Rage Like the Gods

by Nicki Chapelway

The end that was foretold has come.
The gods selected five heroes to save everything.
They chose poorly.

Ruskhazar is a land of mountains and magic; men and elves. Built atop a fallen civilization, the bodies of demigods, and the tombs of the old monsters it knows a tenuous peace. However, there are those that believe that not all that is buried should remain so. A powerful cult of necromancers is bent on bringing about the prophesied end of the world. To forestall this end, the gods have chosen mortal champions.


A bandit turned assassin.
A bard turned thief.
A noble turned student.
A mercenary turned vampire.

These are the would-be heroes of Ruskhazar.

One will go on to be a killer of kings. One will discover the darkest secrets of the Academy of Magickers. One will serve a queen of thieves. And another will always remain a monster. Together, they can save Ruskhazar. But that is only if they choose to accept their fates.

Unfortunately, these champions are just strangers on their separate paths, unaware of each other’s presence. And unwilling to save a world that never had any place for them. Perhaps destiny had lofty plans for them, but they are determined to write their own stories. Forget the gods, forget necromancers, forget the mad sorceress determined to unite them no matter the cost— this isn’t their story. This is the tale of the heroes who never were.

Welcome to the world of Ruskhazar where men and elves live under the illusion of peace, magic is a mysterious entity of its own, and the dead never remain that way for long. Gods and men clash in this romantic high fantasy series that is perfect for fans of Michael J. Sullivan, J.R.R. Tolkien, and those that always wanted a cleaner Game of Thrones.

Genres: Fantasy

685 pages, Paperback

Published November 9, 2022

About the author

Nicki is a twenty-something author of swoony romantic fantasy. She has been writing since she was eleven and has since published several works. She enjoys creating stories with twisty-stabby faerie romances, retellings that take a darker turn, and epic fantasies in worlds full of monsters and magic.

Nicki lives in Ohio where she spends far too much time watching TV, playing video games, and sleeping. She listens to music basically all the time, and adores obsessing over mythologies, her shows, and her slew of fictional boyfriends. When not writing, she can usually be found at her desk with either a paintbrush or a pen in her hand.

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Reviews

[Sarah Ryder · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was amazing! I cannot wait for the next book in this series to come out! (Though it’s probably gonna be awhile seeing how big this one was, lol)

Anyways, the story! I LOVE the premise of chosen ones choosing to not be (or not even knowing they are one) and going on to live their lives—such a cool concept and Nicki does a fantastic job with it! The world of Ruskhazar is vast and deep and while I missed a few details of the world by reading too fast I know I’ll get even more the second time around. (I also don’t absorb as much reading ebooks as I do physical, so there’s that…)

But the shining jewels of this book isn’t the world but these epic characters I ADORE with my whole heart and soul because they are just amazing and so precious while also not being very nice or honest at times, lol. 🥰🥰 So since they’re are so many I’m going to separate them all and give my thoughts on each starting with…

Eirik! 😍😍😍 I LOVE Eirik, in fact he’s my favorite character out of everyone! I loved him from the second I read his first line as he is so much like Flynn Rider/Eugene Fitzherbert especially when in the first chapter he’s going on about always having a comb and needing to look good even though he’s on a PRISON SHIP and had me cracking up because he’s just too much yet perfect and he knows it. 😂 All jokes aside he has such a good heart but often chooses the WORST ways to go about showing it even though he’s trying so hard. And he and Sassa are so adorable and made for each other and nothing bad can ever happen between them okay? Just…they’ve already been through enough, all right?

Then we have Meruna, my second favorite who is about as opposite of Eirik as you can get, lol. She’s quiet and shy and so relatable and I love her gentle strength even though there were a couple times I wanted to shake her because just whhhyyy?!?!? 😩 And she, Aofie, and Fell are the best trio squad EVER—I LIVE for their dynamic, utterly live for it! They are just the greatest and I love them all.

