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aideeng's review
3.0
I really wanted to love this books as much as the first in the series, but it felt... I don’t know, a little diluted? I adored book one, but I think by splitting the focus across three (or really four) plots it lost some of the impact of the characters.
saskiaa17x's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
octobertune's review against another edition
4.0
The Order is destroyed, but everything is far from over. In World’s End, a girl named Maggie is about to learn a lot about her past. In Malbry, the Gods are trying their best to stop the world from ending, but with Odin the Allfather dead, Ragnarok may mean the end of Aesir and Vanir alike. They must find out the truth behind a mysterious prophecy, stop the world from ending and rebuild Asgard. Piece of cake.
At the beginning of this year, I found out about Runemarks, a fictional book about Norse Gods. I had been a fan of Norse Mythology for a while now, and I was a bit saddened by the fact that there were hardly any fictional books about it; there were plenty for Greek and Roman Mythology, but only a handful for Norse. Then, I found Runemarks and immediately fell in love with the summary. I purchased the book, read it and loved it to bits. When I was in Newcastle, one of the books on my list was Runelight, and Waterstones just happened to have one copy with the right cover (the one that fits my Runemarks cover); so of course, I bought it.
Almost all the characters from the previous book are in Runelight as well. There’s Maddy Smith, who I thought was the main character, but I don’t really think there’s a main character at all in this book (but if it is, it would be Maddy). The Æsir and Vanir Gods (including Thor, Loki and Frigg), Skadi of the Ice people, a goblin called Sugar-and-Sack; and of course the people of Malbry (including Crazy Old Nan Fey, Mae Smith, Adam Scattergood). And there were some new characters; Maggie Rede (not to be confused with Maddy), Sigyn, Angrboda, Jolly, Fenris, Skól, Haiti, Hughie and Mandy, and a horse called Sleipnir.
Out of these new characters, I have to say I liked Hughie and Mandy the most, though I have to admit throughout the book I wasn’t entirely sure of their loyalty to the people they swore loyalty to. In the end, it was kind of obvious who they were loyal to and I could have slapped myself for not realising that sooner. I liked reading about them, about their plans and their schemes.
I loved reading about the Gods trying to make sense of the prophecy that Ethel had made, about their fight against the creatures that escaped from dream and eventually their journey to World’s End, where after a while they realised they really needed Loki (who’d have thought?!). I especially liked their traveling carnival and I would pay to see a movie made just out of their adventures as that carnival.
The book was divided into several ‘books’, each with a nice little quote at the beginning. There were also some nursery rhymes (one including an old lady flying a washing basket), and the prophecy that Ethel made of course, the one that the Gods had to figure out before traveling to World’s End. In the end, when the parts of the prophecy came true, I have to say it surprised me because I had never expected certain things to go the way they went.
I just love Joanne Harris’ writing, though it’s not really simple, kind of the same as Lord of the Rings and the Trials of the Core perhaps, with several (made-up?) words that were very difficult for me to pronounce and understand, lots of talking in accents (mainly from Hughie) and of course lots of talk about Ragnarok, Chaos, Hel, Asgard etc. This book also teaches the reader more about Norse Mythology, and makes you curious to know even more (at least that’s what it did to me). I really really loved it! I am definitely going to check out more of Harris’ books.
As I said before, Hunin/Hughie talked in a very strong accent in his human aspect, and sometimes I just couldn’t understand what he was saying. So after a while, I just skipped the words that were too hard and got along just fine. There were also the inhabitants of Malbry talking in accents. Though those accents weren’t as strong as Hughie’s and I could manage to read them just fine.
There was also the whole changing POV’s still, which made me realise that this book didn’t really have a proper main character at all, though in my head it’s still Maddy. And there was some confusion with several names. There was Maddy Smith, Maggie Rede and Mandy. I especially confused Maddy and Mandy a lot of times, and then I started asking myself why Mandy was in Maggie’s room, or why Mandy was suddenly riding Jorgie/Jormungand.
