Name: Katy Watkins's review of Godkiller by Hannah Kaner
Item: Godkiller
Rating: 5
Author: Katy Watkins

Hannah Kaner

Kissen kills gods for a living, and she enjoys it. That is until she finds a god she cannot kill: Skediceth, god of white lies, who is connected to a little noble girl on the run.

Elogast fought in the god war, and helped purge the city of a thousand shrines before laying down his sword. A mysterious request from the King sends him racing back to the city he destroyed.

On the way he meets a godkiller, a little girl and a littler god, who cannot find out about his quest.

Godkiller #1

Godkiller

Izaac Richards

"I have little," said Inara. "And I've learned too much to offer you an open favour" Kissen tried not to smile. Aan cocked her head. 

"For advice," she said, "I would not milk you dry. All I want is a hair."

"From anywhere you like, my dear," said Aan. 

"Ina," warned Kissen, but Inara put her hand in hers and squeezed. Kissen swallowed. Inara's hand felt small and cold. She had only known the kid half a month, but if anything happened to her, Kissen might happily commit a murder.

You know the path you want. It's time I chose mine. 

Inara shut him out. She was giving him what he wanted, what he had betrayed her to get. But she was the daughter of House Craier, and she had broken Skedi's power. She wanted to do something, take command of her own fate. "I know it's dangerous," she said. She held Kissen's gaze, and whatever the godkiller saw in her, she understood. 

Kissen looked up at Elo, who was hesitating, then held out her hand.

"Little girls grow up fast," said Kissen. Elo reached for her, and she took his hand, and she almost pulled him over by yanking herself to her feet. In the firelight, Inara saw Elo's colours ripple with a faint blush. Kissen smiled. Neither of them stepped back. "I have a mind to stick by you as well," she said. "I have no love of people who burn for their gods. If I can, I will help the young Lady Craier stop it from happening again."

Inara flushed. Lady Craier. Kissen was right, that was who she was now. Her mother's legacy.

prawnie

"You prey on the frightened, Ennerast. You're a rat, and I'm your catcher."

Nataly

Names have power, and gods felt the tug of theirs like a hook in their gills, pulling them into the open. 

She had an edge of sureness to her now that suited her. Like she was coming home to herself, and had found strength there.

Kissen decided to be more proud than afraid. 

"How did you know it was me? Kissen signed to Telle, who laughed and replied in sign. "Yatho doesn't make children cry."

Sofia Barrera

A knight and a veiga follow a pilgrim trail and are attacked by gods-made monsters. It sounded like the start of a joke, except no one was laughing.

Megan

This was a slow burn at first, I wasn’t sure I would get hooked, but I’m very intrigued by the world and its power dynamics, and I adore all the main characters.

Katy Watkins

Angie

‘GODKILLER will have you in its grasp from the first pages’ Samantha Shannon, bestselling author of PRIORY OF THE ORANGE TREE ‘Full of fire, each page scalding, Hannah Kaner's GODKILLER is an explosive debut that will leave you reeling’ Saara El-Arifi, Sunday Times bestselling author of THE FINAL STRIFE

Godkiller (Godkiller, Book 1)

“It was harder to unmake a god than begin one.”

This was the perfect fix for the hole in my heart that 

 left behind. Kissen, one of the protagonists, was a wonderful mix of Geralt’s standoffishness and Yennefer’s tendency towards softness in the face of poor, unfortunate souls.

With 4 POV’s, I was concerned early on that the story would get bogged down. I HATE when things start getting good only for the next chapter to be a different character in a completely different time and place. 

But these characters spent the majority of the novel together, so the dual perspectives only served to give the events more nuance and life.

I fell in love with the found family dynamics almost immediately. A retired knight turned baker, an orphaned noble girl, a tiny god of white lies, and a godkiller? It shouldn’t work, but somehow it so, so does.

