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Forsaken #1
Gods of the Wyrdwood
In a world locked in eternal winter and haunted by prophecy, a young boy trains for years to become the Chosen One, only for another to rise and claim his place in the start of an unmissable epic from a rising star in fantasy.
The northlands of Crua are locked in eternal winter, but prophecy tells of the chosen child – who will rule in the name of their God, and take warmth back from the South. Cahal du Nahere was raised to be this person: the Cowl-Rai, the saviour. Taken from his parents and prepared for his destiny.
But his time never came
When he was fifteen he ceased to matter. Another Cowl-Rai had risen, another chosen one, raised in the name of a different God. The years of vicious physical and mental training he had endured, the sacrifice, all for nothing. He became nothing.
Twenty years later, and Cahal lives a life of secrecy on the edges of Crua’s giant forests – hiding what he is, running from what he can do. But when he is forced to reveal his true nature, he sets off a sequence of events that will reveal secrets that will shake the bedrock of his entire world, and expose lies that have persisted for generations.
The northlands of Crua are locked in eternal winter, but prophecy tells of the chosen child – who will rule in the name of their God, and take warmth back from the South. Cahal du Nahere was raised to be this person: the Cowl-Rai, the saviour. Taken from his parents and prepared for his destiny.
But his time never came
When he was fifteen he ceased to matter. Another Cowl-Rai had risen, another chosen one, raised in the name of a different God. The years of vicious physical and mental training he had endured, the sacrifice, all for nothing. He became nothing.
Twenty years later, and Cahal lives a life of secrecy on the edges of Crua’s giant forests – hiding what he is, running from what he can do. But when he is forced to reveal his true nature, he sets off a sequence of events that will reveal secrets that will shake the bedrock of his entire world, and expose lies that have persisted for generations.
640 pages, Paperback
First published June 27, 2023
603 people are currently reading
20830 people want to read
About the author
R.J. Barker
27 books1,796 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
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July 19, 2023someone said in their review that this was,
"reminiscent of PRINCESS MONONOKE"!!!!????
that's all i need shut the hell up.
that's all i need shut the hell up.
May 10, 2023
RJ Barker is up there with the select handful of authors whose books I will buy immediately upon their release, an "auto-buy" author if you will. Both of his previous series entertained the heck out of me and are also quite different in setting and theme. That right there should tell you what a versatile writer he is. So when I caught wind of the fact that he was releasing a brand new series, with the first book GODS OF THE WYRDWOOD coming out next month, well I simply had to try and get my hands on an early copy.
GODS OF THE WYRDWOOD is again a change-up in theme and tone as Barker shows off that versatility I just mentioned. The book is aptly named as there are definitely some weird things afoot with both the worldbuilding and characters, but in a very very good way. I always appreciate when an author injects some unusual elements into what can be a somewhat formulaic genre at times. It keeps the reader on their toes and there were quite a few moments where I was like, "where the f--- did he come up with that?" These moments were always welcome though and they created a great deal of mystery, especially when it came to the enigmatic fanatical leaders who set forth the rules regarding who are worthy to be part of society and those "clanless" who are essentially scum and should be discarded.
It does take a while to get your bearings with this story as Barker doesn't spend a lot of time holding the reader's hand and explaining everything. So you really have to pay attention right from the outset, but once the story kicks in about a quarter of the way in it all slowly begins to make sense until you are absolutely breathless by the last half. It's definitely not your run of the mill fantasy and I've seen some reviewers say they gave up on it because it wasn't like Barker's other books. I actually found this to be the reason why I liked it even more. The unpredictability and the sense of where is this all going was something that had me constantly on edge and wanting to peel back the curtain.
Ultimately I came away from GODS OF THE WYRDWOOD with a feeling that I'd read another brilliant RJ Barker book. I have one little nitpick though as I'm seeing this book being marketed with the tagline that Barker is "a rising star in fantasy". Well I take exception to that as there's no rising about it. Barker is in my opinion already a firmly established star in this genre and has been for quite some time. If you don't believe me just take the time to read his books, starting with his debut trilogy The Wounded Kingdom, continuing with The Tide Child trilogy, and now with this wonderful opening entry in the brand new Forsaken series.
GODS OF THE WYRDWOOD is a fantastic start to what I'm sure will be a captivating series and I highly recommend it for anyone who craves the unconventional when it comes to their fantasy reads. Yes the magic is there and a lot of other familiar fantasy hallmarks but Barker pushes the envelope and challenges us to take a very different kind of journey with him in this one. It may not be one that we are necessarily used to but the rewards are many and magnificent if you invest the time and attention. I absolutely loved it and cannot wait until the next RJ Barker book. I feel like I say that a lot.
GODS OF THE WYRDWOOD is again a change-up in theme and tone as Barker shows off that versatility I just mentioned. The book is aptly named as there are definitely some weird things afoot with both the worldbuilding and characters, but in a very very good way. I always appreciate when an author injects some unusual elements into what can be a somewhat formulaic genre at times. It keeps the reader on their toes and there were quite a few moments where I was like, "where the f--- did he come up with that?" These moments were always welcome though and they created a great deal of mystery, especially when it came to the enigmatic fanatical leaders who set forth the rules regarding who are worthy to be part of society and those "clanless" who are essentially scum and should be discarded.
It does take a while to get your bearings with this story as Barker doesn't spend a lot of time holding the reader's hand and explaining everything. So you really have to pay attention right from the outset, but once the story kicks in about a quarter of the way in it all slowly begins to make sense until you are absolutely breathless by the last half. It's definitely not your run of the mill fantasy and I've seen some reviewers say they gave up on it because it wasn't like Barker's other books. I actually found this to be the reason why I liked it even more. The unpredictability and the sense of where is this all going was something that had me constantly on edge and wanting to peel back the curtain.
Ultimately I came away from GODS OF THE WYRDWOOD with a feeling that I'd read another brilliant RJ Barker book. I have one little nitpick though as I'm seeing this book being marketed with the tagline that Barker is "a rising star in fantasy". Well I take exception to that as there's no rising about it. Barker is in my opinion already a firmly established star in this genre and has been for quite some time. If you don't believe me just take the time to read his books, starting with his debut trilogy The Wounded Kingdom, continuing with The Tide Child trilogy, and now with this wonderful opening entry in the brand new Forsaken series.
GODS OF THE WYRDWOOD is a fantastic start to what I'm sure will be a captivating series and I highly recommend it for anyone who craves the unconventional when it comes to their fantasy reads. Yes the magic is there and a lot of other familiar fantasy hallmarks but Barker pushes the envelope and challenges us to take a very different kind of journey with him in this one. It may not be one that we are necessarily used to but the rewards are many and magnificent if you invest the time and attention. I absolutely loved it and cannot wait until the next RJ Barker book. I feel like I say that a lot.
October 24, 2024
I have the honour of interviewing Papa John Gwynne and R.J. Barker at Leeds Waterstones, so I picked up Gods of the Wyrdwood. I thoroughly enjoyed The Tide Child trilogy, so it was great to be back in Barker's immersive style that thrusts us into a very different world from the one we know. The secrets of the setting are slowly revealed, and I absolutely love that feeling of learning as you continue, crafting a sense of mysticism to the fantastical that not many can do better than Barker.
Gods of the Wyrdwood is an excellent first instalment to a fantasy series. It is dark, it is brutal and it is original. The setting feels alive. The characters conflicted, with our central character, Cahan, the obvious standout. His hidden past threatens to reveal itself, and he may have to draw on the part of him he promised to leave behind... just to survive.
Probably my favourite Barker book so far!
Gods of the Wyrdwood is an excellent first instalment to a fantasy series. It is dark, it is brutal and it is original. The setting feels alive. The characters conflicted, with our central character, Cahan, the obvious standout. His hidden past threatens to reveal itself, and he may have to draw on the part of him he promised to leave behind... just to survive.
Probably my favourite Barker book so far!
July 3, 2023
8.5/10
For those all who did not finish this book, listen to me very carefully, you made a very terrible mistake to give up on it as it eventually becomes captivating and engrossing. Took time till this book start a fire.
“The only certain failure is never to try.”
In the realm filled with Gods, old, new and forgotten, where enchanted and perilous forests abound, Cahan knows that to survive is often to walk away from cruelty. But is that to live? He is running but not fast enough, maybe it's time to stop running.
"You are running but you are not running fast enough. You are running. Running."
Cahan du Nahare is a warrior, a very special one who hides from his past, now he is known as the forester - a man who has expertise in passing through Deepforest.
Udinny is devoted to the goddess of the lost, in her quest to locate a missing child in the Deepforest, accompanied by Cahan.
Venn is a chosen child, whose destined to be a warrior, but chooses not to be and alters Cahan's too.
It might be a bit challenging for me to tell how the paths of these three crossed each other. There is a need to slowly start reading to fully understand the tale and the rules in R.J. Barker's fictional world.
I liked the story and the characters were so well-developed! I don't want to give anything away, but the way magic and heroes were portrayed was really fresh and unique. Even though it's a long read that is not fast-paced and has not many events, I think the gradual exploration of the world is totally worth it.
My huge thanks to Little, Brown Book Group UK, Orbit via NetGalley for giving me a chance to read book one in The Forsaken Trilogy, Gods of the Wyrdwood. I have given my honest review.
For those all who did not finish this book, listen to me very carefully, you made a very terrible mistake to give up on it as it eventually becomes captivating and engrossing. Took time till this book start a fire.
“The only certain failure is never to try.”
In the realm filled with Gods, old, new and forgotten, where enchanted and perilous forests abound, Cahan knows that to survive is often to walk away from cruelty. But is that to live? He is running but not fast enough, maybe it's time to stop running.
"You are running but you are not running fast enough. You are running. Running."
Cahan du Nahare is a warrior, a very special one who hides from his past, now he is known as the forester - a man who has expertise in passing through Deepforest.
Udinny is devoted to the goddess of the lost, in her quest to locate a missing child in the Deepforest, accompanied by Cahan.
Venn is a chosen child, whose destined to be a warrior, but chooses not to be and alters Cahan's too.
It might be a bit challenging for me to tell how the paths of these three crossed each other. There is a need to slowly start reading to fully understand the tale and the rules in R.J. Barker's fictional world.
I liked the story and the characters were so well-developed! I don't want to give anything away, but the way magic and heroes were portrayed was really fresh and unique. Even though it's a long read that is not fast-paced and has not many events, I think the gradual exploration of the world is totally worth it.
My huge thanks to Little, Brown Book Group UK, Orbit via NetGalley for giving me a chance to read book one in The Forsaken Trilogy, Gods of the Wyrdwood. I have given my honest review.
December 9, 2025
4.75⭐️
This checked off a lot of boxes for me. The forest is alive. We have a coming of age story with some intentional pacing. The period of 'refusal of the call' in Cahan's hero's journey is extended. Even though he is clan-less he is chosen, but refuses. His refusal causes an upheaval and an imbalance as a new one must be chosen. This is a story about his inner struggle and turmoil more than it is about the battle scene. This is not action-heavy. Instead it is a mist-laden meandering through moss covered wilderness. There is also a sense that Cahan's awakening is related to his becoming united with the forest. The writing is often poetic. There is some repetition in the writing which I felt added a rhythm to the story. It gave a haunting quality that the hero's journey is calling for you. Cahan often repeats
You are the fire
The inner battle is a little about what that fire looks like, how it burns. It brings life not death. Even with some issues with pacing this was a banger for me. Going to be reading this series, next up War Lords of Wyrdwoodas well as Barker's The Bone Ships.
*Highlights included*
This checked off a lot of boxes for me. The forest is alive. We have a coming of age story with some intentional pacing. The period of 'refusal of the call' in Cahan's hero's journey is extended. Even though he is clan-less he is chosen, but refuses. His refusal causes an upheaval and an imbalance as a new one must be chosen. This is a story about his inner struggle and turmoil more than it is about the battle scene. This is not action-heavy. Instead it is a mist-laden meandering through moss covered wilderness. There is also a sense that Cahan's awakening is related to his becoming united with the forest. The writing is often poetic. There is some repetition in the writing which I felt added a rhythm to the story. It gave a haunting quality that the hero's journey is calling for you. Cahan often repeats
You are the fire
The inner battle is a little about what that fire looks like, how it burns. It brings life not death. Even with some issues with pacing this was a banger for me. Going to be reading this series, next up War Lords of Wyrdwoodas well as Barker's The Bone Ships.
*Highlights included*
August 14, 2023
This is a brand new fantasy from the author who wrote The Tide Child trilogy but instead of being on the high seas with dragons, we are in the dark forest with very strange creatures that are almost alien.
The book begins with a really interesting prologue, a ton of names and terms are thrown at you because theres thousands of gods in this universe. It’s a lot to grasp, just your typical fantasy world building but I’d actually categorize it as complex. We see a village being visited by monks and the monks realize this village is clanless which is not a good thing but one of the leaders sees power in one of the village boys and invites him to be taught the knowledge and magic then chapter 1 begins many years later when this young boy is now a man and is facing obstacles that involve his past. He also has a pet companion Segur but I couldn’t actually picture what he was supposed to be. It sounded like some type of slitherly snake worm thing. I’m unsure. So you have this scary dangerous forest called Woodedge where anything can kill you.
