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Bound Gods #3
The Shattered Sun
The epic sword-and-sorcery Bound Gods fantasy series comes to its dark conclusion in this thrilling story of a vibrant world whose fate lies in the hands of vengeful gods and bold warriors
The world has been plunged into darkness . . . and only the scheming priest Joros might be able to bring back the sun.
With his ragtag band of fighters—a laconic warrior, a pair of street urchins, a ruthless priestess, and an unhinged sorcerer—Joros seeks to defeat the ancient gods newly released from their long imprisonment. But the Twins have champions of their own, and powers beyond knowing . . . and the only sure thing is that they won’t go down without a fight.
The fate of the world hangs in the balance as the Twins aim to enact revenge on the parents that imprisoned them, and the world that spurned them. The Long Night has begun, and the shadows hide many secrets—including that the Twins themselves may not be as powerful as they would have everyone think.
Joros and his allies must strike now—before the Twins can consolidate their power . . . and before they are allowed to shape the world in their vision.
The world has been plunged into darkness . . . and only the scheming priest Joros might be able to bring back the sun.
With his ragtag band of fighters—a laconic warrior, a pair of street urchins, a ruthless priestess, and an unhinged sorcerer—Joros seeks to defeat the ancient gods newly released from their long imprisonment. But the Twins have champions of their own, and powers beyond knowing . . . and the only sure thing is that they won’t go down without a fight.
The fate of the world hangs in the balance as the Twins aim to enact revenge on the parents that imprisoned them, and the world that spurned them. The Long Night has begun, and the shadows hide many secrets—including that the Twins themselves may not be as powerful as they would have everyone think.
Joros and his allies must strike now—before the Twins can consolidate their power . . . and before they are allowed to shape the world in their vision.
486 pages, Paperback
First published December 4, 2018
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
October 26, 2020
What an ending to such an unexpected and original dark fantasy series!
It took me a long time between actually finishing this book and now to write the review. It also took me a long time to get through the actual book too. This wasn't because it's not good, it's great! It was just....so different from the first two books in the series, to me. So many of the main characters had so much happen to/by them, that many are completely unrecognizable from where they started. But that's character growth, right?
Highly recommended!
It took me a long time between actually finishing this book and now to write the review. It also took me a long time to get through the actual book too. This wasn't because it's not good, it's great! It was just....so different from the first two books in the series, to me. So many of the main characters had so much happen to/by them, that many are completely unrecognizable from where they started. But that's character growth, right?
Highly recommended!
January 2, 2019
The Shattered Sun is a hard book to pin down. The copy describes it as an “epic sword-and-sorcery . . . fantasy.” It is, technically, an epic fantasy. The trilogy concerns potentially world-ending matters. The third book, after all, opens with the sun extinguished by the revived Twins. But the story still manages to feel small for an epic fantasy, focusing on a handful of characters and taking place in limited locations. On the other hand, I wouldn’t say it is sword and sorcery. I think the term they should be looking for is “grimdark.” But the Bound Gods books don’t necessarily satisfy the grimdark penchant for gore. But they are dark and handle moral ambiguity in a much more thoughtful way than the average grimdark.
More to the point, the Bound Gods books aren’t plot-centric enough to be sword and sorcery. The strength of the series has always been Dunne’s writing and her characterization. Long lulls between the action is neither necessary to nor sufficient for characterization, but Dunne uses them inordinately well for it. Ultimately, though, a fantasy trilogy comes down to plot, and the Bound Gods trilogy is marred by a weak finish.
How many series feature their strongest climax not in the final book, or even in the first book, but instead in the second book?
The end of the second book sets up the plot of the third. The Fallen successfully revived the demigod Twins, and the Twins immediately extinguished the sun. But doing so left them weakened, and the sun isn’t exactly extinguished. An eternal night has begun, but the air remains warm and crops even grow. There is a window of opportunity to defeat the Twins before they regain their full power.
The Shattered Sun benefits from bringing (almost) all of the characters from the first two books together. I particularly missed Scal in the second book, and he plays more of a prominent role here, now wielding the powers that will get him dubbed “Nightbreaker.” But he is almost more of a plot device than a character.
I mentioned above that the Bound Gods books handle moral ambiguity more thoughtfully than the average grimdark. Grimdark tends to just paint the protagonist as also awful, which is both lazy and unsatisfying. Dunne does something more interesting. Doing things for the right reasons can lead to doing great wrong, as Kieron learns (although he will get his chance at redemption). Self-interest can lead to doing the right thing, as we see with Joros.
The ending, though, mars the book, and the entire series really. It was a bit too cheap, not well setup, and it left me with one big, looming question (and not in a good way).
