To say I was excited for Godslayers is an understatement. Gearbreakers is a book that took me by storm. And this sequel is no different. Captured and brainwashed, Sonya and Eris are apart and must figure out if they can find their way back to each other. At the beginning, I was 100% swept up in the feels. In looking at someone you used to know, to love, and seeing nothing staring back at you. I feel like at various points this can be what we experience in a relationship.

This disconnect between having someone once have been your everything, and then looking at them with nothing left. Or worse, with hated or anger. And so from the beginning, Godslayers felt like it was both relatable - because of those emotions - and also a slice of escape. Because there's no way I'd make it alive in this world. It begins with heartbreak, but very quickly Hana Mikuta sweeps us away with the action.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley and am voluntarily posting a review. All opinions are my own.
Godslayers is a wonderful follow-up to last year’s Gearbreakers. From the general concept to the characters and their relationships, I generally really enjoyed how things developed here. And while it is a sci-fi series, I love his character- and relationship-centric it is, whether it be the found-family dynamics among the group or the main romance between Eris and Sona.
Eris and Sonia’s relationship remains super sweet, although it is challenged by them being torn about by the circumstances of the last book. Eris is imprisoned, but would still do anything for Sona. And Sona has been subjected to brainwashing, leading her to believe herself to be loyal to Gosolia, which serves as a major obstacle for their romance to overcome, and while things end on an optimistic note for them, it’s not without some big twists and turns as they face down their enemies.
The world isn’t much more fleshed out in this one, so if that was an issue for you, be aware that it doesn’t improve. I still don’t mind, as there’s enough to provide context to what the major characters are dealing with.
With that in mind, if you enjoyed the first one, it’s absolutely worth your time picking up the second. But if you didn’t care for that one, it’s more than likely you’ll be equally dissatisfied. I personally enjoyed it, and would recommend this duology for fans of romance-heavy sci-fi.

A great conclusion to what began in Gearbreakers. I really love this found family, and Eris and Sona of course. I look forward to what Zoe Hana Mikuta writes next. I'll definitely continue recommending this duology to people.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review!

4 ⭐️

I really enjoyed the final installment of this duology! I loved Gearbreakers, but I think I loved this even more. It picks up a little after the first book ended, so it took me a little while to remember everything and get back into the story. But once I did, I couldn't stop reading. I loved the complexity of Eris and Sona, and the increase in Jenny's character.

Mikuta's writing style is not my personal taste, but there is something to be said for it. It's definitely punchy and makes an impact. I just personally get tired while reading the short, choppy sentences, though I understand that is completely subjective.

Not a perfect book, but kept me hooked and was extremely entertaining!!

TW: suicide, graphic violence, gaslighting, manipulation

Our favorite morally grey sci-fi lesbians are back! If you thought the first book ended at rock bottom, have no fears Eris and Sona both have their pick axes sharpened and are ready to dig. We last saw our main characters in the ruin of Godolia, after attempting to wipe out the despotic government once and for all. They almost succeeded, only one Zenith was left but he had plans for our girls. Sona undergoes “corruption” to turn her loyalties against the gearbreakers and Eris is to be used as proof that it has worked. When Sona is ordered to execute Eris in front of the Zenith and all the remaining wind-ups, Godolia’s tech and her love are put to the test. The stakes only get higher from there. Jenny and the rest of the gearbreakers were attacked on the Winterward ice and the few that survived barely escaped drowning in the freezing water. Any doubts that Jenny might have had about the evils of Godolia have been eradicated and she is going to do whatever it takes to bring them down.

If Gearbreakers is about rage then Godslayers is about grief. Jenny is grieving the town full of people that they couldn’t save and the trust in her follow Gearbreakers that she will never get back. Eris is grieving the loss of her team members and, of course, Sona. Bellsona is grieving for the people she has killed as well as the version of herself that was stolen from her. But following this grief is healing, even when it hurts.

“I did a bad thing to save her, and it damned her, so I’m going to do worse to get her back.”

The change in atmosphere from this burning anger that drives the characters forward in the first book to the sheer exhaustion and frustration of watching the world fall apart around you is palpable within the first few pages. The war has escalated and the remaining gearbreakers are faced with choices they wouldn’t have imagined making in a million years just weeks before. The question posed in this book is how far would you go for the person you love and both Eris and Sona answered “As far as it takes“. If you’re looking for a sapphic couple that would burn the world down for each other, this is the book for you.

The society in Gearbreakers respects kids that are involved in incredibly dangerous situations and treats them as adults. And because of the in-world attitude towards child soldiers on both sides, I had previously wondered why Gearbreakers was YA. Why not go ahead and just age them up a few years? But Godslayers makes it incredibly clear. Eris’ crew is hauntingly young and traumatized. Eris and Sona aren’t even legal adults yet and look at all they have been through. Even the last Zenith himself is just a teenager. While Gearbreakers came close to glorifying the violence that was taking place, Godslayers reckons with the horrors of war head-on. Mikuta does not pull a single punch the entire book and keeps you wondering who will make it out alive or if any of them will.