This just had everything I love but foresty themed, and lovecraftian themed as well because there are a lot of tentacles. Like I’ve always mentioned I want a good in depth adult forest fantasy and I got that here in fact the first half of the book I would consider purely set up, I think book 2 is going to be even better because of that. It is not character driven, not even really plot driven. it is world driven, history driven. Terminology driven is that I thing because even some family structure was strange, theres like firstmothers, secondmothers, firsthusbands, thirdhusbands, I don’t know what any of that means except maybe this was referring to poly relationships so, very inclusive if that was the case.
Oh I do want to mention there seems to be like a running joke or a theme in this book that you’re old as fuck if you’re 30. Like ancient. As someone who is 30 I take great offense to that.
So other than some minor problems I had with the plot taking a backseat for quite a while, I still really enjoyed it. Like I said, I do think book 2 will be even better. I loved the emphasis on nature, and how weird it is. It hit that right on the head.
The book begins with a really interesting prologue, a ton of names and terms are thrown at you because theres thousands of gods in this universe. It’s a lot to grasp, just your typical fantasy world building but I’d actually categorize it as complex. We see a village being visited by monks and the monks realize this village is clanless which is not a good thing but one of the leaders sees power in one of the village boys and invites him to be taught the knowledge and magic then chapter 1 begins many years later when this young boy is now a man and is facing obstacles that involve his past. He also has a pet companion Segur but I couldn’t actually picture what he was supposed to be. It sounded like some type of slitherly snake worm thing. I’m unsure. So you have this scary dangerous forest called Woodedge where anything can kill you.
This just had everything I love but foresty themed, and lovecraftian themed as well because there are a lot of tentacles. Like I’ve always mentioned I want a good in depth adult forest fantasy and I got that here in fact the first half of the book I would consider purely set up, I think book 2 is going to be even better because of that. It is not character driven, not even really plot driven. it is world driven, history driven. Terminology driven is that I thing because even some family structure was strange, theres like firstmothers, secondmothers, firsthusbands, thirdhusbands, I don’t know what any of that means except maybe this was referring to poly relationships so, very inclusive if that was the case.
Oh I do want to mention there seems to be like a running joke or a theme in this book that you’re old as fuck if you’re 30. Like ancient. As someone who is 30 I take great offense to that.
So other than some minor problems I had with the plot taking a backseat for quite a while, I still really enjoyed it. Like I said, I do think book 2 will be even better. I loved the emphasis on nature, and how weird it is. It hit that right on the head.
April 18, 2023
As a big fan of R.J. Barker’s Bone Ship trilogy, I was excited to sink my teeth into his follow-up series. Here he trades guillame for gasmaw, shipwife for skyraft, and hag for hetton. I was impressed by Barker’s ability to once again conjure up an entirely new world filled with distinct and fascinating flora and fauna.
We’re dropped directly into this fully-formed world and left to puzzle out what is going on with Cahan, our main character with a dark and mysterious past. The subsequent events are mostly a means to unravel Cahan’s background and set up how he’s positioned to reshape the world of Crua.
The action and buildup are satisfying, but the quieter moments are not as engaging and the story beats sometimes feel repetitive. That said, the ingredients are definitely here for a compelling series. With an opportunity to build upon the groundwork laid down in the book, I’m very intrigued to see where the next books will venture.
My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.
See this review and others at The Speculative Shelf and follow @specshelf on Twitter.
We’re dropped directly into this fully-formed world and left to puzzle out what is going on with Cahan, our main character with a dark and mysterious past. The subsequent events are mostly a means to unravel Cahan’s background and set up how he’s positioned to reshape the world of Crua.
The action and buildup are satisfying, but the quieter moments are not as engaging and the story beats sometimes feel repetitive. That said, the ingredients are definitely here for a compelling series. With an opportunity to build upon the groundwork laid down in the book, I’m very intrigued to see where the next books will venture.
My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.
See this review and others at The Speculative Shelf and follow @specshelf on Twitter.
September 24, 2023
Well, Barker clearly gave his wild imagination free rein while writing Gods of the Wyrdwood, because wow… are there some capital W Weird things going on inside these pages. Malevolent sentient forests with creepy inhabitants, flying skyrafts, giant trees and mushrooms, prophecies, chosen ones, elusive and mystical magic, old and forgotten gods, and plenty of political and religious strife; this book has truly got it all!
While this is a fantasy story of truly epic proportions, the tale feels grounded by its intimate focus on our main protagonist, Cahan du Nahere. He is a Chosen One whose destiny was stolen from him, leaving him utterly purposeless and living as a lone wolf. However, his mysterious past is catching up to him and it turns out he can’t keep running forever, especially not from himself.
In true R.J. Barker fashion, there is absolutely zero hand holding in the storytelling here. We are dropped straight into this strange and ominous world and are expected to pick up the necessary clues along the way. Barker deftly straddles the line between intrigue and confusion, leaving just enough breadcrumbs to not feel completely lost, but also never sharing more than strictly necessary.
On the one hand, I sometimes wished I’d had a glossary to make sure I was interpreting unfamiliar in-world terms correctly, but on the other hand I also loved the sense of mystery and intrigue that permeates every aspect of this novel.
If you don’t like heavy exposition or large info-dumps, then R.J. Barker is definitely the author for you.
My favourite part of this book was without a doubt the imaginative and immersive world building. This world is absolutely breathtaking and the setting of the Wyrdwood with all its creepy creatures really captured my imagination. I always love it when a setting almost feels like a character in itself, especially if it has a bit of a haunting presence, and that was definitely the case here. I felt just as unsettled as the characters themselves while exploring the woods, yet at the same time I was completely awe-struck and filled with wonder.
The magic system was also fittingly mysterious and elusive, which allowed for some very cool and surprising displays of power. I particularly loved how it is so intricately tied to religion in this world, as that only made the magic feel more mystical.
All that said, there were some things that held me back from enjoying this story as much as I had anticipated I would.
The biggest issue for me personally was the fact that I just couldn’t connect to the majority of the characters, which I realise is a very subjective quibble of mine.
They are definitely complex and well-written characters, yet for some reason I simply couldn’t get emotionally invested. I think this is largely due to Barker’s sparse and choppy writing style, which just lacked emotion for me.
Cahan is a fascinating protagonist and his moral dilemma around the use of his magical powers is understandable and interesting, but his ‘woe is me’ attitude got a bit much for me after a while.
I did like how his past, which is shrouded in mystery, was slowly revealed through some very gripping chapters written in 2nd person POV though. That close and intimate storytelling technique evoked at least a tiny thread of empathy for him within me, which I very much welcomed.
There is also a second POV character, a narcissistic ruler desperately trying to maintain her position of power, who just didn’t do much for me. The only saving grace in her chapters was her child Venn, who was by far my favourite character in this novel. Venn is Trion, one of the third-gendered people in this world, and they possess extraordinary powers. But those powers unfortunately come at a cost, as the powerful families view them as nothing more than a highly coveted commodity.
Their personal journey was absolutely harrowing and gut wrenching, but also much more compelling than anyone else’s in this entire book. I honestly wished they would’ve been the focal point of the story, because I think that would’ve established the emotional investment that I was so desperately craving.
On top of my personal little quibbles with the character work, I also just couldn’t seem to figure out what the point of the plot was supposed to be. Every time I thought the inciting incident had happened, it turned out to be just another ‘false start’, if you will. It wasn’t until the 70% mark that the ‘side questing’ was over and the actual main conflict of the story emerged, after which the pacing suddenly just cranked up to eleven. To be fair, I quite enjoyed just plodding along and exploring this alluring world in all its glory, but it did make the story feel rather aimless for a large part of it.
Now, I realise this all sounds rather negative, but I honestly still had a really good time with this book and I even ended up reading the final 250 pages in one day. There's something about Barker’s storytelling that just keeps me hooked, so even though there might have been some confusion and frustration at first, I knew that I could trust the author to make it all come together in the end.
And indeed, if you are willing to be patient and put in the time and attention that is necessary to let this story absolutely sweep you off your feet, then this will be an incredibly rewarding reading experience. The slow build up did eventually have great pay-off, which leaves me very excited to see what mind-boggling directions Barker is going to take this story next.
Overall, I think Gods of the Wyrdwood is a promising start to what is no doubt going to be a highly impressive and ambitious fantasy series.
You could definitely use this book as your jumping-off point into R.J. Barker’s works, but I think you might have a better reading experience if you are already familiar with his wild imagination and unconventional storytelling techniques from reading some of his earlier works.
Gods of the Wyrdwood is the perfect slow-burn book for anyone who is craving a refreshing and imaginative fantasy story that challenges your expectations by defying genre conventions at every possible opportunity. Honestly, what a wild, unpredictable and exciting ride!
Thank you to NetGalley and Orbit for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
While this is a fantasy story of truly epic proportions, the tale feels grounded by its intimate focus on our main protagonist, Cahan du Nahere. He is a Chosen One whose destiny was stolen from him, leaving him utterly purposeless and living as a lone wolf. However, his mysterious past is catching up to him and it turns out he can’t keep running forever, especially not from himself.
In true R.J. Barker fashion, there is absolutely zero hand holding in the storytelling here. We are dropped straight into this strange and ominous world and are expected to pick up the necessary clues along the way. Barker deftly straddles the line between intrigue and confusion, leaving just enough breadcrumbs to not feel completely lost, but also never sharing more than strictly necessary.
On the one hand, I sometimes wished I’d had a glossary to make sure I was interpreting unfamiliar in-world terms correctly, but on the other hand I also loved the sense of mystery and intrigue that permeates every aspect of this novel.
If you don’t like heavy exposition or large info-dumps, then R.J. Barker is definitely the author for you.
My favourite part of this book was without a doubt the imaginative and immersive world building. This world is absolutely breathtaking and the setting of the Wyrdwood with all its creepy creatures really captured my imagination. I always love it when a setting almost feels like a character in itself, especially if it has a bit of a haunting presence, and that was definitely the case here. I felt just as unsettled as the characters themselves while exploring the woods, yet at the same time I was completely awe-struck and filled with wonder.
The magic system was also fittingly mysterious and elusive, which allowed for some very cool and surprising displays of power. I particularly loved how it is so intricately tied to religion in this world, as that only made the magic feel more mystical.
All that said, there were some things that held me back from enjoying this story as much as I had anticipated I would.
The biggest issue for me personally was the fact that I just couldn’t connect to the majority of the characters, which I realise is a very subjective quibble of mine.
They are definitely complex and well-written characters, yet for some reason I simply couldn’t get emotionally invested. I think this is largely due to Barker’s sparse and choppy writing style, which just lacked emotion for me.
Cahan is a fascinating protagonist and his moral dilemma around the use of his magical powers is understandable and interesting, but his ‘woe is me’ attitude got a bit much for me after a while.
I did like how his past, which is shrouded in mystery, was slowly revealed through some very gripping chapters written in 2nd person POV though. That close and intimate storytelling technique evoked at least a tiny thread of empathy for him within me, which I very much welcomed.
There is also a second POV character, a narcissistic ruler desperately trying to maintain her position of power, who just didn’t do much for me. The only saving grace in her chapters was her child Venn, who was by far my favourite character in this novel. Venn is Trion, one of the third-gendered people in this world, and they possess extraordinary powers. But those powers unfortunately come at a cost, as the powerful families view them as nothing more than a highly coveted commodity.
Their personal journey was absolutely harrowing and gut wrenching, but also much more compelling than anyone else’s in this entire book. I honestly wished they would’ve been the focal point of the story, because I think that would’ve established the emotional investment that I was so desperately craving.
On top of my personal little quibbles with the character work, I also just couldn’t seem to figure out what the point of the plot was supposed to be. Every time I thought the inciting incident had happened, it turned out to be just another ‘false start’, if you will. It wasn’t until the 70% mark that the ‘side questing’ was over and the actual main conflict of the story emerged, after which the pacing suddenly just cranked up to eleven. To be fair, I quite enjoyed just plodding along and exploring this alluring world in all its glory, but it did make the story feel rather aimless for a large part of it.
Now, I realise this all sounds rather negative, but I honestly still had a really good time with this book and I even ended up reading the final 250 pages in one day. There's something about Barker’s storytelling that just keeps me hooked, so even though there might have been some confusion and frustration at first, I knew that I could trust the author to make it all come together in the end.
And indeed, if you are willing to be patient and put in the time and attention that is necessary to let this story absolutely sweep you off your feet, then this will be an incredibly rewarding reading experience. The slow build up did eventually have great pay-off, which leaves me very excited to see what mind-boggling directions Barker is going to take this story next.
Overall, I think Gods of the Wyrdwood is a promising start to what is no doubt going to be a highly impressive and ambitious fantasy series.
You could definitely use this book as your jumping-off point into R.J. Barker’s works, but I think you might have a better reading experience if you are already familiar with his wild imagination and unconventional storytelling techniques from reading some of his earlier works.
Gods of the Wyrdwood is the perfect slow-burn book for anyone who is craving a refreshing and imaginative fantasy story that challenges your expectations by defying genre conventions at every possible opportunity. Honestly, what a wild, unpredictable and exciting ride!
Thank you to NetGalley and Orbit for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
October 18, 2023
Gods of the Wyrdwood is a new fantasy novel from the wonderful RJ Barker.
I really enjoyed it.
It’s a slow burn novel, taking its time to build – but as a result we have an immersive world that feels very real. I’ve had a few conversations recently where fantasy fans have stated that modern fantasy worlds are often too obviously based on our world. I get that – I do. Perhaps this is a result of Game of Thrones/House of the dragon and the strength of it’s links to the War of the Roses and the Anarchy – both periods of British medieval history – and the impact that’s had on modern literature? Or perhaps it the rise in interest in world mythologies and how these can be woven into new stories?
Whatever the reason, I’ve noticed it – which is why a fantasy series that is completely unlike our world can be especially gratifying. Gods of the Wyrdwood is this book. The forests here are powerful places. The most prominent God can be switched. The magical system is scary at times. Most of the people who wield magical abilities are not good people. These building blocks give this book a very different feel to most others.
The characterisation in this novel really shines. Cahan, our main character, is a man at war with his past. Indeed, most of the time, he tries to forget it. We quickly find out, however, that his past is not done with him. His reluctance to accept who he is can be a little frustrating at times, but as the novel progresses, we really do see why. The magic that is used in this world is harmful and destructive – damaging to those around you, but also to yourself.
Cahan, once thought of as the new ‘chosen one’ is now living a life of poverty and isolation. This is his choice. As the novel progresses and forces work against him, we see why his position may change, but why this is such a torment to him.Venn is another excellent character – they are also tormented by their power and what they must do to unleash it.
RJ Barker, talented author that he is, doesn’t spoon feed his readers. You are shown the world and left to make up you mind as to what things mean, only for the real answers to be revealed at a later stage. He layers up the story, piece by piece. As a reader I am impressed, but as an author, I am doubly so. It’s difficult to keep the right amount of information back while maintaining momentum and intrigue.
As I said above, I really enjoyed this book and am looking forward to the sequel. I’d highly recommend this book to fans of epic fantasy and those who like unusual worlds and settings.
I really enjoyed it.
It’s a slow burn novel, taking its time to build – but as a result we have an immersive world that feels very real. I’ve had a few conversations recently where fantasy fans have stated that modern fantasy worlds are often too obviously based on our world. I get that – I do. Perhaps this is a result of Game of Thrones/House of the dragon and the strength of it’s links to the War of the Roses and the Anarchy – both periods of British medieval history – and the impact that’s had on modern literature? Or perhaps it the rise in interest in world mythologies and how these can be woven into new stories?
Whatever the reason, I’ve noticed it – which is why a fantasy series that is completely unlike our world can be especially gratifying. Gods of the Wyrdwood is this book. The forests here are powerful places. The most prominent God can be switched. The magical system is scary at times. Most of the people who wield magical abilities are not good people. These building blocks give this book a very different feel to most others.
The characterisation in this novel really shines. Cahan, our main character, is a man at war with his past. Indeed, most of the time, he tries to forget it. We quickly find out, however, that his past is not done with him. His reluctance to accept who he is can be a little frustrating at times, but as the novel progresses, we really do see why. The magic that is used in this world is harmful and destructive – damaging to those around you, but also to yourself.
Cahan, once thought of as the new ‘chosen one’ is now living a life of poverty and isolation. This is his choice. As the novel progresses and forces work against him, we see why his position may change, but why this is such a torment to him.Venn is another excellent character – they are also tormented by their power and what they must do to unleash it.
RJ Barker, talented author that he is, doesn’t spoon feed his readers. You are shown the world and left to make up you mind as to what things mean, only for the real answers to be revealed at a later stage. He layers up the story, piece by piece. As a reader I am impressed, but as an author, I am doubly so. It’s difficult to keep the right amount of information back while maintaining momentum and intrigue.
As I said above, I really enjoyed this book and am looking forward to the sequel. I’d highly recommend this book to fans of epic fantasy and those who like unusual worlds and settings.
August 31, 2025
This is the ultimate forest fantasy book recommendation.
Cahan is clanless, of no family, no loyalty; living on the edge of the forest.
He is the Chosen One, sent to usher in a new age for a god. But he is unwilling and someone else 20 years later, another young boy, has been forced to take his place.
Hiding in secrecy, Cahan is running away from danger, his past, from attachments. However, when the new Chosen One crosses path with him, something epic and dangerous is set in motion.
The magic feeds on pain and agony. The Rai (magic users) are cruel and thrive on suffering. The citizens are barely scrapping by and resigned to their fates with sacrifice.
To survive is often to walk away from cruelty. But is that to live?
I have no idea how to describe this book to you. Like all of his books and series, this is just a start, a seed, and from it something far stranger and more complex will grow. Where you start and where you finish, chapter to chapter, book to book, is totally different and new.
There is no framework to set your expectations, no predictability, and strange pacing that keeps you on edge.
The woods are alive and lavish with description, full of creepy plants, creatures, and beings.
There are different religions and practices.
It seems epic, but is kept grounded (get it?) in the intimate focus on characters.
A small cast - for such a sprawling world - and great introspection means you don’t mind how confused you often are.
Yes, a glossary would have been useful, but you’re learning along with the characters Cahan ends up meeting along the way.
Arc gifted by Orbit.
Bookstagram
Tiktok
Cahan is clanless, of no family, no loyalty; living on the edge of the forest.
He is the Chosen One, sent to usher in a new age for a god. But he is unwilling and someone else 20 years later, another young boy, has been forced to take his place.
Hiding in secrecy, Cahan is running away from danger, his past, from attachments. However, when the new Chosen One crosses path with him, something epic and dangerous is set in motion.
The magic feeds on pain and agony. The Rai (magic users) are cruel and thrive on suffering. The citizens are barely scrapping by and resigned to their fates with sacrifice.
To survive is often to walk away from cruelty. But is that to live?
I have no idea how to describe this book to you. Like all of his books and series, this is just a start, a seed, and from it something far stranger and more complex will grow. Where you start and where you finish, chapter to chapter, book to book, is totally different and new.
There is no framework to set your expectations, no predictability, and strange pacing that keeps you on edge.
The woods are alive and lavish with description, full of creepy plants, creatures, and beings.
There are different religions and practices.
It seems epic, but is kept grounded (get it?) in the intimate focus on characters.
A small cast - for such a sprawling world - and great introspection means you don’t mind how confused you often are.
Yes, a glossary would have been useful, but you’re learning along with the characters Cahan ends up meeting along the way.
Arc gifted by Orbit.
Bookstagram
Tiktok
June 16, 2023
Gods of the Wyldwood is the first installment in a trilogy from RJ Barker. This is my first experience with his work and, while there were aspects of it that I struggled with, I’m sure it won’t be my last. The world of Crua is incredibly unique, utterly unlike anything else I’ve ever read. However, I think the story suffered a bit at the hands of the world building. There seemed to barely be a plot at all for the first half of the book. And while there was an immense amount of the narrative dedicated to the world itself, very little of that was spent explaining anything to the reader. It felt info-dumpy from the sheer amount of time spent learning about the world, but it also felt as if readers are simply tossed into shark-infested waters and expected to swim. This is one of the oddest things I’ve ever read.
The world is a bit Lovecraftian in setup. The flora and fauna are utterly alien, and incredibly weird. There are tentacles galore, along with animals that float via gas bladders and vines that float. These things combined made for a tough world to picture until I finally envisioned an underwater realm, but without the water. The Wyrdwood at the heart of this world is greatly feared, and with good reason. Everything in it seems thirsty for blood. And yet, as it’s described at night, it’s also a place of breathtaking beauty. Think Ferngully, or Avatar’s Pandora. It’s luminous, and seeing it sounds almost worth the risk of death and dismemberment.
There is also an abundance of odd names and terminology, which was nearly impossible to keep straight. The social structure and positioning was also unusual and difficult to wrap my mind around. The family setup, with firstwives, secondwives, firsthusbands, secondhusbands, and so on, is interesting but difficult for my monogamous mind to comprehend. And then there are trions, those who are neither male nor female, husband nor wife, but something uniquely their own and prized for those differences. One of our main secondary characters is a trion, and they were pretty fascinating.
But our main character, Cahan, is by far the most interesting character in the story. He reminded me of Logen Ninefingers, or of Clay from Kings of the Wyld, in how he thought and kept himself a bit a part. But he is also wholly his own. While the story was slow to start, he did grow a good deal as the narrative progressed. Other characters I enjoyed were Udinny, a monk of a relatively unknown god, and Segur, who is something of a pet to Cahan but who I still can’t come close to envisioning in my mind.
Besides the fact that this over 600 page book seemed to have a 300 page introduction, my biggest problem with Gods of the Wyldwood was the writing itself. I’m not sure if they were stylistic choices or things that might be edited out of the final, finished copy, but the grammar was just about as wild as the Wyldwood itself. The amount of fragments, run-on sentences, and improperly compounded sentences was appalling. And don’t even get me started on the comma splices, which littered just about every single paragraph in the book. Again, I think these things might be stylistic choices, not a lack or knowledge or poor craftsmanship, they threw me constantly.
Barker has an incredibly creative mind. The world he crafted is truly unlike anything else I’ve come across in the fantasy genre. But it’s my belief that he was so enamored by he world he created that the characters and story took a back seat, and it showed in the storytelling. I’m not sold on this series yet, but I would at least attempt to read the sequel. And I still have high hopes for his Tide Child trilogy, which I have sitting on my shelf in its entirety. Here’s to hoping I can gel more with his writing in that series than I did with this particular book.
The world is a bit Lovecraftian in setup. The flora and fauna are utterly alien, and incredibly weird. There are tentacles galore, along with animals that float via gas bladders and vines that float. These things combined made for a tough world to picture until I finally envisioned an underwater realm, but without the water. The Wyrdwood at the heart of this world is greatly feared, and with good reason. Everything in it seems thirsty for blood. And yet, as it’s described at night, it’s also a place of breathtaking beauty. Think Ferngully, or Avatar’s Pandora. It’s luminous, and seeing it sounds almost worth the risk of death and dismemberment.
There is also an abundance of odd names and terminology, which was nearly impossible to keep straight. The social structure and positioning was also unusual and difficult to wrap my mind around. The family setup, with firstwives, secondwives, firsthusbands, secondhusbands, and so on, is interesting but difficult for my monogamous mind to comprehend. And then there are trions, those who are neither male nor female, husband nor wife, but something uniquely their own and prized for those differences. One of our main secondary characters is a trion, and they were pretty fascinating.
But our main character, Cahan, is by far the most interesting character in the story. He reminded me of Logen Ninefingers, or of Clay from Kings of the Wyld, in how he thought and kept himself a bit a part. But he is also wholly his own. While the story was slow to start, he did grow a good deal as the narrative progressed. Other characters I enjoyed were Udinny, a monk of a relatively unknown god, and Segur, who is something of a pet to Cahan but who I still can’t come close to envisioning in my mind.
Besides the fact that this over 600 page book seemed to have a 300 page introduction, my biggest problem with Gods of the Wyldwood was the writing itself. I’m not sure if they were stylistic choices or things that might be edited out of the final, finished copy, but the grammar was just about as wild as the Wyldwood itself. The amount of fragments, run-on sentences, and improperly compounded sentences was appalling. And don’t even get me started on the comma splices, which littered just about every single paragraph in the book. Again, I think these things might be stylistic choices, not a lack or knowledge or poor craftsmanship, they threw me constantly.
Barker has an incredibly creative mind. The world he crafted is truly unlike anything else I’ve come across in the fantasy genre. But it’s my belief that he was so enamored by he world he created that the characters and story took a back seat, and it showed in the storytelling. I’m not sold on this series yet, but I would at least attempt to read the sequel. And I still have high hopes for his Tide Child trilogy, which I have sitting on my shelf in its entirety. Here’s to hoping I can gel more with his writing in that series than I did with this particular book.
July 9, 2023
The author demonstrates great skill in crafting a vivid and intricate world, particularly in the descriptions of creatures and the magic system. The reader is left to discover and piece together the elements of the world, which adds depth and intrigue to the story.
However, despite the rich world-building, I struggled to connect with the characters. I found it difficult to become fully invested in their journeys. Additionally, the events of the story often felt disconnected, lacking a cohesive flow that hindered my engagement with the plot. The story takes time to fully reveal itself, and it wasn't until the later stages of the book that the plot gained momentum.
There were also instances where it was challenging to discern who was speaking during dialogue scenes, which created some confusion while reading. It is possible that this is a stylistic choice by the author, but it impacted my reading experience.
While Gods of the Wyrdwood showcases impressive world-building and a unique setting, the slow start and disconnected plot may not appeal to all readers. It is possible that the writing style of the author may not resonate with everyone. However, for those who appreciate immersive world-building and are willing to invest in a slower-paced narrative, this book may offer a rewarding reading experience.
Thank you to Orbit books and Netgalley for the eARC. This is my honest review.
However, despite the rich world-building, I struggled to connect with the characters. I found it difficult to become fully invested in their journeys. Additionally, the events of the story often felt disconnected, lacking a cohesive flow that hindered my engagement with the plot. The story takes time to fully reveal itself, and it wasn't until the later stages of the book that the plot gained momentum.
There were also instances where it was challenging to discern who was speaking during dialogue scenes, which created some confusion while reading. It is possible that this is a stylistic choice by the author, but it impacted my reading experience.
While Gods of the Wyrdwood showcases impressive world-building and a unique setting, the slow start and disconnected plot may not appeal to all readers. It is possible that the writing style of the author may not resonate with everyone. However, for those who appreciate immersive world-building and are willing to invest in a slower-paced narrative, this book may offer a rewarding reading experience.
Thank you to Orbit books and Netgalley for the eARC. This is my honest review.
Read
October 27, 2024Original. Magnificent. Engrossing. RJ Barker's done it again.
June 30, 2023
I may have finished this book, but it finished me too.
I heard a lot of good things about R. J. Barker and have been meaning to pick up his books for a while. This turned out to be the first, but not the last.
I'm pleasantly surprised, I could tell from the first page that it would be a good read, and it just kept getting better and better as it went on.
It was a bit confusing at the start, as are all fantasy books, but I never felt like I was being info-dumped on. Things were revealed slowly, new ones added just when you got used to everything that came before so it wasn't overwhelming.
I loved the world building, it made the book for me. There's a spooky forest with tons of creepy crawlies that have a mind of their own. But, they won't hurt you unless if you hurt them.
The respect Cahan gives to said forest is admirable, he was also raised in it for a portion of his life. He knows it so well that the villagers call him the Forester. They're distrustful of him at the beginning, but by the end of the book they accept him as one of their own.
So you could say there's a found family theme throughout the book, not just with the villagers but also with Udinny, a monk of a forgotten God, and Venn a trion who desperately wants to escape their destiny.
I loved all three of them equally, maybe Cahan a tiny bit more than the other two because we knew him the longest, but they're all very dear to my heart.
All three of them have very important roles to play in the battle at the end of the book, and all the build up was worth it. That last third passed by in a flash and when it was over I wanted more.
Now I have no idea how I'm supposed to wait for the next books??? Especially with that reveal at the end. I was suspecting something would happen, but not LIKE THAT.
I literally finished the book last night and I haven't been able to stop thinking about it since I woke up. It has found a permanent residence in my head.
I also have to mention the magic system, it's as interesting as the world building. There were a few times when Cahan used his Cowl in the book, it was fascinating. I really can't wait to see what he does with it next.
*Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review*
I heard a lot of good things about R. J. Barker and have been meaning to pick up his books for a while. This turned out to be the first, but not the last.
I'm pleasantly surprised, I could tell from the first page that it would be a good read, and it just kept getting better and better as it went on.
It was a bit confusing at the start, as are all fantasy books, but I never felt like I was being info-dumped on. Things were revealed slowly, new ones added just when you got used to everything that came before so it wasn't overwhelming.
I loved the world building, it made the book for me. There's a spooky forest with tons of creepy crawlies that have a mind of their own. But, they won't hurt you unless if you hurt them.
The respect Cahan gives to said forest is admirable, he was also raised in it for a portion of his life. He knows it so well that the villagers call him the Forester. They're distrustful of him at the beginning, but by the end of the book they accept him as one of their own.
So you could say there's a found family theme throughout the book, not just with the villagers but also with Udinny, a monk of a forgotten God, and Venn a trion who desperately wants to escape their destiny.
I loved all three of them equally, maybe Cahan a tiny bit more than the other two because we knew him the longest, but they're all very dear to my heart.
All three of them have very important roles to play in the battle at the end of the book, and all the build up was worth it. That last third passed by in a flash and when it was over I wanted more.
Now I have no idea how I'm supposed to wait for the next books??? Especially with that reveal at the end. I was suspecting something would happen, but not LIKE THAT.
I literally finished the book last night and I haven't been able to stop thinking about it since I woke up. It has found a permanent residence in my head.
I also have to mention the magic system, it's as interesting as the world building. There were a few times when Cahan used his Cowl in the book, it was fascinating. I really can't wait to see what he does with it next.
*Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review*
September 29, 2024
3.5 Stars
This is an author who has recently gotten onto my radar after reading some of his backlist. So I was excited for the opportunity to read his newest series.
There is something about this author's writing that always feels unique even if the plot itself is relatively familiar. I like the complexity to his characters and plots, which feels a step above the average fantasy author.
I liked this one, but I will admit that I was held back from loving it. While it felt like the author was trying to do something different with his narrative, I didn't find the actual plot or characters to be entirely gripping. Clearly this is a personal take, so I suspect other readers may be more engrossed.
Disclaimer I received a copy of this book from the publisher.
This is an author who has recently gotten onto my radar after reading some of his backlist. So I was excited for the opportunity to read his newest series.
There is something about this author's writing that always feels unique even if the plot itself is relatively familiar. I like the complexity to his characters and plots, which feels a step above the average fantasy author.
I liked this one, but I will admit that I was held back from loving it. While it felt like the author was trying to do something different with his narrative, I didn't find the actual plot or characters to be entirely gripping. Clearly this is a personal take, so I suspect other readers may be more engrossed.
Disclaimer I received a copy of this book from the publisher.
November 17, 2024
This is exactly what I wanted.
Intense and incredible world building but a streamlined plot that let me learn the world and experience the unique setting and be absorbed by every aspect
Rj writes worlds better than pretty much everyone. I don't know what he drinks or what mushrooms he eats, but my gosh, he comes up with some weird shit
This was a very well crafted novel. The first half was slow, but the second half executed perfectly
Then followed by an utterly compelling epilogue. Onto book 2 we go
Intense and incredible world building but a streamlined plot that let me learn the world and experience the unique setting and be absorbed by every aspect
Rj writes worlds better than pretty much everyone. I don't know what he drinks or what mushrooms he eats, but my gosh, he comes up with some weird shit
This was a very well crafted novel. The first half was slow, but the second half executed perfectly
Then followed by an utterly compelling epilogue. Onto book 2 we go
June 27, 2023
This was my first R.J. Barker novel to read despite the fact that I have several of his previous titles on my shelf. Looking at it now, I am certain I have waited too long to pick up his works.
Gods of the Wyrdwood was such a pleasant surprise. As a fan of the natural world and imagination in fantasy, this story worked so well in combining the perfect woodland settings with intriguing monsters and creatures while the inner workings of the inhabitants/farmers in the story adhered to the very grounded, elemental skills of survival. All the fancy glimmer sat way in the background and the story unfolded in ways of back to basics, back to journeys, back to friendships, back to the underdog heroes...and I was there for it. What a beautiful mesh of the old and the mysterious delusions of deity.
"The forester watched himself die. Not many can say that.
He did not die well."
Cahan the Forester isn't welcome to trade at the market. He is clanless. In a land where the gods sacrificed their link to the world to cut off the Osere and only give power to their chosen ones, the Cowl-Rai and the Rai, it was Iftal that had saved the people but made the land hard because the gods could no longer service it. Cahan is the outsider, the banished one. He is to be chained and cast to the Osere to be burned ever so slowly for his ignorance and indolence, but Cahan has a secret...
He walks the fire.
You are fire.
...everything is burning. He is burning. And you are the fire.
By the order of the Leoric Furin, he isn't welcome anymore, but the story turns as he is posed a preposition: to save a lost child that has gone into the forest. Together with Udinny, the keeper of the small and helpless, they embark on this trip. If there is one person with the most experience in Woodedge and Wyrdwood, it would only be Cahan. And so an unforgettable, wondrous, and perilous journey begins...
Cahan has a past. Mingled in between the chapters are snippets of his consciousness in the works, or excerpts told that help the reader understand where he is coming from. There is an ominous/mysterious way about them and they read strikingly vivid... maybe slightly purple. These snippets build and culminate by the end of the first book in the Forsaken Trilogy with an important clue/cliffhanger, even though the story arc comes to an end...for now as it seems.
The world in The Gods of the Wyrdwood was filled with villages and well-imagined creatures. Monks, trions, monsters, and such with different abilities. I enjoyed the basics behind the weaponry and the attention to detail to the forest surroundings as well as the characters. Cahan himself is the humble, reserved sort, made so by his personal history and abilities, but he holds power inside him with restraint, that becomes clear right away, yet he doesn't abuse it in the story. It makes him very likable for an underdog...almost too kind, but in the end, a redeeming friend of sorts. Considering the built-up in this novel, it gives ample time to get to know him, though Cahan will be challenged by something rather big I fear in the next book (or so I anticipate ;) ).
I'm always a fan of journeying in fantasy and the story offers great parts of that. It's a sip a hot cocoa and get cozy sort of read, but something sharper or more cooled a beverage now in the summer will suffice. The point is, it’s a nice book to fall into if you enjoy the natural world and fantasies of the traditional kind.
My first novel by Barker didn't let me down. I liked his intuitive writing that was just set right in prose for this kind of story. There weren't extremely loud moments or rage of a kind, but he kept it intricate, highly readable, and beautifully imagined.
"Those milling around the few stalls were rainbow of color: brown, yellow jerkins of thick felt with pressed-in stripes and whirls of bright colour. They wore conical hats in bright blues or reds or purples dyed from berries and mushrooms. For their trousers and kilts, they tended towards more somber dark blues and blacks. Between the adults ran children in simple one-piece gowns, screeching and laughing. In them was the only merriment to be found in Harn."
As I was finishing this book, I knew immediately that I would want to read his other novels. I'm hoping to jump into The Tide Child Trilogy right quick, because it's been sitting on my shelf for too long, and I am in on this R.J. Barker thing. I really enjoyed what he did here and I can't wait to read the next one.
Happy Reading, friends!
I received a copy of this novel from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own, Thank you!
More of my reviews here:
Through Novel Time & Distance
The Fantasy Hive
Gods of the Wyrdwood was such a pleasant surprise. As a fan of the natural world and imagination in fantasy, this story worked so well in combining the perfect woodland settings with intriguing monsters and creatures while the inner workings of the inhabitants/farmers in the story adhered to the very grounded, elemental skills of survival. All the fancy glimmer sat way in the background and the story unfolded in ways of back to basics, back to journeys, back to friendships, back to the underdog heroes...and I was there for it. What a beautiful mesh of the old and the mysterious delusions of deity.
"The forester watched himself die. Not many can say that.
He did not die well."
Cahan the Forester isn't welcome to trade at the market. He is clanless. In a land where the gods sacrificed their link to the world to cut off the Osere and only give power to their chosen ones, the Cowl-Rai and the Rai, it was Iftal that had saved the people but made the land hard because the gods could no longer service it. Cahan is the outsider, the banished one. He is to be chained and cast to the Osere to be burned ever so slowly for his ignorance and indolence, but Cahan has a secret...
He walks the fire.
You are fire.
...everything is burning. He is burning. And you are the fire.
By the order of the Leoric Furin, he isn't welcome anymore, but the story turns as he is posed a preposition: to save a lost child that has gone into the forest. Together with Udinny, the keeper of the small and helpless, they embark on this trip. If there is one person with the most experience in Woodedge and Wyrdwood, it would only be Cahan. And so an unforgettable, wondrous, and perilous journey begins...
Cahan has a past. Mingled in between the chapters are snippets of his consciousness in the works, or excerpts told that help the reader understand where he is coming from. There is an ominous/mysterious way about them and they read strikingly vivid... maybe slightly purple. These snippets build and culminate by the end of the first book in the Forsaken Trilogy with an important clue/cliffhanger, even though the story arc comes to an end...for now as it seems.
The world in The Gods of the Wyrdwood was filled with villages and well-imagined creatures. Monks, trions, monsters, and such with different abilities. I enjoyed the basics behind the weaponry and the attention to detail to the forest surroundings as well as the characters. Cahan himself is the humble, reserved sort, made so by his personal history and abilities, but he holds power inside him with restraint, that becomes clear right away, yet he doesn't abuse it in the story. It makes him very likable for an underdog...almost too kind, but in the end, a redeeming friend of sorts. Considering the built-up in this novel, it gives ample time to get to know him, though Cahan will be challenged by something rather big I fear in the next book (or so I anticipate ;) ).
I'm always a fan of journeying in fantasy and the story offers great parts of that. It's a sip a hot cocoa and get cozy sort of read, but something sharper or more cooled a beverage now in the summer will suffice. The point is, it’s a nice book to fall into if you enjoy the natural world and fantasies of the traditional kind.
My first novel by Barker didn't let me down. I liked his intuitive writing that was just set right in prose for this kind of story. There weren't extremely loud moments or rage of a kind, but he kept it intricate, highly readable, and beautifully imagined.
