What Monstrous Gods

Starred review from December 18, 2023
In this complex fantasy loosely inspired by Sleeping Beauty, Hodge delivers a thoughtful meditation on the relationship between faith and obedience, as well as religious and secular power. Five centuries ago, the sorcerer Ruven cast a spell of eternal sleep upon the royal family of Runakhia, surrounding the castle with an impenetrable briar and ending the age of gods and saints. In the present, 17-year-old Lia Kurinava—who was raised by the nuns of Nin-Anna, the goddess of springtime and healing—ventures into the briar, intent on killing Ruven and freeing the royal family. As unwelcome reward upon her triumph, Lia will marry into the royal family and help them reawaken the long-dormant shrines of the gods, returning the deities and their dark miracles to the present. Haunted by Ruven’s ghost, rejected by Nin-Anna, and claimed by the death goddess Mor-Iva, Lia must carefully balance mundane politics, divine caprice, and her own developing magical skills to take charge of her destiny. Lia’s evolution and exploration of her beliefs is the beating heart of this lush tale, and her nuanced relationship with Ruven and Hodge’s unsettling and visceral rendering of the gods as remote and inhuman add grit. Main characters read as white. Ages 13–up. Agent: Hannah Bowman, Liza Dawson Assoc.

January 1, 2024
Five hundred years ago, the heretic Ruven imprisoned Runakhia's royal family inside magical briar, silencing the gods they serve; in breaking the spell, a 17-year-old learns a fateful lesson: Be careful what you wish for. After she lost her family to the plague, Lia Kurinava was raised by nuns who worship Nin-Anna, one of eight deities who formerly blessed Runakhia. A rare commoner born with the Royal Gift that permits the royal family to enter the gods' realm, Lia uses her gift to breach the briar and kill Ruven. She awakens the royal family from their enchanted sleep to seek the gods' help in defeating the plague and Runakhia's enemies. The chillingly indifferent deities whom Runakhians worship work their magic through human saints whose miracles eventually cause the saints' horrific deaths. They're more demonic than saintly, according to Ruven, who's now a tormenting but charismatic ghost upon whom Lia increasingly depends as she's ordered to help the royals re-enter modern life, restore the gods to Runakhia, and marry Prince Araunn. Ruven may be her worst enemy--or her only hope--in her quest to ensure the gods are worthy of their powers. Sedate pacing and high-fantasy psychic distance lend heft to an original tale unfolding from an unsettling premise. Beyond the charmingly disembodied love story, the question of whether humans might outgrow their gods offers intriguing food for thought. Major characters are cued white. A sharply original blend of romance and dark fantasy. (the gods and their shrines) (Fantasy romance. 13-18)

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March 1, 2024
Grades 9-12 Taking cues from ""Sleeping Beauty,"" Hodge fashions a haunting tale of gods and magic and those caught in between. For 500 years, Runakhia's royals have lain in an unnatural sleep, ensorcelled by the heretic Ruven in order to sever their connection with the gods. No longer protected, the kingdom gives way to plague and faithlessness, save for one convent whose nuns are devoted to returning the gods to power. Lia has been raised to carry out their plan by infiltrating the castle, killing Ruven, and awakening the royal family--thus reestablishing a connection with the gods. On her seventeenth birthday, Lia completes her mission, but it has unexpected results that leave her reeling--chief among them is that Ruven is now haunting her. Hodge's complex world building and richly developed characters will ensnare contemplative readers as the story explores the murky yet powerful worlds of politics and religion as well as themes of truth, purpose, and choice. Romance sparks between Lia and Ruven, adding an enjoyable enemies-to-lovers layer to the proceedings as well. A thought-provoking fantasy.

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May 3, 2024

Gr 9 Up-All Lia Kurinava asks for her 17th birthday is for Mother Una's permission to enter the briar that surrounds the royal palace and kill the sorcerer, Ruven. Five hundred years ago, Ruven cast a spell on the royal family and put the whole palace to sleep. By doing so, he silenced Runakhia's gods and ended the age of saints. Lia, adopted by the Convent of St. Eruvaun after her family died of the plague, has grown up worshiping Nin-Anna, one of Runakhia's eight gods, and fully accepts her destiny to break Ruven's curse. She successfully kills Ruven and wakes Queen Imvada and her children, Princess Varia and Prince Araunn. Lia, haunted by Ruven's ghost, joins the Prince and Princess on their tour to reawaken the gods and learns some unsettling truths about the old gods on the journey. Lia finds herself caught between her devotion to the gods, the political machinations of Queen Imvada, and her growing feelings for Ruven. VERDICT While billed as a loose interpretation of the "Sleeping Beauty" tale, this dark fantasy is more akin to Serpent & Dove by Shelby Mahurin with its religious musings about duty, love, and purpose.-Maria Martin

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