First, I must thank NetGalley and St. Martin’s press for providing me with an e-ARC of this astoundingly dark and brooding nightmare of a book. This book will plunge readers into a realm of darkness and will make them yearn for a tiny shred of light, yet they will still be thankful for the harrowing, heart-rending journey.

The story starts where Wicked Saints left off and illuminates the broken beings the three main characters have become. They are all enveloped in varying degrees of darkness and are reduced to playthings of a seemingly immutable and inescapable fate. Nadya is floundering without her gods and with the slowly dawning knowledge of her latent power. She is lost and in need of guidance, but she cannot sever her tie or unshakable bond to the boy who betrayed her. Malachiasz successfully fashioned himself into a monster yet must continue to smother the small amount of humanity that remains within. He, too, cannot sever his connection to Nadya despite their incompatible beliefs and loyalties. And finally, Serefin, the newly anointed Tranavian king, is slowly unraveling under the unrelenting influence of a pair of “lesser” gods. He is losing himself through the incessant chatter of the gods who wish to shape their fate and is unwillingly dragged to a conclusion he regrets. Through their journey they continue towards a dark fate, actively betraying one another in the basest of ways. They are all pulled by their mutual goals to rectify the crumbling world around them but are divided by their stalwart adherence to their personal ideologies. This continual conflict forms the crux of the story and provides the tension that never ceases. The conclusion deposits the reader in a dark realm of possibilities and provides no indication of what fate awaits our battered protagonists.

The writing of this book, though dark and depressing, is well-done. The main characters are thoroughly entrenched in misery and Emily Duncan deftly plunked me right alongside them. Ruthless Gods spins a bleak world out the fraying threads of flawed gods and humans and it is difficult to trudge through emotionally. The story churns slowly and is infuriatingly indulgent and redundant at times, but never enough to drive me away. I am bound to all three main characters and I hope they are able to emerge unscathed in the conclusion. Duncan is skillful in her ability to make her characters sympathetic and manages to forge a lens that positively skews them despite committing the vilest of deeds. The story seems to be careening towards a bleak ending that I am resolutely prepared for, but I am hoping that love can ultimately conquer all.

Disclaimer : I received an arc in exchange of an honest review.
So this is a hard one to review.
There were things that I really enjoyed in the first one, unfortunately this one took me too long to read. It was so cliche/predictable. There were so many repetitions in the way the book was written, it felt as if all we had read in the first book was all these characters were. There was little to no character development and what I did find wasn't answers to questions and things happening in Wicked Saints but rather left me feeling as if the author had no idea where she wanted to take the story. I would've honestly prefered waiting more time for the sequel and having it be better than getting the sequel the year after.
After reading the first book, while I did not love it, I was excited to see where things would go. I loved the magic aspects of the story and while it had taken me a long time to get into it, though it wasn't memorable it was okay/enjoyable.
This story had no depth to it, while there are battles and action, they felt more like a way the author was trying to cover up the fact that the story was seemingly going nowhere than a cumulation of events leading to it (like a omg this is going to happen I can't wait; this felt more like ahh okay this is happening now).
I was very disappointed in this novel.
While I do see potential in the concept it was executed poorly in my opinion.
Hopefully her future novels will be more thought out/written in a captivating way.
I cannot recommend this unfortunately.
2/5 stars
-Bookarina

Well there's a new Black Vulture in town. Duncan takes the Vulture crown as she sinks her iron claws into our chests and rips out our still beating hearts.

Who doesn't love a good tale where the lines between heroes and villains are blurred and entwined. Serafin is not the evil destroyer we originally thought, Malachaisz ascending to his role as the Monster he always said he was, and Nadya not quite the hero we were all rooting for. Each character forges onward with their own righteous justice. Too caught up being the hero in their story and a villain in someone else's to recognise something much bigger and more dangerous lurks in the dark.

Duncan's writing has matured since Wicked Saints. It is not as stilted and jarring and has a more fluid rhythm. Yes, there are some plot inconsistencies, character cliches, very unhealthy and toxic relationships, confusing action scenes, filling and padding, and a wee bit of repetition with Nadya's inner monologuing, but you can't help but devour Duncan's words. It is easy to swoon for these very very flawed creatures, get sucked into the horrific wonderland and dragged along on their perilous doomed quest.

DNF at 25%. I’ve just come to realize that I don’t think I care about this series now as much as I did when the first book came out. What I did read was well written though.

