This was a great follow-up to Wicked Saints. I really find this series to be creative and unique. In some instances YA can feel a bit repetitive and tropey, but Emily Duncan does a great job setting herself apart.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Ultimately and intriguing second novel. While it didn't have the same heart-pounding experience as book one, this book was still eloquently written with vibrant and complex dialogue. Duncan's writing craft is amazing.

I found myself a bit more intrigued by the secondary characters in this installment, and I am curious to see further development of Serefin, Katya, Kacper, and Parijahan.

The last 5% of this book was interesting, but I didn't feel the rush I thought I would because when the epilogue came around, it was what I expected (which isn't a bad thing!).

In the long run, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Despite being a 550-page monster, but man was it quick. The development and physical imagery of Malachiasz was so vastly fascinating, and I am quite intrigued to see how this lovely bloody trilogy will end (literal blood...so much blood. More YA books need this amount of blood...am I evil?).

You know, I like my stories dark but there's just something about this book that made me want to keep putting back on my kindle shelf and never to open it up again. Needless to say, I did not finish reading this book. To be honest, I could not finish reading this book as this story gave me a HUGE reading slump.

I don't know if the slow plot or the characters made me want to stop reading. Nadya's dual nature was supposed to be interesting and I would like to explore it even further, however, it just didn't work out for me while reading this book. Even if Kostya does come back and it made Nadya think about her life decisions, for some reason, it still did not help. There was less character growth and it was getting quite repetitive. I found it to be tiring and I couldn't wait for it to be over. I just didn't get it back to it anymore, which was disappointing.

My favorite character, once again, is Serefin. But I find that he was just used to explain some holes in the political system for this story. Unfortunately, Serefin wasn't enough to make me want to keep reading the story. When I read Wicked Saints, I found everything new and exciting. I just did not have the same feeling for this installment.

I did not get the chance to read this ARC prior to the book's publication, but we did end up buying it for our library collection.

”And she knelt at the edge of that place and contemplated just what it meant that she wanted to dip into that ocean of power and take it all for herself—that somehow she felt as if she already had.”

This book at times really and truly scared me, and it also grossed me out. Seriously. Wicked Saints in comparison was a baby’s book.

In Ruthless Gods the author plays with more and more darkness and weirdness. I was here for it 100%, but at times it was a little confusing. The book was really dark and I liked how it really played with how gray morality can be sometimes with every single character. Every character, especially our main ones, had to overcome obstacles and really face some darker challenges than they had to in the first book.

AND THEN THE FOREST.


“The things that dwell in this forest are not going to appreciate our trespassing.” She could feel it, too, something old and angry watching from the shadows.

I loved the whole forest section, which is luckily, about a fourth of the book. All of the characters end up through separate journeys, in a creepy forest that is just...not right.

And the forest, it hungered. It knew what had stepped inside it, knew those great powers that dwelt within and around and in-between and underneath its trees had great plans for the little insects that were scurrying around while it watched.

There’s blood.

There’s confessions.

There’s body horror.

There’s much more in the forest.

Overall, the book ends on after a crazy ride, with not a lot of questions answered, and a few minor cliff hangers. I really enjoyed this book overall. The beginning was slow, but it really starts picking up as all of the characters have to live with their actions of the first book and continue to build upon those actions.

Oh man! I love this world! I love the magic and everything in between! When we left off on the first one there was a little bit of uncertainty, like we couldn't believe what had happened and what would be next! This story is one that hits hard and its soo good in that fashion. Not all stories have the fairytale ending, and this one proves that sometimes no matter how hard you try or how determined you are that not all stories will be happy. I loved this story and all the development of the characters! All the gore, lies, betrayal, darkness and most of all the chaos. I also enjoyed all the aspects like about all the eyes, like those things are everywhere and its definitely like a creepy big brother sense because they are never truly alone. I absolutely loved this book and the magic and sorcery i am definitely going to read this one again and again because its that good! Its a beast like size wise but its sooo freaking good

I really enjoyed being back with the gang for some horrible fun in RUTHLESS GODS. I would read these characters doing anything, to be honest. The banter and dynamics only got better in this book, and the body horror intensified to a cinematic level. Emily A. Duncan did a superb job with the enemies as lovers trope; I'm not sure I've ever seen it done quite as well, to the point where I swooned and wanted to smack sense into the characters at the same time. There are a ton of content warnings, but I'll leave those to the author. Can't wait for the next book, which I'm guessing will have MONSTERS in the title :)

The ending of Wicked Saints made be incredibly curious about Ruthless Gods and where the story would go next. And I'm here to say that Ruthless Gods is even better and exceeded my highest expectations. Emily A. Duncan has done it again. 

