This was the first Neil Gaiman book that I have read and I'm very pleased to say that it won't be the last! I really liked the characters and how well formed they were and the unique way that this book is like a love letter to America.

What can one say about this book that hasn't already been written? It's groundbreaking storytelling that cuts to the heart of what America is and can be.

A great book, with a story easy to follow and a fair mix of myth and modern day beliefs. One truly gets identified with the main character's thoughts.

This is one of my favorite books of all time by one of my favorite authors. While urban fantasy is not necessarily my favorite fantasy subgenre, there is just something about this book that always reels me in.

Thank you to Neil Gaiman and to the publisher for making this book available for download during quarantine so I can reread it yet again.

As lame as this sounds, there’s simply not enough positive things that can be said about this book. So instead, I’ll give a few warnings. This book is a slow burner. You’ll be nearly a hundred pages in before you really have an inkling as to what the plot is about, and from there, the pacing doesn’t really quicken much. But that’s okay! It’s something that really works in the favor of the book. If you can’t handle open minded discussion of religions and gods, then this book is not for you. However, it masterfully and respectfully hands many mythologies and ties them into a cohesive, satisfying, engaging story that’s well worth the time it will take you to read it.


Now that all that’s out of the way, let’s talk about some of the aspects, good and bad, about the book. I’ve seen some criticisms of the book that say it never reaches the full potential of its premise. I disagree with that. Much of the book is dedicated to the wrangling together of all the gods, which is exactly what the book says it’s gonna be about. The climax is satisfying in a somewhat unexpected way. But the clues are dropped throughout the book. It’s not a climax that comes out of left field. Characters remain in character, and, for me, it ends in a wholly satisfying way.

That’s not to say the book doesn’t have some issues. Primarily in Part 2. The whole Lakeside arc is kind of useless, in the broad context of the story. Everything kind of comes to a halt. Yeah, some of the chapters deal with Shadow and Wednesday continuing to recruit gods who will be important to the finale, but that could’ve been accomplished in a chapter of two, instead of the five or so that end up being in that part. And they’re lengthy chapters, too. Most of what happens in Lakeside has no real impact on the rest of the story. It’s truly a B-plot line. Which is fine, but I think it’s a reason why people find the book overly long and meandering and disappointing. It really does feel like everything just takes a break for Shadow to do some fun small-town shenanigans. There’s some fun character development that happens, and I’m not saying the entire part is useless, but it’s definitely somewhat superfluous. If one were to shorten the book, they could easily start with the Lakeside plotline.

In the Author’s Preferred Edition, there’s a cut scene involving a conversation between Shadow and Jesus Christ. I understand why it was cut, that Gaiman felt it hinted at something he couldn’t provide in the restraints of this particular novel, but I wish it had been kept in the actual novel (not as an apocryphal scene) because I think it touches on some of the interesting themes of the later half of the book, where it’s emphasized that the gods essentially have different forms of themselves depending on who’s worshiping them. That’s really interesting, and I wish that conversation had been kept in the chapter it was originally supposed to be in. It’s a short scene, after all. But I get why it was cut.

I really enjoy how the book ends. The last few chapters are just gripping. Really all of Part 3 is fantastic. The way Gaiman jumps from different points of view as everyone finds their way to Rock City is a masterclass in creating tension. We’ll see something happen from one point of view, and then see the events that led to that thing happening, etc. It really makes it so that you don’t want to put down the book. At all.

Overall, I enjoyed American Gods even more the second time I read it. It’s fascinating, gripping, epic, moving, and most of all entertaining. There’s a reason it’s as beloved as it is. I’m outrageously excited for the STARZ adaptation of it because so much of this book is vividly visual that it’ll be exciting to see it realized on TV.

If you like Gaiman, like fantasy, like theology, or just like a good story, I recommend you read this book immediately.

Excellent reimagining of the history of the US and it's mythology. I especially enjoyed the 'Coming to America" segments.

