of a ridiculous suggestion. I feel horrible for him, but it has no bearing on a review.
@@MattsFantasyBookReviews I apologize,just got upset but you’re right and I do respect your opinion even if it is wrong just lol,that’s what we love about you,you’re brutally honest no matter what.thats commendable.
Reading it now. Bout halfway thru. So far so good for me.
Hi Brian. Love you, brother. Looking forward to your review tomorrow! 😂
Another arc reader here and I just want to chime in for all the people in the comments- I completely disagree with everything he’s said and I gave this 5 stars. I cried multiple times. The battles felt masterfully done they lasted a long time because they integrated character work during the battles. I think it was phenomenal. Don’t let one persons negative review dissuade you. If you’ve read the other two and loved them it’s definitely still worth your time to pick it up!! Books are subjective and your experience and enjoyment will be different than anyone else’s 💗
I totally agree. I was influenced by many reviews and hesitated to read some books. They were gems and became my all time favorites. Books are subjective and I won't lower my expectations or excitement because of a not so good review
Why read or watch reviews then if you think they shouldnt influence your decision to buy or read anything?
@@josephwilson-doan4163 im saying if you already loved the other two books in the series, decide for yourself what you want to do either way. and just pointing out that i read the same book and felt differently about it. you can do whatever you want but im just saying dont like 1 negative review completely turn you off if you had already been interested in the other books or this series.
its free speech i can say or do whatever i want just like ANYONE else so people can ignore me or they can be like "oh cool someone else loved it ill still check it out" :) you see?? they have a choice!! :D hope that helps xoxo
@@josephwilson-doan4163 because it's interesting to hear other people's opinion. But it doesn't mean that their opinion influences me
@@reading_faerie Im not being an antagonist here. Just looking for discussion and clarification. Which youve kindly given me. Im very happy you enjoyed the book. ❤️
I appreciate you giving an honest review when you didn’t want to and giving blind praise would have been so easy. Kudos for sticking to your real thoughts.
Really appreciate the honest review. John Gwynne has been on a years-long hot streak for you, so not surprising that eventually he’d not hit a home-run in your eyes. Happens to the best of them. I’m sure his next book/series will redeem him.
I'll definitely be a day one reader of the next one!
His second trilogy BLOOD AND BONE is by far the worst series in comparison to this.
I am glad that I am not alone in feeling "let down" by this final book.
I felt the EXACT same way about the covers. "Why would you do this? 2/3 books have a MAJOR late event spoiler." Please don't ever do that again publishers. The art is beautiful but I don't ever want spoilers on my covers ):
Just finished the book, and I mostly agree with you here. I thoroughly enjoyed it - but 100% agree, we needed some time to breathe. The non-stop action was a bit much for me, I was longing for the slower character moments and they barely came.
I gave it 4 stars
I enjoyed fury so much! I can see why some people may not and while some things weren’t what I expected I still laughed and cried and didn’t want the book to end.
You're allowed to have an opinion, I'm glad you give your honest feedback!
Although I typically fall in line with you taste wise, I’m still looking forward to this one. This definitely may be a case of super high expectations so if anything I think this’ll improve my experience. Cheers Matt !
Man I 100% agree on your thoughts about the covers.
But how fuckin cool are they !!! Lol
Gosh YES. When the cover came out I was so excited!! But then when I read the book and I got to the point where it was relevant, I was really sad it was spoilt already. I would’ve wanted to feel that excited while reading the story, not upon seeing the cover.
Strongly agree about the battle scenes going on forever without actually being much of anything with substance. I swear that first huge battle with the Bloodsworn and all those boats about a third of the way through the book felt like it was 10 chapters long, it was so tedious and such a slog. Now yeah the final battle and all the quick cuts to each character having their 1v1 was a little cheesy, a little clunky, but ultimately it was some solid payoff for some often comically despicable villains. I also agree about the endings for these character arcs being a mixed bag. Without giving too much away, yeah absolutely a few arcs felt super rushed with clunky endings, some stuck the landing emotionally at the end of the day anyway, while others did not. It's so weird to say about a Gwynne novel that there was too much fighting because normally its so well written that I don't care, but despite the quality of writing still being high I felt like too lengthy fight scenes got in the way of a lot. My crackpot theory is that Gwynne really had enough material for two bulkier novels, but editors had it split into 3 moderately thick novels. So to make up for the content gap he crammed a ton more fighting into the 3rd for padding. Some fighting passages went on for so long and blended together across chapters that it's actually really easy to forget who is where and why anything was happening. There were several different points where I had to stop and reread some passages to just try and piece together how all the moving pieces were fitting together.