Ruthless Gods continues shortly after the events of Wicked Saints. It immediately picks up the pace and we discover where our favorite troublemakers currenly are. Emily A. Duncan crafts an captivating and even darker story than she did in Wicked Saints. The stakes are higher and the suspense keeps you on your toes. 

After the events of Wicked Saints, Ruthless Gods continues to make you question what is true. Are things really like they seem? Emily A. Duncan's writing truly pulls you into this world. The characters are so well-layered and we discover even more about them. But still not enough to know everything about them and that's what keeps you guessing. Even though most of them do some dark and despicable things, you can't resist to keep rooting for them or maybe even love them more? A few reveals absolutely made me swoon and many deceits and uncovered truths made me gasp. A perfect balance. 

Once again the ending left me feeling shocked, surprised and heartbroken. I am so excited to see how this story will continue.

This book certainly lives up to its title because it is RUTHLESS. I just want to draw these characters a bath and give them some self care techniques because they need a break. Seriously, Serefin needs a nap. 

Ruthless Gods picks up 4 months after the ending of Wicked Saints and everything is crumbling around our main characters. Nadya doesn't trust her magic and then there's the issue of a certain tall, dark, and handsome that completely betrayed her. Serefin has taken over the throne but his advisors are 10 seconds away from taking it away from him but that's the least of his concerns because his eye won't stop bleeding and there's a voice in his head. Malachiasz is barely keeping it together. 

This book is almost 200 pages longer than the original and I loved that we get to see more character development in these pages. I also love that the secondary characters get more depth and we're introduced to some new characters as well.

Plot: 3/5
Characters: 3.5/5
Writing: 4/5

Ruthless Gods, the sequel to Wicked Saints, was partly a road trip through a malevolent forest, partly an exploration of divinity and full of meddling ancient gods. The plot was a weak point for me in the first book and unfortunately it was just as weak for me in this one however I fell even more in love with the gothic vibes.

The dark atmosphere created by the nightmarish Salt Mines, the menacing forest, the monsters inspired by Slavic mythology and all the eyes and teeth and blood was deeply unsettling in the best way.  I also loved how we got to learn more about the gods and their background and the way themes of divinity, humanity and monstrosity were entwined so thoroughly it was hard to tell them apart.

In this book, Serefin was struggling to come to terms with all that happened at the end of the previous book whilst trying to get the support of his court. And on top of all that, he had an eldritch god with mysterious motives trying to invade his mind. I liked him even more in this book, his point of view chapters were like a breath of fresh air sometimes. I also liked how his dynamics with both Kacper and Ostyia changed and developed.

Another character that I liked was Parijahan. We get to learn a lot more about the past she was running from and her motivations- she turned out to be a really interesting character. If anything, I would read the next book in the series just to find out how her path will be important to the overall story. And I have to mention Katya! As soon as she walked in she became one of my favourite characters. I don’t want to spoil anything about her but I’ll say this: she was brilliant.

However, Nadya and Malachiacz ended up being my main issue with Ruthless Gods. After the horrible, treacherous thing Malachiacz pulled at the end of Wicked Saints guess what Nadya wanted to do? She wanted to save him, she wanted to bring him back to humanity. But as far as I was concerned, he made his own choices and he had to live with them- why was it her job to fix him? And whilst she was telling herself she had secret plans and she needed his help, it was obvious that wasn’t her main motive. They had an interesting dynamic but I wished Nadya would act as if she’d learned something from all that happened to her in Wicked Saints aside from a few rare moments of self-reflection. Malachiacz knew what he wanted to achieve and no one and nothing would stand in his way.