I wanted to love this book. The first book in the series was such a great setup that I was eagerly awaiting this new volume. Alas, I was a little disappointed. The previous story ended with our heroine being horribly betrayed by the boy she was falling in love with. No big deal, I guess, but her country and her Gods are at risk because of the stupid decisions she has made because she can't get over a stupid boy. After a while I just couldn't with her any longer. I mean. Your boyfriend betrayed you and turned into a literal monster and you're still in love and trying to save him. It was so frustrating. This girl seemed smart and had power and nothing mattered to her really expect saving this idiot boy. And if his stupid dark hair and beautiful face were described one more time I was going to heave this book across the room. There was such terrific potential here and it was all wasted, thrown out for a second rate formulaic teen romance with a damaged boy and a stupid girl that sacrifices everything to save him. The setup of this story deserved so much better. The mythology and the world created were so interesting that I was legitimately sad to see such potential squandered. The 3 stars are really for what might have been, since it could have been so great. Unfortunately it was just not my cup of tea. I'm sure there are plenty of people that will eat up this romance; I'm just not one of them.

I was given this ARC for my honest review

I absolutely loved this book!! I loved Wicked Saints and this book did not disappoint!!

This. Series. Is. Epic. I am completely enthralled by these books and I am already itching to be re-immersed in this world!

I loved Wicked Saints, but unfortunately the continuing story of Nadya left me wanting. There was no grab me moment I was so desperate for in Ruthless Gods. It was well-written and a quick read that was good, but I felt it was lacking in some areas.

This was a pretty unique concept in a YA title. I don’t think I’ve ever read such a religion centric book. It was a great commentary on personal beliefs, the things we stand up for and the things we believe without really understanding them. A good mix of action and intrigue.

I fell in love with Wicked Saints and was eager to find out what happens next in Ruthless Gods. I knew not to get my hopes up because typically sequels doesn't possess the magic like the first books do. Ruthless Gods fell into this category.

The first 25% consisted of Nayda and Serefin filling each other in on what they endured during Wicked Saints. They spill their secrets but each withhold one key factor that would save them from so much turmoil later on if they had only shared the truth: Serefin is hearing the voice of a God and Nayda can no longer hear and speak to the Gods.

Tranavia is no longer safe for Nayda and Serefin. Zaneta's father is planning to overthrow Serefin's rule unless he can produce his missing daughter. So they escape and march to the Salt Mines in hopes of retrieving Zaneta while knowing they will run into the ultimate betrayer himself: Malachiasz. In fact, this point forward reminded me of The Lord of the Rings because there was a lot of walking. Walking to the Salt Mines and then walking through Kalyazi with a band of enemies turned friends each trying to do the right thing to save their country.

The action was nonexistent compared to Wicked Saints and the twists were easy to see from way back in book one: the royalty heir and the short reunion with a long lost friend, just to name two early ones. The extra points of views as interludes dragged the story down because did we really need to see what these characters were thinking when they took up so little of the book? Kacper, Ostyia, Rashid, and Parijahan's viewpoints were forcefully inserted into an already long book to try and shed some light on their backstories, but it didn't work since their characters remained behind the scenes from start to finish. They were invisible and the only things we saw were Serefin's spiral into darkness, Nayda battling her power, the truth about the Gods, and her feelings for Malachiasz, and Malachiasz being Malachiasz and having an ulterior motive because he's always three steps ahead of everyone.

The summary warns of a cliffhanger, but that isn't necessarily true. The readers know what happened so it's only a cliffhanger to the characters. Even though this book was a letdown and so long for absolutely no reason since nothing happened except talking and walking, I still loved the characters, the setting, and the Russian and Polish parallels.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

3.5 stars. This book was MASSIVE. Once I finished it I had a bit of a hard time remembering what went on at the beginning. But I enjoyed this book. I thought it was paced really nicely and even though there was no intense plot going on, I still found their road trip fascinating, unlike the one in Wicked Saints. Honestly, all the problems I had with Wicked Saints were altered in a good way in this installment. It feels like Emily heard the qualms of her readers and then targeted those problems to make them better. Maybe it was utter coincidence, but either way, this book was improved.

Nadya is still a bit naive, but not the completely thoughtless heroine she was in Wicked Saints. She left her sheltered home, saw many things, and changed because of them. We got some real politics in the beginning with Serefin. And the following plot after the fallout with Malachiasz was very rewarding.