As for the complaints about the cover... sorry dude but that's just stupid. It is literally not a spoiler in the first book as we have no idea at all that Lik Riffa is alive, and in fact for the vast majority of the book were led to believe she, uniquely among the other gods in this world, was never confirmed to exist by people. So, yeah she's on the cover but up until she bursts out of the ground she's a myth, a hook to bring all these plots together in the book just as she is on the cover a hook for readers to join in this quest. Now because we're adults with working brains we can figure out the likely twist of her showing up after some light foreshadowing, and so the cover makes sense. With Ulfrir in the second book... does he not come back to life within like 5 chapters? It's super early on. If you're so sensitive to "spoilers" that hearing about something that happens on like page 15 in advance ruins your ability to enjoy a story then I don't know what to tell you. Go live under a rock and have someone bring every book to you with all the covers and review endorsements/dust jacket descriptions/content warnings torn off so you're as blind as possible to every possible element of something that might get revealed before the exact moment you read it. I can understand seeing Snutka on the cover and being somewhat disappointed knowing he was going to appear, since the covers established a pattern, but that should have faded quickly. Just like with the first two covers its not so much knowing when this god will appear, but the broader context that makes it interesting. Now as you're reading you're also thinking about how whatever it is that's happening could lead to this bonkers revival of this monster of this scale. If I could rearrange things in the plot I would have Orna's resurrection happen at the start of book 3 so we can slap her on the cover and let the Snutka reveal happen more organically, even if it is foreshadowed in much stronger ways than even Lik Riffa was in book 1.
You just don't like fantasy books with smaller scales. That's fine, I totally get that. I personally loved how Viking centric everything was. Getting immersed in that was a huge part of why I enjoy this series. That's not for everyone and some people want a more wide ranging quest with wildly different environments and that's fine. I imagine it was quite frustrating for you and other readers who are more into that sort of story structure for fantasy to have the Bloodsworn leave Iskidan so quickly.
I loved this book and gave it 5 stars. I hear other ARC readers voice similar criticisms as yours. I found it to be quintessential Gwynne and just the style of finale I would expect. Seriously satisfying for me. I could see why others like you may look for something different depending on mood, expectations or where you’re at in your reading journey. You raise valid points, they just didn’t damper my enjoyment of this awesome book like they did for you. Gwynne is an amazing author and person and I hope everyone watching this video buys and reads this book!
Always appreciate your honesty and your down to earth way of reviews
Just finished it, I'd give it a solid 4/5. My main gripe is the plot armor on fight scenes for all the semi-main characters and how during fights right before some would be about to die it would change character POV and the fight would progress but the previous POV is still fine. It just felt a little choppy. Overall though I really liked the setting of these books, the camaraderie between the clans was great too.
I seldom disagree with you on most reviews, in fact pic a lot of books to read due to them. However, I wholeheartedly disagree with this one. It’s an easy 5 star read for me.
Heya!
Same!
You forgot the most important thing ... how many times does he use thought-cage in this one?
Or the word “snarled”.
Thanks for the review. Your unedited honest thought is all I ask for, what's the point otherwise right?
Dude I actually agree completely but I might be a bit more forgiving. From the first book in this series I could tell the world and story weren't super deep. I was kinda regarding it as more pop fantasy just to be fun. Which you are regarding it as that is great. But if you wanted something more than just a fun time I can see someone being disappointed.
I haven't read bloodsworn. Everything that Matt is saying is exactly what I felt while reading The Faithful and The Fallen and the last book Wrath. Protagonists facing off against their Nemesis, singular culture (even while there are multiple species!), and too many battles. Maybe when Matt rereads TFaTF he may feel this again.
