Lost Gods

Of all the books I read in 2019, Lost Gods by Brom was my favorite. It’s rather mind-blowing that it’s taken me a half-year to blog about it, but then again, basically everything that’s happened in 2020 has been a distraction from writing. But as they say, better late than never!

Long before I discovered Lost Gods, I’d been fascinated with fiction set in the afterlife. You can probably blame Dante for that after I first read Inferno. Larry Niven wrote a more humorous take on Inferno, which I recommend for every Dante fan. And What Dreams May Come by Richard Matheson could be the gold standard for afterlife fiction. But for a darker take on the afterlife, with a story that reads like an epic fantasy with a dollop of horror mixed in, Lost Gods is the best I’ve read.

The story’s protagonist is Chet Moran, a good-hearted ex-con who learns that his girlfriend is pregnant, and her father is furious about it. Without spoiling any of the novel’s big twists, suffice it to say, Chet dies early in the story. Before his soul descends to the afterlife, however, he learns of a way he can save his girlfriend and unborn child whose lives remain in grave danger. The plan involves a mysterious angel and a magic key, and it sets Chet on a quest through purgatory.

Brom’s purgatory is a masterpiece of world-building. He has created a dark fantasy landscape filled with dangers, monsters, and the lost gods that give the book its title. The lost gods are the old deities of mythology who have been banished from earth to linger in purgatory. Some of them are familiar, like the Norse goddess Hel and the Egyptian goddess Sekhmet. Still, others are more obscure, such as Veles, an old Slavic deity who looks like a massive minotaur except with a stag’s head instead of a bull’s, and Yevabog, an ancient spider goddess.

While the lost gods retain much of their power, often using it to rule over legions of souls, and even whole cities in the underworld, their strength is waning as they become more forgotten. Even more, in purgatory, they can be killed, and there is a small army of human souls who are intent on ending their reign. Chet finds himself in the middle of this battle, and his efforts to maneuver through the conflict and find the key to save his family makes for a gripping and satisfying tale.

Brom’s writing reminds me a bit of Stephen King’s (The Dark Tower, mostly), and also of Neil Gaiman’s (thinking of American Gods). Brom is also a gifted artist, and he has illustrated the beginning of each section. There is also an insert with full-color paintings of the various lost gods (at least in my hardcover volume). His artwork is fabulous, and it makes the book that much more special.

Finally, Brom has built a vast enough world that there could easily be a sequel. There is plenty of the underworld left to explore, and, as much as I enjoyed this novel, I’d love to go back there — as a reader, of course!

If you like mythology and have an interest in fantasy fiction about the afterlife, or simply want an epic dark fantasy tale, you will love Lost Gods.

And, thanks to Amazon, you can read a preview here.

PS – If you are interested in Brom’s artwork, you can visit his website. Also, if you want to see more, check out The Art of Brom. You can learn about it here.