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butterklotz's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
slow-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
4.0
The writing of this book and the entire story are stunningly beautiful. The witch's heart is a book definitely worth reading, however strange the characters and the plot may seem at some points - but that's mostly due to the aspects of Norse mythology.
So, overall, 4/5 🌟 from me
So, overall, 4/5 🌟 from me
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Grief, and Violence
Moderate: Blood, Pregnancy, and Torture
lilfirebird's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Pregnancy, Infidelity, Toxic relationship, Abandonment, and Grief
jasmijn's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Some good moments, but generally quite tedious
I didn't vibe with this one. The main character, Angrboda, is one of the most passive characters I've ever read: if there are no other characters around she will often just... sit in her cave? This book is often promoted by making a comparison to Madeline Miller's Circe, who at some point says:
I didn't vibe with this one. The main character, Angrboda, is one of the most passive characters I've ever read: if there are no other characters around she will often just... sit in her cave? This book is often promoted by making a comparison to Madeline Miller's Circe, who at some point says:
“I will not be like a bird bred in a cage, I thought, too dull to fly even when the door stands open.”
― Madeline Miller, Circe
If only Angrboda had a similar mindset.
Once she has her children she loses every tiny bit of personality she already had and turns into a "my children are my everything"–mother (valid) but with literally no other priorities or thoughts (less valid).
There's this whole arc where she sets out to 'do what must be done', but she mostly just spends years pulling a cart and selling potions. She doesn't very actively go after her goal, and instead kind of walks around and waits for something to happen to her? Which, of course it does. But not thanks to her efforts.
The action sequences were quite good, though! I enjoyed myself midway through the book and near the end, but anything that came in between was just long, long stretches of absolutely nothing happening, zero character growth, and cringy dialogue. Especially Loki's. His way of speaking wouldn't misstand in any Marvel movie they put him in, but didn't really fit the setting of this book.
For some positives!!
- The interpretation of Hel's condition.
- Skadi! The only interesting character in this book who didn't get nearly enough appearances. (Though, what exactly does she see in Angrboda? Unsure.)
- Description and imagery of Seid, the gift of prophecy.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pregnancy
deedireads's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
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? No
4.5
All my reviews live at https://deedispeaking.com/reads/.
TL;DR REVIEW:
The Witch’s Heart is a great addition to the feminist mythology retelling subgenre. Genevieve Gornichec gives Angrboda so much richness and depth, and I read it in a day.
For you if: You liked Madeline Miller’s Circe.
FULL REVIEW:
If you know me, you know I love mythology retellings about often-overlooked women. Up until now, most of my experience in that subgenre has been with Greek mythology: Circe, The Silence of the Girls, A Thousand Ships, etc. The Witch’s Heart, on the other hand, is Norse mythology — and I hope it will be the first of many Norse retellings I read.
This book is about Angrboda: thrice-burned witch, wife of the trickster Loki, and mother of the monsters fated to help defeat the gods in the great war Ragnarök. She sounds badass, right? Well, she is, but in The Witch’s Heart, she is so much more than that, too. Genevieve Gornichec gives her tenderness, depth, and humanity. She’s a woman who just wants to live in the woods in peace (and not burned at the stake again), a mother who just wants to raise and protect her children, and eventually, a witch determined to challenge fate itself. I really, really enjoyed it.
It feels kind of reductionist to compare this book to Madeline Miller’s Circe (keeping in mind, too, that I read Circe years ago), but it also feels like an accessible comparison, and I want more people to read this one. Both women are side characters in traditional mythology, and both authors have expanded and nuance-ified (yes I just made that word up) their lives and stories in interesting, engaging ways. Both books also have beautiful, storytelling-style prose.
Finally, a tip: There’s an appendix in the back that gives an overview of the characters, places, and races mentioned in the story, and I actually decided to read through it before I read the book itself. Since I knew actually nothing about Norse mythology before this, I found it really helpful and I think I enjoyed and appreciated the book more for it. That said, if you like to know absolutely nothing nada zilch about the plot before you read, then I’d say skip this step, or read it after.
TL;DR REVIEW:
The Witch’s Heart is a great addition to the feminist mythology retelling subgenre. Genevieve Gornichec gives Angrboda so much richness and depth, and I read it in a day.
For you if: You liked Madeline Miller’s Circe.
FULL REVIEW:
If you know me, you know I love mythology retellings about often-overlooked women. Up until now, most of my experience in that subgenre has been with Greek mythology: Circe, The Silence of the Girls, A Thousand Ships, etc. The Witch’s Heart, on the other hand, is Norse mythology — and I hope it will be the first of many Norse retellings I read.
This book is about Angrboda: thrice-burned witch, wife of the trickster Loki, and mother of the monsters fated to help defeat the gods in the great war Ragnarök. She sounds badass, right? Well, she is, but in The Witch’s Heart, she is so much more than that, too. Genevieve Gornichec gives her tenderness, depth, and humanity. She’s a woman who just wants to live in the woods in peace (and not burned at the stake again), a mother who just wants to raise and protect her children, and eventually, a witch determined to challenge fate itself. I really, really enjoyed it.
It feels kind of reductionist to compare this book to Madeline Miller’s Circe (keeping in mind, too, that I read Circe years ago), but it also feels like an accessible comparison, and I want more people to read this one. Both women are side characters in traditional mythology, and both authors have expanded and nuance-ified (yes I just made that word up) their lives and stories in interesting, engaging ways. Both books also have beautiful, storytelling-style prose.
Finally, a tip: There’s an appendix in the back that gives an overview of the characters, places, and races mentioned in the story, and I actually decided to read through it before I read the book itself. Since I knew actually nothing about Norse mythology before this, I found it really helpful and I think I enjoyed and appreciated the book more for it. That said, if you like to know absolutely nothing nada zilch about the plot before you read, then I’d say skip this step, or read it after.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pregnancy and Violence
Moderate: Torture and Infidelity
addyisnothere's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pregnancy, Sexual content, Death, Death of parent, Violence, War, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Blood, Alcohol, and Torture
Moderate: Abandonment
Minor: Murder
mooshake's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
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
5.0
i kept missing the read button because i couldn't see through my tears
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical content, War, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Pregnancy, and Death
Moderate: Infidelity
booksthatburn's review against another edition
I love everything about this except that it centers around a triggering topic for me and I had to stop.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Injury/Injury detail, War, and Medical content
Moderate: Pregnancy, Blood, Murder, Death, and Death of parent
Minor: War, Ableism, and Fire/Fire injury
claudiamacpherson's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence, Abandonment, Blood, Self harm, War, Death, Murder, Xenophobia, Infidelity, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Pregnancy, and Kidnapping
Minor: Sexual content, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Vomit, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, and Miscarriage
r_a_bell's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Somewhat slow, and there are man at moments where I found the main characters to be absolutely infuriating. However, the storyline was compelling and I still wasn’t able to put it down. There is a sapphic storyline, but it isn’t even really acknowledge until the book was almost over, though I was relieved that it was actually addressed in a satisfying way instead of just being dangled in front of us the whole time. Definitely feel like some of the characters didn’t get as much time in the storyline as I felt they deserved. There should also be some trigger warnings as I found a lot of the material to be sensitive, but it’s hard to put into words why, exactly.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Violence, Abandonment, Grief, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Chronic illness, Death, Death of parent, and Pregnancy
Minor: Gaslighting, Animal death, Blood, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, and War
grummy_mania's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death
Minor: Miscarriage and Pregnancy