There’s also a beautiful undercurrent to this story about the nature of worthiness. Inherent worthiness vs earned worthiness, and about all the ways we try to live up to both of these things. Even if no one is telling us to.

The romance is more of a subplot, but still so cute and well worth the wait. Kissen calls Elogast (our handsome knight turned baker) “Petal”, what more do you need to know?

This first book ended in a pretty harrowing cliffhanger, but I’m not losing hope yet. Definitely continuing the trilogy!

Added bonus of queer, disabled, and POC characters

(Four stars because there were aspects of the story I found to be fairly predictable, and a few moments where I felt the prose got wonky/repetitive.)

Catherine

“It was harder to unmake a god than begin one.”

This was the perfect fix for the hole in my heart that The Witcher left behind. Kissen, one of the protagonists, was a wonderful mix of Geralt’s standoffishness and Yennefer’s tendency towards softness in the face of poor, unfortunate souls.

With 4 POV’s, I was concerned early on that the story would get bogged down. I HATE when things start getting good only for the next chapter to be a different character in a completely different time and place. 

But these characters spent the majority of the novel together, so the dual perspectives only served to give the events more nuance and life.

I fell in love with the found family dynamics almost immediately. A retired knight turned baker, an orphaned noble girl, a tiny god of white lies, and a godkiller? It shouldn’t work, but somehow it so, so does.

There’s also a beautiful undercurrent to this story about the nature of worthiness. Inherent worthiness vs earned worthiness, and about all the ways we try to live up to both of these things. Even if no one is telling us to.

The romance is more of a subplot, but still so cute and well worth the wait. Kissen calls Elogast (our handsome knight turned baker) “Petal”, what more do you need to know?

This first book ended in a pretty harrowing cliffhanger, but I’m not losing hope yet. Definitely continuing the trilogy!

Added bonus of queer, disabled, and POC characters

(Four stars because there were aspects of the story I found to be fairly predictable, and a few moments where I felt the prose got wonky/repetitive.)

A very Witcher-esque book filled with some of my favourite things: found family, a travelling group, some badass fighting and an epic backdrop that makes the intimate and personal so much more vivid. I really enjoyed the world building in this book - tight editing and good prose. 

Giulia

envee

not only singlehandedly pulled me out of a reading slump, but also gave me well-needed inspiration for my dnd campaign thx hannah

Second Read: I apparently rated this highly for a book that I was going to put down and dismiss the sequel. I'm glad I changed my mind and gave it another go before Sunbringer though, which just came out in paperback. New thoughts, everything was less rushed than I thought the first time and I don't mind the ending as much. Sure, a lot is unresolved from the main problems introduced, but on my first read, I clearly wasn't paying attention as I didn't realise Kissen's arc kind of completes and the group's dynamic was a lot more tangible to me this time. The parrallel's between Kissen and Inara were obvious and I still missed them, and I didn't even realise Elo was crushing so much until Blendaden. My lingering thought is why are the names so similar for things though i.e. Hseth and Hestra, Blenraden and Behaven. No wonder I got so lost the first time. 

First Read: I can't decide if this should be considered a part 1 rather than the first complete book of the series. I prefer an installment in a series to have some resolution to the problems the book introduces but practically nothing is resolved by the end of this book. The twists and new problems introduced are good but it feels like Infinity War where it's clearly just part 1 of a bigger idea and I don't know if I would read Sunbringer if it will be the same and coherse me into buying a third book a year away. 

Second Read: I apparently rated this highly for a book that I was going to put down and dismiss the sequel. I'm glad I changed my mind and gave it another go before Sunbringer though, which just came out in paperback. New thoughts, everything was less rushed than I thought the first time and I don't mind the ending as much. Sure, a lot is unresolved from the main problems introduced, but on my first read, I clearly wasn't paying attention as I didn't realise Kissen's arc kind of completes and the group's dynamic was a lot more tangible to me this time. The parrallel's between Kissen and Inara were obvious and I still missed them, and I didn't even realise Elo was crushing so much until Blendaden. My lingering thought is why are the names so similar for things though i.e. Hseth and Hestra, Blenraden and Behaven. No wonder I got so lost the first time. 