I give Fury 3.5 stars. Final books in a trilogy for me tend to fall short of the momentum the first two build. The battle scenes were great but I almost would have preferred them to be scaled back to get some more scenes with the characters before and in between these pivotal awesome battles. Emotions were not as high as they should have been. Great action but I have to agree with you.
Finally an unbiased and very fair critique of this book. Im noticing a lot of reviews on booktube where the reviewer will bring up some of the same issues with the story that you have, and say its not their favourite Gwynne book but still give it a 5 star rating.
Just finished this. This was a perfect 5 star book for me. I could not put it down. But to each their own! There is nothing wrong with having a different opinion.
Heya!
Just finished this book. I gave the previous 2 books 5 stars, but this is a 4.5 stars for me. Not a 5 stars but I still loved it. Looking forward to more stories in this world 🤘
I haven’t read this book yet, but what you’re saying reminds me of how I felt about Wrath. I love Gwynn, and loved The Faithful and the Fallen series. I’d recommend TFaTF to everyone. But the end of Wrath didn’t work for me. Gwynn built the ending up to a massive battle with overwhelming, really overwhelming odds against our heroes, and it ended almost too quickly and too easily. Of course this is just my opinion.
I'm at the half way point, and right now I completely agree with you. The first book is the best IMO. Fury does seem kind of rote. And one battle in particular is waaay too long. I find myself skimming sections, and that is never good.
Just finished it ! Absolutely loved it,im quite sad it didn't work for you Matt ! :(
Sold me. I don’t think a book can go too big. I want huge long battles. I hope the arcs have good endings but I doubt I’ll be complaining about it being too epic.
Dang this is the first lukewarm review I've seen of this
Looking forward to the release of this book!! The timing of this review, a few days before the books release in my opinion is bad timing. Still going to go out and purchase :) (not deterred)
I agree with you, there were a few parts where the author should have slowed down a little bit. Still a 4/5 for me 👍
This is unexpected.I expected a 5 stars book. :O
I read the first two books in the Bloodsworn saga and found the world to be lacking, despite it's massive potential. I felt so peaked by its lore and mythology that Gwynne set up, but in both instances I finished both books feeling like there could be more. Or rather, there should be more. It felt like he only lightly rubbed the surface of something even grander that would enrich the tale and really hook me in. It might be that he's saving that for later books but still, I remember feeling disappointed.
I'm uncertain I will give the third book a try
Oathbringer being the weakest is a super hot take. I will not take your opinion to heart on FotG then lol.
To be fair. There are only 4 to choose from (without WaT) the the first 3 are all pretty much loved equally. Oathbringer might be my favourite, or Way of Kings, but I can't be mad at that take.
I need to re-read the first book and continue on now that the trilogy's complete. This will be my first John Gwynne finale so I'm curious to see if I agree/disagree with your thoughts.
I haven't reread the first 2 since the years they came out, is there a recap at the start of Fury of the Gods? or do you think a reread is maybe a necessity?
There are multiple sequels or completions I haven't gotten to this year because of needing rereads. 😟
Yes there's a very detailed recap. No need to reread.
@@MattsFantasyBookReviews Thank you!
@@MattsFantasyBookReviews are they as good as the recaps at the beginning of Eragon? I absolutely love those, You can pick up a book after years, and know exactly what was happening and all the important details without spoilers. And to me it shows how good of an author he is
@@joedoe7572 Haven't read Eragon, but they are extremely detailed. They cover the general plot, as well as specific sections for every POV character. It's very well done.
Just peeped Salamandastron in the background! I have so much fond nostalgia for that book! Didnt know you were a redwall fan. EULALIA!
Interesting and fair points, but if you gave Trials of Empire 3 stars, then this can't also be 3 star. ToE was way more flawed than Fury of the Gods.
My criticism of this book is that certain scenes we've been waiting so long for did feel rushed and cookie cutter as you said. Also at times the gods outdo each other too easily. I wouldve liked these scenes to be more drawn out. Despite that criticism, this is still a fantastic book and in no way sours the trilogy as a whole, which is very different from how we both felt about Trials of Empire.