Thyre is next and one of the best tough girl with a soft heart characters I’ve seen in years as in my experience this is not easy to pull off but Nicki does it so well! Thyre just CARES even when she tries not to and she and Vrom are just the cutest, not to mention I like their dynamic of she’s the warrior and while he can fight too he’s more the gentle heart and I love that. Though this girl does have the most rotten luck ever, sheesh…

Azern I honestly was on the fence about for the longest time as there was just something I couldn’t pin on her as to whether I liked her or not. But then I reached a certain point in the story (which I honestly don’t remember where—it’s a 900 page book, okay? There’s no way I’m remembering where everything is. 😆) and I really ended up liking her a lot in her struggles to do what she thinks is right and balance seeing all these crazy visions. And even though her visions hint at otherwise, I ship her and Magnar because there is clearly something there that neither of them is willing to see… 😉

The only character I didn’t warm up to much was Dagmy and I honestly don’t know why? I mean I like her, but I’m not as attached to her as I am the other characters and the only thing I can pinpoint is that maybe she’s just too harsh and abrasive for me? Not sure, but I really like Hakon and the levity and balance he gives her whether she wants to acknowledge it or not. 😂

And in case you get confused like I did, there are 5 chosen ones but we only meet 4 in this first book (Azern is not a chosen one) and from the way it ended I think we meet number 5 in book two, so in case you were wondering if the author miscounted she didn’t! I just didn’t get the memo right away, lol.

This whole book was awesome and if you want a clean, more hopeful (from what I’ve gathered, anyways) version of Game of Thrones this is your book! And now I will just have to wait impatiently for the next one…

(truly no pressure though, Nicki, take your time in writing these books. We readers can exercise patience and wait. ☺️)


‼️Content‼️

Language: gods; screw up; arse

Violence: a man’s neck is snapped; characters nearly drown; a kraken attacks a ship; injuries and blood (not detailed); fighting with weapons, hand to hand, and magic (not detailed); a character puts an ax into people’s heads (not detailed); several heads are cut off (not detailed); in the past it’s mentioned that a girl was abused by her father and retaliated by murdering her parents; a girl is found floating dead in a lake; a burnt out corpse is found (not detailed); characters are attacked and beat up by bandits; a man accidentally lights himself on fire; a character is nearly killed by being experimented on; werewolves fight to appoint leadership of the pack (not detailed)

Sexual: kissing (not detailed); one very vague hint to a fade to black between a married couple

Drug/Alcohol: characters drink; poisoned daggers; a character gets drunk; characters are poisoned and nearly die

Other: magic; magical abilities, creatures; death and grief; characters are thrown in prison and chained up; a fantasy world worship and refer to fantasy gods, goddesses, and demigods; a character is an assassin; necromancers and the practice of necromancy (not in a good light); vampires and werewolves; a character is turned into a werewolf; a character is turned into a vampire and drinks blood; vampires keep humans captive and cut and bleed them to eat (not detailed); a ghost


***Note: I received a free copy of the book from the author. All thoughts and opinions are most assuredly my own, and I wasn’t required to write a positive review. If I was, I wouldn’t have read it. 😜***

[Nicki Chapelway · Rating 5 out of 5]

So here I am, finally at the end of this magnificent beast. It feels so strange to finally be writing a review for this book. I've been working on it for so long I started to wonder if I would ever be done. After all, one does not simply write a 900 page long tome. Well, I'll tell you. There is nothing simple about Rage Like the Gods.

I always seemed to follow a path that veered just slightly off from the one that others used. First the life of a farmer’s son, I didn’t dream of greater things like many farmer’s sons did, I simply dreamed of having fun.
But as a bard I knew too much of responsibility.
As a flirt I was always afraid to take it too far.
As a rake I only ever wanted to experience the love my parents did.
As a player I never loved the music enough.
I’m not fully elf, I’m not fully human either.
Perhaps all I am is a liar and a thief; those seem to be the only things that I am good at.

This was the first book idea I had in this world. It's the book I created Ruskhazar for. Two years after I started writing this book and it is now no longer the only book set in this world (in fact the current running tally is that there are 30 books that will be set in Ruskhazar divided into seven series and a single standalone). But RLtG will always hold the distinction of being first. And because of this book I now I have all the rest including stories of vampiric crime families, fantasy time travel, and monster hunting.

Ruskhazar is a vast and expansive epic fantasy world. Ever since I started writing, I've wanted to create a world as developed as Ruskhazar. This book and all the others set in Ruskhazar are the culmination of that dream.

This Academy, with its stone walls and ancient libraries, where the purpose of everyone here is the furthering of knowledge. I may have only just gotten here, but already I know this place is home.
My home.
I turn in a circle as I take in the purple and blue banners around me. I’m finally home.