The final battle, to save World’s End; to restore Order and banish Chaos was amazing. The Rainbow Bridge (which always makes me think of Mario Kart) made an appearance, and the three riders; Carnage, Treachery and Lunacy (two of those who were very surprising) were really awesome. Of course, several moments during the story I asked myself if the Gods were ever going to have some luck for once, but in the end it all worked out and the book had an amazing and satisfying ending, in my opinion.
I loved Runelight as much as I loved Runemarks, and I will definitely recommend these two books to everyone who loves a good story about love, friendship and Norse Gods.
At the beginning of this year, I found out about Runemarks, a fictional book about Norse Gods. I had been a fan of Norse Mythology for a while now, and I was a bit saddened by the fact that there were hardly any fictional books about it; there were plenty for Greek and Roman Mythology, but only a handful for Norse. Then, I found Runemarks and immediately fell in love with the summary. I purchased the book, read it and loved it to bits. When I was in Newcastle, one of the books on my list was Runelight, and Waterstones just happened to have one copy with the right cover (the one that fits my Runemarks cover); so of course, I bought it.
Almost all the characters from the previous book are in Runelight as well. There’s Maddy Smith, who I thought was the main character, but I don’t really think there’s a main character at all in this book (but if it is, it would be Maddy). The Æsir and Vanir Gods (including Thor, Loki and Frigg), Skadi of the Ice people, a goblin called Sugar-and-Sack; and of course the people of Malbry (including Crazy Old Nan Fey, Mae Smith, Adam Scattergood). And there were some new characters; Maggie Rede (not to be confused with Maddy), Sigyn, Angrboda, Jolly, Fenris, Skól, Haiti, Hughie and Mandy, and a horse called Sleipnir.
Out of these new characters, I have to say I liked Hughie and Mandy the most, though I have to admit throughout the book I wasn’t entirely sure of their loyalty to the people they swore loyalty to. In the end, it was kind of obvious who they were loyal to and I could have slapped myself for not realising that sooner. I liked reading about them, about their plans and their schemes.
I loved reading about the Gods trying to make sense of the prophecy that Ethel had made, about their fight against the creatures that escaped from dream and eventually their journey to World’s End, where after a while they realised they really needed Loki (who’d have thought?!). I especially liked their traveling carnival and I would pay to see a movie made just out of their adventures as that carnival.
The book was divided into several ‘books’, each with a nice little quote at the beginning. There were also some nursery rhymes (one including an old lady flying a washing basket), and the prophecy that Ethel made of course, the one that the Gods had to figure out before traveling to World’s End. In the end, when the parts of the prophecy came true, I have to say it surprised me because I had never expected certain things to go the way they went.
I just love Joanne Harris’ writing, though it’s not really simple, kind of the same as Lord of the Rings and the Trials of the Core perhaps, with several (made-up?) words that were very difficult for me to pronounce and understand, lots of talking in accents (mainly from Hughie) and of course lots of talk about Ragnarok, Chaos, Hel, Asgard etc. This book also teaches the reader more about Norse Mythology, and makes you curious to know even more (at least that’s what it did to me). I really really loved it! I am definitely going to check out more of Harris’ books.
As I said before, Hunin/Hughie talked in a very strong accent in his human aspect, and sometimes I just couldn’t understand what he was saying. So after a while, I just skipped the words that were too hard and got along just fine. There were also the inhabitants of Malbry talking in accents. Though those accents weren’t as strong as Hughie’s and I could manage to read them just fine.
There was also the whole changing POV’s still, which made me realise that this book didn’t really have a proper main character at all, though in my head it’s still Maddy. And there was some confusion with several names. There was Maddy Smith, Maggie Rede and Mandy. I especially confused Maddy and Mandy a lot of times, and then I started asking myself why Mandy was in Maggie’s room, or why Mandy was suddenly riding Jorgie/Jormungand.
The final battle, to save World’s End; to restore Order and banish Chaos was amazing. The Rainbow Bridge (which always makes me think of Mario Kart) made an appearance, and the three riders; Carnage, Treachery and Lunacy (two of those who were very surprising) were really awesome. Of course, several moments during the story I asked myself if the Gods were ever going to have some luck for once, but in the end it all worked out and the book had an amazing and satisfying ending, in my opinion.
