American Gods

The premise of the book is a fun one, but the actual plot does drag in places . . . I read the extended version and it felt . . . Well, indulgent. And certainly there are readers who would enjoy that extra indulgence! I think philosophically my views differ from the author's, so I didn't take to all the extra scenes as readily. My theory is you will adore this book if you tend toward pessimism/nihilism/”everything is meaningless” (the main character does try to die repeatedly, and the main mythology is Norse, after all). I personally am more on the curious/hopeful/universal love end of the spectrum, so I found it rang a bit hollow. That said, I also know a lot about mythology already, so I anticipated some of the twists ahead of time. I still liked seeing how they were retold, but it wasn't perhaps as “fresh” for me as it feels for others. Overall I did like the premise and the main character, but I maybe should have read an edited version!