First Read: I can't decide if this should be considered a part 1 rather than the first complete book of the series. I prefer an installment in a series to have some resolution to the problems the book introduces but practically nothing is resolved by the end of this book. The twists and new problems introduced are good but it feels like Infinity War where it's clearly just part 1 of a bigger idea and I don't know if I would read Sunbringer if it will be the same and coherse me into buying a third book a year away. 

A Novel

Mel 

Finished this in one seating.
Quick paced and very interesting setting/dynamics.

This novel was a journey in that when I met Kissen (and her extremely unserious name and her family's also completely unserious names) I was absolutely prepared to dislike this. Then the novel built itself up by adding the other P.O.V.s and by maintaining a focused and well paced plot. And then at the end, the last 10-15% felt very lacking in creativity - there were simply so many more interesting things that Kaner could have done with the setup (or she could have spent more time building up the setup for the ending she wanted).

But I guess it is about to be expected when each of the characters themselves are very trope-heavy - the kind where the author does not spend too much time fleshing them out since we are already familiar with the conventions of each of the archetypes. I looked up whether there were any notes on the author's inspiration since I strongly suspected that she had strong anime / manga background. The only anime listed I have seen was "Princess Mononoke" (the disrespect to "Noragami"!) but I did see a healthy list of classic fantasy novels which explains a lot.

However, the ensemble cast strike a good balance between them - both in terms of plot lines / P.O.V.s and in terms of dynamic - which invites a lot more investment from the reader than I would have originally anticipated. I did also enjoy the world building of the novel, particularly on the nearly scientific system of interacting with the gods (though the novel seems to shy away from exploring how religion can be yielded in order to rule, which can introduce a much more interesting and layered element to the story).

And in spite of everything, I have to compliment Kit Griffiths - the narrator of the audiobook who truly acted their socks off.

This novel was a journey in that when I met Kissen (and her extremely unserious name and her family's also completely unserious names) I was absolutely prepared to dislike this. Then the novel built itself up by adding the other P.O.V.s and by maintaining a focused and well paced plot. And then at the end, the last 10-15% felt very lacking in creativity - there were simply so many more interesting things that Kaner could have done with the setup (or she could have spent more time building up the setup for the ending she wanted).

But I guess it is about to be expected when each of the characters themselves are very trope-heavy - the kind where the author does not spend too much time fleshing them out since we are already familiar with the conventions of each of the archetypes. I looked up whether there were any notes on the author's inspiration since I strongly suspected that she had strong anime / manga background. The only anime listed I have seen was "Princess Mononoke" (the disrespect to "Noragami"!) but I did see a healthy list of classic fantasy novels which explains a lot.

However, the ensemble cast strike a good balance between them - both in terms of plot lines / P.O.V.s and in terms of dynamic - which invites a lot more investment from the reader than I would have originally anticipated. I did also enjoy the world building of the novel, particularly on the nearly scientific system of interacting with the gods (though the novel seems to shy away from exploring how religion can be yielded in order to rule, which can introduce a much more interesting and layered element to the story).

And in spite of everything, I have to compliment Kit Griffiths - the narrator of the audiobook who truly acted their socks off.

This is exactly the type of fantasy I like so it was easy for me to get into. I like multiple POV. I like weird complicated but seldom used magic. systems and expansive unfolding worlds. The whole thing to me just sort of unbuttoned like an RPG and I felt like I was just playing different characters on the map. When I added this to my library holds it was because I read a review about iti saying it was a standalone fiction debut and I had been blowing through series all year and I thought "ok good I need something standalone" and by the time I got it it was listed as "Godkiller #1" so I guess more to come which is good because I was a fan. But I also can see how it could not be for everyone. I think it really hit me at the right time. I had been playing a ton of tavern SIMs and Zelda and it clicked right into place in my brain.