I loved Runelight as much as I loved Runemarks, and I will definitely recommend these two books to everyone who loves a good story about love, friendship and Norse Gods.
riverofhorton's review against another edition
I ended up deciding to DNF this book, I just found all the recapping of the first book to be too frustrating for me.
I understand that this book was originally published three years after the first, and so understand why there was some recapping in there. But as I finished the first book a couple of months before starting the second, it was too much for me. For a lot of the time I felt like I was reading the characters discussing the events of the first book, and not a lot else was going on.
That said, I fully intent to return to this book in a few years and give it another shot. Hopefully I won't find it as frustrating by then.
I understand that this book was originally published three years after the first, and so understand why there was some recapping in there. But as I finished the first book a couple of months before starting the second, it was too much for me. For a lot of the time I felt like I was reading the characters discussing the events of the first book, and not a lot else was going on.
That said, I fully intent to return to this book in a few years and give it another shot. Hopefully I won't find it as frustrating by then.
souljaleonn's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-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
4.0
joanav's review against another edition
4.0
3.75
ainda que tenha gostado mais do primeiro livro, este mantém o mesmo ritmo e uma escrita contagiante, que nos prende, independentemente do tamanho generoso do livro. continuamos com a história das duas irmas, Maddy Smith e Maggie Rede, os deuses nórdicos e as suas runas e nada será o que parece. mantém-nos sempre atentos ;)
ainda que tenha gostado mais do primeiro livro, este mantém o mesmo ritmo e uma escrita contagiante, que nos prende, independentemente do tamanho generoso do livro. continuamos com a história das duas irmas, Maddy Smith e Maggie Rede, os deuses nórdicos e as suas runas e nada será o que parece. mantém-nos sempre atentos ;)
jetpackdolphin's review against another edition
3.0
Runelight is a rather convoluted sequel to Runemarks, so it’s definitely a good idea to read the first book (which I did not, lesson learnt).
Simply put, the story of Runelight follows two magical girls, six hundred miles apart, who both have a runemark on their skin, a symbol of the Old Days when the Worlds were ruled by the gods from their sky citadel, Asgard. However, the famed citadel of Asgard now lies in ruins and the gods’ power has been destroyed. Or so everyone thinks...
The most complicated things about Runelight are the characters. There are many different characters, all with different personalities and motives, and it’s often hard to keep track of what everyone’s doing.
The best thing about this novel is the construction of the worlds. The Map Of The Nine Worlds at the beginning is simply incredible to behold and every location in the novel is well thought out, imaginative, and filled with colour.
The inclusion of the Norse gods is excellent and the character of Thor is surprisingly amusing, what with him constantly wanting to fight everyone and getting into trouble more often than the son of Odin really should be.
However, the downside of this book is that it never really seems to get going. It stops and starts along for the first hundred pages and then settles down to a pace that probably won’t hold the interest younger readers.
It's a pretty good read and I'd recommend it to lovers of fantasy or the Norse gods.
Simply put, the story of Runelight follows two magical girls, six hundred miles apart, who both have a runemark on their skin, a symbol of the Old Days when the Worlds were ruled by the gods from their sky citadel, Asgard. However, the famed citadel of Asgard now lies in ruins and the gods’ power has been destroyed. Or so everyone thinks...
The most complicated things about Runelight are the characters. There are many different characters, all with different personalities and motives, and it’s often hard to keep track of what everyone’s doing.
The best thing about this novel is the construction of the worlds. The Map Of The Nine Worlds at the beginning is simply incredible to behold and every location in the novel is well thought out, imaginative, and filled with colour.
The inclusion of the Norse gods is excellent and the character of Thor is surprisingly amusing, what with him constantly wanting to fight everyone and getting into trouble more often than the son of Odin really should be.
However, the downside of this book is that it never really seems to get going. It stops and starts along for the first hundred pages and then settles down to a pace that probably won’t hold the interest younger readers.
