Gods of the Wyrdwood by R.J. Barker – Review

Published: June 27, 2023

Publisher: Orbit Books

Series: Forsaken #1

Genre: Fantasy

Pages: 640 (Paperback)

My Rating: 4 Stars

A copy of this book was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Synopsis:
In a world locked in eternal winter and haunted by prophecy, a young boy trains for years to become the Chosen One, only for another to rise and claim his place in the start of an unmissable epic from a rising star in fantasy.

The northlands of Crua are locked in eternal winter, but prophecy tells of the chosen child – who will rule in the name of their God, and take warmth back from the South. Cahal du Nahere was raised to be this person: the Cowl-Rai, the saviour. Taken from his parents and prepared for his destiny.

But his time never came

When he was fifteen he ceased to matter. Another Cowl-Rai had risen, another chosen one, raised in the name of a different God. The years of vicious physical and mental training he had endured, the sacrifice, all for nothing. He became nothing.

Twenty years later, and Cahal lives a life of secrecy on the edges of Crua’s giant forests – hiding what he is, running from what he can do. But when he is forced to reveal his true nature, he sets off a sequence of events that will reveal secrets that will shake the bedrock of his entire world, and expose lies that have persisted for generations.

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I like big trees and this book fulfills all my big tree dreams. Really, really big trees.

Honestly, I wasn’t sure if I was going to like this book for the first 50 pages or so, but I persevered because R.J. Barker has yet to let me down and by page 100 I was thoroughly hooked. The synopsis initially hooked me on the idea of someone raised to be the Chosen One, but being displaced by another rising instead and then dealing with the aftermath years later. What made me stumble upon beginning the book was the sheer amount of unfamiliar terminology and worldbuilding, and I’m not usually stymied by this stuff because I’ve been reading fantasy for decades.

We are introduced to Cahan du Nahere, a clanless boy who is taken by a priestess of the fire god Zorir and trained to be the Cowl-Rai of the god. This is essentially a high-mage or avatar type figure who would be served by the Rai, which are lesser mages, though still very powerful. Every Cowl-Rai to have ever risen has overthrown the previous god’s authority and begun their own reign of terror because let’s face it, none of these gods are benevolent or kind. Cahan’s childhood is given to us in dribs and drabs, always in an odd second-person perspective. After the god Tarl-an-gig rose to power Cahan returned to Harn, the village he grew up near and took up farming again. He’s shunned as clanless, but Cahan’s forestcraft skill (he actually goes by Forester) is unparalleled and he is called upon to aid the village in various forest related matters. He’s been waiting for the Rai of Tarl-an-gig to find him for years and the other shoe finally drops when he meets Venn, who’s mother is trying to awaken their cowl so they might serve Tarl-an-gig. 

Cahan might be the main character, but the supporting characters themselves are quite memorable. There’s Udinny, a priest of Ranya, a forest goddess who basically forces her friendship upon Cahan. Venn, the young trion (non-binary), keeps encountering Cahan who is supportive of their decision to not use their cowl, as it is fed by death and slowly erodes one’s humanity. It’s clear that Cahan begins to care deeply for Venn and much of the latter part of the book focuses on him trying to help Venn and the village of Harn. I’m always fond of a good animal companion and Segur, Cahan’s garaur is a delightful presence though Segur is merely a pet.

My favorite part of this book is the setting, particularly when the characters are spending time in the deep parts of the forest, called the Wyrdwood. The cloudtrees are unfathomably tall and their tops cannot be seen from the ground, while the bases of the trees could take a day to walk around. For this reason, the fall of one of the forest giants is a momentous occasion as it provides income for neighboring villages for years. The forest contains multitudes of deadly creatures and fascinating plants and their presence and descriptions serve to make this one of the best settings I’ve come across in fantasy in years. R.J. Barker did a brilliant job on this and I’m thoroughly enchanted.

Overall, this was an excellent read and I do recommend patience when tackling this tale at first. The terminology and general set up of the story and worldbuilding was a lot to take in, but the payoff is absolutely worth it. I will be eagerly awaiting the sequel!