Apiecalypse Jen

Kaner knows how to weave a story. The premise of this was incredible, and the plot unraveled at a good pace. All of the characters are well rounded and full of life, and their struggles are crafted well. The only reason I’m not rating higher is because I didn’t feel emotionally attached to the characters until about 60% into the story, and so I wasn’t emotionally invested in the story until then. That aside, I’m on the edge of my seat for the next book. 

Floofyflower

Not necessarily a bad book — the story is really good and I love the world, but I fear the issue is the writing. It doesn't fit for the chapters to be written in third person and have the style that they do, and in some places the writing felt blocky and jarring. 

Similarly, the dialogue is not great in this book. The juxtaposition of random swearing alongside both regional dialects and sometimes bad one-liners often just took me out of the story. I couldn't see them saying certain lines, but this could also entirely be down to preference rather than a reflection of the writing quality. Kaner must be good enough to write a novel with enough substance as this one, but I guess it didn't hit the spot for me.

I think the dynamic between Kissen, Elo and Ina should have stayed platonic. When Kissen and Elo suddenly decided to have feelings for one another and kiss more than once, it didn't slot into the narrative as easily as I think Kaner hoped. The whole idea of sacrifice and betrayal of Elo summoning Hseth would have been just as, if not more effective if they were a found family rather than a couple and Ina. The romance just felt out of place and honestly a little bit unnecessary; the story didn't benefit from it being there and I didn't think Kissen and Elo suited as a couple without being a pairing of convenience.

Godkiller wasn't bad and I did like reading it — the world was amazing and with promise, but I can't see myself rushing to read the upcoming sequel.

Holly

Not necessarily a bad book — the story is really good and I love the world, but I fear the issue is the writing. It doesn't fit for the chapters to be written in third person and have the style that they do, and in some places the writing felt blocky and jarring. 

Similarly, the dialogue is not great in this book. The juxtaposition of random swearing alongside both regional dialects and sometimes bad one-liners often just took me out of the story. I couldn't see them saying certain lines, but this could also entirely be down to preference rather than a reflection of the writing quality. Kaner must be good enough to write a novel with enough substance as this one, but I guess it didn't hit the spot for me.

I think the dynamic between Kissen, Elo and Ina should have stayed platonic. When Kissen and Elo suddenly decided to have feelings for one another and kiss more than once, it didn't slot into the narrative as easily as I think Kaner hoped. The whole idea of sacrifice and betrayal of Elo summoning Hseth would have been just as, if not more effective if they were a found family rather than a couple and Ina. The romance just felt out of place and honestly a little bit unnecessary; the story didn't benefit from it being there and I didn't think Kissen and Elo suited as a couple without being a pairing of convenience.

Godkiller wasn't bad and I did like reading it — the world was amazing and with promise, but I can't see myself rushing to read the upcoming sequel.

fiona

why didn’t kissen get a gf 💁‍♀️

~Anna~

Wow wow wow wow. 

This was a surprising book. I wasn’t sure how much I would connect to the characters, which was obviously the only draw as most of this book is just getting to know them and understanding their place in this world. Each character is very flawed, and this first book was them getting over their growing pains being around other people. Each one has been alone in their own way. It wasn’t too slow as they always were actively chasing their goals and doing something, but you have to be ok with the journey and not the destination. 

And boy was the destination something. Backstabs, betrayals, another b word I can’t mention because that would be a spoiler!

I think with what we’ve been given so far, and with some more pages (Cmon Hannah, the next book is gonna have to be chonkier) I think we’re seeing the start of a very interesting new fantasy series. 
I hope with all my heart it grows to be bigger and more powerful than Skedi is. This review will be my offering for that wish to come to fruition.

And I gotta love me a badass bi queen.

