Bad Gods by Gaie Sebold
Published by Rebellion Publishing Ltd
Age Group: Adult
Format: Fiction
Genres and Categories: Action, Adventure, Dark Fantasy, Bisexual Characters, Queer Characters, Fae/Fey, Insectoids, Reptillian Humanoids, Werewolves, Found Family, Magic Users, Various Magic, Orcs
Series: Babylon Steel #1
My Rating:
Published on: 4th January 2022
Pages: 464
Buy this Book! Amazon UK / Amazon US / Barnes & Noble / Blackwells / Bookshop.org US / Bookshop.org UK / Waterstones / BookBeat Audio
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All Tastes! • All Species! • All Currencies!

You can find anything in Scalentine, the city of portals, but you won’t find a better brothel than the Red Lantern. And its proprietor, Babylon Steel (ex-mercenary, ex-priestess, ex… lots of things), means to keep it that way.

But a prurient cult are protesting in the streets, sex workers are disappearing, and Babylon has bills to pay. When the powerful Diplomatic Section hires her – off the books – to find a missing heiress, she has to take the job.

And then her past starts to catch up with her...

Originally published as Babylon Steel in 2011 to critical acclaim, this trope-busting, inclusive, sex positive fantasy is back to delight and entertain readers, complete with a gorgeous new cover from Discworld artist Stephen Player.

This book was provided for free by NetGalley and the publishers in exchange for an honest review. Many thanks to the publisher and the author for the opportunity to read this book!

Content Warnings:

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I was drawn in by the stunning artwork on the cover depicting a host of interesting characters, and I stayed when the story matched the artwork. Intriguing, full of depth, and sexy, Bad Gods is everything its cover promises. Join me as we head to Scalentine, the city of portals, where you can find anything…

To say that Bad Gods is the story of one woman doesn’t do it justice. This is a story of many people, all of whom are connected by the illustrious Babylon Steel, a woman who has many experiences under her belt by the time she reaches the plane of Scalentine. There she settles with her travelling companion, finally choosing to stop running from her mysterious past and eventually opening the Red Lantern brothel. It seems like an old choice for someone who came to the plane as a mercenary, but as we find out, Babylon has had many titles under her belt and brothel owner is just the latest one.

Bad Gods begins with Babylon taking a job to find a missing heiress when she realises that the books, which she’s been judiciously ignoring, are a mess, and the brothel is desperately in need of some money pronto. She’s spurred on by the fact that something dark is happening on Scalentine, and the local religious faction, zealots who hate women, are ramping up their activity.

The thought of a young girl lost and alone in the city is a powerful motivator, especially when it reminds Babylon so much of herself. As Sebold leads us on an investigation through the city of portals, we learn all about Scalentine and its diverse community. There are weres like the Chief of the City Militia, fey,  the reptilian Ikinchi, the human-catapillar-like Barraké and many more (you can see some of them in the full view of the cover illustration here on the artist’s website).

As Babylon seeks to find the missing girl, she finds a connection to the past she left behind a long time ago, and Sebold expertly interweaves chapters of Babylon’s past between those of the current story. It’s a dark story, full of plots and intrigue, and I absolutely loved it. For those who might find alternating stories, especially one from the present and one from the past, being told at the same time irritating, let me assure you that there is a point to it; it’s not just a fun gimmick to explain the character’s background. Both do intersect and lead to a brilliant conclusion.

In some ways, I found Bad Gods reminiscent of Jacqueline Carey’s Kushiel Legacy series. While Babylon Steel is much more of a warrior compared to Carey’s Phèdre nó Delaunay, there are similarities in their stories. This is also the only fantasy novel I’ve found, other than Carey’s work, where sex scenes and fantasy have co-existed without devolving into romance or pure erotica. Bad Gods is very much a fantasy novel, just as Carey’s Kushiel Legacy is a fantasy epic. Likewise, Sebold’s scenes are elegantly written rather than becoming smutty as they so often do in paranormal romance novels.

Humour keeps Bad Gods from getting too dark, reminding the reader that no matter how difficult life has been or becomes, the love and support of found family will get you through your darkest days (and kick some ass too).

About Gaie Sebold

Gaie is an accomplished short story writer and poet; her stories have appeared in a number of anthologies.
Gaie was born in the US, and lives in London. She has worked as a cleaner, secretary, till-monkey, stage-tour-manager, editor, and charity administrator. She now writes full time and runs occasional writing workshops. She is an obsessive reader, enthusiastic gardener, and has been known to run around in woods hitting people with latex swords and to declaim poetry in public, though not usually at the same time. She also has the standard cat apparently issued to most fantasy writers.

Website | Goodreads

Thank you for reading my review of Bad Gods, the first book in the Babylon Steel series. This is actually a reprint of the first book, which means the second is already available! I don’t know if there are plans to reprint the second one, so I’m holding off on grabbing it for now. I’m definitely up for more adventures from Babylon and the citizens of Scalentine, though!

For my eagle-eyed readers, if the gorgeous cover art looks familiar, it’s because it’s by Stephen Player, an artist known for his Discworld work.

Do you often pick up books based on their cover art? What was the last book you read because the cover drew you in, and was it as good as the cover? Let me know in the comments!

Don’t forget to check out the rest of my reviews if you’re looking for some more book recommendations 🙂 You can also now sign up for my newsletter to get an email each month with a list of my new reviews!

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