The plot was too disjointed for me with lots of different things occurring and hinted at that didn’t connect together very well. I found it hard to care about their goals or understand why they were so important. I think I’d love this series much more if the plot was as gripping as the world it is set in and I’m still not sure if I’ll be reading the last book in the trilogy.

“Surely you can break it. Are you not so very powerful? Are you not a being of dark divinity?”
Ruthless Gods was everything I was expecting from book 2 in this trilogy and then some. There were so many moving parts throughout the book that at times I had absolutely no idea where we were going to next, only that wherever we ended up – it was definitely not going to be good news.

The storyline operates under so much grey that I struggled with knowing who I should be rooting for, a lot of the time I was just begging for more of the ‘enemies-with-benefits’ scenes with Nadya and Malachiasz regardless of if that ended up with blood on either of their hands. Even after finishing the book, I’m still unsure as to where I stand and who I’m behind.

It’s difficult to review much of this book without giving away big plotlines and reveals, as so much happens towards the end that just completely 180’s you. The world building and creation of an entire religion has been done so incredibly well and there has been so much depth added into it, lore within stories can sometimes come across as boring – however all it did in this one was intrigue me even further.

“His tone was a little bit chaotic monster, a little bit melancholy boy”
The body horror in this novel was horribly grotesque and I found myself cringing multiple times. Eyes and teeth are not meant to be where Emily A Duncan put them on poor Malachiasz and it definitely set off my trypophobia – it’s definitely times like this that I’m glad I can’t visualise when reading because I don’t know how I would have handled it.

This book is definitely a lot darker and a lot holier and I can’t wait to see where we go in book 3.

*thank you to St Martin’s Press and NetGalley for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I literally just finished this novel and I’m still reeling! This book was absolutely such a beautiful monster that was so different from book one, but in a really really good way! I loved every moment with these messed up little teenage monsters.

The way their journey continues to intertwine with one another is absolutely so interesting. It’s also slightly heart breaking because I was straight up Nadya/Malachiasz trash. God the angst, revenge, hatred all of the frickin emotions from all three is seen in this one! Plus we get a couple new perspectives which really helps show all the pieces of the board without giving too much away!

The ending to this book left me 100% shook! I cannot wait to see how Emily wraps up this trilogy. I know I have a long time to wait (I’m writing this in the beginning of sept. so its all fresh in my head) I without doubt I have no idea what I even want anymore because they are basically ruined little monsters just like book one!

I really thought that I would enjoy revisiting this world more. I was very excited to rejoin Serefin, Nadya and Malachiasz and the world of the Tranavians and Kalyazin, but I was thoroughly disappointed. 

There really wasn’t a lot of reminder information from the first book so if you don’t have a great memory and haven’t read Wicked Saints recently, then I would go back for a refresher.

We following the characters as they travel west. Not much else happens. We don’t have any if the action/adventure type story that I loved so much from Wicked Saints.

I really loved the magical system of this world but we don’t even really get a lot of magic mentioned in this story.

This story just really fell flat for me. I will, of course, read the finale because I really enjoyed Wicked Saints and feel like there is a good chance that the third book will have a lot if the elements that I enjoyed in the first book.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

In this sequel to Wicked Saints, the characters head off on a journey into darkness again. Nadya has something wrong with her powers, Serefin hears a mysterious voice in his head, and Malachiasz has turned to the dark side. They have to travel across the country to find their gods.

It took me a while to get into this book, but once I did, I was hooked. This book was just as dark and gruesome as the first book. It’s a unique fantasy world. The demon creatures are described in such detail that I felt like they were real. There were also many injuries and a lot of blood.

I can’t say much without giving away spoilers. Many of these characters were fighting, yet they had to work together. They didn’t like each other all the time, but they saved each other’s lives. That made for some strange situations, since they didn’t necessarily like each other yet they had to work together against a common enemy. There were also some new characters and new relationships mixed into their group.

This book had an exciting end. I have no idea what will happen next!

Thank you Wednesday Books for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I'll be uploading a more full review for netgalley and my blog soon, but for now I just want to say that I loved this so much! I was so excited for this book after the first one, so my hopes were high, and I was not disappointed. I love the way Duncan mixes religion with magic, isn't afraid to take risks with her plots and characters, and makes fascinating places of the dark corners of our mind. I loved seeing these characters again and continuing their journey and I was so satisfied with the continued development of who they are and who they are together. I wholly recommend this. I am not okay.

unfortunately I didn't enjoy this book as much as I liked the first one. It was kind of slow and a not as interesting. Not to say that this book isn't good. It had some interesting moments but compared to the first one, it was a let down. I am looking forward to the next book because I think that this series is fun and interesting.