After witnessing her family sacrificed by zealots of a fire god, Kissen makes a living out of killing gods, under the King's new edict. Until she meets a god she cannot kill, Skediceth, a god of white lies, who has somehow bound himself to a young noble girl, Inara. The unlikely trio are soon joined by a Knight on his own secret quest, and find themselves on a journey to the ruined city of Blenraden, where the last of the wild gods reside, in order to each beg a favour.

Godkiller is a dark, gritty, and truly immersive debut! It gripped me from the first page and refused to let go, I could not put this book down!

The characters are all fearlessly flawed and wholesomely heartfelt. They take hold of your hand and guide your heart through the pages. I loved them all for their own little foibles and hidden charms.

This world is brutal and unforgiving. It is a world where gods and monsters collide, one where myths and legends come to life, and where having any kind of faith will get you killed. 

It's a story of courage, survival, and faith, with an explosive ending and an unexpected twist, which left me on the edge of my seat, trying to anticipate what will happen next.

The sequel is more of a need than a want at this point.

Victoria Justice

After witnessing her family sacrificed by zealots of a fire god, Kissen makes a living out of killing gods, under the King's new edict. Until she meets a god she cannot kill, Skediceth, a god of white lies, who has somehow bound himself to a young noble girl, Inara. The unlikely trio are soon joined by a Knight on his own secret quest, and find themselves on a journey to the ruined city of Blenraden, where the last of the wild gods reside, in order to each beg a favour.

Godkiller is a dark, gritty, and truly immersive debut! It gripped me from the first page and refused to let go, I could not put this book down!

The characters are all fearlessly flawed and wholesomely heartfelt. They take hold of your hand and guide your heart through the pages. I loved them all for their own little foibles and hidden charms.

This world is brutal and unforgiving. It is a world where gods and monsters collide, one where myths and legends come to life, and where having any kind of faith will get you killed. 

It's a story of courage, survival, and faith, with an explosive ending and an unexpected twist, which left me on the edge of my seat, trying to anticipate what will happen next.

The sequel is more of a need than a want at this point.

took me way, wayyyy too long to finish this given my usual pace at which i read. i was excited to read this book for the angry and vengeful woman killing gods and i didn’t really get much of that. but that wasn’t the big issue for me, the issue was just the pacing. the prologue and first chapter interested me and then the book just didn’t get that interest back until—spoiler—elo summoned hseth. nothing really happened until then, and that was about the last fifty pages.

i also love found family, but i was not vibing with kissen and elo as a ship at all. i feel like there was more development and chemistry between kissen and the barkeep from the beginning. i like how kissen and inara ended up becoming so close but even that i feel could have used more development. prose was okay, if not dragging with how it described every single thing. i think this book would’ve been drastically improved if 25% of the prose describing surrounding buildings and whatnot were instead allocated to progressing the plot.

overall, this book drove me into a reading slump that i now need to recover from. the ending made me want to pick up the second book just a little bit but i don’t know if i will.

🌙

took me way, wayyyy too long to finish this given my usual pace at which i read. i was excited to read this book for the angry and vengeful woman killing gods and i didn’t really get much of that. but that wasn’t the big issue for me, the issue was just the pacing. the prologue and first chapter interested me and then the book just didn’t get that interest back until—spoiler—elo summoned hseth. nothing really happened until then, and that was about the last fifty pages.

i also love found family, but i was not vibing with kissen and elo as a ship at all. i feel like there was more development and chemistry between kissen and the barkeep from the beginning. i like how kissen and inara ended up becoming so close but even that i feel could have used more development. prose was okay, if not dragging with how it described every single thing. i think this book would’ve been drastically improved if 25% of the prose describing surrounding buildings and whatnot were instead allocated to progressing the plot.

overall, this book drove me into a reading slump that i now need to recover from. the ending made me want to pick up the second book just a little bit but i don’t know if i will.

