Series: The Hollow Covenant #1
Published by Orbit on September 3, 2024
Genres: Fiction, Fantasy
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The series is set in a world ravaged by ancient magic, where precious gemstones bestow magical abilities on the few individuals able to harness their power. Full of clandestine power struggles and the battles between gods, the story follows Hakara, a young woman searching for her missing sister and who will do anything to find her — even lead a rebellion against the gods themselves.
Hakara wants to save her sister. Nothing else matters. The god Kluehnn’s “Restoration” separated them, and Hakara will do anything to get back to Rasha…assuming she’s even alive. Restoration may cause plants to grow, but it also takes away half the population—and transforms the rest. But time means nothing to Hakara; she believes Rasha made it through, and they will be reunited. Hakara will do anything to do it, even allying herself with rebels who want to overthrow the God Pact. When Hakara discovers she has unique abilities after swallowing magical gems, she sees her chance. Help the rebels, and they’ll help her save Rasha. The Gods Below by Andrea Stewart is full of political strife, witty banter, heartbreaking separation, and love (both romantic and sibling)…and cats.
The Gods Below rotates between the viewpoints of four characters: Hakara, Rasha, Mullayne, and Sheuan. Each has their own motivations which tug on the reader’s heartstrings. Hakara, save her sister from an unknown fate. Rasha, overcome expectations. Mullayne, save his friend from illness. Sheuan, restore her family’s reputation. Each character faces the power and influence of Kluehnn, and all of them have competing worldviews that cloud how they perceive everything they encounter. Stewart also dips into the gods themselves—before the Shattering. Before Kluehnn destroyed the world as it used to be and sought to eliminate all gods that remained in the world. The gods living below the ground rather than above was a nice touch.
I loved the snippets of humor Andrea Stewart slipped into The Gods Below. Especially one character’s love of cats, and I’m not even a cat person. But that becomes such an important feature that transcends the story, from the moment you first encounter a cat. I also love me a good romance, and Stewart provides; she did a great job of ripping my heart out at the end of the novel with the “big reveal.” I screamed. Not exaggerating. I am not as big of a fan of LGBTQ relationships in the books I read; however, it wasn’t overpowering in Stewart’s new novel. It’s also to the point where I struggle to find fantasy novels that don’t include queer elements. It’s personal preference, so I don’t see a need to go into it further.
The Gods Below by Andrea Stewart provides a stellar beginning to the author’s new “The Hollow Covenant” series; you can sense the impact even in the series’ name: The Hollow Covenant. It tells you from the start that the “God Pact” is shallow. Fragile…and bound to be decimated. Andrea Stewart, you’ve captured me. How long do I have to wait for book two?