4.5 stars out of 5

Holy crap, Batman, this book is emotional as all hell. Strap yourselves in guys, because, wow. Wicked Saints barely scratched the surface of how dark this series was going to get.

I don't really want to spoil anything, because a lot happens in this book, so this review is going to be short and to the point.

Ruthless Gods, in my opinion, is leaps and bounds better then its predecessor. Where the drama is Wicked Saints led to a very bad few days for our main characters, the drama in this book was world altering and grand in its scope. Everything sucked for our main characters, and I did not disagree with that message.

Also, even though the doom and gloom was turned all the way up to 100, I didn't really mind, because the tone of the book, and everything that was going on, could not have been conveyed properly if everything wasn't going horribly for Serefin, Nadya, and Malachiasz. To put it simply, this book was beautifully horrifying.

As for why this book lost a half star, that would have to be because of the constant reuse of the word monster, and darkness, and blood. Yes, this is a dark YA fantasy novel, but the number of times certain characters are referred to as monsters, gets a little repetitive by the half way point of this book. Also, the magic of the gods themselves is never really explained very well. I really don't want to give anything away, but I grew a bit frustrated by the end of the book, because, it is made clear, that the things that people call Gods in Kalyazin, are potentially something else. However, it is never made clear about what is going on by the end of this book. Yes, there is going to be a sequel, so I am desperately hoping things are explained better in the next book.

All in all, this was a fabulous second book to a series I was hoping would grow with each installment. Duncan does a fabulous job of mixing horror, fantasy and religion together to create a terrifying world that is barely hanging on to its last scrap of hope. Also, the ending does not inspire hopefulness for our main trio, because things kind of went from bad to worse by the end of this novel, so I am very excited to see what happens next, since I do not know how it can get any worse. I strongly recommend this to anyone who enjoy dark fantasy novels, because this is an emotional treat.

had the privilege of receiving an advanced copy of Ruthless Gods through NetGalley in exchange for a review. For those who might not know, Ruthless Gods is the sequel to the NewYork Times bestseller Wicked Saints by Emily A. Duncan. As this novel will not be released until April 7, 2020, I will not be adding any spoilers.
A blurb from Emily’s website regarding Ruthless Gods

Nadya doesn’t trust her magic anymore. Serefin is fighting off a voice in his head that doesn’t belong to him. Malachiasz is at war with who–and what–he’s become.
As their group is continually torn apart, the girl, the prince, and the monster find their fates irrevocably intertwined. They’re pieces on a board, being orchestrated by someone… or something. The voices that Serefin hears in the darkness, the ones that Nadya believes are her gods, the ones that Malachiasz is desperate to meet―those voices want a stake in the world, and they refuse to stay quiet any longer.

After reading this blurb and then the novel, let me just say. The ending will leave you wanting more! This novel is so dark and twisty I love it! For anyone who is questioning the novel, don’t! The story development, as well as character development, is amazing! How I wish to spoil the novel, but alas I can only sing praises! Emily did a fantastic job with Ruthless Gods, while some might not notice, her writing style has progressed as all authors do! I cannot wait for the third novel to come out in hopefully 2021 (fingers crossed)!!!

Ruthless Gods features blood magic, monstrous lovers, tortured princes, cosmic horror and a cliffhanger that leaves you breathless. In this sequel, Duncan dives into her dark and fantastical world, expanding it beyond the Empire and showing the consequences of messing with the gods.

I felt like I had a better handle on the characters in the sequel. Malachiasz and Nadya's continued dance around each other in the will they or won't they will keep readers entertained and wanting more. I enjoyed Serefin's time in the spotlight, even when the character himself did most certainly not.

The narrative covered a long amount of travel time, which can be a little hard to follow if you're not paying attention. However, I found that this added a fun element to the underlining threat of unfettered chaos that ran through the story.

In conclusion, an excellent sequel that stands on its own while still racing towards the epic conclusion of the trilogy.

