These Vengeful Gods, Gabe Cole Novoa
These Vengeful Gods, Gabe Cole Novoa
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These Vengeful Gods

Author: Gabe Cole Novoa

Narrator: Milo Longenecker

Unabridged: 10 hr 5 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 05/27/2025


Synopsis

ALL GODS MUST DIE in this searingly relevant YA dystopian from award-winning and New York Times bestselling author of The Wicked Bargain and Most Ardently. In a world bound by violence, a teen descended from the god of Death must keep their true identity a secret as they fight their way through a gladiator-style competition towards victory and rebellion against the gods who murdered their family.

Years ago, the descendants of the god of Death were murdered. The few that remain are in hiding, including Crow, a teen who survived the genocide and hides their magic to stay alive. After fleeing their village, Crow now lives with their uncles in the lowest part of the city: the Shallows.

Life in the Shallows is tough, but Crow’s even tougher. Hiding their magic has made Crow resourceful, cunning, and unbeatable -- which comes in handy as a fighter in the city's lucrative underground fighting ring.

Then, Crow's uncles are arrested for harboring Deathchildren.  

With fists tightly clenched, Crow vows to set their uncles free. But to do that, they’re going to need to enter a world that threatens Crow’s very existence. Carefully navigating the politics of the wealthy and powerful, they enter the Tournament of the Gods -- a gladiator-style competition where the winner is granted a favor. As they battle their way towards the winner’s circle, Crow plans to ask the gods for their uncles’ freedom as their reward.

But in a city of gods and magic, you don’t ask for what you want.

You take it.

Action. Adventure. Romance. Find it all in Gabe Cole Novoa's novels:
The Wicked BargainThe Diablo's Curse

About The Author

Gabe Cole Novoa (he/him) is a New York Times bestselling author with an MFA in Writing for Children. He writes speculative fiction featuring marginalized characters grappling with identity, particularly Latinx and nonbinary or transmasculine teens. Gabe is the author of the Beyond the Red trilogy, written under a former pseudonym, The Diablo's Curse, Most Ardently, and the award-winning novel, The Wicked Bargain. He also runs a popular writing-focused YouTube channel, bookishpixie, and is active on X and Threads.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Charlee on May 28, 2025

Rating: 4.5, rounded up Wow....just, wow!!! My first ARC and it couldn't have been a better book!!! Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Children's!!! A YA dystopian fantasy novel, THESE VENGEFUL GODS is perfect for lovers of The Hunger Games, Greek mythology, deadly trials, and bad-ass main charac......more

Goodreads review by Raaven💖 on June 14, 2025

This author is an auto read/auto buy for me so I knew I would enjoy this. This wasn’t my favorite and I’m giving it a 4.5, but the story overall was great. There’s a lot of good messages about privilege and classism, masking, disability rep with chronic pain, and a whole lot of revenge. A few points......more

Goodreads review by Olivia on May 19, 2025

4.5/5 ⭐️ This book. THIS BOOK!!! I knew going into it I was going to love it (the synopsis alone was intriguing and within the first chapter I was hooked), but this book blew me away. An action packed, politically motivated, found family filled ya dystopian is exactly what I needed right now. Let me......more

Goodreads review by seasalted.citrus (Topaz, Oliver) on July 06, 2025

Thank you to Random House Children’s for the eARC! (Unfortunately, I finished it long after publication day.) “These Vengeful Gods” was a book I’d been anticipating for while, but to put it bluntly, I’m not sure if I enjoyed it or was disappointed. Novoa’s writing style was pleasant to settle into, e......more

Goodreads review by KMart on June 30, 2025

Rep: Polycule, Transmac, numerous LGBTQIA+ characters These Vengeful Gods feels like a clever mashup of The Hunger Games and gladiator-style combat with a simmering political rebellion, but with way more queer rep and found family vibes. It’s fast-paced and action-packed, but it still manages to snea......more


Quotes

★ "The complex worldbuilding, plot, and themes become a remarkable fantasy parable for the violence engendered by a world where a wealthy few rule over the suppressed masses." —School Library Journal, starred review

"[A] cathartic revenge story crackling with rage against systemic discrimination, set in a contemporary fantasy dystopia with an extensive and inventive magic system." —Publishers Weekly

"A familiar story made fresh with compelling details and social commentary." —Kirkus Reviews