I had initially felt like the first third of the book was too simple, but after finishing it I think the simplicity was a deliberate tactic to show just how young and exhausted the characters are. No one is in the right mind to be making complex plans but they also can’t sit there and do nothing. Overall, I think Godslayers was the perfect ending to this deadly and divine duology and I cannot wait to see what Zoe Hana Mikuta writes next!

I want to thank Netgalley with providing me with an arc to review. I read Gearbreakers last year and I really loved it. This final book in the duology just blew me away. It made me cry and really feel bad for how traumatized these characters get by the end of this book. I'm super happy with the ending. These Sona and Eris will stay with me forever.

The gay mecha book of my DREAMS. This duology is absolutely fantastic, I loved every minute of it. While I’m not comparing, I feel like fans of Iron Widow would love this book. The banter, the worldbuilding, THE FIGHTS!! Phenomenal.

Godslayers is the sequel to Gearbreakers, so there may be spoilers for the first book in this review.
CW: death, violence, blood.
This book picks up months after the end of the first book. With Sona being corrupted by the Zenith and Eris being captured. It constantly takes twists and turns so that's really what I can tell you without giving any major spoilers of what happens next. This book is completely action packed and had me on the edge of my seat most of the time. Some elements that I deeply enjoyed definitely have to do with the characters, I think the author does an amazing job with the characters and their dynamics. The found family is a very important part of the story and something I really enjoyed.
The main characters Sona and Eris are amazing, I love them so much. Sona definitely has to be my favourite; at the beginning of the book we see her back in the academy believing herself to be a loyal soldier to Godolia due to the process of corruption that she goes through. She also believes that Eris is her worst enemy. I would say that throughout the book she has an interesting arc, she gets to see and analyze more of her part in this war and the way she is immersed in it as well as her beliefs and relations.
Eris is obviously amazing too. She is a prisoner at first and also gets to have a great character arc. During the entirety of the book, she goes through a lot and we get to see how strong she is.
Jenny was a little bit more present in this book, which I totally adored because she's so badass.
We have a new character, Enyo, the last Zenith. I think it was a great addition and really helped with some of the points of view the author was trying to get across.
One of the main points clearly is the relationship between Eris and Sona, it's something that really drives the book forward at every turn and is reflected in everything that happens.
Overall the story has great characters, well rounded and complex, and they definitely make the story what it is. The story can be a bit emotional and I cried once or twice. It also makes you think about so many things, it explores humanity and how things are not always good or bad, it follows characters that are trying to save the world but sometimes become selfish, we see the effects of war on these children and the different sides that there may be in a conflict like this.
My biggest complaint has to be the world building, some of the issues carried over from the first book. Because as interesting and complex as it is, the author uses a bit too much "telling instead of showing" which makes it seem underdeveloped and sloppy. The thing is that we don't really see how the people of this country interact and move around religion and government, we can only know from what the Gearbreakers say, I would have liked to see a little more of this society and its culture.
The narration and descriptions of some action and battle scenes can get confusing and I found myself lost several times wondering what was going on. You can understand it through context, but it took me a while to figure out the details.
The pacing was off at times, but it still kept you entertained, so it wasn't a big issue..
The last 20% had me absolutely hooked and the ending left me quite surprised, I think it was an excellent conclusion to the story and characters. I would highly recommend this book if you enjoyed the first one, the characters are 100% worth reading.

So, I won’t be posting this to Goodreads as I DNF’ed and I NEVER DNF. I do not log books I have not 100z completed.

Moving on, this book just did not resonate with me and nothing makes sense. The world building had the same problems as the first book— there isn’t any. I could barely get past the first couple of chapters, as it didn’t grip me at all. I don’t see the comparisons between this and Pacific Rim.

I also felt like everything was easier done than said. Aren’t the characters supposed to have trouble with the tasks presented to them? I didn’t see much improvement from the first book, as stated, I will not be finishing.

I loved the first book in this duology, Gearbreakers, and it made me worried that this one wouldn’t live up to the first…but it did! It’s so good! I’m recommending it to anyone looking for a good science fiction story or one where two girls fall in love. I’m definitely recommending this one as much as I can — just in time for Pride month!

First, I was so excited to receive this ARC because I absolutely loved Gearbreakers and NEEDED to know what happened next! Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group!

I really really enjoyed this book! It had its bumps, but I felt like it was a good follow up/closure of the first book in the duology, Gearbreakers.
I felt like there were a lot of twists and turns and climactic events that I kept thinking the book was done, but would look at my progress and see I was only 40, 55, 75 percent into Godslayers. I LOVED the world! I thought the characters were great, I mean who doesn’t love two badass women protagonists who fall in love with each other?