Not because it’s long. Not because I’m a slow reader. I actually read 32 other books in between starting this book and finishing it - that is how much I basically never wanted to pick this one up.

And it’s well written! That’s the baffling thing. There’s nothing wrong with the prose. I think the problems are pacing and structural.

The first half of the book moves at a snail’s pace. Pages and pages will go by with nothing substantial happening. It improves in the second half, but the most common experience I had with the first half was starting to read and then waking up when my iPad hit my face.

Structurally, I think the decision to have four point of view characters was a mistake. Epic fantasy has adopted this method of storytelling in order to tell broad, sweeping tales that encompass whole continents or worlds. This is a small scale story about a few characters and a journey - a journey for which they are largely all together. Constantly switching perspectives removed all suspense from the first half. Who is this mysterious baker who carries a sword? He’s a former knight commander on an errand for the king - we know, because we already spent several chapters with him.

There are twists in this story regardless, but the shifting perspectives don’t create them. That structure felt unnecessary and actively hindering to the enjoyment of the first half of the book.

The second half was much better, especially when they got to the city they were aiming for, but a book that’s less than 300 pages long and is so tortuous to read that it takes a fast reader six weeks is a hard sell.

Wonko the Sane

It took me 6 weeks to read this book.

Not because it’s long. Not because I’m a slow reader. I actually read 32 other books in between starting this book and finishing it - that is how much I basically never wanted to pick this one up.

And it’s well written! That’s the baffling thing. There’s nothing wrong with the prose. I think the problems are pacing and structural.

The first half of the book moves at a snail’s pace. Pages and pages will go by with nothing substantial happening. It improves in the second half, but the most common experience I had with the first half was starting to read and then waking up when my iPad hit my face.

Structurally, I think the decision to have four point of view characters was a mistake. Epic fantasy has adopted this method of storytelling in order to tell broad, sweeping tales that encompass whole continents or worlds. This is a small scale story about a few characters and a journey - a journey for which they are largely all together. Constantly switching perspectives removed all suspense from the first half. Who is this mysterious baker who carries a sword? He’s a former knight commander on an errand for the king - we know, because we already spent several chapters with him.

There are twists in this story regardless, but the shifting perspectives don’t create them. That structure felt unnecessary and actively hindering to the enjoyment of the first half of the book.

The second half was much better, especially when they got to the city they were aiming for, but a book that’s less than 300 pages long and is so tortuous to read that it takes a fast reader six weeks is a hard sell.

2.5 ⭐️

While it took me entirely too long to finish for being a book I thoroughly enjoyed, I had a wonderful time with this one. Found family at its finest and ya girl definitely cried a few times towards the end. I have a feeling that the second one is going to hit that 5-star mark for me with the setup that we have. 

Alex Goodwin

I loved all the characters in this book which is always necessary in a changing POV book. There was definitely moments that dragged but overall I enjoyed the story and I’m a sucker for found family. I’m bummed I’ll have to wait a while for the next one.

Laura Wilson

This is a really fun quest fantasy! I really like the world the author created and how gods work - able to be killed or created by man - it reminded me a little of Neil Caiman’s American Gods which I loved. Each one of the main characters struggles with a sense of loneliness and guilt which was done really well. At the end there is the beginnings of a found family. I didn’t see the twist coming at the end, so that was fun and I’m excited to see where this story goes. A great first novel!

Katie Allard

This book follows four povs,  the story is easy to follow and grips you from the very beginning. There's plenty of action and I didnt see the ending coming.

This is the first book in a series and I'm definitely going to continue it, I really need to find out what will happen next. Brilliant and fun read

Samantha King

This book follows four povs,  the story is easy to follow and grips you from the very beginning. There's plenty of action and I didnt see the ending coming.

This is the first book in a series and I'm definitely going to continue it, I really need to find out what will happen next. Brilliant and fun read

Megan &
Godkiller by Hannah Kaner

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