Book Review: The Gutter Prayer by Gareth Hanrahan
I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.
The Gutter Prayer by Gareth Hanrahan
Mogsy’s Rating: 4 of 5 stars
Genre: Fantasy
Series: Book 1 of The Black Iron Legacy
Publisher: Orbit (January 22, 2019)
Length: 544 pages
Author Information: Website | Twitter
The Gutter Prayer is a novel that got a lot of pre-publication attention; even half a year before it was due to come out, I was already hearing readers sing its praises. This was the fantasy novel all fans should be checking out in 2019, apparently—especially if your predilections run towards grimdark.
So I read it. And now I understand where all the love is coming from.
Our story, for the most part, is centered on the lives of three thieves. Cari, Spar and Rat have not known each other for long, but by the time they were called upon to work together in a secret plot hatched up by Heinreil, the city of Guerdon’s most notorious crime boss, the three of them were already…well, as thick as thieves. Spar is the son of a late gang leader, but he is also a Stone Man—the term given to someone afflicted with a degenerative disease which slowly petrifies the body and its organs, turning them hard as rock. Rat is a Ghoul, a member of a race of underground people who live in the old tunnels and crypts of the city, subsisting on the flesh of the dead. And Cari is an orphan and a drifter who feels like she owes a lot to her other two companions, who took her into their gang even though she arrived with nothing to her name.
Their job together was supposed to be quick and simple: a smash-and-grab at the city’s House of Law, where the three of them were tasked to steal an important document. But little did they know, Heinreil had other plans, and their little group was only meant to be a distraction. The night ends in disaster, with a great fire that levels a good chunk of Guerdon and claims lives. And Cari, who was injured and knocked out in the commotion, wakes up in a thieftaker’s prison with a new power in her head.
The Gutter Prayer, in many ways, is the perfect marriage of grimdark and epic fantasy. Here you will find the grittiness and cynicism one might expect from a Joe Abercrombie or Scott Lynch novel, but also the kind of unique and imaginative world-building that wouldn’t feel out of place in a Brandon Sanderson story. Clearly Gareth Hanrahan’s experience as a game designer and RPG writer has also served him well in writing his debut, for many of the ideas in here—particularly those related to creatures and theistic myths—reminded me a lot of elements from fantasy tabletop campaigns.
The world of this novel is, in a word, incredible. While most of the story is confined to Guerdon, the narrative never lets you forget that this little corner of the universe is just one piece of a greater puzzle, so not once does the setting ever feel small. The place is rich with history, its culture influenced by the diversity of its peoples and religions. The city becomes a character in its own right; from the dank gutters to the well-kept university district, every little slice of Guerdon we get to see is another side of its personality. The best sights, however, lie in its underbelly. There you find the Ghouls, hiding in the shadows. The Stone Men, who are feared and shunned. The Tallowmen, menacing wax golems that are magically bound to serve as the city’s enforcers. The Crawling Ones, digusting monstrosities made up of a wriggling mass of sentient worms. And if you’re really unlucky, you might even run afoul of a Raveller, a shapeshifting predator aligned with the Black Iron Gods.
In the face of all this originality, the characters are almost overshadowed. The perspectives of Cari, Spar, and Rat are compelling enough, but in a way, I also felt that their development took a backseat to the world-building. As protagonists, they didn’t inspire much attachment, and individually, their voices did not really stand out. In fact, I thought Hanrahan did better with his supporting characters in this regard, exploring strong personalities like Jere, Eladora, or Professor Ongent. More than once I wished a couple of these characters had gotten more attention or a bigger role. The Gutter Prayer being a debut, it also exhibits a few signs of what I feel are common new author mistakes. One is the compulsion to throw in unnecessary flourishes like random narrative shifts when it might have been better just to keep things simple.
However, the criticisms I have are minor. Ideally, I would have preferred a bit more balance between story, characters, and world-building, where one aspect isn’t disproportionately overrepresented to eclipse the others, which was partly the issue here. But overall, The Gutter Prayer was an impressive debut, one that is certain to make a lot of dark fantasy fans ecstatic. Boldly ambitious and innovative in equal measure, Hanrahan’s daring entry into the genre is guaranteed to captivate and enthrall.