Would I recommend it ? yes

Would I read more of this series ? yes

Would I read more of this author ? maybe 

I'm so glad that I decide to give this author a second chance because I read one other book by him which was Neverwhere ( London Below #1) and sadly didn't like it.But then I saw  that Mr.Gaiman was offering this copy of American Gods Tenth Anniversary Edition on NetGelley and I had heard it was good so I went and got it and wow I can see why people say this is their favorite one or one of their favorite  of his books.At first it's kind of slow and hard to get into but I was reading other books along side this one but the more I read it the more I got in to the story and got to know the characters,that there was times that I knew I was supposed to be  reading the other  books that I just didn't want to put it down and doing those time I just kept reading. Another  thing I loved was how he mixed and blended the different types of mythology and the supernatural together, and that with each turn of the page the characters came more to life. But a big win for me was how this book give me every thing I was hopping for which the mystery, the adventure as well as a bit of darkness and even some of the characters was just plain down right creepy. With that said I wan to give a big thanks to  Mr.Gaiman as well as his publisher and NetGalley for giving me this chance at reading and review American Gods and I can't wait to pick up more of this series to read when I can

A classic! Quintessential Neil Gaiman from start to finish and a rip roaring ride at that. Excited I finally got a chance to read it!

Think for a moment that the Gods we create are worshipped and believed in by so many people that they actually come into being. Then, in order to survive, these gods have to keep people praying and believing in order to keep existing. Not only that, but as there are only a finite number of people on the planet, you have to compete with other gods for human prayer. Thats the premise for American Gods in a nutshell.

The story centres around Shadow Moon, an ex-con who's just got out of jail and has had his world torn away from him. On his way home, he meets Mr Wednesday, a mysterious figure who offers him a job of being a driver and general henchman. What Shadow doesn't know is that Mr Wednesday is preparing for a war. 

On a journey across pretty much all of middle America, Mr Wednesday teaches Shadow that all gods want to be worshipped and need it in order to survive. With the advances in science and technology, those are clawing away the human attention and are giving rise to new gods, who are just as keen to stay alive. 

This trip introduces us to a number of different characters, all based on different relgions, most of whom are eccentric and larger than life. For a book about Gods vyying for the attention of the human race, they do a damn good job of jumping out of the page.

It's hard to describe American Gods without spoiling what is a good story. It's by no means a perfect book, the part with Shadow being undercover for a large portion of the story could've been trimmed down, however the concept and story is solid. All of the characters, Gods and humans are interesting and have depth that makes you want to know more. In fact, some of the God's origin stories are at the beginning of each chapter. Some may find this jarring, but ultimately it pays off. In an ideal world, I would ask the author to turn these short pages into something more substancial but I think that's what makes the book great; you want to know more and more about each character.

Neil Gaiman has crafted a world thats odd, fantastical and sometimes so bewildering, it's hard to keep up. American Gods takes what in real life would be a standard road trip across this massive country (which was the inspiration for the story) and tweaks it just enough for there to be a magical world hidden just under the surface and well recommended to anyone who likes fantasy.

Love this classic book! A tale built for lovers of mythology, magic and mystery, American Gods is such a treat. Mythology mixes with the modern world in this story about the power of belief and how it takes root in our world. The pacing is a bit slow at the beginning, but you will find yourself quickly drawn into a secret world of ancient magical players that will stop at nothing to keep a firm grip on civilization and their presence in our lives.

I highly recommend this book for readers that enjoy fairy-tale retellings or modern retelling of mythologies.

This is one of the great classics of modern literature. Future generations should be taught this text in high school and college English classes.

There's not many books that I would reread but American Gods was just as good as - if not better than - the first time around.

Gaiman is a rare talent with a beautiful style of writing and American Gods has it all - an interesting premise, a fully immersive world with well developed and interesting characters, action, humour, sex, mystery and mythology.

Strange, enthralling, charming and a perfect introduction to Gaiman's work. A masterpiece.

Thank you so much for this copy of American Gods. This is the an amazing book. The characters jump off the page, as with all Neil Gaiman books. I loved it.

Thank you so much Neil Gaiman and Netgalley for the free copy of American Gods!!! I absolutely love Neil Gaiman books! His books are always interesting with intriguing characters. I have been reading his books for years and my favorite of all time is, Ocean at the end of the lane.