The Rage Like the Gods series itself will be five books long (six if you count the novella which you can get for free by signing up to my mailing list: https://mailchi.mp/b6ec5f4a74a5/subsc...). It can be read apart from the other series set in Ruskhazar, just as they can all be read apart from the Rage Like the Gods series. This is the story of the end of the world and the gods choosing heroes to save Ruskhazar. Heroes who decide that they have better things to do than just saving the world.

I glance up through my lashes to see if he is still watching me. He is. I can think of no other way to describe how he looks at me except for reverently. It is the same way my father looked any time that he spoke of his service to Thyre. It’s the look my mother had when she looked at her husband. It’s the way I once looked at them both.
And it’s how Vrom is looking at me now.
Just like Thyre, just like my father, just like my parents, I am certain that I am not worthy of that look, and yet he gives it to me anyway.


It's a tale of ignoring the call, denying destiny, and the consequences of such action. It's a story of bards, assassins, mercenaries, magical academies, serial killers, vampires, werewolves, undead monsters, and true love.

“Perhaps my home is a land of bloodshed and turmoil, where even the simplest herder must be trained to defend himself if a rival tribe should attack. But in the very least you know who the enemy is. There, you have your brothers and sisters in your own tribe to watch your back and know that others put as much stock in honor as you do. Enemies are not forced to live together under false harmony. This land is like a poorly stitched tear in a fine fabric. Eventually, it will rend, leaving a larger hole than there was before.”

I will point out that this is one of my adult novels. Meaning that it has more content than many of my YA novels. There is a lot of violence in this book including: decapitations, slitting of throats, and magical experimentation on ways to kill people. Main characters kill people and don't always make the best decisions, there are also some deaths shown through the POV of the person killed (they get better). The romance is also more serious than my YA books although it is still fade-to-black.

Poor Popov, I think of him sometimes and how he tried to have me killed. Especially when I see my scar in a mirror.

I'm the author and my views of this book are 100% biased

[Grace Morris · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author/publisher for promotional purposes. I was not required to write a positive review. These are my honest thoughts and opinions.

Yeah... I kinda devoured this massive book and loved it! Like a ton! But now I kinda need book two 😅 Like now, I need to know what happens next.

Also, this book just came out a couple of days ago, so happy release day!

This is one of those books that made me feel like I got to explore a fantastic world like J.R.R. Tolkien’s writing or an open-world video game. Characters that made me root for and who captured my heart. Writing that could make me laugh and grasp me until I was fully immersed. I often forgot how long this book is and just kept reading, wanting more. So, um, when’s the next book coming out? Because somehow I ran out of pages, I don’t know how that happened.

The worldbuilding for this world is massive and immersive. If I remember right, it is inspired by an open-world video game and this book has a similar feel. Like you got to explore the world with each of the characters. A lot of that probably has to do with the fact that each of the five POVs in the story is vastly different from each other, either coming from a different race or a different part of Ruskhazar. Think of something similar to “The Lord of the Rings”, but with more of a modern writing. Or a clean version of “Game of Thrones”. (which I haven’t read). I honestly love how much there is to unravel; there are so many legends, prophecies, and details on different races that are all important to the book’s plot but also made it feel like a place that you could visit in real life.

Besides the awesome worldbuilding, the characters are the best part. Each POV has their own subplot that eventually gets connected to the main plotline. In the first few chapters, most of our POVs are together on a prison ship. We get a very unique form of storytelling that I haven’t yet seen anywhere else, where we get the same scene in each POV. I honestly loved it. After that scene, they all go their separate ways meeting new people and getting introduced to the main plotline of the novel; save the world from a certain doom of necromancers and monsters. And our heroes don’t really want to be heroes instituting the reluctant hero trope.

First of all, we have Eirik, the hopeless romantic who was also like Robin Hood with the whole steal-from-the-rich give-to-the-poor plotline. (He’s also the handsome guy on the cover!) At the first chapter, he grasped my attention, with his witty remarks and hiding a comb on the prison ship, to look his best, mind you. XD But after I got introduced to the other characters, Eirik’s POV felt kinda flat to me. I mean, there was nothing wrong with him. In most situations, he would have probably captured my heart right away. I think it had to do with the fact that the other POVs had a ton going on. And while Eirik had some things going on with him, his story was more of a romantic one with Sassa. I think I also had a hard time getting immersed with the side characters of Eirik’s POV. They were all great characters, but I found myself flipping through the pages to see how long before I would get to my favorite POVs. That aside, Eirik is a sweetheart thief that doesn’t always do the right thing, but he’ll probably steal your heart.

