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3.92 AVERAGE
3.92 AVERAGE
First things first: Freya. At no point did this character read as being 20 years old to me. She was both somehow much older and also had the maturity of a 13 year old boy. She made awful, terrible, dumb decisions throughout the entire book and by the end, I was actively rooting against her.
Which leads me to my other two complaints: 1) why tf would Bjorn be into her? and 2) at no point does Harald seem like the bad guy.
So #1... Why is Bjorn into this absolute maniac who becomes possessed by Hel, makes no attempts to squash the Hel influence, and continuously allows her family (and others) to walk all over her? At one point he describes her as "fierce," which... Sure, when Hel is in control, I bet she sure is. But she also manipulates and lies when Hel is in control. Is she brave and "fierce," or is it a goddess possessing her? Bjorn tells her over and over and over again that her family is using her and she just lets them? It's spineless behavior that she calls "loyalty."
Now, Harald... From the first time we meet Harald at Fjalltindr, he seems VERY DECENT? Like a very chill, smart dude. I already thought it UNLIKELY that Bjorn would love and by loyal to Snorri, given that he was raised by a different family in a different culture and spent the MAJORITY of his life away from not just Snorri but Skaland as a whole. The fact that very little attention was paid to this was a huge red flag to me. I get that everyone (Harald incl) talking about Freya as an object rather than a human with agency is Bad, but at least Harald didn't want to ALSO use her? And somehow she is still choosing Snorri. BECAUSE OF HER FAMILY. Jfc you guys she is just so, so dumb. I was personally delighted by the twist at the end, not because it surprised me, but because I thought Maybe in the second book I'll be able to root for her! TBD.
And the sexy times! Were also 100% annoying. First of all, they don't actually have p*netrative sex until like page 380 (of a ~420 page book) and MORE IMPORTANTLY, prior to that, he does hand stuff to her IN A TENT FULL OF OTHER "SLEEPING" PEOPLE???? No. Absolutely not. We are not 15 years old on the ski club bus. So cringe.
All of that said, I really loved the Norse mythology and will be borrowing the next book from the library so that the author does not get any of my pennies. Her writing isn't BAD but it also isn't great lol. Like, why do all MMCs have to smell like leather and pine? Especially ones in way olden days Scandinavia? I just know that man smelled like sweat, BO, blood, and alcohol.
Which leads me to my other two complaints: 1) why tf would Bjorn be into her? and 2) at no point does Harald seem like the bad guy.
So #1... Why is Bjorn into this absolute maniac who becomes possessed by Hel, makes no attempts to squash the Hel influence, and continuously allows her family (and others) to walk all over her? At one point he describes her as "fierce," which... Sure, when Hel is in control, I bet she sure is. But she also manipulates and lies when Hel is in control. Is she brave and "fierce," or is it a goddess possessing her? Bjorn tells her over and over and over again that her family is using her and she just lets them? It's spineless behavior that she calls "loyalty."
Now, Harald... From the first time we meet Harald at Fjalltindr, he seems VERY DECENT? Like a very chill, smart dude. I already thought it UNLIKELY that Bjorn would love and by loyal to Snorri, given that he was raised by a different family in a different culture and spent the MAJORITY of his life away from not just Snorri but Skaland as a whole. The fact that very little attention was paid to this was a huge red flag to me. I get that everyone (Harald incl) talking about Freya as an object rather than a human with agency is Bad, but at least Harald didn't want to ALSO use her? And somehow she is still choosing Snorri. BECAUSE OF HER FAMILY. Jfc you guys she is just so, so dumb. I was personally delighted by the twist at the end, not because it surprised me, but because I thought Maybe in the second book I'll be able to root for her! TBD.
And the sexy times! Were also 100% annoying. First of all, they don't actually have p*netrative sex until like page 380 (of a ~420 page book) and MORE IMPORTANTLY, prior to that, he does hand stuff to her IN A TENT FULL OF OTHER "SLEEPING" PEOPLE???? No. Absolutely not. We are not 15 years old on the ski club bus. So cringe.
All of that said, I really loved the Norse mythology and will be borrowing the next book from the library so that the author does not get any of my pennies. Her writing isn't BAD but it also isn't great lol. Like, why do all MMCs have to smell like leather and pine? Especially ones in way olden days Scandinavia? I just know that man smelled like sweat, BO, blood, and alcohol.
adventurous
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
An unfortunate DNF. Overall this really wasn’t my vibe and I really struggled to like the FMC. The writing style felt off to me (I still can’t put my finger on why) but it made it hard to read physically. I did try to read the audiobook too but ended up losing interest quickly and had a few besties reassure me that this read would not be for me. So sad that I didn’t love this since I love this new edition 😩💙 if you like strong-willing FMCs and a Norse mythology/viking landscape, this may be the book for you. I will admit the magic-system intrigued me but it felt too much like a handful of books I’d read before and went through some avenues in terms of the plot that made it feel predictable to me, which ultimately made me lose interest unfortunately.
tysm again Penguin AU for sending me this copy. Rest assured, I will be gifting this copy to someone who will enjoy it more than I did 🫶
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
adventurous
funny
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
adventurous
challenging
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I like it, but didn’t love that her fate had to be lead by a man. Not cool
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
One thing about me: I love a Viking-type story setting. So when I saw that this book was not only a fantasy book but a NORSE mythology fantasy book, I was here for it.
I love a good romantasy book as much as the next person, and I really liked how the author wrote the romance plot into this story, but my favorite thing about this book is the magical war plot that was happening. The magic system in this book was fascinating and easy to understand. I think it’s because of its Norse mythology influence. Our main character Freya gets thrown into the middle of this conflict truly unprepared, because even though people with powers in this world aren’t rare, growing up she was never allowed to explore or harness her power. Suddenly, she’s forced to become a magical weapon by Jarl Snorri, the leader of the territory she lived in, in order for him to become King. Enter Bjorn, Snorri’s son, our main male character, who also has powers and is entrusted with not only preparing her for battle but making sure she doesn’t die before she completes her purpose. This book is full of magic, battles, love, secrets and betrayal. I truly enjoyed it. Was I mad at almost all the characters for almost the full story? Yes, but that’s because I was so into it! And I consider that a win. If you’re a fan of forbidden love, magic, battles and characters that make you want to slap some sense into them, I recommend this book.
Oh! By the way, this is a duology and I will be reading the next book. ✌️
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Death of parent, Murder, War
Moderate: Misogyny, Sexual content, Grief