Cover Image: No Gods, No Monsters

No Gods, No Monsters

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Member Reviews

Loved this and it had a great overall message, though it got a little confusing and convoluted at times. The writing was beautiful though.

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This book was a bit out there and not really for me.

I appreciated the on-the-nose comparisons/parallels of monsters and the way society treats people of color, the queer community, etc as a sort of commentary on America. But overall the story lines felt muddled and chaotic and although things came together near the end, it took a long and winding road to wrap things up and give the reader a better picture of what was going on.

I like speculative fiction and urban fantasy, and the prose and ideas introduced in this book were beautiful and intriguing but it just wasn’t as engaging as it could’ve been with maybe some crisper editing and plot clean up. Overall I’m glad I read it but I don’t think it’s one that will stick with me.

3.5/5 stars

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

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Wow book. It makes you think about the harmful, the perverse, and how words have the absolute power to build and destroy in a matter of seconds, to change opinions and build truths that are not.

The main character, besides being trans and asexual (I loved meeting them), is brilliant as the way the novel unfolds.

I finished it a long time ago, and I still think about it.

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While I often didn't know what the hell was going on, but I couldn't put it down. The author's notes on Goodreads let me know that 1) That was his intention and 2) I wasn't alone! Loved it and I'm really looking forward to book 2!

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This was really not my style / genre of book. I always appreciate & try to branch out to read different styles, but this wasn't for me.

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Interesting book that stops abruptly and inexplicably in media res.
Decided not to review the book.

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I absolutely loved the concept for this book and the first portion was phenomenal. It was mysterious and leaving me wanting to read more.

However, as I kept on reading. I became super confused by the endless amount of characters introduced and got lost. It was a struggle to get through. The mystery was almost too mysterious and I wanted more!

3 stars—maybe I just didn’t understand the writing as well. Still open to reading more by the author in the future.

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I absolutely loved this LGBTQ romance.

Such a great book with a solid storyline and great characters.

I eagerly look forward to reading more from this author.

A definite recommend

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DNF at 40%

Sadly, I just could not get into this. It may be SFF, but it leans heavily literary. That doesn't make it bad just hard to follow at times. We jump between perspectives without a clear idea of the overarching direction. The themes are interesting (I recommend checking out reviews from people who finished the book and got more out of it than me for more details on that), I just wasn't liking it. I hate DNFing an e-arc, but it just isn't working for me.

2/5 star for NetGalley, but I'm leaving it blank on Goodreads because I didn't finish it.

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This was such a mind bending and clever book. I thought the exploration of parallel worlds was fascinating and the way in which marginalised communities are treated was very cleverly mirrored with the treatment of the monsters. There are some great characters, all of whom are fully realised and fleshed out, which is impressive, given that the narrative has a large number of point of views. I thought that the writing style lent an otherworldly quality to the narrative and the world is frightening in its closeness to our own. Overall, I really enjoyed this book and will definitely be picking up further books by the author.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review.

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I didn't know what to expect from this book but it definitely turned out to be something very different from all the books I've read so far. I still can't formulate the exact plot of this book but the writing style was amazing and beautiful. I actually listened to the audiobook so it was a bit hard for me to be focused and follow through the pov, even though the narration was very well done. That's why I've mixed feelings about this book. But I think this book will be enjoyed differently by different readers because of the unusual story telling style. Overall, it was a very unique read for me and I think I will give a reread at some point in the future to understand it better.

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You ever start a book and have no idea where it's going, but you are here for the ride anyway?
⁣⁣
That's what happened with No Gods, No Monsters. It started off as a contemporary social commentary before diving into its paranormal fantasy elements, then took a hard turn into horror, but also it's a mystery? Regardless of classification, I enjoyed it and am looking forward to the next book.

Thanks to Blackstone Publishing and NetGalley for allowing me to read this digital review copy in exchange for an honest review.

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This book is either going to be amazing or just not for you. I absolutely loved it! The writing was simply gorgeous. Lyrical and haunting yet not too literary/obscure. The characters’ stories found their way to each other in a way that was complicated yet made total sense in the end.

There is so much brilliant commentary on racism, violence, disjointed family, class, sexuality, the list goes on. Basically, what happens when when it turns out monsters are real? Are we allies? Do we pretend they don’t exist? Do we “other” the people around us who are different? The author tackles so much in this book and does it well while never losing that mystical fantasy allure.

A lot of negative reviews have mentioned the limited world building and many characters as the downfalls of this book. I found it to be more like a puzzle that made for an interesting and fast paced read.

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Rep: LGBTQIA+

This novel sounded so cool and I was super hyped to begin the readathon with this book. However, I struggled to get through it. My main problem was in the way the story was told; I found the plot confusing, with too many character perspectives introduced. It was hard for me to follow along and I struggled to connect with the story. There are quite a few people who enjoyed this novel and its unique writing style; however, it just wasn’t for me. For those reasons, I’m giving it 2/5 stars.

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This isn’t my usual read but I really enjoyed this book! It was a wild read from start to finish and the conflict and plot were well done. It was such a unique concept and I enjoyed the way the author concluded the book! Definitely recommend!

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It was really hard for me to get into this one and I'm not sure I ever really got it. I am new to fantasy, but this plot was very disjointed and hard to follow. Also all the violence and gore was not for me.

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Caldwell Turnbull is brilliant, and No Gods, No Monsters just adds to the proof of that fact. This is a poignant and engrossing novel that serves as a clear allegory for the things we face as a society today: themes of race, class, and power are vivid, and Turnbull’s use of fantastical creatures and mythical characters almost serves to pull us out of our intellectual understanding and contemplation of these realities to become more engrossed in them as stories. For me, that helped my activism and desire to disrupt systems of oppression get downloaded even more strongly in my mind, because I’d literally just been immersed in this world for hours.

I hope everyone reads this book. I think readers young and old alike will be captivated, moved, and called to action. I’m very grateful to have read No Gods, No Monsters! Thanks so much to the publisher and NetGalley for this e-arc.

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I wanted to like this book, I really did, based on the description. I couldn't connect to it or get invested in any of the characters. The shifting point of view was confusing, as was keeping track of how each character knew the others, if at all. Regardless of my disconnect, I did enjoy Turnbull's writing style.

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Turnbull sketches out the beginning of a series with compelling characters, intrigue, and a graft of radical politics onto an urban fantasy setting.

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Not for me. I ended up DNFing a few chapters in. I don't know what it was about this but I just couldn't get into it. The writing is great, but the layout of the book was confusing and I didn't get into the story enough to justify it.

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