The Gods of Men

Barbara Kloss

2018 • 450 pages

Ratings10

Average rating3.8

Sable hated the gods. She hated what men did in their name.

Magic is forbidden throughout the Five Provinces; those born with it are hunted and killed. Sable doesn’t know her music holds power over souls—not until, at age nine, she plays her flute before the desert court and accidentally stops her baby sister’s heart, killing her. Horrified by what she’s done and fearing for her life, she flees north, out of Provincial jurisdiction and into the frigid land of exiles and thieves, known as The Wilds. There, Sable lives in hiding, burdened by guilt, and survives as a healer. But now, fifteen years later, someone—or something—is hunting her.

On the run again, Sable’s best chance for survival is Jos, a lethal man from the Five Provinces, who claims to need her skills as a healer to save his dying father, and she needs the large sum of money he’s offered. There’s something about him Sable doesn’t trust, but she doesn’t have many options. A spirit of the dead is hunting her, summoned by a mysterious necromancer, and it’s getting closer.

Sable soon discovers she’s just the start of the necromancer’s plan to take over the Five Provinces, and she’s the only one with the power to stop it. But harnessing her forbidden power means revealing it to the world, and the dangerous Provincial, Jos, she’s beginning to fall for.

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Series

Featured Series

3 primary books

#1 in The Gods of Men

The Gods of Men is a 3-book series with 3 released primary works first released in 2018 with contributions by Barbara Kloss.

Popular Reviews

Reviews with the most likes.

BulbasaurusThe7th

No. This book does the utter most when it comes to trying to sell the world to you through throwing in made up fantasy words. I dislike books that overdo it so much that you basically need a dictionary to understand what the fuck the characters are talking about. One of my big pet peeves. Do this gradually, ease me in, pull me in. Don't drag me by the hair.
Another thing is how desperately the book is trying to sell us on the protagonist being a saintly little angel.

Sorry, but this isn't my thing. Too YA. Next.

June 7, 2019

Travis

Early on, it's apparent that this is not Kloss's first rodeo. The story is fast paced, cleanly written, and introduces the world to us only as it becomes relevant to the plot and characters.

And that world is a dark one.

The Five Provinces have forbidden magic use, with gifted people being hunted down and killed. Rather than simply providing a bleak setting for the story to unfold in, this becomes one of the central conflicts.

Jeric—the second son of a king and known as the Wolf for his ruthless ability to hunt down his prey—has dedicated his life to tracking down and killing an entire race of people he deems a threat to his country. When Jeric's father falls ill, he's sent on a mission to retrieve Sable for her remarkable healing powers.

Sable discovered her magical powers when she accidentally caused the death of her younger sister. A decade later, she's forged a new life for herself in the frigid Wilds as a healer under a false name. When Jeric offers her a staggering sum of money to heal the dying king, she has no choice but to accept.

Sable and Jeric are polar opposites and are only forced together by necessity. They each represent everything the other despises. And yet, over the course of the story, they slowly develop feelings for each other. The romance is a slow burn over the course of the novel and I thought it was well written. Nothing felt rushed and each step was believable.

Note: There are no explicit sex scenes in this book. There are also quite a few implied incidents of sexual violence against women, but nothing that takes place “on screen.”

One thing I love in books is multiple villains. Off the top of my head, there's at least four in Gods of Men. Each has their own motivations and range from fairly likable to evil beyond any hope of redemption. Maniacal necromancers, creepy sorcerers with tongueless henchmen, demonic monsters, and twisted sadists all have a role to play.

While the central plot following Sable and Jeric is one I'd expect to see in a sword and sorcery novel rather than an epic fantasy, there's a broader story at play that's gradually revealed as the book progresses. I never felt like the worldbuilding was dumped all at once and the information that was revealed always left me wanting more.

Overall, this was an excellent read. The sexual violence felt a little gratuitous at times but it was included for a reason rather than tacked on for shock value. The story picks up speed quickly and doesn't relent until the grand finale of an ending. I'm curious to see what happens next in the story and am looking forward to the sequel.