to say I loved this book would be an understatement.
this entire series will forever be a favorite of mine, Kaner did such an amazing job wrapping up the trilogy and I just can't say enough positive things about these books.

I will forever love Skedi, our little god of white lies and the sweet relationship with Ina. Kissen is also one of the most inspiring FMC I've ever read. Throughout the series Kaner does such a lovely job writing disability and queer rep, I'm fact I would say some of the best representation I've read in a long while.

I will forever recommend this series, thank you for granting me this eARC, I cannot wait to receive my preordered copy to annotate

The final entry of the Fallen Gods trilogy, Faithbreaker is a fiery tale of the power of love, faith, and fervor that can pull even the gods into the conflicts of man.

Hannah Kaner’s Godkiller was a hidden gem that became one of my favorites when released. A reasonably fresh take on gods being closer to the realm of man, given power via the strength of the faith of their worship. Amid this world of gods, great and small, the mercenary Kissenna (Kissen), a bounty hunter of gods immediately puts a unique spin and opened up room to tell an interesting and enjoyable tale. Additionally, the clashing pathos of the King-Who-Must-Be Arren and his love-hate relationship with the knight-mercenary Elogast broadened the plot and added the human conflict that would form the centerpiece against which the battle of the gods could be harnessed. Then there was the child Inara, with her own pet god Skediceth, the god of white lies. Their blooming relationship as they grown into their own personalities formed a great contrast against the gruff anti-god attitude that Kissen brought to the story. Godkiller told a surprisingly mature tale of faith and the power it holds, for good or evil.

The ante was tremendously upped in the sequel Sunbringer, bringing the conflict between Arren’s regal ambitions and Elogast’s noble intention,with both sides bringing their share of gods and wars into the mix. Caught up in this mire was the divided Kissen, and the coming-into-their-own Inara and Skediceth, as they attempt to carve their own identity in the wider battle within and without. Sunbringer built up to a terrific action setpiece and an immense emotional climax as Arren and Elogast faced each other, while Skediceth, Inara, and Kissen frantically protected the city from the gods’ wrath. With a gut-wrenching cliffhanger, the third and final book in the Fallen Gods series promised greater stakes, and even greater heights of conflict, both physical and emotional between each of their characters, as they fight their battles of passion, ambition, faith, and identity.

Unfortunately, Faithbreaker fails to maintain those lofty expectations and ends up being a lukewarm and predictable conclusion to the trilogy.
Look, Faithbreaker is not a bad book by any means, by itself, or as a final entry in a darkened YA fantasy trilogy. Its biggest crime is that it takes a step back from the intensity of Sunbringer rather than continuing to up the ante towards a bombastic crescendo. Compared to the explosive and emotionally frenetic final chapters of the second entry, Faithbreaker felt lukewarm in its stakes. The final conflict between the invading Talicians heralded by the malicious fire god Hseth forces Arren and Elo to join forces against a common enemy, as Arren nursing his own weakened god of the hearth, Hestra, also nurses his ambition to be the ultimate king of the land.

Faithbreaker has two major plot arcs — the conflict between the Arren-Elo alliance and the Talicians as they wreak fiery havoc across the lands, and the Inara-Skediceth-Kissen-Lady Craier (Inara’s mother who adds an emotional fulcrum to the Inara-Skedi-Kissen dynamic) as they must travel to distant shores to drum up support from both humans and gods against the menace of Hseth’s wanton invasion. In this regard, the story splits into main subgenres. The Arren-Elo subplot firmly stays in military-fantasy territory, while the other alliance has more of an adventure-fantasy flavor. Sadly, none of these two major subplots did much to shake up the status quo and felt surprisingly muted in terms of what is expected from a ramping-up final entry, where there is usually a frantic board setup for the final conflict.

Perhaps my biases borne from being deeply enmeshed in the ultraviolence and morally complex tropes of grimdark fantasy, inured me to the paltry betrayals and attempts at “horrific” battle scenes that Faithbreaker offered. At no point did I feel truly on the edge of my seat, rather I yawned my way through most of the predictable plot beats. At the onset of the story, I made certain predictions about who would survive at the end of the book/series, and I was almost entirely right (I was more bloodthirsty, and killed off MANY more characters than Kaner). It is this failure to meet my own internal expectations that led me to merely trudge through the length of Faithbreaker to its entirely stereotypical conclusion. For those who are newer to Fantasy, and prefer cleaner storylines, you may find this a better proposition.

