The gods feel the humans are beneath contempt, just playthings, but necessary to feed their existence, and the humans become equally contemptuous of the gods, due to the god's oppressive treatment of their mortal subjects. Some mortals cling to their worship of the gods, despite the evidence plainly in their face all along that the gods were detestable. For example, the story opens with Author's Note that because novel is being set in a fantasy version of the Bronze Age there is no steel, no standardised measure system, it's barter economy, etc. Because, as we have learned throughout history, absolute power can corrupt absolutely (or “eternally” as the cover of the book notes), as the saying goes.

The tyranny of the gods is absolute, and they are capricious, malevolent and almost all-powerful, playing cruel games with the fates of mortals for their own ends. Centuries ago, Enkul-Anu (who is like a Zeus crossed with En-Lil crossed with cocaine) and his brood overthrew the old pantheon and set themselves up over humanity, whom the kept in a technological and economic stasis.Your heart will beat faster with every sword stroke, or blast of magic, as you wring your hands over the fate of your favourite characters, and are stupified by the level of realism Cameron brings to a fight scene. All told this is a brilliant introduction to a vivid, fascinating world and a series that promises to only grow in scope, excitement and intrigue – a great first book that leaves you wanting more. Through our long-running SF and Fantasy Masterworks programme, and major digital initiative the SF Gateway, we have one of the largest ranges of SF and Fantasy of any publisher in the world. There are a lot of characters in play here (as evidenced by the four-page dramatis personae at the beginning), but Cameron largely keeps to four point of view characters – an aged magos out for revenge, a grieving dancer acclimatising to an unexpected responsibility, a young scribe coming to terms with betrayal and a broader truth, and a cynical warrior uncomfortably aware that he’s past his best. I found that the gods had character to them, a personality, but the mortal POVs mostly felt like husks with one defining factor about them, their 'origin' story, and nothing else to really separate them until the last 5-10% of the book.

They talked and behaved in very "modern" ways and I had difficulties at time reconciling their characters with the setting of a bronze-age world. Following the signs laid out before him, Gamash receives weapons that can hurt the corrupt divine beings and embarks on a quest to challenge the gods once and for all. Yes, he has too many characters -- which especially shows around the conclusion when many of them fade into the background -- but they're all pretty great and likeable.Since plot offers nothing particularly new and characters were a bit stereotypical, I have to mention the world-building. Terry Pratchett in the Bronze Age with the shameless and naughty bits exposed, what can possibly go wrong in an upstart war declared on the gods in heaven? There were honestly times I felt like I wanted to DNF this book but I pursued because the concept idea, The Boys meets Greek Mythology is brilliant! This was done easily since so many people were meeting other people in different scenarios, so you got to know the individuals by being told what was good about them from the perspective of other individuals. I would recommend this one to anyone looking for a rich new epic fantasy to anyone who loves the genre.