My favorite element of the story is, as with Wicked Saints, the romance. Nadya and Malachiasz have very intense moments that are so fun to read, and it was enjoyable to see them adjust to their new dynamic and still fall prey to their affection for each other.

I really liked how the side characters became more complex in this book. My absolute favorite was Parijahan. She's such a good friend and I enjoyed learning more about her backstory.

The new star of this book is Katya. I absolutely loved her character. She's funny and I love how well she and Serefin get along. That was a super fun dynamic. I'm excited to see more of her.

As for the plot, it felt like this book was just a giant setup for the finale. Much like how The Crimes of Grindelwald feels like a setup movie. We ended with way more chaos than we had when we began and I'm interested to see how that turns out. This book was very mythical and I enjoyed seeing INTO the religious war between the gods this time. I think the finale will be interesting.

Ruthless Gods is wicked, cruel, and absolutely addicting. Putting down the book was nearly impossible. With even more darkness, this sequel is sure to keep you on your toes. Not to mention, it will have you second guessing who you are rooting for.

Admittedly, I love a book with plot twists that are like a knife in your heart and this book does not disappoint. The saints are truly wicked and the gods incredibly ruthless. The amount of terror and torment is impressive.

Now, for the nitty gritty. The characters are incredibly developed in this second book. Which I love! Discovering the history and being able to understand the characters really makes a story great for me. Each main character is given more backstory allowing the reader to connect with them more. Plus, each character is just a little twisted... but in a way that makes them irresistible. However, the pacing did start off much slower than I had anticipated. It took me a minute to really get into it.

Once the action did get started, it didn't stop. There was so much going on that it was almost hard to wrap your head around it. More monsters, more backstabbing, more white lies, more delusions, and more corruption. My biggest complaint is that there was quite a bit of jumping forward. There were quite a few times that I could not figure out how we got from one point to the next. It made me feel like I missed a page or two, but I didn't.

Lastly, that ending. Wow.

Nadya is a cleric from Kalyazin. Clerics are holy people who can speak to the gods. Only Nadya’s gods have stopped speaking to her lately. She is trapped in Tranavia with the young king Serefin, who is having trouble holding onto both his throne and his mind. And then there is the Black Vulture, Malachiasz. What has he done? The war between Tranavia and Kalyazin is never-ending, and the stress it is putting on these three is enormous.

Nadya needs to find a way to get the gods to speak to her again, and Serefin needs to put his mind back together. Could these two be fighting the same battle? Malachiasz seems hell bent on destruction, not mending fences. Does he want both of them dead?

Ruthless Gods is book two of the Something Dark & Holy series, following up Wicked Saints. How I wish I had come into this book having read Wicked Saints! I was rather lost in the story for the first quarter of the book. Once I got the hang of the language and the people, the rest of the novel flew by for me. In all fairness, I didn’t realize this was book two of a series until the very end, when I read the author’s notes. Oops.

So…. that being said, this is a fantasy novel like no other. It is definitely dark, very goth, very bloody. Not for the weak hearted. The magic that the Tranavians practice is blood magic, so a lot of blood and gore. Duncan’s descriptions are magnificent. The image that I conjured of the Black Vulture will haunt me. I loved the weaving of a foreign language into the text - not sure what language it is, but appeared to be something slavic. The characters are well-defined and in many ways tragic. Each one is fighting a demon of sorts, whether the gods that have taken over a mind or the gods that have fled. There is love and hate and passion and sadness.

The ending, oh the ending. No spoilers, but I am now going back to book one and cannot wait for the next to see where this story goes.

4.25 stars


This review will be posted at BookwormishMe.com on 24 March 2020 .

Wicked Saints was a book I read twice, which I never do. I was so excited to receive an ARC for the sequel and it lived up to everything I hoped for and more. These two books have made me gobble up fantasy in a quest to find something that matches it, and I am left sad, because there is NOTHING.

Nadya, Serefin and Malachiasz have not finished with their suffering. In trying to hold onto their morality they will learn that even good choices have far reaching effects. They will be stripped bare as you will too. This book will take you up and then down and you won't know which way you will land. This is one of the best sequels to a book I have ever read and I walked away broken and sad that their lives had come to an end on paper.

Run, do not walk, run and finish this sequel while your heart is torn out.