Disclosure: Harper Voyager sent me a review copy of The Shattered Sun.
More to the point, the Bound Gods books aren’t plot-centric enough to be sword and sorcery. The strength of the series has always been Dunne’s writing and her characterization. Long lulls between the action is neither necessary to nor sufficient for characterization, but Dunne uses them inordinately well for it. Ultimately, though, a fantasy trilogy comes down to plot, and the Bound Gods trilogy is marred by a weak finish.
How many series feature their strongest climax not in the final book, or even in the first book, but instead in the second book?
The end of the second book sets up the plot of the third. The Fallen successfully revived the demigod Twins, and the Twins immediately extinguished the sun. But doing so left them weakened, and the sun isn’t exactly extinguished. An eternal night has begun, but the air remains warm and crops even grow. There is a window of opportunity to defeat the Twins before they regain their full power.
The Shattered Sun benefits from bringing (almost) all of the characters from the first two books together. I particularly missed Scal in the second book, and he plays more of a prominent role here, now wielding the powers that will get him dubbed “Nightbreaker.” But he is almost more of a plot device than a character.
I mentioned above that the Bound Gods books handle moral ambiguity more thoughtfully than the average grimdark. Grimdark tends to just paint the protagonist as also awful, which is both lazy and unsatisfying. Dunne does something more interesting. Doing things for the right reasons can lead to doing great wrong, as Kieron learns (although he will get his chance at redemption). Self-interest can lead to doing the right thing, as we see with Joros.
The ending, though, mars the book, and the entire series really. It was a bit too cheap, not well setup, and it left me with one big, looming question (and not in a good way).
Disclosure: Harper Voyager sent me a review copy of The Shattered Sun.
June 1, 2023
I had high hopes for this story. I can't say that enough. I had high hopes for this story. The author fell so dang short on reaching its potential.
We continue to see character arches from the second book after they were completely left out of the first, although they are slower and seem to flatline after a while, but at least we see them in this book. Her narrative has evolved to be less cringy, moving from "fingernails on chalk board" to a more "dog nails on car's hood" vibe. The story overall seems to leave us with questions, such as "where are we going and when are we getting there?"
Her "epic" scenes materialize in a way that leave you feeling safe with a low heart rate. Much like watching a cat walk across a fence. "Is it gonna fall? If it does which side will it fall on? Oh, wait, there it goes! It fell! And it landed on its feet! Hooray!" The scenes were supposed to be suspenseful, but there was no "Yippee" feel behind them.
She tried, she really did, but if she had gone away from trying to sound so deep in her narrative, she would have had a better chance on getting that adrenaline-pumping action onto the page.
The climax at the end wasn't there. I've had woopie-less nights with terrible dates that ended better than her ending. Basically, a guy runs up with a sword made of fire and chops the Twins down. No one stops him. They die. People cry. Everyone goes home.
There it is folks. The ending to a dark fantasy that's supposed to be "epic."
As I mentioned in the first book's review, I'm sure the author had great intentions, but I simply do not see where the five-star reviews come from. Perhaps someone can enlighten me someday, but until then, I'll try to read books that leave an impression on me.
We continue to see character arches from the second book after they were completely left out of the first, although they are slower and seem to flatline after a while, but at least we see them in this book. Her narrative has evolved to be less cringy, moving from "fingernails on chalk board" to a more "dog nails on car's hood" vibe. The story overall seems to leave us with questions, such as "where are we going and when are we getting there?"
Her "epic" scenes materialize in a way that leave you feeling safe with a low heart rate. Much like watching a cat walk across a fence. "Is it gonna fall? If it does which side will it fall on? Oh, wait, there it goes! It fell! And it landed on its feet! Hooray!" The scenes were supposed to be suspenseful, but there was no "Yippee" feel behind them.
She tried, she really did, but if she had gone away from trying to sound so deep in her narrative, she would have had a better chance on getting that adrenaline-pumping action onto the page.
The climax at the end wasn't there. I've had woopie-less nights with terrible dates that ended better than her ending. Basically, a guy runs up with a sword made of fire and chops the Twins down. No one stops him. They die. People cry. Everyone goes home.
There it is folks. The ending to a dark fantasy that's supposed to be "epic."
As I mentioned in the first book's review, I'm sure the author had great intentions, but I simply do not see where the five-star reviews come from. Perhaps someone can enlighten me someday, but until then, I'll try to read books that leave an impression on me.
February 7, 2021
I enjoyed the trilogy. It was a grand quest presented on a much smaller scale than most. A small group of unconnected players who come together as a result of diverse circumstances must pool their resources to destroy "The Twins".