"Those milling around the few stalls were rainbow of color: brown, yellow jerkins of thick felt with pressed-in stripes and whirls of bright colour. They wore conical hats in bright blues or reds or purples dyed from berries and mushrooms. For their trousers and kilts, they tended towards more somber dark blues and blacks. Between the adults ran children in simple one-piece gowns, screeching and laughing. In them was the only merriment to be found in Harn."
As I was finishing this book, I knew immediately that I would want to read his other novels. I'm hoping to jump into The Tide Child Trilogy right quick, because it's been sitting on my shelf for too long, and I am in on this R.J. Barker thing. I really enjoyed what he did here and I can't wait to read the next one.
Happy Reading, friends!
I received a copy of this novel from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own, Thank you!
More of my reviews here:
Through Novel Time & Distance
The Fantasy Hive
December 9, 2024
Reread 2023
I have no idea why I didn’t give this 5 starts last time. This book is absolutely phenomenal. The worldbuilding is the best you’ll ever read. It’s a very weird and grim world and his writing of the forest was just chef’s kiss!
The character work was also fantastic and his character Venn was much easier to understand the second time around. Venn is sexless in this book so he puts “They” instead of he/she and that was extremely jarring the first time I read that. I was prepared for that this time which really helped.
First read 2022
3.5 🌟
I will start off by saying that I would probably like this book even more if life didn’t keep getting in the way and letting me only read 50 pages at a time.
Barker’s writing style was very difficult to get into at first. His prose is very choppy like a thriller novel but that only works when you’re writing something thrilling. Instead its more like “The tree. Green leaves. Rough bark. Tall. Good for climbing.”
After awhile I got in the groove of it and it didn’t bother me too much.
This book also desperately needs a glossary and character description. He has so much imagination, which I love don’t get me wrong, but it was a bit difficult for me to remember what everything was later on in the book. Also some characters he refers to as they/them. I’m not getting into social issues of genderless people but when reading a book, a singular character written as plural is incredibly difficult and unnecessary.
Now let’s get to what I LOVE about this book.
Barker’s imagination is just so refreshing and definitely top tier of fantasy authors. I simply can’t believe with all the material out there he can still come up with something so fresh.
When the main character leads a monk into a forest to find someone who’s lost (Sounds random but you’ll get it when you read it). The world building of the forest was so mysterious and ominous. You’re constantly worried about what new creature is going to attack or what the forest itself is going to do harm you or lead you astray. It took up the middle of the book and I loved every minute of it.
The ending of the book had such a long battle scene that was a blast to read. He’s no John Gwynne but he writes action just fine to me. Not to mention a crazy cliffhanger ending that will make you wanting more!
I will greatly enjoy this book more on a reread which I will do when the sequel comes out. If Barker’s prose could be a little more fluid, have better character development in the sequel, and give me a dang glossary, then this series has the potential to be very high on my list of favorites!
Review brought to you thanks to NetGalley and Orbit.
I have no idea why I didn’t give this 5 starts last time. This book is absolutely phenomenal. The worldbuilding is the best you’ll ever read. It’s a very weird and grim world and his writing of the forest was just chef’s kiss!
The character work was also fantastic and his character Venn was much easier to understand the second time around. Venn is sexless in this book so he puts “They” instead of he/she and that was extremely jarring the first time I read that. I was prepared for that this time which really helped.
First read 2022
3.5 🌟
I will start off by saying that I would probably like this book even more if life didn’t keep getting in the way and letting me only read 50 pages at a time.
Barker’s writing style was very difficult to get into at first. His prose is very choppy like a thriller novel but that only works when you’re writing something thrilling. Instead its more like “The tree. Green leaves. Rough bark. Tall. Good for climbing.”
After awhile I got in the groove of it and it didn’t bother me too much.
This book also desperately needs a glossary and character description. He has so much imagination, which I love don’t get me wrong, but it was a bit difficult for me to remember what everything was later on in the book. Also some characters he refers to as they/them. I’m not getting into social issues of genderless people but when reading a book, a singular character written as plural is incredibly difficult and unnecessary.
Now let’s get to what I LOVE about this book.
Barker’s imagination is just so refreshing and definitely top tier of fantasy authors. I simply can’t believe with all the material out there he can still come up with something so fresh.
When the main character leads a monk into a forest to find someone who’s lost (Sounds random but you’ll get it when you read it). The world building of the forest was so mysterious and ominous. You’re constantly worried about what new creature is going to attack or what the forest itself is going to do harm you or lead you astray. It took up the middle of the book and I loved every minute of it.
The ending of the book had such a long battle scene that was a blast to read. He’s no John Gwynne but he writes action just fine to me. Not to mention a crazy cliffhanger ending that will make you wanting more!
I will greatly enjoy this book more on a reread which I will do when the sequel comes out. If Barker’s prose could be a little more fluid, have better character development in the sequel, and give me a dang glossary, then this series has the potential to be very high on my list of favorites!
Review brought to you thanks to NetGalley and Orbit.
November 9, 2024
Probably one of the most criminally underrated authors imo. This book is hands down one of the most unique world building settings I've ever read and I would put it right up there with Malazan. RJ Barker wears his balls on his sleeve to simply say "It's not my job to explain everything to you, you'll figure it out by the end of it". Firm handshake Barker firm handshake because this is my favorite niche type of writing style and it shows that he gives the reader trust and that's something I can greatly respect. This is one of the best fantasy books I've finished this year and I'm so upset with myself I've kept it on the shelf for over a year!
February 3, 2024
God's of the Wyrdwood by R.J. Barker is a hard to review book, but I can easily say - I loved it!
It's a slow burn epic fantasy, which enthralled me with its mysteries right from the start. The main character is an outcast, living a solitary life on the edge of society. His POV and voice were really intriguing and captivating, so even though the story takes a good while to really take off, it never felt too slow to me.
Another absolute strong suit of this is the world building! I adored the fantastical creatures, the intimidating forest, the unexpected use people found for nature and the sheer imagination there.
The magic is mysterious enough to still feel mysterious, but also clear enough to not but feel like an emergency solution to every problem.
It felt like I walked off the page right into the forest and village, and coming back to the real world was jarring!
As always I appreciate the inclusive cast, trions for example, who are neither man nor woman, and are using They / Them pronouns. It's also very normal to have a first wife or second husband or whoever / whatever you choose. I love how this isn't made a big deal, it is just the normal setup for this society.
The characters were varied and plausible, and I'll really miss spending time with some of them!
We have two main POV characters, Cahan as our "hero" and Kirven as his opponent in a way - Kirven.
While Cahan tries to avoid bloodshed and violence, he clearly has a very dark past and is not innocent himself.
Kirven in the other hand revels in causing pain, and ruthlessly doing what needs to be done to keep keep her power. Yet both get enough page time, so you can understand their motivations and goals. I always love it when "the bad guys" aren't just bad for the sake of it, but you somehow manage to care for them, while hoping they won't win...
Her child Venn is a trion and meant to be extremely powerful. Yet they refuse to kill to actually activate said power. They are very naive and yet stronger than it seems, and I really enjoyed this counter balance to Cahans world weary way.
Udinny, a monk, is yet another character type, and is very outgoing, optimistic and never shutting up.
I loved the relationship that slowly grew between Cahan, Venn and Udinny, which had a strong found family feel, even though they all just met.
Barker manages to write fantasy that has the magic and fantasy we so much love from the genre, and yet it feels fresh and different. I need more!
It's a slow burn epic fantasy, which enthralled me with its mysteries right from the start. The main character is an outcast, living a solitary life on the edge of society. His POV and voice were really intriguing and captivating, so even though the story takes a good while to really take off, it never felt too slow to me.
Another absolute strong suit of this is the world building! I adored the fantastical creatures, the intimidating forest, the unexpected use people found for nature and the sheer imagination there.
The magic is mysterious enough to still feel mysterious, but also clear enough to not but feel like an emergency solution to every problem.
It felt like I walked off the page right into the forest and village, and coming back to the real world was jarring!
As always I appreciate the inclusive cast, trions for example, who are neither man nor woman, and are using They / Them pronouns. It's also very normal to have a first wife or second husband or whoever / whatever you choose. I love how this isn't made a big deal, it is just the normal setup for this society.
The characters were varied and plausible, and I'll really miss spending time with some of them!
We have two main POV characters, Cahan as our "hero" and Kirven as his opponent in a way - Kirven.
While Cahan tries to avoid bloodshed and violence, he clearly has a very dark past and is not innocent himself.
Kirven in the other hand revels in causing pain, and ruthlessly doing what needs to be done to keep keep her power. Yet both get enough page time, so you can understand their motivations and goals. I always love it when "the bad guys" aren't just bad for the sake of it, but you somehow manage to care for them, while hoping they won't win...
Her child Venn is a trion and meant to be extremely powerful. Yet they refuse to kill to actually activate said power. They are very naive and yet stronger than it seems, and I really enjoyed this counter balance to Cahans world weary way.
Udinny, a monk, is yet another character type, and is very outgoing, optimistic and never shutting up.
I loved the relationship that slowly grew between Cahan, Venn and Udinny, which had a strong found family feel, even though they all just met.
Barker manages to write fantasy that has the magic and fantasy we so much love from the genre, and yet it feels fresh and different. I need more!
June 22, 2023
Another new author for me and what a read!!!!
This is the start of an epic trilogy. A slow burner but I just had to keep on reading. Richly descriptive, good world building even though it is quite bleak. The main character Cahan Du Nahere has a secret, he was chosen by the old gods and has powers which he is afraid to use as he is being hunted. A new brutal religion has taken over this world and the old ways and gods are being systematically destroyed. Now this is what you call dark fantasy at it's best. I really did not want this book to end. Only one problem can I have the next book now please!!!!!
Thanks to Netgalley for the Arc.
This is the start of an epic trilogy. A slow burner but I just had to keep on reading. Richly descriptive, good world building even though it is quite bleak. The main character Cahan Du Nahere has a secret, he was chosen by the old gods and has powers which he is afraid to use as he is being hunted. A new brutal religion has taken over this world and the old ways and gods are being systematically destroyed. Now this is what you call dark fantasy at it's best. I really did not want this book to end. Only one problem can I have the next book now please!!!!!
Thanks to Netgalley for the Arc.
January 7, 2026
’The world will burn. You are the fire’
Gods of the Wyrdwood is the first instalment in the latest captivating high fantasy trilogy by R. J. Barker, the Forsaken.
We follow Cahan Du’Nahere, a forester with a monster that lives beneath his skin, as he navigates the land of Crua, one ripe with dangerous magical ‘Rai’, forgotten and abandoned Gods, and the Wyrdwood, a seemingly endless forest with a deep connection to all living things. It is a world constantly at war, balancing on a knife’s edge between complete destruction and a slim chance of peace.
Barker is the best in the genre at world-building, and Gods of the Wyrdwood is no exception. Crua is utterly enthralling, a world reminiscent of Pandora (from the Avatar franchise), with the almost spiritual connection all living creatures have to its vast forest and array of uniquely terrifying but beautiful flora. This world is whimsical and threatening all at once, an idea carried throughout the narrative. I felt myself completely drawn into its landscape, my imagination running wild with all of the stunningly creative aspects of this world, from the bulbous floating gasmaws, to the hauntingly ancient boughry, to the intricacies of the ‘cowl’, this worlds ‘magic’. This book is a masterclass in atmosphere, and I adore what Barker has created with this story.
The narrative of Gods of the Wyrdwood is slow, meandering, and often confusing at times. We learn about our main character Cahan only in small increments, his past and the world slowly unravelling as the story progresses. There are no large exposition dumps and no glossary to describe the many initially bewildering story-specific terms. The reader discovers this world alongside Cahan, who even as a resident of it does not understand the many secrets of the forest, his magic, or the politics at play. This may be overwhelming at first, but by sticking with the story you are rewarded with something very special.
Cahan’s lack of faith in, and fear of, his own abilities is a consistent theme throughout the narrative, and he is at war with his own mind over every decision he makes. Despite his pessimism, I found him to be an enjoyable character, and his naïveté at how certain people perceived him to be endearing. He, coupled with the quirky monk Udinny, courageous ‘leader’ Furin, and cynical outlaw Ania were wonderful characters with brilliantly distinct voices who added much to the world. I was also impressed by Kirven’s chapters, and enjoyed hearing about how the ‘villains’ of the story operated and what their goals were. It was almost like reading two separate books, connected only by mentions of their shared world but their experiences and lives so different. Her chapters made for a wonderful change of pace, as did the flashbacks to Cahan’s childhood.
Admittedly, everything in this book is not perfect. While I consider the last third of the story to be utter perfection, the middle of the narrative did drag, and I felt like the characters did spend quite some time simply waiting for events with other characters to occur. I believe a good 100 pages or so could have been removed, for the sake of streamlining the ‘waiting time’ between key scenes. I also was not at all a fan of Venn, a young ‘noble’ who is desperate to remain a pacifist in the war. While they had certainly improved by the books conclusion, I was quite irritated by their endless complaining and sulking for most of the narrative. Fortunately, they appeared to quickly grow out of this, and I am tentatively excited for their development throughout the rest of the trilogy.