Where do I begin? Duncan gave me EVERYTHING I wanted in the first book, Wicked Saints. Nadya, Serefin, and Malachiasz are just...everything. As soon as I finished Wicked Saints, I was CRAVING Ruthless Gods. Serefin, my sweet boy. Malchiasz, my disaster son. Nadya, my tired girl. The eyeballs. The forest.

There was so much character development in this book. This book sunk its teeth in me and didn't let go once!

Ruthless Gods by Emily A Duncan

2.5 out of 5 Stars (rounded down to 2)

***ARC received from Wednesday Books and NetGalley in exchange for honest review, opinions are all my own. Thank you!***

I'm going to be honest here, while Wicked Saints was not my favorite book that I read last year, it did have some interesting parts to the original book. In particular the world and the magic system along with the gods, which was a lot of what made up the first book. Its a shame that Ruthless Gods doesn't seem to know what to do with it.

Ruthless Gods takes place a few months after the previous book, Serefin has a tentative hold over his throne and Nadya is mostly skulking around the castle because she is unable to safely leave. One of the biggest problems I had with the last book was the passage of time and this book doesn't start out on a positive note in that regard. Characters are having conversations that they should have logically had months ago and it never felt like it was a repeat conversation. Serefin seems to just now learn Nadya's goddess no longer speaks to her, Nadya asks about Zaneta for the first time. Its okay for these conversations to have happen off page and then loop the reader back into them, it helps to have already set the plot in motion. But with that information and to stave of a coup Serefin and Nadya set out to try and retrieve of Zaneta.

The bulk of this book is told again from Nadya and Serefin's perspectives. Serefin's chapters are infinitely more interesting than Nadya's chapters are. Serefin is still dealing with the voice in his head from the god that saved him from death in the previous book. It is also starting to slowly drive him mad, taking a toll on his both physically and mentally. I think I like Serefin's chapters better simply because there feels like the conflict he is facing is actually dangerous, both to him and the rest of the world. The decisions that he makes follow him, they have consequences and actually impact something bigger than just Serefin.

On the other hand, Nadya continues to be a character with so much potential that just continues to fall flat time and time again. The book wants her to be strong, weak, independent, love struck, betrayer and betrayed causing her to whiplash across the book so instead of being complex she just comes off as confused. The romance again just doesn't work, Nadya is very blunt in her opinions of Mal at times and by the next page its like it didn't happen. I can understand this happening while in another characters chapter, her trying to put on a strong front but since its happening in Nadya's perspectives its frustrating because we are in her pov as she completely forgets her words from a few minutes ago. She also continues to be shocked when people that she knows are lying to her lie to her. I wish the book could decide what character they want Nadya to be and settle on that.

In truth, thats a huge problem with the book overall. The narrative is messy, words are repeated over and over again, the plot is convoluted and gets dragged down trying to be too many things. In fact, it has to introduce a brand new characters that feels like she is nothing more that just someone there to reveal things that the plot can't come to naturally. Had the book cut out another hundred pages and tightened up the plot and character development it could have been a much better book.

I read an advance copy of this book through Netgalley. I chose this series because it was written by a youth services librarian. The story is a little dark and murky but it is suited to the genre of gothic fantasy. It is strongest in its character development, which drives the story rather than a solid plotline. This is not a drawback as the decisions of the characters seem weighty and not lightly made. The strength lies in their serious flaws and their warring allegiances and desires, which sometimes does descend into a morass, but that is often the nature of our emotions so the journey of the characters resonates. While the emotions of the characters are highly dramatic, they never descend into banal melodrama. My small disappointment is in the closing of the second book, which is steeped in an overabundance of blood and gore, is it seems a little contrived. This paved the way for a third book in the series so perhaps we can forgive the author if she writes a stunning ending for the third installment of the story.

The prologue is titled The Girl Caught In-Between and this seems to be the perpetual state of Nadezhda Lapteva. Her strongest attribute is that the manipulation and betrayal of those around her she accepts as inevitable and inescapable. She never attempts to change the flaws of other characters, but adjust her emotions and decisions to these betrayals. Her love extends to those seriously flawed and evil, which is not out of character with her almost saint-like role as THE cleric chosen to be an intermediary to the gods of her pantheon. This is a position that requires piety and allegiance that she with her flawed humanity is unable to maintain. If she is intended to maintain her chastity and abhor the allure of her purported enemy who is admittedly alternately evil and manipulatively vulnerable and needy--this is an impossible task for her.