This is also my 1st Gwynne series so I cant compare this to his other works
I give this one 4 stars and the fist 2 books are fivers for me.
Sounds right up my alley. I love the battle after battle sequence he writes.
Love getting real reviews. I like having the right expectations before going into a book. Thanks Matt
Literally most of Wrath was battle. And not expecting the gods to return when its the entire selling point of the series is bizarre. You should have expected it regardless of what was on the cover as it happens in every previous book. Both times I felt it was obviously telegraphed and I don't think its a bad thing just delivering on expected narrative promise.
Love your channel regardless, just a big disagree from me. Keep up the great work.
This review was really helpful, as I can relate to many of the sentiments in other novels, and was recently considering starting this series. Please do keep speaking your mind!
I read the book and thought it was brilliant. I am yet to find a Gwynne book I would rate anything less than a 4 out of 5. Give this a read everyone it is great.
He is the one author I am still hesitant about trying for a couple of reasons: 1) I have too many other fantasy books to get to; and 2) the positive reviews of his books on the Tube and the Tok seem a little inflated.
Gwynne is a decent journeyman fantasy writer, but no more than that. The reviews on UA-cam and online tend to be wildly inflated imo. If you're still interested, his best series is his first, which i had an ok experience with.
100% agree with the 1v1 revenge battles at the end. Very repetitive and boring, took a lot of momentum out of the ending. Very formulaic, very glad I'm not the only one who felt like this.
You don't need to apologize for the not so stellar review :) We are here for your *honest* take.
oh man i never though about these covers, since the covers in my native language (german) are so different
i looked at them again and they have a sword with a raven on the first cover and a sword with an owl on the second cover
Deutsche Covers sind meiner Meinung nach immer so schlecht. Die Covers und die Titeln auch haha
@@TheMarcelbruno aber wenigstens sind keine spoiler drauf
@@nana-pd7ee das stimmt; immerhin
Finally finished it so it's time to watch the review.
I enjoyed it. I'd probably give it a 4/5. Some moments and deaths felt a bit rushed, but I very much enjoyed it.
I liked the Bloodsworn Trilogy more than I liked Of Blood and Bone. Blood and Bone felt like more Faithful and the Fallen, but worse to me.
I loved the more viking aesthetic.
I liked the first two books, read them back to back. I really enjoyed the setting and the work around gender (i.e. that gender roles are basically irrelevant). I also liked the setup of the thrall-system and was curious how it would play out - it was a reason for my dislike of Elvar as a character, and there too I was curious what Gwynne would do with her in the final book.
(SPOILERS)
I was optimistic at the beginning. But the further I got through Fury the more disappointed I got. Major plot points like the decision around thralls on Elvar's side were not given enough space imo. For me the question of how "tainted" and non-tainted people could live together in this world, given hundreds of years of thralldom, was a main focal point in the story. It seemed absurd that major characters who were very biased against tainted people all their lives would just completely change their worldview in a day. The battle scenes became really repetative and borderline boring. There was rarely anything new or interesting happening in them. I also really disliked the whole Iskedan plotline - it too felt completely irrelevant and just like something for "the final boss" to fight to show their strenght.
Overall I liked the series, just not the ending.
I found the first two books okaaaaay. Faithful and the fallen was THE BEST book series I’ve ever read. Made my ugly cry. To me this series was a tale of very similar people (all gruff fierce warriors) all travelling with warbands and all whooping ass. I haven’t read Fury but I just wasn’t super into the first two. The character work isn’t as good as the previous series either but that’s just my opinion!
LOVE Gywnne. One of my favorite authors. However, he needs to cut back on the battles...like A LOT. I don't need 100 solid pages in a row of zero story progression and detailed descriptions of every sword thrust and parry. This book would have benefitted far more from more character development and emotional payoff. Getting through some of these battles felt like a chore.
I've been waiting for this 😢
haven’t read it yet but it seems all my goats are letting me down wth😭
Dang my most anticipated. Definitely didn't expect this
Battle sequences especially the long ones are my least favorite thing in fantasy books so I don't think he is the author for me! I love character-driven slow-burn stories with minimal action!