Even if the plot is predictable and tropey, a rewarding journey to that end is its own reward. Yet, Faithbreaker fails quite harshly in that regard as well. The emotional needle within any of the characters barely budged in the final entry, especially when there were such wide twists and turns in Sunbringer giving much depth to the characters. Via this lens as well, Faithbreaker felt like a step back, with the characters barely moving in their own character arc. This left me wondering if this narrative was world-driven (it was not), plot-driven (perhaps, but in a very predictably stale way), or character-driven (which was proven otherwise). To give credit where it was due, Lady Craier was a breath of fresh air to the cast of characters. Her dynamic with the world as a pirate and queen, while juggling her checkered relationship with her daughter Inara, and the cheeky Kissen was fun to read. I would read more adventures about Lady Craier!

In the effort to tie it all together to a neat-and-tidy end, it felt like Kaner lessened the scope of the story and its characters, stifling many directions where the characters could have grown, yielding to a denser, more complex, and more rewarding conclusion. Kissen’s character felt subdued, her romantic subplots felt extremely shoehorned. Inara and Skediceth had their moments but were thwarted by the lackluster and entirely predictable final action setpiece. The Arren-Elo love-hate conflict was utterly quashed into colors of beige and taupe. Even the supposed “gut punch” climax barely caused an emotional spike, instead making me sigh with an “oh of course!” reaction.

Surprisingly, where Faithbreaker shined was in its meta-commentary about the virtue and evils of faith itself and how it can be used to unite or divide a people. The salacious side of faith, sharpened to a human-wielded weapon was well-crafted by Kaner, and I wish she spent more time exploring those themes rather than racing towards her chosen neat-but-boring conclusion.

Sadly, Faithbreaker broke the faith I had in the Fallen Gods trilogy, especially after Sunbringer did a fantastic job of laying the foundation for an explosive finale. A step back in almost every regard, Faithbreaker becomes yet another example of a series sacrificing an interesting yet messy conclusion for a tidier yet less rewarding end.

I was NOT ready for the emotional turmoil that Hannah Kaner put me through with this epic final to her triology. Oh my, the characters were compelling, the world was phenomenal and I just flew through this book. I think the author did a great job with the worldbuilding, and the characters, but also kind of intertwining the two. Wow oh wow, though, make sure to keep some tissues nearby because I was a blubbering mess.

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher, and the author for providing a free e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Unfortunately, I really tried to pull through to finish the series, but I will be DNFing shy of 70%. I just can't seem to care about any of the characters or the plot. The first two books were middle of the road for me, but I thought that maybe the ending would really hasten and provide a great conclusion, but I can't deal with the slow pacing of the novels any longer.

None of the characters minus Inara and Skedi really have any personality to me, and I can not stand behind any of them. The plot becomes convoluted at times, not making sense and contradicting itself throughout.

Hopefully, others will enjoy it, but it is a pass for me.

Well, I always expect the end of a high fantasy series to break my heart, but I didn't expect it to happen the way it did in this one!

If you have read the first two, then you are familiar with these characters, and they are just as magnificent and rich here as they were in books one and two. Elo, Kissen, Inara, and Skedi are complex and flawed, but you root for them anyway. There are some truly delightful side characters, but only a few that really stick in the brain.

The plot ended the series well. I appreciated the way it all worked out, though, I have a few qualms that can't really be discussed because of spoilers. That being said, it was a satisfying ending to a series that I have really enjoyed following. If you haven't read this series yet, this is a great time to do it - right before the 3rd one publishes - and if you have, get ready for a gut punch of an ending!

I thought this was very good and I will have to add this to the shop shelves. Thank you for the chance for us to review.

Loved this trilogy. The book does start off slow but stick with it because it does pick up. Grab your tissues because you’re in for an emotional ride. The author did such an amazing job on creating this series and leaving you with an emotional attachment to the characters so that by the end of it you’re not ready to say goodbye to your new friends

Thank you to NetGalley, Hannah Kaner, Avon, and Harper Voyager for allowing me access to the e-arc.

4.5 stars

I loved the way the book concluded this trilogy. I definitely could have used more pages. I just wasn’t done the with story yet. Alas, I will be re-reading this series at some point. I just adored the characters. I liked how we got newly forged friendships and relationships in this book. At first, I was skeptical but it worked. I was not expecting that ending. It was heartbreaking. I look forward to reading more of Hannah Kaners works in the future. I also hope she returns to this world.