Despite some small complaints, Gods of the Wyrdwood is an excellent book, with such a rich and diverse world that stands out completely in the genre. 4/5 stars.
Gods of the Wyrdwood is the first instalment in the latest captivating high fantasy trilogy by R. J. Barker, the Forsaken.
We follow Cahan Du’Nahere, a forester with a monster that lives beneath his skin, as he navigates the land of Crua, one ripe with dangerous magical ‘Rai’, forgotten and abandoned Gods, and the Wyrdwood, a seemingly endless forest with a deep connection to all living things. It is a world constantly at war, balancing on a knife’s edge between complete destruction and a slim chance of peace.
Barker is the best in the genre at world-building, and Gods of the Wyrdwood is no exception. Crua is utterly enthralling, a world reminiscent of Pandora (from the Avatar franchise), with the almost spiritual connection all living creatures have to its vast forest and array of uniquely terrifying but beautiful flora. This world is whimsical and threatening all at once, an idea carried throughout the narrative. I felt myself completely drawn into its landscape, my imagination running wild with all of the stunningly creative aspects of this world, from the bulbous floating gasmaws, to the hauntingly ancient boughry, to the intricacies of the ‘cowl’, this worlds ‘magic’. This book is a masterclass in atmosphere, and I adore what Barker has created with this story.
The narrative of Gods of the Wyrdwood is slow, meandering, and often confusing at times. We learn about our main character Cahan only in small increments, his past and the world slowly unravelling as the story progresses. There are no large exposition dumps and no glossary to describe the many initially bewildering story-specific terms. The reader discovers this world alongside Cahan, who even as a resident of it does not understand the many secrets of the forest, his magic, or the politics at play. This may be overwhelming at first, but by sticking with the story you are rewarded with something very special.
Cahan’s lack of faith in, and fear of, his own abilities is a consistent theme throughout the narrative, and he is at war with his own mind over every decision he makes. Despite his pessimism, I found him to be an enjoyable character, and his naïveté at how certain people perceived him to be endearing. He, coupled with the quirky monk Udinny, courageous ‘leader’ Furin, and cynical outlaw Ania were wonderful characters with brilliantly distinct voices who added much to the world. I was also impressed by Kirven’s chapters, and enjoyed hearing about how the ‘villains’ of the story operated and what their goals were. It was almost like reading two separate books, connected only by mentions of their shared world but their experiences and lives so different. Her chapters made for a wonderful change of pace, as did the flashbacks to Cahan’s childhood.
Admittedly, everything in this book is not perfect. While I consider the last third of the story to be utter perfection, the middle of the narrative did drag, and I felt like the characters did spend quite some time simply waiting for events with other characters to occur. I believe a good 100 pages or so could have been removed, for the sake of streamlining the ‘waiting time’ between key scenes. I also was not at all a fan of Venn, a young ‘noble’ who is desperate to remain a pacifist in the war. While they had certainly improved by the books conclusion, I was quite irritated by their endless complaining and sulking for most of the narrative. Fortunately, they appeared to quickly grow out of this, and I am tentatively excited for their development throughout the rest of the trilogy.
Despite some small complaints, Gods of the Wyrdwood is an excellent book, with such a rich and diverse world that stands out completely in the genre. 4/5 stars.
August 1, 2025
Finale illegale, ma l'ho amato.
Illegale ending, but I loved the book.
Illegale ending, but I loved the book.
June 5, 2023
This review was originally published on Queen's Book Asylum.
I received an ARC from Orbit in exchange for an honest review.
Actual rating: 2.5*
Gods of the Wyrdwood was one of my most anticipated reads in 2023. I’ve read some of RJ Barker‘s previous books, and I loved them all. To say I had very, very high expectations is the understatement of the decade. That I was lucky enough to get my hands on a physical ARC was just the cherry on top. And yet. I absolutely hate saying this, but Gods of the Wyrdwood didn’t work for me. I was close to DNFing at one point, but I stuck with it, and while it didn’t grow on me, I’m glad I didn’t give up. Whether I’ll stick around for book two, though… well, hard to say. The epilogue kind of made me interested. I might give the audiobook a chance as I know the amazing Jude Owusu will narrate this series too.
But back to Gods of the Wyrdwood. What always amazes me about Barker’s novels is the worldbuilding. The ease with which he can paint the setting for his characters, the details that are rich and still not in the way of enjoying the story. He clearly went all out with this forest setting, and honestly, my favorite part of this book was those chapters where Cahan and Udinny were traveling through it in pursuit of the lost boy. It made me wish the whole book was set in that dreamy and dangerous world, exploring the creatures, the fauna, and the gods. I fully expected something mythical and whimsical and heartwrenching because that’s how Barker operates usually. But the forest wasn’t the main focus of the plot, not in the way I’d have liked, anyway.
Talking of the plot, for a good portion of the book, I had no idea what the plot was supposed to be. The first half or so had this episodic feel, where the main character, Cahan, went on adventures, making friends and enemies along the way, seemingly without much aim. Although Kirven’s alternative POV chapters shed some light on a bigger picture. Especially as both she and her child, Venn is deeply involved in the main conflict. It also takes a while to find your footing at the beginning with all the terminology thrown in, but you get used to it after a while. Although, a bit more explanation about some things would have been welcome… I spent the majority of the book wondering about why Cowl-Rai is different from the other Rai who also have a cowl – although I realize that I should have paid more attention to the blurb as a Cowl-Rai is a Rai chosen specifically by the god they serve. Or that’s what I’m figuring anyway. I also wanted to learn more about the Rai, rather than just getting snippets from conversations and memories. They just…are, I guess.
We also don’t get to know much about the trion, people who are neither male nor female, they exist to be a bridge between them. I liked the concept of families consisting of more people rather than only husband and wife. There are second and third wives and husbands as well as at least one trion, taking care of the children together. At least, that’s how it worked before the new regime arose in the name of a new god, who also decided to get rid of all of the other gods and their worshippers. Crua, as you might imagine is not a peaceful place in the present. Now the trion are used and abused and massacred for “the greater good”. We can only assume it’s not going to end well for those who took part in that.
As for the characters, we have a few prominent ones – Cahan the Forester who is the main character, and probably the most boring one of them. I mean, okay, he has a troubled past, he is an introvert who likes to keep to himself and he can be hardly blamed for it after everything he went through. And yet. I felt no connection to him, I never got invested in him or his story. Opposite to him, we have Kirven, the other POV character, who is certainly much more interesting, if unlikeable. She is selfish and a touch narcissistic, not being able to see behind her narrow views. Nor does she care about what her own child tries to tell her. Venn, the child in point, is a trion, the only one who survived what was done to them. I think he can become an interesting character given the time, but I wasn’t able to make up my mind about them yet. And we have Udinny, the monk. I probably liked her best. She definitely was a bright spot in the otherwise not-so-bright world of Gods of the Wyrdwood. Too bad the chemistry between her and Cahan didn’t really work out. Also, there was this annoying thing when it came to the dialogue between these two, where names are constantly dropped in almost every sentence. It’s a pet peeve of mine that drives me crazy.
All in all, apart from the worldbuilding, nothing much worked for me. I kind of get what Barker was aiming for with this one (it has themes of found family, a message of standing up for yourself and being true to yourself even if everyone else treats you like a lesser person, etc.), but it just fell flat on all accounts. It felt like there was much more telling than showing on the whole. The pacing was odd and sometimes dragging, the characters were a bit one-dimensional and the story just didn’t pull me in as much as I wanted to despite the decidedly cool bits (the Wyrdwood and its creatures!), the sections written in the second person didn’t add enough to the whole atmosphere or the plot for that matter. If I have to summarise in one sentence, I’d say Gods of the Wyrdwood is missing a heart.
Sometimes one of your favorite authors doesn’t write your next favorite book. And you know, that’s okay with me. I’m pretty sure Gods of the Wyrdwood will find its audience, but this time it’s not me.
I received an ARC from Orbit in exchange for an honest review.
Actual rating: 2.5*
“We see the trees above us, and these mushrooms around us and we think of them as massive.” Udinny nodded. “But that is barely half the forest. Most of it,” he traced a root as thick as his thigh across the ground, “is hidden beneath our feet. It is the roots that create the gaps between the trees. There is a constant hidden war for water and food going on beneath the ground. We consider trees peaceful, but they are not. They are warriors, fighting a very slow war.”
Gods of the Wyrdwood was one of my most anticipated reads in 2023. I’ve read some of RJ Barker‘s previous books, and I loved them all. To say I had very, very high expectations is the understatement of the decade. That I was lucky enough to get my hands on a physical ARC was just the cherry on top. And yet. I absolutely hate saying this, but Gods of the Wyrdwood didn’t work for me. I was close to DNFing at one point, but I stuck with it, and while it didn’t grow on me, I’m glad I didn’t give up. Whether I’ll stick around for book two, though… well, hard to say. The epilogue kind of made me interested. I might give the audiobook a chance as I know the amazing Jude Owusu will narrate this series too.
But back to Gods of the Wyrdwood. What always amazes me about Barker’s novels is the worldbuilding. The ease with which he can paint the setting for his characters, the details that are rich and still not in the way of enjoying the story. He clearly went all out with this forest setting, and honestly, my favorite part of this book was those chapters where Cahan and Udinny were traveling through it in pursuit of the lost boy. It made me wish the whole book was set in that dreamy and dangerous world, exploring the creatures, the fauna, and the gods. I fully expected something mythical and whimsical and heartwrenching because that’s how Barker operates usually. But the forest wasn’t the main focus of the plot, not in the way I’d have liked, anyway.
Talking of the plot, for a good portion of the book, I had no idea what the plot was supposed to be. The first half or so had this episodic feel, where the main character, Cahan, went on adventures, making friends and enemies along the way, seemingly without much aim. Although Kirven’s alternative POV chapters shed some light on a bigger picture. Especially as both she and her child, Venn is deeply involved in the main conflict. It also takes a while to find your footing at the beginning with all the terminology thrown in, but you get used to it after a while. Although, a bit more explanation about some things would have been welcome… I spent the majority of the book wondering about why Cowl-Rai is different from the other Rai who also have a cowl – although I realize that I should have paid more attention to the blurb as a Cowl-Rai is a Rai chosen specifically by the god they serve. Or that’s what I’m figuring anyway. I also wanted to learn more about the Rai, rather than just getting snippets from conversations and memories. They just…are, I guess.
We also don’t get to know much about the trion, people who are neither male nor female, they exist to be a bridge between them. I liked the concept of families consisting of more people rather than only husband and wife. There are second and third wives and husbands as well as at least one trion, taking care of the children together. At least, that’s how it worked before the new regime arose in the name of a new god, who also decided to get rid of all of the other gods and their worshippers. Crua, as you might imagine is not a peaceful place in the present. Now the trion are used and abused and massacred for “the greater good”. We can only assume it’s not going to end well for those who took part in that.
As for the characters, we have a few prominent ones – Cahan the Forester who is the main character, and probably the most boring one of them. I mean, okay, he has a troubled past, he is an introvert who likes to keep to himself and he can be hardly blamed for it after everything he went through. And yet. I felt no connection to him, I never got invested in him or his story. Opposite to him, we have Kirven, the other POV character, who is certainly much more interesting, if unlikeable. She is selfish and a touch narcissistic, not being able to see behind her narrow views. Nor does she care about what her own child tries to tell her. Venn, the child in point, is a trion, the only one who survived what was done to them. I think he can become an interesting character given the time, but I wasn’t able to make up my mind about them yet. And we have Udinny, the monk. I probably liked her best. She definitely was a bright spot in the otherwise not-so-bright world of Gods of the Wyrdwood. Too bad the chemistry between her and Cahan didn’t really work out. Also, there was this annoying thing when it came to the dialogue between these two, where names are constantly dropped in almost every sentence. It’s a pet peeve of mine that drives me crazy.
All in all, apart from the worldbuilding, nothing much worked for me. I kind of get what Barker was aiming for with this one (it has themes of found family, a message of standing up for yourself and being true to yourself even if everyone else treats you like a lesser person, etc.), but it just fell flat on all accounts. It felt like there was much more telling than showing on the whole. The pacing was odd and sometimes dragging, the characters were a bit one-dimensional and the story just didn’t pull me in as much as I wanted to despite the decidedly cool bits (the Wyrdwood and its creatures!), the sections written in the second person didn’t add enough to the whole atmosphere or the plot for that matter. If I have to summarise in one sentence, I’d say Gods of the Wyrdwood is missing a heart.
Sometimes one of your favorite authors doesn’t write your next favorite book. And you know, that’s okay with me. I’m pretty sure Gods of the Wyrdwood will find its audience, but this time it’s not me.