See, it is all very, well, complicated. Nadya's quest is ultimately to champion her country against the magic and evil of their enemy Tranavia and Tranavians--unfortunately, she is at their mercy as their hostage and in love with one of their greatest and most powerful men (he is still little more than a boy) who is also attempting to accommodate having the power of an evil god. This makes him at times evil and revolting. This is something he chose--but is not completely his fault because he was sacrificed as a young child to this dark force, which makes him abused and somewhat sympathetic.

Poor Nadya! We've all figuratively "been there." I would read the first book Wicked Saints before embarking in the second in the Something Dark and Holy series Ruthless Gods. It is not really a stand-alone book

I am truly stunned by the dark and rich fantastical world which Emily has created. Ruthless Gods was (if it is possible) even more brilliant and clever than the first book in this series, and Nadya, Serefin and Malachiasz's journeys intertwined perfectly in this gem of a sequel. I found myself constantly surprised and excited to turn the page at each twist in the story, and character development truly took the front stage in this book. I feel as though I know each of her characters personally. Ultimately I am amazed by Emily's world building skills, having taken interest in Slavic folklore myself, I found her storytelling and drawing upon myths to be spot on. This is the perfect book for anyone interested in YA fantasy, and I do not believe that a better sequel could have followed Wicked Saints (already a wonderful book). I am eagerly waiting for the conclusion to this sensational trilogy.

Gruesome, grotesque and glorious is such a perfect way to describe this outstanding sequel to Wicked Saints, and Erin A Craig (author of House of Salt & Sorrows) couldn't have said it better! Wicked Saints set the scene perfectly and left you needing to know more, all while nursing a broken heart. I immediately started Ruthless Gods because I needed to know what happened to Nadya and Malachiasz, Serefin, and the rest of their unique group of travelers. Immediately I was drawn to the darkness surrounding Malachiasz, the leader of a Tranavian heretic cult known as the Vultures. His attempt to ascend from mortal to god was such an intriguing subplot, intertwined with Nadya's struggle with her duties as a cleric and her belief in faith vs what her heart desires. 

The character development was so intricate in Ruthless Gods, as we learned more about some of the secondary characters and met some new characters. The progress of the paths of the divine trio, which is what I like to call Serefin, Malachiasz, and Nadya, is so full of tension and action packed that it's nearly impossible to pick which one to root for, let alone pick a favorite. There is never a lull in the plot line which can sometimes happen in sequels, but not in this one! The scenes in the divine forrest were absolutely horrific in all the best ways! Remind me never to go walking in the woods and especially at night, even if I'm with a group of people or not. The folklore included in the story was spooky and created the perfect mood. I don't know about you, but monsters that scream and can impersonate those close to you with a single strand of hair are absolutely terrifying!!

I have so many questions after that ending, but I'm confident they will all be resolved in the third and final installment of the Trilogy. I hate that it's so far away for the third book to come out, but that's the downside to reading ARCs. It's really not a bad thing at all though! Ruthless Gods has definitely left me heart broken, or rather absolutely shattered, and I LOVE it!! Having the emotional reaction to fictional characters in this way is always a sign of an amazing book in my opinion. I highly recommend that everyone who has read Wicked Saints reads Ruthless Gods, I promise you'll like it more than the first book!! If you haven't read either of these books yet then chop, chop!!! Go on, get it now!!! These are the perfect YA Dark Fantasy books in a series built around Russian cultural influences, Gods and monsters.

I received a copy though NetGalley for review, and for that I am really grateful.

I was one of those people who loved Wicked Saints.
But let me tell you now, nobody will be prepared for this plot.
You cannot prepare your self for the level of betrayal that will occur, both by humans, magic and the gods. Everyone is just waiting to kill, everyone is lying.

The I love you, but I'll eventually level this knife into your gut- is back. And you'll never guess who actually goes through with it. A monstrous boy cannot help himself. The dejected Prince, now King is dealing with a new kind of pressure that isn't coming from his court. An angry, powerful girl, is realizing just how many things were kept from her, for her entire life.
Mad, hungry, vicious things are waking up and they will devour everyone and everything.
Blood, magic and darkness will reign, it's just a matter of who controls it, and who suffers.

I'll just leave you with this:
"“Dozleyena, sterevyani bolen,” she said quietly. “Czijow, towy dżimyka.” His eyes were closed and his lips tugged into a small half-smile."

These two are my favorite. If only they could stop trying to murder each other, literally.


But seriously, this plot is going to ruin you.