Gunmetal Gods by Zamil Akhtar is book one in the Gunmetal Gods Saga trilogy set. I came across this series via a Reddit recommendation as well as the cover unveiling of the last book in the series. Two things stood out very quickly for me: the insanely beautiful cover art and the hope of a Lovecraftian fantasy world. Gunmetal Gods makes for a slightly entertaining read in some areas, but the religious fervor with certain characters makes it slightly annoying to read at other times. The concept is not exactly new with what the author has crafted here, and the few moments of excitement I get during certain cherry-picked parts makes it very hard to continue with the series.

“There’s nothing softer than the heart of a new believer.”

Micah the Metal

It’s very easy for most readers to realize after a short while that the war between the two main characters in the story along with their countries represents something very much akin to the ancient crusaders of the Byzantine Empire and their war with the Muslims in the Middle East. Ancient history, especially during this period of war between these two great religions, have always been fascinating. Adding an element of fantasy and science fiction to the mix got me very excited. Kevah and Micah represents their respective country and religion in the war. Kevah is one of those warriors turned legend but have since faded in the background for a chance at a quiet and peaceful life. Micah is the devout religious fanatic who will stop at almost absolutely nothing until his crusaders retake the holy city of Kostany.

“Rely on a god and you’ll never know your own strength.”

Sadie

Along the way, expect many references to gods and goddesses, battles and betrayals. While I’ve never been put off by gore, violence and sexual assault in fantasy novels, incest however, is one that does. Not to tact on the fact it was with an underage girl makes it that much worse. I was surprised it got to that point. Granted, this was a very brief encounter and an explanation was given towards the latter chapters, but readers should be wary nonetheless. In my experience after having read the novel, what really drove me away was the constant non-stop religious fervor of Micah the Metal. It’s not totally unexpected, as usually religious zealots like himself are your typical hypocrites who use religion to justify every decision they make. It’s just that I don’t find that an exciting read if it becomes overused.

“We’re all good men until we’re pushed to the edge. Then you either die a good man, or the good man in you dies.”

Kevah

While the mysterious Lovecraftian element I was hoping for did present itself towards the later chapters, I’m afraid it likely wouldn’t be until book two of the series before we’d get to see more of this. While Gunmetal Gods was a pretty solid read overall, it just doesn’t have that factor to make me want to continue the journey.