July 7, 2023
4.5/5
This is the beginning of something epic. It is true to the style of RJ Barker, being dropped into a world and allowing the reader to figure it out as they go. It is a dark world that has a beautiful setting with Gods that are worshipped in a way that is different than typical. It leads to wars and a magic that is pretty hot to handle. I continually found myself drawn to know more and could not get enough as the reader is pulled into the world of the chosen one, Cahan Du Nahere, who is no longer the chosen one. It proceeds to give us an insight into his life as he has moved on.
The strength of the novel is most definitely the world. From the exotic animals that are described brilliantly and make it so that there are even more exotic ways of travel and everyday life. Each page had subtle or exciting new ways to show us the beauty of this world. The forest is something from a dream, easy to picture and imagine, as well as being something truly foreboding that even the reader would be uneasy to venture into alone. The pacing of the novel is something that might discourage some readers. It is a slower pace compared to some of his previous novels, but upon reflection it is something that is absolutely necessary in order for the reader to understand the overall scope of the novel and where it leads. I can not say more because of spoilers, but this is a novel that can be reread and have lots of discoveries each time.
With this novel, RJ Barker cemented himself in my autobuy list. It is so engrossing and enjoyable, leaving me thinking about the wonders of the story and the world for weeks after I have finished. It has taken me time and I know that this review does not do it justice, but I feel as if every little thing was meticulously placed in the novel, just hinting at what is to come. I eagerly look forward to what the rest of the trilogy has in store for us. It is a story that many will talk about for much time to come.
Thank you for taking the time to read my review. As always, happy reading and Stay Great!!
Disclaimer: I received an advance copy off of Netgalley.
This is the beginning of something epic. It is true to the style of RJ Barker, being dropped into a world and allowing the reader to figure it out as they go. It is a dark world that has a beautiful setting with Gods that are worshipped in a way that is different than typical. It leads to wars and a magic that is pretty hot to handle. I continually found myself drawn to know more and could not get enough as the reader is pulled into the world of the chosen one, Cahan Du Nahere, who is no longer the chosen one. It proceeds to give us an insight into his life as he has moved on.
The strength of the novel is most definitely the world. From the exotic animals that are described brilliantly and make it so that there are even more exotic ways of travel and everyday life. Each page had subtle or exciting new ways to show us the beauty of this world. The forest is something from a dream, easy to picture and imagine, as well as being something truly foreboding that even the reader would be uneasy to venture into alone. The pacing of the novel is something that might discourage some readers. It is a slower pace compared to some of his previous novels, but upon reflection it is something that is absolutely necessary in order for the reader to understand the overall scope of the novel and where it leads. I can not say more because of spoilers, but this is a novel that can be reread and have lots of discoveries each time.
With this novel, RJ Barker cemented himself in my autobuy list. It is so engrossing and enjoyable, leaving me thinking about the wonders of the story and the world for weeks after I have finished. It has taken me time and I know that this review does not do it justice, but I feel as if every little thing was meticulously placed in the novel, just hinting at what is to come. I eagerly look forward to what the rest of the trilogy has in store for us. It is a story that many will talk about for much time to come.
Thank you for taking the time to read my review. As always, happy reading and Stay Great!!
Disclaimer: I received an advance copy off of Netgalley.
November 16, 2023
Posle Barkerove poslednje trilogije, postao sam mu tzv Day 1 čitalac. Hrabar, neretko sklon nekonvencionalnoj strukturi, stilu, i posebno građenju sekundarnog sveta. Tako je i ovde - atipična struktura koja poprimi oblik tek pri kraju romana, čudan čudan svet koji klikne tek nakon par stotina stranica. Likovi, interesantni, no ipak više arhetipi nego protagonisti prethodne trilogije (Tide Child uzgred budi rečeno, debela preporuka). Jedino što ovde manjka je narativ da spoji svu tu 'jedinstvenost' koju Barker ovde sipa; nedostaje spona priče koja je više od niza događaja koja spaja zanimljive scene/vinjete. Vredno čitanja doduše, zahtevnije nego prosek, i siguran sam povratnik kada se jednom pojavi drugi deo.
4-
4-
May 5, 2025
I love when authors have new ideas! I love when they give us something new, something engaging and creative at the same time!
I am a huge lover of action that is happening in the woods. I love them. Forests are amazing, they can be spooky, eerie, you can meet lots of animals and things in them and you don’t know who’s following you.
“Gods of the wyrdwood” is exactly this! With plot that takes place in small villages and in a huge forest, the author brings something new to the fantasy genre. I am a big fan of R. J. Barker after I read “The wounded trilogy” and loved it a lot! I must say, regarding me as a reader, this year is his year. He’s a great author, I love how he writes his characters. I don’t have a choice, but to read everything that he ever wrote.
The main character is “Gods of the wyrdwood” is Cahan du-Nahere, The forester, a man who knows the forest very well. He was once a warrior and more. In the same village, we have Udinny. She serves a goddess that’s been lost. Together, they adventure into the Deepforest to find a child that disappeared. Or was called by the forest and the gods. From there, his story begins. And it’s a good tale.
I think you have to read a few chapters to realise that you’re into the story. It’s a tiny bit difficult, because, like in most high fantasy novels, we are thrown into this world without knowledge about it. We find out about some gods and cities and strange terminology. RJ. Barker doesn’t hold our hand while reading this book. It’s a weird and ominous world, but it’s such a well done world building that I just couldn’t stop reading. It can be confusing, but you should give it a chance!
“Gods of the wyrdwood” is a very imaginative, slow-burn story. As I said, I haven’t read anything like this one, so far. I had a great time reading it and I’m very curious about how book two will be. Especially since this one finished with a cliffhanger.
I am a huge lover of action that is happening in the woods. I love them. Forests are amazing, they can be spooky, eerie, you can meet lots of animals and things in them and you don’t know who’s following you.
“Gods of the wyrdwood” is exactly this! With plot that takes place in small villages and in a huge forest, the author brings something new to the fantasy genre. I am a big fan of R. J. Barker after I read “The wounded trilogy” and loved it a lot! I must say, regarding me as a reader, this year is his year. He’s a great author, I love how he writes his characters. I don’t have a choice, but to read everything that he ever wrote.
The main character is “Gods of the wyrdwood” is Cahan du-Nahere, The forester, a man who knows the forest very well. He was once a warrior and more. In the same village, we have Udinny. She serves a goddess that’s been lost. Together, they adventure into the Deepforest to find a child that disappeared. Or was called by the forest and the gods. From there, his story begins. And it’s a good tale.
I think you have to read a few chapters to realise that you’re into the story. It’s a tiny bit difficult, because, like in most high fantasy novels, we are thrown into this world without knowledge about it. We find out about some gods and cities and strange terminology. RJ. Barker doesn’t hold our hand while reading this book. It’s a weird and ominous world, but it’s such a well done world building that I just couldn’t stop reading. It can be confusing, but you should give it a chance!
“Gods of the wyrdwood” is a very imaginative, slow-burn story. As I said, I haven’t read anything like this one, so far. I had a great time reading it and I’m very curious about how book two will be. Especially since this one finished with a cliffhanger.
July 11, 2023
Pretty damn marvellous epic fantasy - inventive, smartly written, full of fascinating creatures and great storytelling. Can’t wait to read more in the series
Full review - https://www.runalongtheshelves.net/bl...
Full review - https://www.runalongtheshelves.net/bl...
May 29, 2023
2/5 Stars
TL;DR - This book has a lot of things going for it, namely the world itself and the magic system, but it’s also long and boring and shoots itself in the foot by including some puzzling, tone-deaf classism and frankly appalling treatment of non-binary people, and then offering no rebuking or commentary on these issues.
Big thank you to Orbit/Orbit Books and NetGalley for providing me with the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!
***Trigger warning for the objectification, dehumanization, and straight-up murder of non-binary people.***
‘Gods of the Wyrdwood’ by RJ Barker is the first installment in an epic fantasy trilogy detailing the struggles of the land of Crua. It’s told from two main points of view, that of Cahan Du-Nahere, formerly a powerful magic user who has quit that life and resigned himself instead to the life of a forester and farmer, and Kirven Ban-Ruhn, the high ruler of Crua struggling to maintain her power. War rages, the northern lands are slowly dying to perpetual winter, and the shadow of politics and greed for power reaches across the world, even to the doorstep of a clanless farmer who just wants to tend his flock and live in anonymity.
First and foremost, this book includes a few really problematic elements. To sum up the smaller issues, there’s some really gross sentiments about unhoused people in the world-building, criminals and poor people are made forcibly naked, to like, embarrass them or make sure they know their place or some such nonsense, and the main character, Cahan, looks down on some people at the start of the book who, by his estimate, were poor, inner-city folk who “didn’t know how to live out in the middle of nowhere”. There’s just a lot really icky classism that I feel like was included to emphasize the depravity of the ruling class, but the issues aren’t ever discussed, at least not in any meaningful way, so there’s just a heaping helping of not-cool things happening and no solid commentary or effective denouncement of it.
And then there’s the trion, the third-gender people who exist in this world. I was excited at first - I’m always down for some enby rep - but it quickly faded. These people are, in the words of Venn, who is a trion themself, “simply traded between powerful families”. We find this out, of course, right before Venn tells their mother how thirty trion, themself included, some barely old enough to walk, were sent into what is, in essence, a magical gas chamber meant to awaken their magic, but summarily kills all but Venn - and it’s well known that the process kills most trion AND THEY’RE SENT IN ANYWAY. Just…what the fuck? Why? Why purposefully have non-binary people as a prominent feature in your world just to objectify, dehumanize, and then murder them?
I almost stopped reading at that point, about 11% into the book, but I was so shocked that I was sure I must have misunderstood what I read and kept reading to figure out what the hell was going on. There was no further clarification in the rest of the book, except that, apparently, every magic user goes into the gas chamber to awaken their magic, not just the trion, and a lot of them die, too. Oh yeah, and the fact that all those trions were sent to die because the villains (including Venn's MOTHER) need a trion magic-user for some big magic thing to win the war (and we find out later that HUNDREDS were sent to die before Venn went), which is just another level of gross and infuriating objectification foisted onto the people by the author. I'm genuinely upset with this book and I wish I'd DNF'd it. However, I was given an ARC for an honest review and that’s what I intend to give, even if it makes me uncomfortable to give positive feedback on this book after reading the aforementioned scenes.
The strongest point of this book is easily the world and its flora and fauna. It’s familiar enough to settle into initially, giving me vibes of the British Isles in ancient times, before the Romans showed up and ruined everything, but it’s also distinctly alien in a way that reminds me of the world from ‘The Stormlight Archive’ by Brandon Sanderson. Instead of crustacean-based critters, in this world we have many creatures that are mollusk-based, specifically squids - except these aren’t ocean-dwelling squid-things, these ones fly. Lots of interesting animals, both mundane and magical, including a lot of deep-forest dwellers that are somewhat familiar fae-like things, while others are straight out of Slavic folklore nightmares.
The Wyrdwood is an incredible setting. I’m always down for a story set in an ancient forest, and this one delivers 110% on both the beautiful, lush side of traveling through a deep forest, and the terrifying, soul-stealing, what’s-making-that-sound side. There’s deep magic in the Wyrdwood (and the titular gods), and it came across as a really poignant and timely message about how deeply humanity’s relationship with nature runs, and how vital it is to respect and preserve it.
The magic system is pretty interesting. No spoilers, but I am a sucker for living magic, that is, magic that is itself alive, and this book offers a fresh take on it. I wish the acquisition of magic and the forces behind it were explained a bit more thoroughly, but it is book one of a trilogy so I expect more will be revealed going forward.
Those few praises aired, the rest of the book was mostly a disappointment.
There are a hundred thousand new world-specific terms that are all dumped on you in the first few chapters, and pretty much none of them are explained alongside them. For the first probably 30% of the book, I didn’t know what so many things meant, because they were never given context. There are a lot of animals that are given no description, and I still don’t know what some are supposed to look like. Paradoxically, I felt like there was way too much description of everything, and yet, I still couldn’t visualize what I was being told about. It constantly felt like I was watching the part of Pokemon where they ask “Who’s That Pokemon” and give you just a silhouette of said Pokemon - I could visualize general shapes and vibes, but never in enough detail to know what the hell was going on.
The majority of characters are just…there. They’re not shallow, but they’re not deep, either. All of the protagonists make interesting choices and have their own personalities to an extent, but I never really connected with any of them because the lens of the story is always zoomed out and focused on what’s happening to the characters, not what they’re feeling on a deep enough level to satisfy me. That’s totally a personal preference, but it did really hamper my connection to and enjoyment of the characters.
The villain and antagonists, though, yikes. Boring villain do predictable villain things. Boring villain followers also do boring villain things, give boring villain speeches. Bad people are bad. Their shiny new god is the one true god, the old gods are fake, they kill anyone who doesn’t convert, and really just kill anyone in their way because they’re in power and that’s what people in power do - and the book really harps on those points. Those points being, people in power bad, tyrannical religion bad, prejudice bad. It’s worst in the beginning of the book, just being beaten over the head with them again and again and again, adding nothing to the conversation that’s been had a million times before, no nuance, just tired tropes. It tapers off as the book goes, but man is it heavy-handed at the start.