I highly recommend it!

I have enjoyed this series from the very beginning. Faithbreaker is the epic conclusion in the Fallen Gods trilogy. It is the magnificent conflict between mortals and Gods and everything in between.

This was one of my most anticipated books of the year. I was so excited when I recieved an email allowing me to read it early. I didn't want this series to end.
It was perfect. She wrapped the book up so perfectly I wasn't disappointed but I was sad. Hannah seems to not care to kill of the beings we love and it gives me anxiety. I will be picking up whatever she writes next. Though she has given me trust issues.
The found family dianamic was perfect in this book
Watching all of the character grow and change and inara growing into her own person <3
I loved Elo and Kissen together
But when I saw Elo and Arren or Kissen and Lessa I was ecstatic.

This is the finale to the Fallen Gods trilogy, and it was even better than I was hoping it would be. The characters continued to be strong and compelling, and there was some wonderful character growth that is satisfying to see in the final book of a trilogy.

Despite the epicness of the plot in the last work, this one managed to feel a bit more focused and less battle intensive. There were more quiet but vital moments without taking away from the momentum of the final build. The worldbuilding also continued to be amazing, especially as we got to see more parts of the world than before.

But what I liked most about this one is that the stakes felt high because this author knows that epic battles can't be fought with all the good guys making it out okay and isn't scared to do what needs to be done. Finally, a satisfying, gratifying ending. This is the best recently-published fantasy trilogy I've read in ages and would recommend it to anyone interested in adult fantasy. Many thanks to NetGalley and Harper Voyager for allowing me to read this work, which will be published April 1, 2025. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Hannah Kaner absolutely delivered with this finale—it was emotional, intense, and so damn satisfying. I didn’t even realize how attached I was to these characters until the last chunk of the book had me actually tearing up. The pacing felt a little off in the beginning, and the romance didn’t fully land for me, but honestly, none of that mattered in the grand scheme of things. The themes of faith, power, and healing were beautifully woven in, and the found-family dynamic was just chef’s kiss. If you’ve been following this series, trust me, you won’t be disappointed. Just maybe keep some tissues handy.

Hannah Kaner delivers an ending that is raw, powerful, and deeply satisfying. *Faithbreaker* doesn’t just close the story—it makes you feel every step of the journey. There’s something about finishing a series and realizing, somewhere along the way, you got way more attached than you expected. The themes of faith, power, and sacrifice hit harder than ever, and the found-family dynamics remain a standout. Kissen and Skedi’s bond? Perfection. Inara’s arc? Gut-wrenching. Elogast? Just give this man a break.

The pacing in the first half felt slow, and the romantic tension never fully landed for me, but the second half made up for it. My only real complaint? I wanted more time with the ending—just a few extra pages to sit with these characters before letting them go.

This trilogy blends classic fantasy adventure with modern, inclusive storytelling, and *Faithbreaker* proves just how powerful that combination can be. If you’ve been following this series, this finale delivers. And if you haven’t started yet—now’s the time.

Big thanks to NetGalley and Avon & Harper Voyager for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Why was I crying at the end. I didn’t see that coming. The ultimate sacrifice was made. This was by far my favorite of the trilogy. Was I stared reading I was hooked. The events felt so relevant for what our government doing to us now. It just an eye opener on the way writers can blend their writing, this was definitely done before current events but so ironic how some things you can truly relate to now. Amazing storyline sorry it over for all the lost and the gains.

4.25 stars

Faithbreaker was a solid end to an entertaining trilogy. I enjoyed this more than the second book but not quite as much as the first. The first half of the book was hard to get into, but I was drawn in by the end. The finale scenes were fantastical and quite fitting to the story we’ve been brought on. I’m happy to have read this series!

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Voyager for a copy of this eARC. All opinions are my own.

This was a good wrap up for this series. It flowed much better than book two, and it was nice to revisit Inara and her mother, Arran and Elo, and our friendly village gods. I liked that everything either fell into or out of place, and the decisions that brought everyone to where they are weren't lightly taken.

A story of family, loyalty, and faith, The Fallen Gods trilogy has come to a neat end.

