Rachel Dunne brings her Bound Gods trilogy to an epic conclusion in The Shattered Sun. The novel picks up where she left readers in The Bones of the Earth, so expect some spoilers in the review. After introducing her cast of characters in In the Shadow of the Gods, scattering them in The Bones of the Earth, Dunne does the only logical thing in The Shattered Sun. She brings them back together for a cataclysmic (or cataclysmic-preventing?) finale.
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 Twins, who were cast down and shackled by their Parent gods, have been whispering into their followers for years. Begging for release. Through the first two novels, Dunne told the story of how one group of characters was attempting to resurrect the Twins while the other group was questing to destroy all of the broken body parts of the Twins. With the Twins now back in the world, inhabiting young bodies, the world is engulfed in darkness as a result. Kiero is near the top of the order who follow the Twins and has the power at his disposal to remove any who question his authority. His sanity; however, is not so strongly held together. Here is one of the strengths of the finale to Dunne’s trilogy and the trilogy as a whole: just how power affects people who may not be prepared to wield it. Especially here in the finale, Kiero’s sanity comes under scrutiny as does his scattered focus.
Speaking of sanity and holds on reality, through the character of Anddyr, Dunne has continually been showing what price can potentially be paid for the use of power, specifically magic. Although he wields magic, he doesn’t quite have confidence or his wits about him.
Joros and Rora continue their quest to destroy the scattered remnants of the twins (and hunt for their bodies). Unfortunately, the climax of the previous installment in the series makes the task more difficult. The twins are much more tangible and even creepier, in many senses, than shackled, giant, humanoid bodies speaking.
Then there’s Scal, the reluctant swordsman. After a life (or lives, as he suggests in his inner monologues) of conflict, death, and pain, Scal went through a healing process through much of the second book. With his journey of self-healing and atonement nearing its conclusion as The Shattered Sun begins, he is unaware of the reunion on the horizon with his companions from In the Shadow of the Gods. Well, not just Scal, but the flaming sword he now bears. Something like that might come in handy in a world where the sun has darkened.
Dunne excellently shows the stress and sheer weight of the world on these characters in their collective quest / mission to save the world. Joros is still something of a Magnificent Bastard – doing whatever he sees fit to ensure the Twins power is quelled, but his character has taken a bit of a step back from the stage. His action and plan made for much of the driving force of the first novel. It propelled the characters who surrounded him. While he’s still vital, for me, Kiero was the central character in The Shattered Sun. Although he is on the “evil” side of the conflict as a leader of the cult of the Twins, his emotions and interactions with other characters made him a bit more sympathetic than the typical “Villain Protagonist.”
As I said in the reviews of the earlier installments of the trilogy, there’s a big grimdark vibe to the novel. The “heroes” and “villains” are very much shaded in grey, the world is more or less crapsack, and there really isn’t a truly morally centered character. That said, the story isn’t fully drowning in misery, there is hope with some characters and hope for a positive outcome…even if that outcome is secured by less than savory means. Part of what helps elevate the trilogy for me is Dunne’s prose and what I thought was an interesting world mythology. She does a good job mining that central conflict between the “good” and “evil” gods to fuel the trilogy. While there’s closure and the conflict introduced in book one was mostly resolved, there are hints of more story. The world seems to have ground where additional stories can grow.
In summation, The Shattered Sun is a rewarding finale to a fantasy trilogy that began with great promise. As the novel was drawing to a close, the ending began to feel earned. That isn’t to say everything ended well for all the characters, but rather the ending wasn’t too easy. The Bounds God is, on the whole, a worthy addition to the modern, dark fantasy canon. I won’t say these books are exactly grimdark, but they would definitely appeal to readers who enjoy grimdark fantasy.
© 2018 Rob H. Bedford
December 2018 | Harper Voyager
Trade Paperback | 486 Pages
http://racheldunne.com/
Sample: https://aerbook.com/books/The_Shattered_Sun-160617.html?social=1&retail=1&emailcap=0
Review copy courtesy of the publisher