Speaking of heavy-handed, the beginning of the book is chock full of really clumsy exposition. Everyone seems to retell stories to people that would, ostensibly, already have heard them. I know that high/epic fantasy generally has a lot of world-building and backstory to fit in so things make sense, but I really feel like it could have been done better than it was.
Also, on the subject of the beginning of the book, I don’t know why, but it feels like the first 200 or so pages of the book were a separate-but-related book, not part of this one. It felt like there was an inciting incident and the start of a plot arc, but then it stopped and went back to the beginning, and then we got another inciting incident, and THEN the actual story started.
And by started, I mean meandered along at such a slow pace that it was a true slog to finish this book. I mentioned above that I was reminded of Brandon Sanderson’s ‘The Stormlight Archive’ series by this book, and ‘Gods of the Wyrdwood’ shares that series’ absolute snail’s pacing and general wordy, pointless over-bloating. There’s just too damn much here and the vast majority is uninteresting. Something like 650 pages and I felt like I was trapped in amber for most of it.
There are so many times where the author tells us that something major happens, like a mini-spoiler, and then takes 2+ pages to get to that actual event, and for me, that really kills the flow and tension of the story. I would have preferred not to have the sentence that tells us something happens in a few pages and just have it revealed at the time it happens. A small thing, maybe, but one that I really didn’t enjoy.
To top it all off, I do not jive with the writing style. Things get repeated, sentences go on with little punctuation (or have a period where it should have a comma or semi-colon, one of my biggest pet peeves), and some things are just plain weirdly-worded. There’s also a lot of passive voice and it’s grating. I found myself constantly re-reading sentences and even paragraphs because I genuinely didn’t understand what was being said because of how it was written. This is probably a me thing, but it is a thing, and it really detracted from overall enjoyment for me.
Final Thoughts:
Setting, good, magic system, good. Everything else, ‘meh’ at best.
The whole trion incident was a major issue for me, and because of it, I will not be reading the rest of this series when it comes out, nor will I be reading anything else by this author. I don’t know anything about the author as person, but what he chose to include in this book is doing him no favors. No thank you.
TL;DR - This book has a lot of things going for it, namely the world itself and the magic system, but it’s also long and boring and shoots itself in the foot by including some puzzling, tone-deaf classism and frankly appalling treatment of non-binary people, and then offering no rebuking or commentary on these issues.
Big thank you to Orbit/Orbit Books and NetGalley for providing me with the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!
***Trigger warning for the objectification, dehumanization, and straight-up murder of non-binary people.***
‘Gods of the Wyrdwood’ by RJ Barker is the first installment in an epic fantasy trilogy detailing the struggles of the land of Crua. It’s told from two main points of view, that of Cahan Du-Nahere, formerly a powerful magic user who has quit that life and resigned himself instead to the life of a forester and farmer, and Kirven Ban-Ruhn, the high ruler of Crua struggling to maintain her power. War rages, the northern lands are slowly dying to perpetual winter, and the shadow of politics and greed for power reaches across the world, even to the doorstep of a clanless farmer who just wants to tend his flock and live in anonymity.
First and foremost, this book includes a few really problematic elements. To sum up the smaller issues, there’s some really gross sentiments about unhoused people in the world-building, criminals and poor people are made forcibly naked, to like, embarrass them or make sure they know their place or some such nonsense, and the main character, Cahan, looks down on some people at the start of the book who, by his estimate, were poor, inner-city folk who “didn’t know how to live out in the middle of nowhere”. There’s just a lot really icky classism that I feel like was included to emphasize the depravity of the ruling class, but the issues aren’t ever discussed, at least not in any meaningful way, so there’s just a heaping helping of not-cool things happening and no solid commentary or effective denouncement of it.
And then there’s the trion, the third-gender people who exist in this world. I was excited at first - I’m always down for some enby rep - but it quickly faded. These people are, in the words of Venn, who is a trion themself, “simply traded between powerful families”. We find this out, of course, right before Venn tells their mother how thirty trion, themself included, some barely old enough to walk, were sent into what is, in essence, a magical gas chamber meant to awaken their magic, but summarily kills all but Venn - and it’s well known that the process kills most trion AND THEY’RE SENT IN ANYWAY. Just…what the fuck? Why? Why purposefully have non-binary people as a prominent feature in your world just to objectify, dehumanize, and then murder them?
I almost stopped reading at that point, about 11% into the book, but I was so shocked that I was sure I must have misunderstood what I read and kept reading to figure out what the hell was going on. There was no further clarification in the rest of the book, except that, apparently, every magic user goes into the gas chamber to awaken their magic, not just the trion, and a lot of them die, too. Oh yeah, and the fact that all those trions were sent to die because the villains (including Venn's MOTHER) need a trion magic-user for some big magic thing to win the war (and we find out later that HUNDREDS were sent to die before Venn went), which is just another level of gross and infuriating objectification foisted onto the people by the author. I'm genuinely upset with this book and I wish I'd DNF'd it. However, I was given an ARC for an honest review and that’s what I intend to give, even if it makes me uncomfortable to give positive feedback on this book after reading the aforementioned scenes.
The strongest point of this book is easily the world and its flora and fauna. It’s familiar enough to settle into initially, giving me vibes of the British Isles in ancient times, before the Romans showed up and ruined everything, but it’s also distinctly alien in a way that reminds me of the world from ‘The Stormlight Archive’ by Brandon Sanderson. Instead of crustacean-based critters, in this world we have many creatures that are mollusk-based, specifically squids - except these aren’t ocean-dwelling squid-things, these ones fly. Lots of interesting animals, both mundane and magical, including a lot of deep-forest dwellers that are somewhat familiar fae-like things, while others are straight out of Slavic folklore nightmares.
The Wyrdwood is an incredible setting. I’m always down for a story set in an ancient forest, and this one delivers 110% on both the beautiful, lush side of traveling through a deep forest, and the terrifying, soul-stealing, what’s-making-that-sound side. There’s deep magic in the Wyrdwood (and the titular gods), and it came across as a really poignant and timely message about how deeply humanity’s relationship with nature runs, and how vital it is to respect and preserve it.
The magic system is pretty interesting. No spoilers, but I am a sucker for living magic, that is, magic that is itself alive, and this book offers a fresh take on it. I wish the acquisition of magic and the forces behind it were explained a bit more thoroughly, but it is book one of a trilogy so I expect more will be revealed going forward.
Those few praises aired, the rest of the book was mostly a disappointment.
There are a hundred thousand new world-specific terms that are all dumped on you in the first few chapters, and pretty much none of them are explained alongside them. For the first probably 30% of the book, I didn’t know what so many things meant, because they were never given context. There are a lot of animals that are given no description, and I still don’t know what some are supposed to look like. Paradoxically, I felt like there was way too much description of everything, and yet, I still couldn’t visualize what I was being told about. It constantly felt like I was watching the part of Pokemon where they ask “Who’s That Pokemon” and give you just a silhouette of said Pokemon - I could visualize general shapes and vibes, but never in enough detail to know what the hell was going on.
The majority of characters are just…there. They’re not shallow, but they’re not deep, either. All of the protagonists make interesting choices and have their own personalities to an extent, but I never really connected with any of them because the lens of the story is always zoomed out and focused on what’s happening to the characters, not what they’re feeling on a deep enough level to satisfy me. That’s totally a personal preference, but it did really hamper my connection to and enjoyment of the characters.
The villain and antagonists, though, yikes. Boring villain do predictable villain things. Boring villain followers also do boring villain things, give boring villain speeches. Bad people are bad. Their shiny new god is the one true god, the old gods are fake, they kill anyone who doesn’t convert, and really just kill anyone in their way because they’re in power and that’s what people in power do - and the book really harps on those points. Those points being, people in power bad, tyrannical religion bad, prejudice bad. It’s worst in the beginning of the book, just being beaten over the head with them again and again and again, adding nothing to the conversation that’s been had a million times before, no nuance, just tired tropes. It tapers off as the book goes, but man is it heavy-handed at the start.
Speaking of heavy-handed, the beginning of the book is chock full of really clumsy exposition. Everyone seems to retell stories to people that would, ostensibly, already have heard them. I know that high/epic fantasy generally has a lot of world-building and backstory to fit in so things make sense, but I really feel like it could have been done better than it was.
Also, on the subject of the beginning of the book, I don’t know why, but it feels like the first 200 or so pages of the book were a separate-but-related book, not part of this one. It felt like there was an inciting incident and the start of a plot arc, but then it stopped and went back to the beginning, and then we got another inciting incident, and THEN the actual story started.
And by started, I mean meandered along at such a slow pace that it was a true slog to finish this book. I mentioned above that I was reminded of Brandon Sanderson’s ‘The Stormlight Archive’ series by this book, and ‘Gods of the Wyrdwood’ shares that series’ absolute snail’s pacing and general wordy, pointless over-bloating. There’s just too damn much here and the vast majority is uninteresting. Something like 650 pages and I felt like I was trapped in amber for most of it.
There are so many times where the author tells us that something major happens, like a mini-spoiler, and then takes 2+ pages to get to that actual event, and for me, that really kills the flow and tension of the story. I would have preferred not to have the sentence that tells us something happens in a few pages and just have it revealed at the time it happens. A small thing, maybe, but one that I really didn’t enjoy.
To top it all off, I do not jive with the writing style. Things get repeated, sentences go on with little punctuation (or have a period where it should have a comma or semi-colon, one of my biggest pet peeves), and some things are just plain weirdly-worded. There’s also a lot of passive voice and it’s grating. I found myself constantly re-reading sentences and even paragraphs because I genuinely didn’t understand what was being said because of how it was written. This is probably a me thing, but it is a thing, and it really detracted from overall enjoyment for me.
Final Thoughts:
Setting, good, magic system, good. Everything else, ‘meh’ at best.
The whole trion incident was a major issue for me, and because of it, I will not be reading the rest of this series when it comes out, nor will I be reading anything else by this author. I don’t know anything about the author as person, but what he chose to include in this book is doing him no favors. No thank you.
January 11, 2024
This is a fresh (Fall 2023) fantasy from the author of Bone Ships Trilogy, which I liked (read only the first two volumes) and whose novels won/were nominated for several British fantasy awards. Recently, I often preferred British SFF awards to de facto US ones (formally Hugo and Nebula are global). I read it as a part of the monthly reading for January 2024 at SFF Hot from Printers: New Releases group. This is a solid start of what is expected to be a trilogy.
The start of the story gives a lot of glances at the setting without infodumps, so initially, it is a bit hard to follow. On the very first page readers see new words for days of the week (Ventday), locations (Woodsedge) and gods (“Though all followed Chyi, the god of the Cowl-Rai, there were a thousand gods who paid Chyi service”). On the surface, the setting is a ‘classic’ medieval – most people are poor peasants, there are clergy and nobility, no powerful machines, etc. The first unique feature is that there is no metal (?) – tools, armor, clothes, etc. are from gifts of forest – wood, wild and domesticated beasts, etc. Moreover, despite living next to it, for most forest is a dangerous place with its own rules, so the title of the book is quite fitting.
The main character is a forester (a person who goes deep into the forest and knows it) Cahan Du-Nahere. As a kid, he and his elder sister were taken by monks so he could be an avatar of their god, a Chosen One, and trained hard and without mercy. Now, he is back to the village of his birth and his main desire is to be a normal person and be left alone. However, priests of the currently dominant deity - Tarl-an-Gig and the group of magic users (?) who currently own these lands, Cowl-Rai, seek and eradicate any traces of other gods. There are other major characters, especially, Venn (trion, they/them, an offspring of a high official) and monk Udinny, who follows a goddess that prefers not to interfere with people.
A very interesting world filled with ideas actually closer to SF and a great start for the trilogy.
The start of the story gives a lot of glances at the setting without infodumps, so initially, it is a bit hard to follow. On the very first page readers see new words for days of the week (Ventday), locations (Woodsedge) and gods (“Though all followed Chyi, the god of the Cowl-Rai, there were a thousand gods who paid Chyi service”). On the surface, the setting is a ‘classic’ medieval – most people are poor peasants, there are clergy and nobility, no powerful machines, etc. The first unique feature is that there is no metal (?) – tools, armor, clothes, etc. are from gifts of forest – wood, wild and domesticated beasts, etc. Moreover, despite living next to it, for most forest is a dangerous place with its own rules, so the title of the book is quite fitting.
The main character is a forester (a person who goes deep into the forest and knows it) Cahan Du-Nahere. As a kid, he and his elder sister were taken by monks so he could be an avatar of their god, a Chosen One, and trained hard and without mercy. Now, he is back to the village of his birth and his main desire is to be a normal person and be left alone. However, priests of the currently dominant deity - Tarl-an-Gig and the group of magic users (?) who currently own these lands, Cowl-Rai, seek and eradicate any traces of other gods. There are other major characters, especially, Venn (trion, they/them, an offspring of a high official) and monk Udinny, who follows a goddess that prefers not to interfere with people.
A very interesting world filled with ideas actually closer to SF and a great start for the trilogy.
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