Many of the players evolve in this third work. Magic and convoluted relationships alter the destiny's of the characters. Some become much stronger, others wounded and weaker. It all plays out in the final chapters as forces converge. Very well done but not great.
I admire this authors tenacity and boldness in creating this series and look forward to reading more of her work.
However, I would hope that less time is spent on the repeating the internal struggles for some of the principle characters. This work, in my layman's opinion, could have been trimmed without affecting the flow of the story. OK...I got it...person X is struggling with Y and person A is dealing with B...I got it.
Greater brevity in the description of these thought processes would have been welcome.
Many of the players evolve in this third work. Magic and convoluted relationships alter the destiny's of the characters. Some become much stronger, others wounded and weaker. It all plays out in the final chapters as forces converge. Very well done but not great.
I admire this authors tenacity and boldness in creating this series and look forward to reading more of her work.
However, I would hope that less time is spent on the repeating the internal struggles for some of the principle characters. This work, in my layman's opinion, could have been trimmed without affecting the flow of the story. OK...I got it...person X is struggling with Y and person A is dealing with B...I got it.
Greater brevity in the description of these thought processes would have been welcome.
February 23, 2024
This is one of those that people should be talking about more. I like the characters' arc, how the end of the second is so awesome and the third satisfying. An underrating series that I keep recommending for dark fantasy readers.
December 16, 2018
Excellent
Great continuation of this story and a very satisfying conclusion for the characters. Thoroughly enjoyed this trilogy. Please write more stories!
Great continuation of this story and a very satisfying conclusion for the characters. Thoroughly enjoyed this trilogy. Please write more stories!
December 21, 2018
Spoilers. Very inventive, clever, detailed story line. Lots of main characters died. Their goal was accomplished, but the survivors had little idea what to do next. I don't give many fives.
August 19, 2019
A mix of an epic fantasy quest story and a dark fantasy. Easy to read. Satisfying end to the trilogy.
January 13, 2022
5 star - Perfect
4 star - i would recommend
3 star - good
2 star - struggled to complete
1 star - could not finish
4 star - i would recommend
3 star - good
2 star - struggled to complete
1 star - could not finish
July 1, 2019
Third/closing book in a series. Young gods (twins) rebel against their parent gods, take over human (twin) hosts on earth while blotting out the sun. Basically, in the second book, the bad guys win and this third book closes out the story. Actually, no good guys, bad guys in this universe. Everyone is scarred, damaged and some degree of bad.
I didn't read the first two books... probably taking away most of any enjoyment here. I don't understand the motivations of the people following these evil twins (the Fallen), other than to present themselves as an enemy force for our heroes (?) to fight against. The Fallen bring the world into darkness... for what reason exactly? But it felt like characters stumbled around in this book with no real purpose until the final 50 pages. I found the twin themes (and namings) confusing and redundant rather than anything mythical. Nobody here to really root for, which was too bad.
I didn't read the first two books... probably taking away most of any enjoyment here. I don't understand the motivations of the people following these evil twins (the Fallen), other than to present themselves as an enemy force for our heroes (?) to fight against. The Fallen bring the world into darkness... for what reason exactly? But it felt like characters stumbled around in this book with no real purpose until the final 50 pages. I found the twin themes (and namings) confusing and redundant rather than anything mythical. Nobody here to really root for, which was too bad.
November 24, 2018
This is book 3 in a series that reminds me a lot of playing Dungeons & Dragons. It's a swords-and-sorcery action story with evil magic users, an intrepid party, and lots of bad die rolls.
You'll need to read the first two books in this series, but that's a feature, not a bug. It's one big story, missing only a fantasy-world map at the beginning of the book. When there's a map it's an easy signal, in a good way, that authors think way too much about their stories. In this case, the rest of the book shows the author spent way too much time digging into the world she created.
In short, this is good stuff, and it'll get you amped up to play more games or read more sword-and-sorcery. At the same time, if possible. I can't wait to see the next thing that author Robin Dunne does.
You'll need to read the first two books in this series, but that's a feature, not a bug. It's one big story, missing only a fantasy-world map at the beginning of the book. When there's a map it's an easy signal, in a good way, that authors think way too much about their stories. In this case, the rest of the book shows the author spent way too much time digging into the world she created.
In short, this is good stuff, and it'll get you amped up to play more games or read more sword-and-sorcery. At the same time, if possible. I can't wait to see the next thing that author Robin Dunne does.
April 15, 2020
A good ending to a great trilogy.
December 30, 2018
I won this KINDLE edition in a GOODREADS giveaway.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews