I wanted to love this book because when I first read the blurb it had so many things I usually like, but in the end it was an okay read with some parts I thoroughly enjoyed and others that fell a little flat for me. I think my main problem was the pacing, which was slower than what I usually like for a good chunk of the story. This definitely made it a longer reading experience and I found myself a little confused with the worldbuilding at times which is inspired by Imperial Russia. However, I enjoyed the magic and the dragon gods as it was a good concept.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with this ARC!

This was not the book for me and I’m honestly not sure why. It didn’t really hook my attention at all, despite the concept of caging gods and borrowing their magic being quite a interesting concept. But despite how interested I was to see this play out, I just couldn’t get into the actual plot.

The one thread line that I did enjoy though was the relationship between Vasilisa and Galina. Most of the times that the story was about the other characters, I was impatient to get back to Vasilisa and Galina.

The disability rep was very good as well. Vasilisa’s illness was sensitively dealt with while still showing an accurate portrayal of a chronic illness. I enjoyed how the relationship with her mother was impacted by this and the way it played out. The ending was especially impactful without turning into inspiration porn. It was very well done.

The narrator was fine and I liked how she pronounced the russian words but nothing particularly stood out for me about her performance.

Though this book wasn’t for me, it was really well written so if the ideas intrigue you, I would recommend you try it for yourself.

Having grown up, in part, in Russia, I am always intrigued by Russian-inspired fantasy and this premise was particularly interesting. I love the idea of grafting the power of gods into someone's bones. The two sisters, Sera and Galina, have markedly different relationships with those gods, which was also something I really enjoyed. Sometimes, in fantasy, people have a "magic" and that "magic" is fairly standard for all people who have that "magic." It was refreshing and different to see another approach. I also liked both relationships. While I didn't find Sera's relationship with Vitaly particularly realistic, I loved the banter and the snark. I think that's a benefit of a relationship in books- we get to enjoy something that we might never tolerate in real life. However, Galina's relationship felt softer and more tender. There was more longing, which makes sense considering her relationship with Vasilisa is new.

Rating 2.5

I was really excited to read this book as the premise and storyline really pulled me in. Also I really love the cover.

I really liked the originality of the plot and found the premise intriguing having a God trapped in your body giving you special powers.

However, I found myself struggling to connect with the characters and root for them. The main character that shone through for me was Katya. Her pain and suffering were portrayed quite well and I enjoyed following Katya as her strength and determination grew.

The other characters I struggled to connect with and found them quite self involved. The romances written had beautifully written elements. But I felt that the relationships were a bit forced and I struggled to root for them. But please don't get me wrong some of the chemistry was written quite well, I just wish that I was able to root for the relationships a bit more.

I also found it a bit unnecessary that all the characters had their name and around 2 extra nicknames, I think I would have connected with the characters more if they stuck by at the most 2 names otherwise I just lost interest a bit.

The best thing about this book was the worldbuilding and magic system, which I found to be quite captivating. I just wish that I could have connected to it more instead of struggling to pick it up.

Although not my typical genre, I really enjoyed the characters and the world Elizabeth May created. The war and rebellion were there and reasonably fleshed out and the God magic and theory was interesting but not overly deep. The relationships however really shone and that's what kept my interest the most!

Imperial Russia inspired romantasy. The world building was lush but a bit contained, the war and rebellion were there and reasonably fleshed out and the God magic and theory was interesting but not overly deep. The relationships however really shone and that's what kept my interest the most. The two most prominent pairings were different in tone and I thoroughly and equally enjoyed both. It does have Leigh Bardugo Shadow and Bone vibes but I felt this was more intense with its near constant peril. There were quieter moments and I adored these, really heartfelt and more atmospheric. I did enjoy this and flew through it quite fast.
Thankyou to Daphne Press and Netgalley for an arc, all thoughts are left voluntarily.

In this multi pov book, we see two very different sisters and their alies, as they all put their lives at risk for one purpose: overthrow the empire.

Galina and Sera have ancient markings on their bones, which keeps gods caged in their bodies. Deities are powerful but brutal, sometimes hands down cruel, and to work with them it's a challenge within itself. Yet, they have to reason with their gods one way or the other to achieve their goals.

"To Cage A God" have pretty much everything you want from a romantasy book: raising rebellion, bloodthirsty royals, forbidden sapphic romance, lovers to enemies to lovers romance, knife to the throat, morally gray characters, hidden identities, a sprinkle of fairly innocent spice, constant scheming and planning. It's an intense story, and it's highly inspired by Imperial Russia.

I absolutely loved Sera's and her lover's bickering. Their banter just kept a smile on my face all the time they were the main focus. And as their relationship was intense and edgy, Galina's and her lover's were complete opposite. Their love grew from understanding and compassion, and it was beautiful.

I must say, this book do have few triggers, such as: alcoholism, self-harm, manipulative relationships, murder, injuries, living with chronic pain, and self medication.

Overall, I did enjoy the story, yet I don't think I would pick it up for a second time. It's enjoyable while you read it, but once you're done - you're done. It's not one of those stories that gives you a book hangover that lasts for days. Is it good or bad? Well, it's for you to judge 😊

The moment I saw this book I knew I had to have it. The cover is insanely pretty and intriguing, the title is also interesting and the summary promised me a story with all the elements I love. When I discovered that one of the main characters in this book was dealing with chronic pain I was getting even more excited to start reading. Luckily Daphne Press had granted me a review copy via Netgalley so I didn't have to wait until release day.

Maybe my expectations of this book were too high. I had hoped to fly through this book, but instead finishing was a bit of a struggle. That was not because of the writing. The writing was actually okay. I had no issues understanding what was being said, the sentences flowed nicely and the chapters were also not too long, which made reading one more chapter not too hard. Therefore it's quite hard to pinpoint why this book and I weren't really a match.

I think it's firstly because the world building and mythology seemed a little concise. Although a lot of other places are mentioned it never feels like I get to understand the world, the position of the kingdom, the conflict between this kingdom and the outside world and the damage the royals have done. I also feel like I still don't really grasp the mythology and all its facets. It's clear that the author knows and understands, but it feels like I just got the brief version.

I also had some issues connecting with the characters on an emotional level. That's partly because all the characters are hiding things or are pretending to be someone else. They're constantly scheming and playing roles. I understand that there isn't much room for emotions in those situations, but therefore it's also hard to really root for the romances in this novel. It's hard to care about a romance when you don't really care about the characters involved.

I'm certain there are loads of readers who will love this book. I wish I was one of them.

I found it quite hard to invest in these characters, just as i had started too, the book ended, If there is another book after this, i think i will enjoy it a lot more, as ill be invested at that point. i did enjoy the disability awareness and the writing style.

This was the first book of Elizabeth May's that I've read and I can guarantee that it will not be the last! I thoroughly enjoyed To Cage A God and loved the whole premise of it all!

Told in multiple POVs, I was hooked from the beginning and quickly grew to love our main and side characters. Sera and Galina are foster sisters and have such an amazing bond. They would do anything for one another and I just found their story so interesting. They have survived through so much and now they want to take revenge.

I liked the romance in this one too! While Sera's was already somewhat developed it was really well explained and it was just nice to see Vitalik being so in love and willing to do anything for her while Sera is trying to fight the connection they have. I also liked Galina and Vasillsa's romance, where they should have been enemies but quickly found themselves drawn to one and another. Their flirting was just too adorable!

To Cage a God is a fantastic first book in a new fantasy series with gripping world building and loveable characters! I definitely recommend picking this one up if you love a good fantasy! I cannot wait to read the next book in the series!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆

Many thanks to Daphne Press and NetGalley for providing me with an Advanced Reader Copy of this book for an honest review.

Sera and Galina are cages. The gods held captive between their bones were bound to them by their mother — the object of her torturous experimentation; to create living weapons for the "faithless'" cause. Now, adults, fugitives, and disillusioned with the rebel group they were raised to lead, the sisters make their own plans to bring down the corrupt ruling class who harness godpower to enact their oppression.

An intriguing premise with diverse representation, this book was, unfortunately, mostly words on a page for me. The prose sometimes leaned towards formulaic and stagnant during exposition, and read as YA with some adult themes. It explored themes of systematic oppression and liberation, which always intrigue me, and had a tight, neat plot.

It was challenging for me to invest myself in these characters' stories, and unfortunately, they all lacked a unique voice and persona. While I enjoyed the third person, multi-POV, I often had to flick back to the start of the chapter to remind myself of whose chapter I was reading. The inter-character relationships were also presented as a given. At times, readers were either playing catch-up to understand relationship dynamics or were simply explicitly told how the characters felt about one another.

I also found the plot lacking in depth — very black vs white despite the author's repeated assertion of the moral greyness of our leads. I was left feeling underwhelmed by how our resolution unfolded. Some promising elements were introduced that were resolved or dismissed without any satisfying exploration (read: the caged gods! Hardly touched on!). Even at the story's climax, little urgency or tension was built, which made it difficult to feel invested in the outcomes.

If you are looking for an NA fantasy with strong romantic subplots, enemies to lovers, second chance romance, and representation of sapphic relationships and chronic illness, you may enjoy this!

Thank you to NetGalley and Daphne Press for the ARC.

I really enjoyed the worldbuilding and characters. The former was interesting, but easy to understand, while the characters were full of motivation and interesting to follow. My only wish is that the glossary would be in the begining of the book, since it would be easier to navigate in e-book format.

4.5 stars

This book was not for me.

I was in a reading slump and didn’t help I think

I was really intrigued by it but I think it’s one of those cases of wrong time

Sera and Galina have survived a lot, their mother experimented on them as children to cage gods into their bodies, which grants special powers, normally only reserved for the elite and royals, not commoners.

Their mother is gone and the girls are grown now, and decide to use the ill gotten powers for good, but it isn't going to be easy to over throw a Kingdom ruled by an iron fist (with its own immense god power)

Bit heavy on the world building and I did struggle in the first half of the book to get used to all the names (especially as every character has at least a full name and a shortened version, if not a title as well) but once I got into the swing of it I really enjoyed the story and the sisters (with their rag tag group of rebels and romances) I loved the idea of the god powers from the get go and the picture painted of the world was great as well!

Definitely will be diving into book two as soon as it is available to see what happens next!

Thank you to Daphne Press, and Black Crow PR for the stunning early proof copy and to NetGalley for the ecopy so I could also read on the go!

Out Tuesday (20th February) so not long to wait to get sucked into this tale

To Cage a God by Elizabeth May is the first instalment of These Monstrous Gods duology. Fans of Shadow and Bone might find this one right up their alley!

This Russian-inspired setting offers a unique magic system and interesting worldbuilding, where gods (or dragons in this case) get bonded to humans against their will. I think this offers some interesting dynamic, especially when comparing how different characters communicate and interact with their gods.

I thoroughly enjoyed the multiple POVs, the queer representation, as well as a chronologically ill character that gets more comfortable using the mobility aids she needs throughout the book.

It is fast paced, sometimes to the point of feeling rushed. From the chapter 1, we jump straight into action, which unfortunately makes the characters and the world seem a bit surface level at times.

Overall, an enjoyable read. Could almost be a stand-alone, but I will be on the lookout for the next book!

The only bad thing about this book is that it wasn't longer and I didn't get to enjoy these characters more!

This book made me feel like i was part of the book from chapter 1! I was never confused or felt like something was missing. The plot was so intresting and mixed with amazing characters and intricate relationships between them all.