RUTHLESS GODS is dark, atmospheric, and completely enchanting. It was everything I hoped a sequel to WICKED SAINTS would be and then some. Everyone is completely broken and yet somehow forging a way forward. After the first book, Nadya is still reeling from the betrayal by Malachiasz, Serefin is trying to hold the kingdom together as its new ruler while also fighting the powers speaking to him and corrupting his vision, and Malachiasz is something else entirely.

Their journeys all feel different and yet somehow aligned. Motivations are unclear and ever changing. The gods that are revered in one country and scorned in another are hiding secrets which are deeper than expected and raise more and more questions. The complexity of the plot is matched by the complexity of the characters, and this book is completely impossible to put down.

What I loved: It is hard to even say how many things I loved about this book. It is atmospheric and engrossing, and I felt completely transported to this unique world. The characters are deep, complex, and evolving. All flawed, all gorgeous, and all fantastically well crafted. Secrets cover secrets and questions grow in a completely amazing way. Dark and beautiful, this book is an absolutely incredible sequel that I highly recommend picking up. This is a book that you need to experience for yourself.

Final verdict: Fans of dark and compelling fantasies will delight in this gorgeously crafted series. Atmospheric, enchanting, and engrossing, RUTHLESS GODS is a powerful sequel in a must-read series. I highly recommend for fans of Roshani Chokshi, Sabaa Tahir, Leigh Bardugo, and Adrienne Young.

Please note that I received an ARC. All opinions are my own.

I love this series so much. Gothic, otherworldly and cruel in its most emotional parts, this is worthy follow up to Wicked Saints. I completely devoured this book – my kind of darkness.

Oh my gracious. The lack of words I have for this book is not because it wasn't amazing, it is because so many feelings after finishing this gem of a book. There is a reason the first book became an instant bestseller and it is because of the beautiful prose, the masterful storytelling, the wicked (see what I did there) characters. So much love yet so few words give this sequel justice.

I received this e-ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I loved Wicked Saints so it's no surprise that I love Ruthless Gods. This book is epic!

Nadya doesn’t trust her magic anymore. Serefin is fighting off a voice in his head that doesn’t belong to him. Malachiasz is at war with who--and what--he’s become.

As their group is continually torn apart, the girl, the prince, and the monster find their fates irrevocably intertwined. They’re pieces on a board, being orchestrated by someone… or something. The voices that Serefin hears in the darkness, the ones that Nadya believes are her gods, the ones that Malachiasz is desperate to meet—those voices want a stake in the world, and they refuse to stay quiet any longer.

Usually the 2nd book in a series ends up being my least favorite,. Not Ruthless Gods! It's dark and intense and horrifying and impossible to put down. This book will challenge everything you think you know about Nadya, Serefin and Malachiasz. Each of them are fighting an internal struggle and learning that things aren't always what they seem.

I really enjoyed the character development. Nadya's anguish at not being able to communicate with her gods is heart-wrenching and her battle to fight her feelings for Malachiasz is so perfectly on point for YA. The fact that she is fighting her attraction to this dark, brooding boy - who also happens to be a monster - doesn't make her weak or silly. It makes her very relatable! I can't wait to find out exactly what she is and where her magic comes from.

Ruthless Gods is darker and bloodier than Wicked Saints, with more magic, more monsters, more gods, fallen gods and more chaos. The ending is brilliant and devastating and will wreck you, I'm already counting down the days until the next book!

I am just as impressed with this book, as I was with the first book! I love the character development of Serefin and Malachasiz and Nadya.

Weirder, darker, more deliciously disorienting, and full of more complicated, compelling romance, sequel Ruthless Gods is a treat for all fans of Wicked Saints. Duncan raises the stakes and torments her characters, and I for one cannot get enough of it. Looking forward desperately to the conclusion of the series.

This is such a hard review for me.


I really loved Wicked Gods. I liked how different it was, the dynamics between the three main characters and the dark and shifting magic. And that ending almost killed me.


So why did I have such a hard time getting through this sequel?


The foundation is there, but I felt like it had problems. It was way too long and the beginning moved slowly for me. Nadya was harder for me to like this time around too. There was a lot of uncertainty and angst with Nadya which made her too whiny for me.


The plot picked up when our favorite dark hero came back. I liked the dynamics between Nadya and her friends. And the ending was great and I do what to know what happened!