Meruna had the opposite effect on me. At first, I wasn’t sure about her POV, but once the side characters of her POV were introduced, I ended up loving her so much! Her story took on the dark academia with a murderer twist. And while I knew who was the killer for most of the novel, I thought that it was very well done. (I used to read a lot of crime drama so…) I think Meruna’s POV felt more on track with the main plotline of saving the world (she didn’t want to, but it felt like it was discussed more). And Aofie and Fell completed her, ahhh! I can’t even explain how much I love the three of them. Meruna and her books. Aofie being overprotective and her love for bread. And Fell being tall, handsome, and broody. Meruna definitely had the rich-kid vibes to her and a knack for getting into trouble, which is why I was a little unsure of her at first. But she also has a heart (the girl wears it on her sleeve), super shy, and with a love of learning. I was just able to relate to her a lot and the trio was THE BEST!!!

THYRE!!!! Okay, Thyre was my absolute favorite POV out of all the five. She was the former bandit turned assassin turned werewolf. Her story beats were excellent. Thyre’s character was tough and a little rough around the edges, but she also had this extremely caring heart and was loyal to those who had won her over. We didn’t really get into too much of her former bandit self. But the assassin part made me so happy! (Yes, that was weird for me to say, but what can I say? I’m stabby happy 😉 ) We also got to meet Elwis the Eel whom I have been hearing so much about and like now that I have met him and I kind of need to know more. He was border lining creepy, but also he made sense? He is just a perfect addition that I can’t wait to see more of him in later books. And when we got to the werewolf part!!! Remember how I wanted more of the werewolf element in “A Tale of Gods and Glory”? Well, my friend, THIS WAS THE BOOK I WAS WAITING FOR!!!! GAHHHHHH!!!! Yes, I’m in love with it. Yes, I can’t wait to see more in the next book. BUT ALSO, VROM!!!! Okay, usually Nicki’s characters are sarcastic with witty remarks. Which I do love, but Vrom is something different. He’s literally the sweetest cinnamon roll Nicki has ever written, change my mind! He’s just so sweet and shy and I love him sooooo much!!!! And I love his little stutters, it makes him feel so much like a real person. AND MAGNAR WAS THERE TOOOOO, and you all know how much I love this grumpy boy! Eek, I love them all so much!!!

Sooo, I wasn’t a huge Dagmy fan. She was okay, but maybe a little too hard to get behind. She was the mercenary looking for fame and glory before turning into a vampire. Her POV reminded me a little of Taliz’s story, which was okay. Only Dagmy was way more abrasive than Taliz was. I don’t know, I had a hard time finding stuff in her story that I could connect to. She even made the dog, Garth, stop talking to her, which made me so sad. Really the best part of her POV is Hakon who is the saving grace of her chapters. Hakon while sometimes complainy and talked a lot, also thought outside the box and was a good judge of character. He is extremely loyal (when he has no reason to be, I mean, geez Dagmy give the poor guy some credit) and seems to really balance Dagmy (he is like her complete opposite, but somehow they work together? It just worked, I don’t know how to explain it). And just the way he is with Garth, the giant dog, made my absolute day. I’m also not really a vampire fan and having the horror element in it didn’t do much for me.

Azern!!! GAHHHH!!! I was looking forward to seeing her character again after “Between Gods and Demigods”, and of course, she did not disappoint. Azern was the POV where she tried to pull all the other POVs together to save the world. I honestly loved her. How she wants to help people, but feels like she can’t change the outcome of her visions. I really like how those visions started to affect her sanity, because I mean, wow, I don’t think that I could be in her shoes and be sane. And her reuniting with Magnar made me cheer. I have been waiting for that moment for ages.

I made the mistake of thinking that Neltruna (our fifth hero) was going to be in this novel and was confused at first why she didn’t make an appearance. But it made sense later on, and she’s going to be seen in book 2, so I can’t wait to meet her!

