richelle mead gameboard of the gods series

Especially given the fact that I used to obsessively study and compare all the different pantheons of gods when I was flirting with becoming a Wicca in my early twenties. I do have to admit that when Mead finally reveals which god is following Justin around I had to be really angry at myself because it was totally obvious in hindsight. The story starts with a bang and there is no lack of heart-pounding, breathtaking action, but it is the intricate blend of mythology into this technology driven world that is truly gripping.

The development of the plot is also incredible. There are definitely aspects of it that are shady, but I can also see the benefits of living in such a society and why it inspires such blind nationalism in Mae and Justin. I particularly liked the fact that the RUNA government isn’t necessarily an inherently evil one, as many of them are in dystopian novels.

Rather than explain the dynamics of this post-apocalyptic world all in the first chapter like many do, Mead reveals it gradually, spread across the whole of the novel in a wonderfully organic way. My favorite part of the book was the world building. The writing was exactly what I’ve come to expect from this author: beautifully crafted, intricately detailed and character-driven. Gameboard of the Gods, the first installment of Richelle Mead’s Age of X series, will have all the elements that have made her YA Vampire Academy and Bloodlines series such megasuccesses: sexy, irresistible characters romantic and mythological intrigue and relentless action and suspense.

As their investigation races forward, unknown enemies and powers greater than they can imagine are gathering in the shadows, ready to reclaim the world in which humans are merely game pieces on their board. When Justin and Mae are assigned to work together to solve a string of ritualistic murders, they soon realize that their discoveries have exposed them to terrible danger. Raised in an aristocratic caste, Mae is now a member of the military’s most elite and terrifying tier, a soldier with enhanced reflexes and skills. But Justin is given a second chance when Mae Koskinen comes to bring him back to the Republic of United North America (RUNA). In a futuristic world nearly destroyed by religious extremists, Justin March lives in exile after failing in his job as an investigator of religious groups and supernatural claims. Richelle Mead, the #1 New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of the Vampire Academy and Bloodlines YA series - whose books have sold more than one million copies in hardcover - debuts on the Dutton list with Gameboard of the Gods, the first novel in her Age of X series.

Richelle mead gameboard of the gods series