Ya'll know I like my stories dark and disturbing. But there were times in Emily A. Duncan's Ruthless Gods where even I was like, "Damn, girl!" Which only means I LOVED this book even while it tore me open and made me bleed.

Ruthless Gods is dark. SO much darker than the first book in the series. This is not your average Disney fairy tale, people. There is going to be no happily ever after for any of these characters. It is so dark that I honestly have no idea how anyone is going to end this adventure still alive and, well, sane.

Starting six months after the end of Wicked Saints, Malachiasz is off still trying to overthrow the gods, Serefin is now king and trying to stave off those who oppose him as well as end the war. And Nadya, poor Nadya, must repair her broken heart and figure out what is next for her now that her gods no longer speak to her. It is as depressing an opening as one will find. Once they finally take action, it is one step forward and two steps back for this trio. Think Empire Strikes Back except they still don't quite know who the puppeteers are to their puppet states.

As you get to know these characters a bit better, their personalities come to the fore more than they did in the first book, when you were basically trying to figure out what the hell was going on. Serefin is a pawn. He is ruthless in his determination to end the war, but he rarely does anything of his own volition. Rather, he lets others make his decisions and do his dirty work. He is afraid of taking action, and when he finally grows a pair, it is too late.

Malachiasz is literally the Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde of Eastern Europe mythology. You want to love him because he is capable of such depths of love and longing. But his Mr. Hyde state is brutal. His outward appearance in this form mirrors the depths of his depravity. I ended the novel not trusting a word out of his mouth and not even wanting his redemption. His ability to repeatedly manipulate and hurt those who love him make him a lost figure to me.

My heart lies with Nadya, our Joan of Arc figure. She is still too gullible and naive for her own good, but she creates a mothering instinct in you where you just want to protect her and make sure she is happy. She trusts Malachiasz too much, even though she says she doesn't. My heart literally ached for her throughout the entire novel because I don't want her to get hurt once again. For this reason, all my hopes are with Nadya. I want to see her become a badass bitch in the finale. I want her to stop being reactive and start being proactive. I want her to hurt Malachiasz as much as he hurt her, maybe more.

Also, can we just take a minute to appreciate the fact that Ms. Duncan's world takes place in a pseudo-Slavic world? It makes sense then that the story is so dark because if you know anything about Slavic/Polish history, you know it is nothing but misery. Their myths and folklore are going to reflect their experiences, and their experiences include nothing but being conquered over and over again. Plus, I just really like the names and the fact that I can pronounce them correctly.

Ruthless Gods was my most anticipated release for 2020, and I am so glad to say that it did not disappoint. In fact, my respect for Ms. Duncan only increased because she refused to let her characters settle or take the easy route through their adventures. In my opinion, she gives Jay Kristoff a run for his money in creating characters you adore and then breaks your heart with the pain and suffering he puts them through, and I love that. I love the despair that oozes from the pages. I love that she rivals any horror novelist for terrifying, gory af scenes that mentally imprint themselves into your brain. Ruthless Gods is disturbing and somewhat depressing but you care so much for Nadya and want to see Serefin and Malachiasz receive their comeuppance that you keep going and find yourself falling in love with this very unusual, deliciously evil story.

This series gets better with each book! Wicked Saints were really good, and Ruthless Gods are AMAZING! I was so invested in the story that I didn't know when I had reached half of it! The story continues fast, and I think this story is better explained than the one in WS, and due to that, I LOVED it, instead of just liking it. I think I would classify this story as a fantasy adventure, that follows really intriguing events and full-blooded characters! The journey that is EPIC continues and gets even MORE epic!
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Nadya, the cleric, grew a lot on me in this story, she had developed in a way that was amazing. Ms. Duncan did a great job here with her. I need more characters like Nadya in the literature!
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To sum up, this story is addictive, thrilling, full of darkness and goth vibes that are present in Polish fairytales that this story is coming from (some names can be strange for English speakers, but they are coming from my language - Polish). There is some romance, but it's not coming to the first plan, as the adventure and fantasy theme is the most important here.
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This is all I will say as or would probably spoil the story for the future readers, and I avoid that at all costs. This story was just amazing and book three is a MUST have to me from now on, and I can't wait to get my hands on it next year!