Thank you to Netgalley and HarperVoyager for an arc! Let me first say that Godkiller has been on my TBR since it was released and I just now got around to reading it. I enjoyed the first book so much that I ended up buying paperbacks of the first two. I think this will be an unpopular opinion, but I didn’t like the last installment in this series as much. I felt like the pace was pretty slow for the first 80%, and then the ending felt very quick. That may also be partially my fault, because I’ll admit I was pretty distracted while reading. I am definitely going to come back and reread when I have some more time and focus, because I’m certain I’ll rate it higher. All of the characters in this series are so loveable, especially Skedi. There is such incredible lgbt and disability representation in our main characters. One of my favorite parts of this book was exploring the relationships between Inara and her mom, and between Arren and Elo. There were so many good quotes and little pieces of wisdom in this book, and the whole series. I had so many things highlighted. I would definitely recommend reading this series, especially when the the last book comes out on April 1st!

Thank you NetGalley & Harper Voyager for the ARC.

Given that this is the finale to the trilogy, I've had the highest of expectations on author Hannah Kaner to deliver. Fortunately, even with a Just Fine middle portion, I adored the resolution. Kaner has ALWAYS stuck the ending in every book in this series. There were TEARS. Tears!

The strength and highlight of this trilogy for me has always been the interrelationships between these four main characters (Kissen, Elo, Inara & Skedi) who each started off reluctant and distrusting of one enough; forced to work together solely due to circumstances. And now, there's genuine love there, most poignantly between Kissen the godkiller & Skedi the god. I especially am satisfied with how Kaner handled Kissen & Elo's endgame relationship. While Book 1 introduced the potential of a romance, their development to Best Friends With Benefits suited them better, given how their paths diverged and their hearts ended up set on other people in this book. No matter what they are—platonic, romantic—they'll always care for each other, which is my favorite kind of M/F dynamic.

Kissen's new romance with was aptly well done. There's good chemistry there and I think it's great that a bisexual protagonist gets love interests of different genders throughout a series. Kaner also introduces a non-binary character; her commitment to incorporating diversity in her world has never wavered.

I can't not mention Inara's further growth from a sheltered 12-year-old noble to someone grappling with her place in this world, with what she is and what moralities she's forced to consider, a year later in-narrative. It's both awe-inspiring and heartbreaking to read. She is the HEART of the group. And it's what makes the ending such a gut punch.

My biggest disgruntlement with this book is Arren, whom we even get POV chapters this time round. Now, I don't mind that we did, because I can acknowledge he is a major player. And honestly, he has grown more complex as a character than a seemingly one-dimensional king grasping for power. We get more guilt and regret on his end. Nah, my gripe is—as Inara so wonderfully voiced my thoughts—that he does not deserve Elo. I even skimmed the scenes of them being physically intimate, because I too haven't forgiven his crimes. Could not pay me to care about them as a present ship. Sorry not sorry, but if someone tried to sacrifice my life for power, I would never sleep with him. 😭 Sure, Kaner at least had Elo acknowledging that he hadn't forgiven Arren and was succumbing to his loneliness. But still! Could not be me.

Given that there's a war at hand, there are plenty of Big Battle Scenes Between Armies... which don't capture my interest and I also ended up skimming most of them. 🤷‍♀️ It's just a Me issue.

In any case, now that this trilogy is completed, I'm really glad to say it's been a pleasure and I loved every book in this series. Three books of following Kissen, Elo, Inara & Skedi, who have my whole heart. I have come to love them, to watch them grow with their virtues & flaws as multifaceted characters, to enjoy being in their heads and reading their respective POV chapters. Saying goodbye to this stellar found family is a testament to Kaner's skill in getting me to care about her characters and the world she built. And what a world it is. It's been a riveting look at what faith is. How it can be twisted and used as a tool—to disrupt or unite. What one will sacrifice for it.

So, thank you for the journey.

Hannah..... You are the literal f**cking GOAT!!!!! The finale to this trilogy had me at the edge of my seat every chapter, I had no clue Hannah was going to do us dirty like that!!!! The way this book will warm your heart but break it immediately was top tier fantasy at its finest. The REPRESENTATION!!!!! THE QUEER LOVE!!! Im here for it ALL!!! I can't wait for everyone to dive into this book and experience Faithbreaker like I did! I'll be recommending this series to everyone!!!

