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reclusivebookslug's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
I find that many, if not most, descriptions of conflict within friend and/or sibling relationships, especially between women and girls cast one as a sort of antagonist, often seemingly unintentionally. Even in stories where the story ends with them having a good relationship, I'm left with a strong dislike for one of them and indignation on behalf of the one I perceived as having been victimized. For this reason, I often struggle to fully enjoy or buy into narratives with a theme of sisterhood or female solidarity.
In this book, Gornichec handles beautifully the complicated relationships between three women -- two sisters and their friend, all "sworn sisters" -- who have very different personalities, goals, and struggles, which sometimes come into conflict with each other. She also portrays the female antagonists with surprising depth and empathy. It is not "the duality of women: good and evil," it's just different women in different circumstances doing what they can to protect their own interests within the framework of both society and their own individual sense of the world. This is an excellent example of writing female villains and interpersonal conflict between women without encroaching into misogynistic tropes/undertones and instead using all these various female narratives to tell a story of women's strength.
With that in mind, I'd posit that the three things that separate the three sworn sister protagonists from the three witches who are trying to separate them are: genuine care/respect for their allies, acting upon their free will rather than trying to conform to or escape from a prescribed reality (AKA not basing their actions on a prophecy), and an ongoing self-reflection of their actions and allegiances. While I love historical fantasy and I think this book does an excellent job of it, what really stood out to me was the emotional intelligence, growth, and complexity of all the major characters.
In this book, Gornichec handles beautifully the complicated relationships between three women -- two sisters and their friend, all "sworn sisters" -- who have very different personalities, goals, and struggles, which sometimes come into conflict with each other. She also portrays the female antagonists with surprising depth and empathy. It is not "the duality of women: good and evil," it's just different women in different circumstances doing what they can to protect their own interests within the framework of both society and their own individual sense of the world. This is an excellent example of writing female villains and interpersonal conflict between women without encroaching into misogynistic tropes/undertones and instead using all these various female narratives to tell a story of women's strength.
With that in mind, I'd posit that the three things that separate the three sworn sister protagonists from the three witches who are trying to separate them are: genuine care/respect for their allies, acting upon their free will rather than trying to conform to or escape from a prescribed reality (AKA not basing their actions on a prophecy), and an ongoing self-reflection of their actions and allegiances. While I love historical fantasy and I think this book does an excellent job of it, what really stood out to me was the emotional intelligence, growth, and complexity of all the major characters.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Kidnapping, Death of parent, and Violence
Moderate: Trafficking
Minor: Misogyny, Child abuse, and Transphobia
reka111's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
relaxing
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
One of you clouds the futures of the others. For better or worse, your fates are intertwined
Genevieve did it again, she enchanted me. I liked this book as much as The Witch's Heart, but it didn't have such a strong effect on me. Honestly, I've been waiting for decades to read it, and now I regret waiting so long because I liked it immensely.
Gunnhild was probably my favourite, not only because she was so strong and cunning, but also because she had a bit of Angrboda in her—at least in my opinion, anyway, I really liked her. Signy and Oddny (whose names I read through half the book as Odin and Sigyn) have been through so much, especially the former, but I believe their wounds will heal, and their broken parts will heal again because they deserve it, more than anything. Although the former was not in the book, I was terribly hurt by her absence, I was excited about her along with Oddny and Gunnhild, I really was. Of the other characters, Erik may stand out, and for good reason; A king cannot be overlooked. He was a terribly difficult and complicated character, maybe he could have done better, but eventually he shows that he is capable of compassion and forgiveness, he was not a monster, but he was not an angel.
The plot was easy to follow, and I really liked that this time we were transported back to the Scandinavian 10th century (the Norwegian one). So much, so much I needed a historical fantasy for my soul, oh my goodness! Although there are scattered foreign words in the text, they do not make reading difficult at all. The phrasing was beautiful — as always. The only problem I had was the pace, which was too fast for me and there were plenty of time jumps, but apart from that, it was perfectly fine.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Death of parent
Moderate: Trafficking, Kidnapping, Transphobia, and Sexual content
Minor: Rape and Slavery
kenley11's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Kidnapping, Violence, Medical content, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Animal death, Blood, Death, Emotional abuse, and Grief
Moderate: Trafficking and Sexual content
hannah_rachel's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence
tfarfan's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, and Murder
Moderate: Violence, Sexism, and Misogyny
tamara_joy's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
The Viking Age setting really comes alive. Halfway through, I didn't like the book - all the terrible decisions being made were bothering me. But by the end it picked up again and carried the story through.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death, Violence, and War
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Transphobia, Homophobia, and Lesbophobia
Minor: Sexual content, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Trafficking, Abandonment, Kidnapping, Classism, Gore, Medical trauma, Pregnancy, Murder, Outing, Slavery, and Deportation
tashtasher's review
adventurous
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Difficult to finish. The characters are annoying and cringe. The dialogue is bad. The story is incredibly slow and draggy. The plot was pretty shallow and it seemed like the characters had no interest in finding Signy because they were each preoccupied with their love lives.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Trafficking, Death of parent, Violence, Blood, Grief, Kidnapping, War, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Death, Murder, and Slavery
Moderate: Classism
Minor: Transphobia, Alcohol, and Chronic illness
wildflowercrypt's review against another edition
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
i finished this book simply to say i gave it a fair chance, up until the very end, to win me over. it didn’t.
the historical inaccuracies are numerous and glaring. the writing itself is juvenile and in no way reflects the time period or its setting; everyone in this book talks like teenagers from a CW tv show— any CW tv show. the main character of Gunnhild is selfish, contemptuous, petulant, and for a nearly thirty year old woman, infuriatingly childish. Oddny is better, in that she’s at least likable, but her characterization is far too bland to be compelling.
the historical inaccuracies are numerous and glaring. the writing itself is juvenile and in no way reflects the time period or its setting; everyone in this book talks like teenagers from a CW tv show— any CW tv show. the main character of Gunnhild is selfish, contemptuous, petulant, and for a nearly thirty year old woman, infuriatingly childish. Oddny is better, in that she’s at least likable, but her characterization is far too bland to be compelling.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder and Violence
Minor: Rape
sarahyjackson's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Come for the Vikings, stay for the romance tropes, magic system, & really incisive explorations of what it means to be parented, to be a sister, and to become who you are meant to be.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death of parent, Violence, Vomit, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Sexual content, Transphobia, and Sexual assault
katiemack's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
I received an eARC of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
I liked this better than Genevieve Gornichec's previous novel, The Witch's Heart, likely because it was less of a straightforward mythology retelling and more of Gornichec's own creation. The dialogue is also stronger and less awkward. One aspect from The Witch's Heart that I was happy to see preserved here, however, is how much agency our women protagonists have--they're incredibly strong, inspiration, smart, and bitingly funny in their wit. There's also a trans character (possible spoiler?) that ends up having a major role in the story.
I liked this better than Genevieve Gornichec's previous novel, The Witch's Heart, likely because it was less of a straightforward mythology retelling and more of Gornichec's own creation. The dialogue is also stronger and less awkward. One aspect from The Witch's Heart that I was happy to see preserved here, however, is how much agency our women protagonists have--they're incredibly strong, inspiration, smart, and bitingly funny in their wit. There's also a trans character (possible spoiler?) that ends up having a major role in the story.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Violence, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, and Death
Minor: War and Death of parent