Nadya's magic has been corrupted and the gods don't talk to her anymore. Serefin survived his father's plots but now hears voices and sees visions that go along with the mysterious voice demanding his allegiance. Malachiasz is more than mortal, but not quite what he had hoped to be. In spite of their actions, the war continues to rage and there are signs that something else has gone very, very wrong with the world.

Ruthless Gods is a direct sequel to Wicked Saints, taking place four months after the conclusion of that novel. As a result, you really need to read that one first. Otherwise, you're at a disadvantage as to who the characters are in relation to each other, as well as how magic works in this world. Nadya, who had always been sure she knew had magic worked and that she would remain faithful to her cleric origins had done the unthinkable in the conclusion to the first novel. Now her gods have fallen silent and don't allow her to tap into their power. Instead, she has a line connecting her to what's left of Malachiasz, and it's killing her by inches. Malachiasz had always been called a monster and Vulture before due to the way that tortures had been used to transform people into something more within that death cult. Now he has taken it to a whole new level of monstrous, becoming more like an eldritch horror befitting a Chthulu mythos. As for Serefin, he continues to drink and casually drive away those closest to him. Perhaps it's being raised in the treacherous court of a country with casual bloodletting for magic purposes, but he is awfully cavalier about the death threats he receives.

The dark and dramatic imagery in this novel is likely the stuff of nightmares. The Salt Mines, mentioned before as the home of the Vultures and as a place no one wants to ever enter, is every bit as horrible as was implied. Blood, bone, screams, and death are everywhere, and the horrid shape-shifting properties are especially vivid here. Nadya has incredible bravery to offer to enter and to try to draw out the humanity in the monsters that reside there. It's something that remains true even as she realizes she's changed so much from the first novel and is still an admirable quality about her. The curiosity remains the same, as well as her loyalty to those she cares about. That combination catapults the quest she chooses to undertake, which seems like more of a fool's errand at first.

Serefin initially comes across as even whinier than he had at the close of the first novel, and the drinking and arguing really make me lose respect for him. For someone introduced in such a fierce and terrifying way, his plight truly seems less engaging. It changes when the voice and hallucinations start, though he is still trying to escape his fate. In the final third of the book, I really like him more, though he still remains somewhat passive. Malachiasz has his passive moments as well, and it seems as though everyone is lying and everyone has ulterior motives. The book summary mentions a stunning betrayal, but it's more accurate to say that there are several betrayals, and as much as they had foreshadowing, I was still surprised by them. I can't wait to see what Emily has in store for the conclusion of the trilogy.

*We received an early copy of this book from the publishers via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are our own and do not reflect the thoughts or opinions of the publisher or author.

Quick Take: a continuation of the New York Times bestseller Wicked Saints, Ruthless Gods continues the stories of Nadya, Serefin and Malachiasz right where things left off in the first novel as all three wrestle with

What I Loved: I love Russian/Slavvic-based magic systems. Ever since falling in love with The Winternight Trilogy by Katherine Arden, However, as anyone who has read Wicked Saints will know, this series is incredibly dark which I am totally here for. I think one of the most powerful aspects of both books is Nadya’s development from the beginning of the series to this point. Speaking from personal experience, I know what its like to completely deconstruct your own worldview and then do your best to pick up the pieces. It can be incredibly jarring and the internal monologues Nadya has, along with the philosophical conversations she participates in about the gods were really fascinating and touching to me personally.

What I Didn’t Love: I honestly thin I would have enjoyed this one more if I had read a physical copy. I listened to it on audio and as a result I feel like I missed a few things. Plus, the narrative is naturally confusing because each of the characters have their own internal monologues with other beings and the narrators aren’t that great at distinguishing between the different voices and characters so yeah, it just became really muddled and while I’ll pick up the next book because I want to now how the trilogy ends, it probably won’t be in audiobook form.