Critics' Opinion:
Readers' rating:
Published Mar 2024
368 pages
Genre: Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Speculative, Alt. History
Publication Information
A rich and romantic new standalone fantasy loosely inspired by the classic Sleeping Beauty fairy tale, from the New York Times bestselling author of Cruel Beauty. Perfect for fans of These Violent Delights and The Shadow Queen.
Centuries ago, the heretic sorcerer Ruven raised a deadly briar around Runakhia's palace, casting the royal family into an enchanted sleep—and silencing the kingdom's gods.
Born with a miraculous gift, Lia's destiny is to kill Ruven and wake the royals. But when she succeeds, she finds her duty is not yet complete, for now she must marry into the royal family and forge a pact with a god—or die.
To make matters even worse, Ruven's spirit is haunting her.
As discord grows between the old and new guards, the queen sends Lia and Prince Araunn, her betrothed, on a pilgrimage to awaken the gods. But the old gods are more dangerous than Lia ever knew—and Ruven may offer her only hope of survival.
As the two work together, Lia learns that they're more alike than she expected. And with tensions rising, Lia must choose between what she was raised to believe and what she knows is right—and between the prince she is bound to by duty...and the boy she killed.
In this complex fantasy loosely inspired by Sleeping Beauty, Hodge delivers a thoughtful meditation on the relationship between faith and obedience, as well as religious and secular power...Lia's evolution and exploration of her beliefs is the beating heart of this lush tale, and her nuanced relationship with Ruven and Hodge's unsettling and visceral rendering of the gods as remote and inhuman add grit." —Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"A sharply original blend of romance and dark fantasy." —Kirkus Reviews
"Inventive and richly imagined, What Monstrous Gods is a beautiful story of faith with teeth—lost, found, and fought for" —Hannah Whitten, New York Times bestselling author of For the Wolf
"A searing, fiercely inventive story of misplaced faith and what it takes to fully reimagine your place in the world." —Laura Weymouth, author of The Light Between Worlds and The Treason of Thorns
"A gut-wrenching meditation on faith and divine love, with a heartbreakingly impossible romance set in a vivid, brutal world. Monstrous, brilliant, and beautiful." —Joanna Ruth Meyer, author of Echo North and Into the Heartless Wood
This information about What Monstrous Gods was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Rosamund Hodge grew up as a homeschooler in Los Angeles, where she spent her time reading everything she could lay hands on, but especially fantasy and mythology. She got a BA in English from the University of Dallas and an MSt in Medieval English from Oxford, and she now lives in Seattle with a mountain of books and the most beautiful dog in the world. Visit her online at http://www.rosamundhodge.net/.
The House on Biscayne Bay
by Chanel Cleeton
As death stalks a gothic mansion in Miami, the lives of two women intertwine as the past and present collide.
The Flower Sisters
by Michelle Collins Anderson
From the new Fannie Flagg of the Ozarks, a richly-woven story of family, forgiveness, and reinvention.
The Funeral Cryer by Wenyan Lu
Debut novelist Wenyan Lu brings us this witty yet profound story about one woman's midlife reawakening in contemporary rural China.
Your guide toexceptional books
BookBrowse seeks out and recommends the best in contemporary fiction and nonfiction—books that not only engage and entertain but also deepen our understanding of ourselves and the world around us.