Overall, I thought the sequel dragged for me and I wish it was shorter. I am also totally aware that I am in the minority there. But I'm still invested in the story and I can't wait to read the last one.

Holy crap! This book was so good! It is completely unpredictable. The character development is so incredible. I have fallen hard for these characters. They have etched themselves into my heart. Emily Duncan does an amazing job of putting so much emotion into their stories. So much so that they feel real. My heart was pulled in so many directions in this book. It is hard for me to even put into words how much I loved this story. I want to just start it over again. I cannot wait to read the next installment in the Something Dark and Holy series!

Ruthless Gods by Emily A. Duncan is such a cool story! Dark, gritty, and awesome, totally recommend to others

I feel so lucky to have recieved this ARC. I'm a huge fan of Wicked Saints, and Ruthless Gods, the sequel, only made me want more ... again... and again I'm going to have to be patient.
This book gave my brain whiplash looking at all the directions the characters could be going in and then finding out what they're actually going to do. One thing was for certain though, and that is that none of the three main characters could be completely trusted.
This series is full of the ancient magic of Gods and Saints and the more modern blood magic. It is fun, romantic, edgy and absolutely captivating. Read these books and love them!

This is an amazing squeal to Wicked Saints, we learn a lot of things and go through a lot more , and absolutely none of it is predictable. This book was thrilling, intriguing and heart wrenching. The world-building was amazing, the characters were multi-dimensional and well thought out, I loved it and that ending!!! I can't wait for the next book.

The official book description is as follows: “Nadya doesn’t trust her magic anymore. Serefin is fighting off a voice in his head that doesn’t belong to him. Malachiasz is at war with who--and what--he’s become.

As their group is continually torn apart, the girl, the prince, and the monster find their fates irrevocably intertwined. They’re pieces on a board, being orchestrated by someone…or something. The voices that Serefin hears in the darkness, the ones that Nadya believes are her gods, the ones that Malachiasz is desperate to meet—those voices want a stake in the world, and they refuse to stay quiet any longer.

In her dramatic follow-up to Wicked Saints, the first book in her Something Dark and Holy trilogy, Emily A. Duncan paints a Gothic, icy world where shadows whisper, and no one is who they seem, with a shocking ending that will leave you breathless.”

With this description and the cover art, the need to read this book is incredible, and it does not disappoint. I highly recommend this series as you wont be able to put it down!

Thank you Net Galley and the Publisher for an ARC of this book! It is greatly appreciated!

<b>5 stars</b>

Wow wow wow! This book started just as fast paced as its predecessor, however, in a way that was much more graspable. The story hooks you immediately, unfolding masterfully from the first chapter. <b>And I was in love with every minute of it</b>.
(spoilers for the first book will be included, so proceed with caution)

Nadya is struck with the loss of no longer having the voices of the gods in her head as well as the betrayal that cut her deep just a few months before. Serefin is attempting to figure out who he is—<i>why</i> he is. Why was he saved from death? And what has he become? Malachiazs sits on his throne, not knowing who he truly is, and still communicating somehow with a girl who he can’t remember.

<i>Ruthless Gods</i> was everything it needed to be. Some people might say it started to slow down in the second half, and though I do agree, I felt that the pace was perfect for the story. It didn’t particularly “slow down,” but instead allowed for all the rich details of the story to play out. I was truly enthralled every moment. The constant tension between Nadya and Malachiazs was angsty and romantic and chaotic and <i>bloody</i> brilliant.

If you thought <i>Wicked Saints</i> was dark, you’re in for a treat. <i>Ruthless Gods</i> was dark and enigmatic. The whole way through, I was on the edge of my seat waiting to be thrown for a loop. The characters are so diverse in personality and it makes for a fantastic read. The plot only thickens in this book. So many new revelations come to the surface, making you constantly question your loyalties. We also learn a lot more about Kacper as well as the Akolans, which I believe was much needed.

Here’s the thing, I just <i>adore</i> Malachiazs. His anxious, brooding, passionate, emotional, borderline evil self just hits me hard. And I was so happy with the development we got on his part. I do wish that we got more in his perspective but I definitely think that’ll happen in book 3.