I’ve been waiting for this, but I’m still working through Wandering Inn ☠️ (Book 9)
I am sad to say I totally agree with your opinion. Still really liked the series but the ending definitly felt rushed, the cover was a spoiler and I also didn't felt for the characters as I was hoping to at the beginning of the series.
Big agree! Just finished it and found that throughout most of the book, I didn’t really care what happened. We didn’t get a lot of one-on-one time with the characters so I didn’t feel the same connection I felt in the first two books.
This was my first series by John Gwynne after so many people praising him to the point that you would be remiss to NOT think of him as a God. Disappointing. Clearly those people need to chill out, and stop rubbing all up on his genitals.
i agree with the review, loved the first 2 books, 3rd was disappointing
I was wrong you were right Matt, Just finished Fury Of The Gods by John Gwynne 3/5 stars .By far my least favorite book of the trilogy.To much action and not enough character depth in this one.Still a great end to an awesome trilogy! Still would recommend this trilogy to anyone as books 1 and 2 were easy 5 star books and the ending was still great !
I went into Shadow of the Gods expecting to give it 5 stars but I came away disappointed. I’m still gonna pick up 2&3 in the hopes that there’s a great payoff.
You're allowed to have an opinion, but I think it's wiser to let the hype rush calm down. Come back to a reread of the whole series next year, and I'm certain your opinion will change.
I have only read the first installment of this trilogy, and definitely was not my cup of tea. 10/10 for the cover art, though.
I thought the first book was okay. The POVs had far too many similarities. The second book really improved in many way for me.
@@giants8585 To me, the book read too much like a bad action movie filled with cheesy lines.
Thank you for your honesty Matt. I respect you so much for that
Bummer, I loved the first two
Doesn't mean you won't love the third! This is Matt's opinion! I mean his favourite series is Malazan and I hate that series, well I shouldn't say series because I Dnf'd the first book!! So you may have a different opinion. Don't let this review put you off! You may love it.
Not making me excited to continue past the first one…I just thought the first book in this series was just ok. Not as good as Faithful and the Fallen or Of Blood and Bone.
Damn this wasn't... wow. I'll get to it soon and see for myself
On your point about the last battle containing the end of a lot of revenge arcs, doesn't exactly that happen in Wrath?
It's hard to explain without spoilers, but it's definitely different.
Admittedly, I think he says he wrote this in 3 or 6 months or something. From first draft to the last. I cant put much expectation on authors who pump something out that quickly. There’s gonna be misses.
Your critiques of this book remind me a lot of my qualms with Cahill’s stuff. They are very similar authors. Gwynne really does write good action though. I just wish he would slow down some and put some more thought into his pacing, characters, narrative/plot structure, and subverting readers expectations.
Just found this channel. Subscribed. Then saw this review. Dang
Does Elvar get a bad ending?
She marries Guðvarr in the end.
@ImagenaryFriendd i already know what happened
That bad habit
This was the most disappointing book of my life, I did not even finish it!!
Hunger of the Gods was so freaking fantastic too, 5 stars for me!!
uh oh, time to manage my expectations I guess
Just read it openminded, I'm sure it's great.
It is okay I guess you can have some wrong opinions sometimes 😂
😮
I haven't read Bloodsworn yet (I read FATF years ago) but I've heard quite a few arc readers didn't love this book.
Not what I was hoping for, therefore the books is bad 👍🏻
Why are your opinions always so bad?
If you think his opinions are always bad, why do you watch the videos and troll? If you don’t like listening to people with opinions different from yours, find someone who thinks just like you. I like different view points. Different opinions and viewpoints expand my thinking.
I’m pretty upset with this review Matt,you understand The Poor Man lost his daughter right ? (Would explain different tone etc)And then somehow found the strength to write and finish this series…that alone is something I can’t even imagine being able to do..I absolutely loved this book and usually align with your views but complete opposite on this one my friend.
I don't change scores based on the personal lives of authors. That's kind of a ridiculous suggestion.
I feel horrible for him, but it has no bearing on a review.
@@MattsFantasyBookReviews I apologize,just got upset but you’re right and I do respect your opinion even if it is wrong just lol,that’s what we love about you,you’re brutally honest no matter what.thats commendable.