When I picked up this book, it was hard to put down and I felt like I flew through it. It didn’t even feel like 900+ pages. I would recommend picking up this book during a vacation like I did because it has a way of pulling you into it with its fantastic writing, characters, and immersive world.

Content in Book:

1. Violence. (Cutting off heads, slight description of them rolling, and a little bit of blood but not over the top. Snapping someone’s neck. A kraken attacks a ship and this one guy. With weapons. With hand-to-hand combat. With magic. A girl was found dead in water, people said it was suicide. Someone witnessed the murder of their family. Blood, gore, and injuries (not too detailed). A burned body (not detailed). Someone lit themselves on fire. Getting attacked by bandits. Werewolf violence (biting and with claws). Vampire violence (biting or by keeping people against their will to drink their blood). A character almost died from being experimented on. Trying to sacrifice people to gods. Assassins. Poisons. A giant dog bites someone. Etc.)

2. Kissing and a very vague fade-to-black scene between a married couple.

3. Magic. (Necromancers that animate the dead. Spells, spellbooks. Using magic through worship of the gods. Sorcery. Using magic for evil (experiments, sacrificing, animating the dead, sorcery, etc). Using magic for good. Using magic in fights. Etc.)

4. Worshiping other gods, goddesses, and demigods.

5. Werewolves. (Biting people to change them. Werewolf violence. One guy was very scarred from a previous werewolf fight. Werewolf fight to determine their leader. Having to go naked to shift (everyone is always moral, though and looks away). Etc.)

6. Vampires. (Biting people to change them. Drinking blood. Keeping people imprisoned to cut them for their blood. Etc.)

7. Thievery and bandits.

8. A ghost.

9. Some characters drink alcohol and get drunk.

Who I Would Recommend This Book Too:

Those who want a clean epic fantasy story that has an immersive open-world and characters who will capture your heart. This is that book, go read it!

Review first seen on my blog here (with fan art of Garth that I drew) (https://gracemmorris.wordpress.com/20...)

[Jennie Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A twisty high fantasy epic perfect for readers who want all the action and excitement...but maybe not all the sex scenes.

Rage Like the Gods follows the journeys of four seemingly ordinary young people...except for the fact that they've all been chosen by the gods to save the world. Each character is well drawn and compelling. Each has their own storyline packed full of intrigue, romance, action and adventure; although, let me tell you, at some point near the end I was just itching for them to all cross paths and meet up already!

The romance is clean, yet still very sweet and satisfying at the end. While there is nothing extremely graphic or gory, there's still a few darker scenes and some of your typical high fantasy style violence.

It's long read, and almost feels episodic in nature. This book would be PERFECT as a TV show! I read it slowly, a little bit every week over the course of a month or so. The end leaves off just as the whole "saving the world" thing really starts to pick up. I can't wait to see where the characters will go next in Book Two!

[Jes Drew · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sometimes you choose the ARC; sometimes the ARC chooses you. Or, wait, that's supposed to be destiny. Sometimes destiny will choose you even when you run screaming the opposite direction as these four found when they all woke up on a prison ship. But none of them remember why they're there, or even how. Or why there's an undead kraken- or how, since that kind of thing isn't exactly normal.

Thus begins the fantasy epic as four out of five chosen ones are brought together- and then disperse as quickly as possible because they have lives to live even if the world is- allegedly- falling apart around their ears. Which means we get to join them on four different journeys.

Eirik is the only male POV, and he is determined to win back the hand of his lady love who despises thievery . . . via thievery ala Robin Hood style. He's my favorite.

Meruna is my other favorite, the noblewoman who is determined to learn at the magical Academy before her parents marry her off, or the world gets saved- whichever comes first. She also has a spunky bodyguard here to keep her alive until she's ready to save the world, and maybe push her toward her fellow/rival student.

Dagmy is a mercenary in search of honor . . . along with her sidekick, another mercenary who is the best.

Thyre single-handedly gets enlisted by both an assassin clan and a werewolf pack.

Anyway, there's a ton going on, so get ready to be invested. Perfect if you love high fantasy, epic fantasy, romantic fantasy, dark fantasy, fantasy, etc.

Note to more sensitive readers: there is a lot of fantasy violence, and the characters are not all good and noble. 

I received a copy from the author but was not required to leave a favorable review.

[SoccerReader · Rating 5 out of 5]

Took me a couple sections to get into it, but now I want more.
AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.