Overall this book was AMAZING and pulled at my heart strings. Definitely an awesome read!

**SPOILER AHEAD**
I’m not the type of person who ever cares for the villain, but Mikuta expanded Enyo’s character and his love for Sona so well that I felt so sad at the end when he died. I don’t know if this is silly, but I really felt like he could’ve eventually fit in with the gearbreaker’s crew!

Zoe Hana Mikuta's Godslayers was a needed, but clunky resolution following the first book in the duology, Gearbreakers.

Overall, I didn't enjoy this book, but I should have expected that. Gearbreakers was ok, but I never fell in love with the world, the characters, or even the relationship (which was the reason I picked the book up in the first place). Given my general lack of enthusiasm for the first book, I am not sure why I decided to pick up the second book because I enjoyed it even less. The same problems I had with Gearbreakers continue to exist: I am not sold on the world, the characters are not likable, and the writing/plot was very confusing.

This book also suffered from some unique problems. It introduced a lot of new characters that didn't exist in the last book. I had a hard time figuring out who they were, so I kind of just gave up. Also, a bunch of characters die in this book, but their deaths are never dwelled on or explained, so I'm not really sure who is alive at the end of the book or why we should care. It never really pulled on my heartstrings. Furthermore, the last 20% of the book just stopped making sense. I had no clue why the characters were doing what they did and how those results were achieved.

There was one high point: the epilogue and the very last chapter. This was the closure and resolution that this series needed. It was very well-done. It was heartfelt. It was beautiful. And I felt like everything was wrapped up in a nice neat bow, which is something that I really value. I honestly considered raising my rating by a whole star just because of how much I appreciated the ending.

Finally, let's address the character development throughout this book, which I also did not enjoy. For around the first 40% of the book, one of the characters had lost their memory. I hate that trope so much, so that really harmed my reading experience. Furthermore, Sona goes through this really strange thought process surrounding the Zenith, and given everything that had happened in this duology, I found it kind of annoying.

Overall, it's clear that I didn't really enjoy this book, but I also wasn't the biggest fan of the first book (though I definitely liked that one more). If you loved Gearbreakers and none of the things I have mentioned in this review are huge pet peeves for you, give Godslayers a try. This book is especially great if you need a resolution for Gearbreakers.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this book.

2.5 rounded up.

!!!!SPOILERS BELOW!!!!

Overall, i wasn’t a big fan of this duology,, but it definitely had its good moments and it’s other moments.

This book was pure death pretty much the entire time, and yet i didn’t feel much for the characters that died because I felt there was a lack of depth in the side characters.

However, I loved the happy ending and breaking apart the found family did make me sad but, like i said, i didn’t feel enough depth to feel something more than a little sad for them.

DNF at 60%. This book was not for me. I did like the passion and soul mate feels between Eris and Sona. And Eris is such a cool name. Too many battle scenes and not enough background for me to envision the world that they are living in.

ARC received for a voluntary and honest review.

I really enjoyed the first book and I'm glad that the sequel is just as good. Godslayers continues with the intense high stakes from its predecessor. I could definitely see this series getting greenlit for a movie franchise.

I was scared nothing would compare to the first book of its series. But this book proved my fears unfounded. This was the perfect sequel a book could have. And it was so much more intense. I loved everything about this. What an amazing continuation and conclusion.

The stunning sequel to Gearbreakers! I was both terrified and excited for Godslayers after that cliffhanger in book 1. I love those characters so much, from our main sapphics, Erin's sister Jen, all the kids that make up the found family, and most shockingly even the villain Enzo. I really felt connected to all of them which is often hard to do. I was a bit confused at the plot at times, but all the technology is also really impressive to read about. I feel really satisfied with how this all wrapped up.

Thrilling (and deeply upsetting) sequel to an already amazing debut novel, full of twists, humor, and the ever favorite enemies to lovers arc. Absolutely obsessed <3

3/5

I did not love Gearbreakers, the first installment in this series, and I had higher hopes for the second book, hoping that it would redeem it. I think that it did, to some extent, but these novels are just not for me. I think this is mostly due to Zoe Hana Mikuta's writing style and pacing, it was not what I normally read and I had a hard time getting into both of the novels.

That being said, it does have a very large audience of people who enjoy it and I think that it is a book that a lot of people can and will enjoy.

This is an intense sequel to Gearbreakers and there is so much going on in this book. I really wish the series was a trilogy and not a duology because there is so much pact into Godslayers that it impeded the development of some character relationships and plot points that I wanted to see more of. However, I do believe that Eris and Sona's relationship is strengthened in this book and there are some really amazing mecha battle scenes!