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riverofhorton's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I went into this book with the assumption that it is at least somewhat accurate to the myths, and while there are elements that are, this is very much a Christianised Loki-Bad-Odin-Good portrayal of those myths.
Taken in isolation, it is as well written and mildly comical as Gaiman's other works, but within the context of it being a retelling of the Norse myths, it just missed the mark on so many points for me.
As example:the legions of Hel are described as being "the evil dead", which to my knowledge is not only a Christian concept, but also unjust. Those dead are simply people that didn't die in battle, so while there will be "evil" among them, they're not intrinsically so. Such phrasing also implies that Odin's warriors are equivalent to the angels of Christianity, something made ironic when you realise it's possible for "evil" people to die in battle.
Taken in isolation, it is as well written and mildly comical as Gaiman's other works, but within the context of it being a retelling of the Norse myths, it just missed the mark on so many points for me.
As example:
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Bullying, Child death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Slavery, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Cannibalism, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, and War
freschne's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
A collection of repetitive tales that celebrate cruelty, selfishness and betrayal
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Incest, Physical abuse, Violence, Cannibalism, