River of Shadows (Underworld Gods Book 1)
Rating: 4 out of 5
"You can call me Death. And I will call you mine."
"Anyone who harms you will be no more, that is my promise to you."
When 24 year old Hanna's estranged father dies, she reluctantly makes a trip to Northern Finland for his funeral. When Hanna discovers her father's body is missing, things get really weird. A mysterious man, Rasmus, tells Hanna the truth: her father was a powerful shaman who went into Tuonela, the Realm of the Dead, to barter for more life and is now being held prisoner by Tuoni, the God of Death. The only way to save her father is for Hanna to travel with Rasmus to the underworld. Willing to do anything for a second chance with her father, Hanna accompanies him to the dark and bloody realm. Hanna offers herself in exchange for her father, and Death intrigued by her beauty and fierceness accepts the bargain. But even the most noble sacrifices come with hidden costs...
So this book was hyped up by a lot of friends and I was hoping that it lived up to the hype. My only issues with this book were the world building, because I hate spending so much time on world building (I know it's important) and the flipping cliffhanger of an ending. I loved the characters in the book they are all very intense. Clearly there is some mystery surrounding Hanna that I can't wait for later books to dive into and the Realm of the Dead is in some serious turmoil that I need to know more about. So basically the story line is amazing, and the world building is done well. You get just enough to make you want to read the next one!
But let's get down to the important part... Death and Hanna... the sexual tension between these two is intense and well written. We didn't get much time with the two of them together, but what we got was beautiful and I need, no I demand more of it in my life. Death seems like the perfect level of broody. I mean the dude straight up unalived someone for her. My only regret is that the book didn't give me more of these two. However, does it make me desire book number 2 even more... you bet... so run don't walk and get this book.