This book had sapphic romance *chef's kiss* as well as chronic illnesses and disability representation, and all of this was put in the story in such a natural way that doesn't happened too often in fantasy books.

To Cage a God is centred around Sera and her sister Galina, two commoners and (former-ish) members of a rebellion known as the faithless; they were both experimented on by their former rebel-leader mother, who trapped dragon-like gods from another dimension in their bodies in order to become the best chance at fighting the similarly god-powered ruling elite, headed up by the tyrannically depraved Empress Isadora. Both Sera and Galina have had to keep their Zmei (the gods) a secret, because it could make them an enemy of the very rebellion they are part of - the ones who want to overthrow the Empire and return the Zmei to their home dimension (think the Bolsheviks, but with dragons).

The story features queer relationships, has disability rep, and the on-page romances are quite lovely and tender (with a little bit of spice).
It’s also a surprisingly quick read, and I found it the characters, magic system and world building quite compelling. I look forward to seeing the universe expand in the next book.

This is a book for people who love Russian-inspired fantasy, like the Shadow and Bone series, or even those who loved Master and Margarita, but wanted something less dense, but with similarly rich storytelling.

Thank you to Daphne Press for providing me a copy of this book in return for an honest review.

My first Elizabeth May book and such a strong start to her works. It is a truly gripping story with twists and turns that keep in invested in the characters and plot. Really immersive world that isn't too hard to grasp for any readers new to fantasy.

To cage a god is divine. To be divine is to rule. To rule is to destroy. 3.5🌟

Thank you to NetGalley and Daphne Press for the arc.

Fantasy | Romance | Sapphic | Gods/Dragons | War | Multi pov

To Cage a God is an adult fantasy with plot that draws you in from the start with fascinating lore, flawed but captivating characters, immersive world-building and magic.

The Alurea are the ruling class, with gods caged in their bodies for generation after generation, allowing them power over all. They wipe out villages without a second thought, leaving the Faithless to rise and rebel against them. The only way to wipe the Alurea from the world is to become one.

Galina and Sera were taken in by the later leader of the Faithless, Irina, who found a way to cage gods within those not from royal lines. Experiments showed this only worked on children, so Sera was the first choice. But Sera's god is violent, angry. The only way to calm the god inside her is with her own blood. Galina's experiment gave her the power of godfire - the same power as the Empress, the same power that destroyed her home.

Their mother long dead, and after being in hiding for years, Galina and Sera’s go their separate ways - Galina will infiltrate the Empress’ palace, and Sera will be reunited with the leader of the Faithless.

Sera and Galina’s paths through the novel were equally engaging, but it did feel as though readers were thrown in quite early and expected to immediately care for the characters - it would have been nice to have a little more time to get to know them but I did grow to love them nonetheless. The multiple points of view really added to the sense of chaos and rising tensions in the novel, while also providing valuable insights into the characters.

The romances were incredibly juxtaposed in nature, but I found myself genuinely rooting for both couples. While occasionally a bit tropey and a little predictable, I still really enjoyed them. Galina’s relationship was great. While it was quite predictable, I really loved them together and enjoyed how their relationship linked to the lore and overall plot. The second-chance romance really surprised me. I’m not usually a fan but I felt this worked well with the overall story.

Definitely worth a read - thank you again to NetGalley and Daphne Press for the arc.

2.5 rounded up - Unfortunately this was a DNF for me at 40% - the writing is ok and lyrical at times but the story seems a little surface level to me. I don’t seem to be getting invested in any of the characters, again they feel quite surface level to me. I don’t necessarily need the world to be over convoluted however it does need to at least be entertaining and unfortunately this one just isn’t gripping me.

I was intrigued to see how the “gods” and “dragons” would play into this and was hoping they would be more sentient but it is never really explained and while they appear to have a “personality” it doesn’t seem to be consistent.

I would read from Elisabeth May again as I think the story has promise, but i feel the execution just isn’t there for me.