Writing this review long after reading the book to say I absolutely loved it! Every single character we are introduced to feels so real and still alive in my mind. The story pulled me in and really kept me there. The mix of mythology and belief was fascinating. Absolutely worth a read! ( )

Contains 4 books in the American Gods series: American Gods (2001) - Anansi Boys (2005) - Monarch of the Glen (2004) - Black Dog (2015): Four books in one!

I read American Gods as I wanted to know the story before watching the TV version. I just hope it is as good as the book now. An interesting take on how gods come into being and what it takes for them to survive. Shadow has just come out of prison just as he has found out that his wife died with his best friend in a car accident. He is employed by Wednesday, a strange character that turns out to be Odin, known in this book as a trickster. Through Odin's manipulations, Shadow encounters gods new and old, folk heroes and spirits of the land - a truly colourful and mostly mythical bunch. Even his dead wife comes back to join him on some of his adventures, which take him to strange places all over America both in the real world and "behind the scenes", as he tries to find a way to help his wife, solve mysteries, and discover who he really is.

Anansi Boys takes one of the characters from American Gods, Anansi the Spider, and weaves another tale about Anansi's sons, Fat Charlie and Spider. Fat Charlie has an ordinary life but is embarassed by his father. When his father dies he has to travel to America to send him off, and meet up with his former neighbours. He's told how he can contact his brother, Spider, whom he never knew he had. But when his brother turns up and takes over his life, Fat Charlie goes to extreme lengths to get rid of him. But along the way he discovers a few truths, his own abilities, and manages somehow to resolve the trouble he's got himself into, with a little help from his father.

Monarch of the Glen and Black Dog are welcome follow-up adventures of Shadow. After he prevents the war amongst the Gods, he decides to take a trip around Europe, not really worrying about where he ends up. He travels to Scotland in Monarch of Glen, and is invited to work at a local event. It turns out they really want him to fight to the death in an ancient ritual designed to keep humans in dominion over "monsters". He turns the tables on his employers and they have to let him go on the condition that he leaves Britain as soon as possible. He decides to hang around a bit longer and in Black Dog, has made his way into a small village in England where he discovers other strange goings on linked to strange, ancient traditions, and is nearly a victim himself. ( )