Reviews with content warning for Blood - The Witch's Heart

The Witch's Heart provides agency to an overlooked character of myth, one of Loki's wives Angrboda.
This book revisited some classic tales, including Loki's brutal stitches and the time Thor was poorly disguised as Freya.
This work is undoubtedly well researched, and the scenes as presented got emotional at times (I teared up towards the end!).
I loved the voices given to Fenrir and Hel, and how emotive Jormungand was. I felt as though the beginning of the book was a little slow, but once Boda's children were born, the pace picked up. I was hooked at the end of Part 1 for obvious reasons.
Boda's trauma surrounding her death, forgetting her past, and at times forgetting how to use magic, was a real strength of this story. She's incredibly powerful, but has been through some terrible things and has to access parts of herself that were sealed off. Despite all she's faced, her drive to help people with medicine provided depth to her character.
My favorite character is of course Skadi. Her loyalty and determination was well balanced against Loki's mistakes and punishments from the Aesir. This quote form her will stick with me for awhile:
"I loved you then. I love you now. I will love you until the day I die. And even after, whatever comes then, I will love you still..."
I'd recommend anyone that enjoyed this to keep an eye out for The Goddess of Nothing At All by Cat Rector, in October 2021, which focuses on Sigyn, who we caught some glimpses of here as well.

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alatarmaia's review against another edition

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dark emotional funny sad medium-paced

4.75

the book: (has conflict between characters)
me: WHY CAN'T YOU ALL JUST GET ALONG

seriously though, this book made me feel some real ass emotions. Angrboda and the tragedies her family goes through are front and center, and while I was extremely ;A; at the way several people behaved, it was written in such a way that it made sense that they would behave that way/say those things.

Angrboda's personal journey in the latter half of the book is interesting, but it feels a little light, or unfinished, if that's the right word? Maybe I just wanted more out of it, or wanted a happier ending, but I assume the author made the choices in her conclusion that she did for a reason. It definitely fits the book, but ultimately any dissatisfaction I have is more because of my own Norse mythology headcanons than any fault in the author's writing.

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queenmackenzie's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes

5.0

I’ve left my heart with this one. I was slightly concerned before starting it that it would be too familiar, since I’ve heard these stories from Norse mythology retold a few different times, but I was swept away right from the first line and Angrboda stole my whole heart.

‘Long ago when the gods were young and Asgard was new, there came a witch from the edge of the world.’

This book has some of the best prose I’ve read in a while. It begins with the witch, then known as Gullveig, teaching Odin about seid, the magic that allows one to leave one’s body and divine the future. When she refuses Odin’s request to venture down into the darkest future, to know the events that will unfold during the end times, he turns Asgard against her, and they pierce her with spears and burn her three times. This part is told succinctly, and is over before the end of the first page, because Angrboda’s burning is only the beginning of her story, and it truly begins when she finds herself in the Ironwood forest, a place that seems strangely familiar, and the trickster Loki finds her, and returns her heart to her. The conversations between Loki and Angrboda are lovely and witty, and make the pages fly by. The moments between them are heart wrenching, first with pleasure and then with sadness.

Then, the giantess Skadi appears, and I was prepared to dislike her because that’s the way she’s portrayed in most original myths – and, frankly, quite a few retellings. But this butch weapon-wielding frost giant shot her way into my heart just as she did into Angrboda’s. This book is very character-focused and character-driven, and most of the events that take place are in and around the witch’s cave, and a lot of them are quite mundane; Angrboda making her potions to trade, tending to her garden, her and Loki bantering over dinner, Skadi helping her decorate her cave. And yet it is so compelling. The relationships between these characters and the conflict within Angrboda herself are what drive the story.

And Gornichec does such an incredible job with these characters; they are alive. She has taken these women who dance at the edges of myth -Angrboda, Skadi, Gerd, Hel, and even the goddesses who stand in opposition to the witch, such as Freyja, Frigg, and especially Sigyn- and she has made them whole. They have their own lives, feelings, and personalities beyond what is important to the men in their lives, and they are beautiful. Gerd was the one who struck me the most, I think, because though I vaguely remember her from my previous encounters with these stories, she has always been a plot point, a side character that comes in when it is convenient and marries one of the more important people to serve a greater purpose. And yet, in The Witch’s Heart, she also gets developed, and I did not expect to love her as much as I did!

Angrboda’s time as a mother is the central focus of the story, and that too drives the story forward despite also being rooted in the witch’s cave, and in the mundane tasks of parenthood. And yet, once again, it is incredibly compelling, and I could hardly put the book down. I love all three of Angrboda’s children, and the bonds she forms with them are complex, yet rooted in love. The witch’s love is definitely one of the central pieces of her narrative; though she is powerful, and strong-willed, and has moments of great anger, her greatest strength lies in her love and compassion.

I won’t say much more, because this is an emotional journey that I think everyone should go on. Though the stories may be familiar, you have never heard them like this, and you’ve definitely never seen Angrboda in such a clear light. With this incredible novel, Gornichec has pierced my heart, burnt it thrice, and sewn it back together, and I shall treasure it always.

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annettewolf's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful sad 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? It's complicated

4.5

This debut novel is a gorgeous re-imagining of Angrboda's story from Norse mythology. I knew next to nothing about Angrboda before reading this book, but now she feels like a treasured, invaluable part of that mythos.

The story takes place mostly in a cave in the Iron Woods of Jotunheim, but even with its "small" setting we get the full depth and breadth of human emotion, played out on an epic scale as only the gods can do. I fell in love with Angrboda, with her quiet composure, and her quips to Loki, and the way she is able to open her heart to love even after events that should harden her to trusting anyone ever again.

This is a beautiful story, and Gornichec tells it exceedingly well. I recommend this book to anyone who is interested in the Norse myths, but also to any reader who enjoys a complex, fully-realized protagonist who's likely to make you laugh and cry.

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