I also adore Nadya and was thrilled with her personal development. Hopefully it goes even further in the third book.

I’m not terribly positive how I feel about Serefin’s story. I feel like it’s still a little jumbled up to me. That being said, I do feel like he grew in certain areas.

All together, Ruthless Gods was a brilliant second novel in the Wicked Saints series and I can’t believe I have to wait over a year to get the next one!

I received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Nadya and the two boys return in this sequel, but nothing is easy. They are all forced far out of their comfort zones on individual quests that may or may not intersect with each other. On top of that the gods may be interfering…if there is such a thing as gods.

Second books are often duds for me. I find that they have trouble bridging gaps between book one and book three. I was scared with this book that would be the case. The stakes for the first book were ridiculously high. And going into the second I wondered if that would still be the case. Would it keep me interested or would I flame out part way through? My biggest fear was that – I had grown to love some of these characters and I worried that in this book I wouldn’t like them anymore. I was worried for absolutely nothing.

If you liked Wicked Saints, if you liked the characters (even just some of them) then you are going to love this book. This book goes more and more depth into religion and heresy and action and relationships, and it is all bound together in a supremely well-paced story. The same themes from the first book come back in this one, except in some cases this book feels just a tad darker than the first. It does have some horror elements (eye related stuff which I had to skim because ICK) and yet it feels as if the book was just as concerned with developing these characters.

Plot wise I enjoyed it. It was deftly paced, as in, it isn’t just action, there is a lot of introspection and a lot of thinking going on, so it is slow in that respect, but it is still interesting. I really don’t want to give too much away about the plot – suffice to say that Nadya, Serefin, and Malachiasz are dealing with a lot of things at the moment. A LOT. Nadya is on her own journey and Serefin and Malachiasz are as well, and somehow they all keep coming back together. The gods are not happy is an understatement in this book.

Serefin was my favorite character before and he remains my favorite in this book. He has his own delightful relationship arc, and I was so very happy with the way that it went. I will be so very glad to see more of it in the next book. His friends too, get a bit of their own little arcs as well, and more information about them is given to us throughout the book.

And of course, we have Nadya and Malachiasz. One of the more intriguing relationships I’ve read about. Nadya constantly talks about how it is based on betrayal, and it is. Very much so. If you like will-they-won’t-they this relationship has it all. Also, lots of blood, anger, angst, pining and unresolved emotions. I cannot keep up with those two at all.

We also get introduced to a new character in this book, and they help us with a balance in this odd group of theirs. There is a little section talking about some of the minor characters and their country as well. It felt a tiny bit out of place, but I do wonder if something is going to happen with it in the next book.

The plot and the writing and the events are all so twisted and confusing and good. This was a confusing book at times, and it wasn’t in a bad way. I felt that the confusion lent to the atmosphere of the book. Not only that you want to scream at the characters not to do the stupid thing they’re thinking of doing. Suffice to say I got really attached to the characters again. I dread to think of what Duncan is going to put them through next.

And of course, I loved the writing. I think it was well written and overall, I enjoyed it. I couldn’t put it down for one minute.

4.5 stars. I’m so into this trilogy. The second book was a good continuation of the first for me. This was one of those books where I could point out a lot of the flaws, but I still loved it. It's the exact type of bloody and romantic romp that I want, with some of my favorite character archetypes.

There should have been more character build up. I feel like I missed a chunk of characters getting closer to one another. It read like they were a lot closer friends than they were in the first book. Which, I guess they were. But when did it happen? This weirdly enough made me change my rating of the first book.

I still see very heavy Kylo Ren influence on Malachiasz, same as in the first book. If you read a lot of Reylo fanfic, you will definitely see the parallels. I don’t think that’s a bad thing per se, but I felt like it was too heavy handed in the first half of the book.

This book has a decent plot, though the pacing in this book was slower than the first. Thinking back, I feel like not a lot happened in the beginning of the book. It seemed like a little bit of plot was pulled out for the whole book. BUT, I think the pacing was better. The first book for me alternated between fast and slow pacing, while this one was more steadily paced. I’m also partial to slow paced books, so I was enjoying myself. It was never slow enough to be boring, but it wasn’t quite a slow burn either.

I liked that the characters were on this collision course that they couldn’t seem to stop. I liked Nadya more in this, too. Though I liked all the characters in the first book, Nadya was my least favorite then. I liked her more in this book.

All in all, I liked the second book better than the first book, I think? It was slower, but I felt like the pacing was much more steady.

It disappoints me to no end given that I really did like Wicked Saints, but I just did not like Ruthless Gods. I wish I could chalk it up to a bad day clouding my judgment, but I can't. (I'm kind of a binge reader, so when it takes me almost two weeks to get through a book, it usually means something.)

Usually, I would provide a plot summary for my ARC reviews, but I actually kind of feel like I can't, in this case, say all that much. The gang from Wicked Saints (Nadya, Malachiasz, Serefin, and their crew of other secondary characters I remembered nothing about) work to deal with the fallout from the events at the end of the first book. Eventually, they all, for different reasons, begin a journey to a holy site. This journey takes them through a forest that tries to kill them.

Part of the reason I can't give much of a summary is that I don't want to spoil the end of Wicked Saints, but an equally significant reason is that I'm genuinely struggling with it. I'm not really sure how such a small amount of plot was stretched out to as long as this book was. A very good chunk of the beginning of the book just involves all of the characters...debriefing on the situation? and getting cryptic warnings from our resident ~creepy~ ~mysterious~ ~all-knowing~ character. And once! They left! And couldn't commune with her anymore! Duncan just threw in a new character! To fill the same role! Who somehow just knows a bunch of plot-driving information! Just...because, I guess!

The romances in this story continue to make absolutely no sense to me. Build up? Foundations? Don't know them. It's kind of like...Ruthless Gods took all of the parts of Wicked Saints that I didn't like but was willing to overlook and then...made those parts the entire book.

Overall, I'm disappointed. I'm sure people will like this book -- it's got a lot of cool elements, too. Duncan turns the horror and more grotesque elements up to 11, which I know will appeal to a lot of readers who've been looking for more horror YA. It just wasn't for me, I guess?

Oh, the eye trauma. I was at a panel over the weekend listening to Emily Duncan discuss dark fantasy with Holly Black and some other great authors, and she said one of the things she perhaps regretted in Ruthless Gods was the amount of eye popping up in various places (poor Malachiasz) and the kissing in blood (you’ll know it when you read it). But this story contains a ton of eyes in places eyes have no right to be, and it is a bit disconcerting at times. (She also says she loves writing about teenagers doing all the wrong things thinking that they are the right things and well, it’s true.)
When Wicked Saints ended, Malachiasz had just drank some strange potion and was on his way to becoming a dark god, Nadya was stuck in Tranavia, and Serefin became the king of a nation (and the host to some unknown god).
It starts off slow. Nadya and Serefin are stuck in a strange situation in the palace, as no one can know what truly happened to the former king. Malachiasz is on the border of madness (okay, he is fully dark mad most of the time). And then they get kicked into action. They each go off on their own quests (some by accident) which takes them to the same place for the climax of the book. And then things get real and weird and wild, then it ends leaving the reader questioning what they just read.
While I love it, and I adore Wicked Saints (which I’ve read twice this year), some things just don’t add up. Malachiasz and Nadya have a strange connection because she stole her power that always her to see him at times, but it isn’t very well written, since at times it is hard to tell if he is physically present or just mentally. Malachiasz in general is stranger in this, because of his monster god issues, but his personality and motivations change almost without explanation, which is confusing. In fact, the majority of his eldritch god scenes are confusing and not well explained, which is a pity because sometimes I would like to be told what is going on in the things I read.
Wicked Saints, compared to Ruthless Gods, was light and fluffy. Ruthless Gods gets darker and darker, a cosmic horror fantasy where all the choices made are wrong ones and there is a lot of blood. I think my mind tried to shut that part out, as I enjoyed watching these teenagers walk down the path to hell, but I can’t even begin to imagine what havoc Emily Duncan will wreak on them in book 3.