The BiblioSanctum 
I’m really looking forward to this book’s release! Thanks for the great review, and for reminding me it’ll be out in a few weeks 😀
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Yep, not long to wait now! I hope you enjoy 😀
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Yes! Totally agree with you on this one, amazing book but a little tweaking would have made it perfect.
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Exactly, just a little tweaking and it would have been a 5 star read. But as it is, I still really enjoyed and I thought it was solid! 😀
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I have heard people loving this one for some time now and…ohhhh I do want it
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Yeah, the buzz spread like wildfire on this one. Was not disappointed 🙂
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Well you are my go to gal. I can not make my mind up. SO many books I want, so do you think Gutter prayer is for me? You know where my taste lies (I am making a bday list for myself hehe)
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Haha well it is hard to say, because this is considered grimdark and I know you don’t like it when things get too dark. But then I thought Priest of Bones was unnecessarily dark and you thought not at all, lol! I would say this was not that bad at all. Not sure if this has an audio version, but if it does, then oh yes go for it for sure!
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Thank you! Yes I am weird, I know. But Priest of Lies was not dark at all! I mean a few people got butchered, eh 😉 I will give it a go. If it works it works if not I tried
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I’m about 175 pages in so I have a ways to go, but I’m starting to see what you’re talking about. The world building definitely steals the show! It’s such a dense book and I find myself forced to read slowly, for some reason.
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I felt the same way, I think this book two me two weeks to read because I really wanted to soak everything in!
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I saw another review for this one and I confess that I’m intrigued!
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Yeah, it’s been widely covered, I look forward to seeing what others think of it!
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Great review. I definitely plan on checking this book out.
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I hope you get to read it soon!
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I’ve heard of the hype for once! I have this on my tbr, so I’m super eager to read it. 🙂 Awesome review!
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Yeah, the hype was pretty big for this one, I hope you get to check it out soon and that it won’t disappoint 😀
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I finished it yesterday, and the notes I took to assist me in writing the review echo many of your comments, especially the one about the characters feeling less important (or less defined) than the story itself, which is a pity because a more balanced approach might have gained the book a 5-star rating in my opinion.
But as debuts go, it was a solid one.
And one little aside: in a swearing contest, who do you think would win between Aleena and Avasarala? 😀 😀 😀
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Let’s be real, is there anyone who could ever out-swear the swearing queen Avasarala? I’ve yet to see it 😉
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My money would be on Avasarala of course, but Aleena is a serious contender!
😀
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Nice review! I am SOO curious about this one- I love fantasy cities that are dark and gritty and really come alive, and this sounds like it delivers. It does sound like the characters suffer a bit in comparison, but glad to hear this was mostly good and definitely promising for future sequels!
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This one’s definitely for the worldbuilders and readers who love rich worlds! The setting really does come alive…literally at times 😉
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I felt like Cari’s character was by far the most developed of the three, but agree, all three could have used a bit more. At least for me, as I tend to prefer more character driven stuff.
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Yeah, Cari felt like the “main” character to me too. Would have loved to see this one be more character-driven as well.
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I keep hearing so much about this one, all of it great. So glad you enjoyed it. I don’t read a ton of grimdark but I may check this out at some point just to see what everyone else is talking about. Great review!
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This one might be a good choice if you want to dip your toes into some lighter grimdark, it definitely feels less brutal and violent than some of the stuff out there 😀
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It’s not the violence or anything that I mind (hell, violence is even rampant in hopepunk or whatever they’re calling it) but how’s the tone overall? Is it nihilistic at all? Or less so? I’ve been into more ‘hopeful’ stuff these days, but that could swing back around at some point lol. 😀
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I’m just in the middle of this so 4* is very encouraging. I’ve skipped for now and will return 😀
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I hope you’re enjoying the book!
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Mogsy you always such have an eloquent way of writing reviews! I have to admit I wasn’t too bothered about this book when I heard about it a few weeks ago, but after reading your review I have just added it on Goodreads 🙂 Plus the cover is gorgeous
Thanks for this great and insightful review
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