Although Im still hurt with some of the choices made (and yes you had me crying Hannah!) this was a perfect ending to such a fun and amazing trilogy. Im excited to see what is next for Hannah and wait amazing stories she comes up with next. Thanks for letting me get this early! <3

I’ll be honest, I’ve put off writing this review for a bit. On reflection, this trilogy has been a challenging experience. Mostly because the first book hit it out of the park for me, and now each subsequent book has been a step further and further away from that high. While this book does stick the landing of the overall plot itself, it wasn’t enough to temper my disappointment with various other aspects of the story.

But let’s start with the good. Like the two books before it, this one capitalizes on the intricate world-building that has been created over the course of the trilogy. There’s been excellent exploration of themes regarding religion, devotion, and the extremes to which individuals can be driven to under the influence of strong ideologies. This one continued in these veins. And, like I said, while it takes a while to get everything and everyone in place, the final confrontation and climax of the trilogy hits well.

The pacing is also fairly slow throughout. But this is true for the first two books as well, so readers should essentially expect a similar reading experience to those stories. Personally, I think the slower pacing works for the sort of story being drawn here. Never does this series claim to be an action-packed romp. But instead, it’s very character-based, and, as such, spends a lot of time in various characters’ heads exploring their personal arcs.

Now, unfortunately, we get to my complaints. First off, from the start I’ve mentioned that delicate balance that has been struck between the shared POVs. In the first book, all three POV characters were strong enough to make this approach work well. And, as they all spent the majority of their time together, these different POVs didn’t take us away from the two other characters, allowing the reader to still spend time with them all. In the second book, one of my complaints had to do with the lessening impact of these various POVs. Inara remained mostly the same, but Elo’s story took a massive dip, with much of his subplot feeling tacked on. And, in a strange turn, the excellence of Kissen’s chapters only served to further undermine the story, as it began to feel as if any chapters focused on the other two dragged even more than they should have in comparison.

Well, here, where I had so many hopes now that our main trio were finally reunited, this problem has only been expanded upon. Not only do they get immediately broken up into various groups again and sent off in different directions, but the story added in TWO more POVs. And, honestly, I couldn’t have cared less about Arren or Hestra! Not only did these chapters feel as if they were taking up precious page space from the characters I actually cared about, but in Arren’s case, the entire project behind him was DOA.

I get that the author thought that this added POV for him was necessary to attempt to make him a sympathetic character, but frankly, it was too little too late. I couldn’t simply sweep under the rug all of the actions I’d seen from this character in the first two books. Perhaps if these chapters were attempting to simply lighten opinions on him some, it would have worked. But to attempt to re-create him as a romantic interest for Elo? NO THANK YOU! I was so upset by this switch. Not only did it feel like the excellent dynamic that was created between Elo and Kissen was swept under the rug for no apparent reason (and frankly, this is the kind of stuff that just makes me furious because it makes me feel as if the author set me up for disappointment from the start), but Elo’s entire story has played out in him coming to realize what he deserves and what he doesn’t. What he absolutely doesn’t deserve is to end up with a character like Arren, who treated him so poorly and, frankly, betrayed him to a point that even if forgiveness could happen, romantic love certainly shouldn’t.

And it was more of the same for Kissen. Yes, her natural charisma as a character carried this new relationship further than my total disinterest in Elo’s relationship. But still. This felt like a late-game switch that simply wasn’t necessary and wasn’t set up to succeed. We had two entire books with plenty of other lore and action that needed to be resolved in the rather short page count of this last book. To attempt to wrap all of that up while also adding in two new relationships that only really appear in this last book? Something’s got to give, and it was with these romances.

It’s hard to be objective with this book. Once I saw where things were going with these new romances, I was so frustrated with the trilogy as a whole that I had a hard time focusing in on the rest of what the story was trying to accomplish. There was a solid ending, and one that pulled at the heartstrings in some meaningful ways. But what I loved best about this series were the three main characters. And as the trilogy wore on, it felt like more and more, that’s where the story struggled. Readers who are perhaps less invested in the main trio as a core group may enjoy this more than me. And that said, I do enjoy this author’s style of writing, so I’ll definitely check out what comes next (though, I’ll be honest, if it’s another series, I might wait for it to complete before starting up, so I know what I’m getting into. I really hate having the rug pulled out from under me, and it’s one of the few grievances that I have a hard time forgiving in authors.)

Rating 7: For me, personally, this was probably a 6. But as I know that I got caught up in my feelings, I’d say that on a whole, this one was still a solid conclusion to the trilogy, just not as good as the first book.

Link will go live on The Library Ladies on March 28