Anansi Boys

Describing this book as a sequel to American Gods is something of a misnomer. Precisely one character is common to both books, and whilst Compe Anansi is hugely important in the story of Anansi Boys - for obvious reasons - the actual word count dedicated to him is relatively little. Anansi Boys does, however, pick up on some of the same themes as American Gods - the idea of gods and other ancient myths still living in today's world in particular. Whilst this is hardly a USP, being a key trope of modern fantasy, Gaiman does it in a particularly realistic, gritty way which makes his gods so much more alive than many others. The book is amusing throughout, laugh-out-loud funny in places, but keeps enough of the dark, mysterious nature of American Gods that I would not consider it a comedy by any means. Overall, a fantastic read - I could hardly put it down.