The Younger Gods, Katie Shepard (Review by Skylar Wetzel)

The angst and tension in The Younger Gods, by Katie Shepard, had me in an absolute chokehold. I am a sucker for love gone wrong, and boy, did Shepard deliver. The priestess, Iona, is caught in a war started by her own rebellion against the God of Death. The book starts with Iona, her betrothed Taran, and the rest of the humans defeating and killing the Death god. Unfortunately, Taran sacrifices himself and dies in the process. Obviously, Iona is grief-stricken and devastated. After a few months, she decides that sailing to the realm of the gods to ask for her love back is the best course of action. She strikes a promise and is dropped into the land of the gods. Taran is there, and that’s when she realizes, one, he’s been reborn, two, he’s actually a god, and three, he doesn’t remember her at all. Rip my heart out!

This book is packed with Iona learning about the politics of the gods, and how not everything is as it seems. The Gods are vicious and cruel, and she realizes they like to project a specific image rather than highlight their underbelly of flaws. Some big pieces of plot get thrown at you, and not everything is clear in the moment. It may feel like there is a 180 shift in the direction of the story at times, but if you continue to read on, you will unravel some of the threads, and more answers will be revealed. There is a lot that is left hanging at the end, and the story seems to be set up for a multi-book series. It was interesting how Iona remained very consistent in her ideology and beliefs, at times a detriment to herself and her relationship with the “new” version of Taran. The question remains. Can you fall in love with two very different versions of the same person? 

If you like a little Greek mythology sprinkled into a romantasy book, then this is definitely the book for you!