It's a pretty good read and I'd recommend it to lovers of fantasy or the Norse gods.
blobvis's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
It was... okay but I got a few issues with one being that why would you name three characters Maddy, Maggie and Mandy???? I got so confusing when the perspective shifted. It's never wise to use similar characters names, the only reason I never misread Mandy was because she was always with her brother so that my mind knew it could not be the other two (as well as that she did not talk much).
Another issue I had was on the perspective shifting part where you started in one perspective and shifted to another. Sometimes this was done with a line break, most of the time is was not and I wasn't a big fan of it
A problem I had in te previous book as well was the lack of dimension of the female gods, I recon that they do have to represent their godhood, but God it was kind of annoying to have them all be some sort of stereotype with just one personality trait. And this when the male gods suffered way less from this same trope (except for Bragi, but like his only job was to sing and not to brag about his beauty and made him easy to tolerate)
A positive point however for a moment I was afraid the writer would try to redeem Adam for him to be with Maggie but thank God she still reminded the reader with other characters that that boy was no good. Bless you Joanne for not vouching for that toxic relationship.
Another issue I had was on the perspective shifting part where you started in one perspective and shifted to another. Sometimes this was done with a line break, most of the time is was not and I wasn't a big fan of it
A problem I had in te previous book as well was the lack of dimension of the female gods, I recon that they do have to represent their godhood, but God it was kind of annoying to have them all be some sort of stereotype with just one personality trait. And this when the male gods suffered way less from this same trope (except for Bragi, but like his only job was to sing and not to brag about his beauty and made him easy to tolerate)
A positive point however
clare_braganza's review
4.0
If it weren't for my exams, I would have finished this book a
lot faster than I did! Firstly, the plot: I loved how it all came together. Each chapter had different POVs (mainly Loki, Maddy and Maggie) and when at first the plots seemed separate, they suddenly came together and everything was revealed. I was kept guessing right up to the climax, which spanned several chapters and did justice to the previous 500+ pages. Secondly, the characters: my favourite was Loki. Mischievous, witty and cunning, all his scenes were hilarious and I especially loved his scenes with the other Gods, who only just about managed to resist beating him to a pulp. Maddy was as courageous and stubborn as always, and Maggie was similar but still another strong heroine in her own right. She made some stupid decisions and was a very flawed character, but I still liked her. Lastly, the prose: Joanne's writing is very descriptive and lovely to read, but sometimes it was a bit too elaborate. I didn't mind it, but if the only book you've managed to finish is The Hunger Games, then I think you might struggle a bit with Runelight. Still, Joanne writes with a lot of humour and the dialogue is snappy and realistic, which makes up for that. All in all, this a great sequel to Runemarks, with lots of action, plot twists and Loki's awesomeness. The only thing I regret (SPOILER ALERT: is that Loki didn't end up with Maddy, which is kinda what I was hoping for!)
lot faster than I did! Firstly, the plot: I loved how it all came together. Each chapter had different POVs (mainly Loki, Maddy and Maggie) and when at first the plots seemed separate, they suddenly came together and everything was revealed. I was kept guessing right up to the climax, which spanned several chapters and did justice to the previous 500+ pages. Secondly, the characters: my favourite was Loki. Mischievous, witty and cunning, all his scenes were hilarious and I especially loved his scenes with the other Gods, who only just about managed to resist beating him to a pulp. Maddy was as courageous and stubborn as always, and Maggie was similar but still another strong heroine in her own right. She made some stupid decisions and was a very flawed character, but I still liked her. Lastly, the prose: Joanne's writing is very descriptive and lovely to read, but sometimes it was a bit too elaborate. I didn't mind it, but if the only book you've managed to finish is The Hunger Games, then I think you might struggle a bit with Runelight. Still, Joanne writes with a lot of humour and the dialogue is snappy and realistic, which makes up for that. All in all, this a great sequel to Runemarks, with lots of action, plot twists and Loki's awesomeness. The only thing I regret (SPOILER ALERT: is that Loki didn't end up with Maddy, which is kinda what I was hoping for!)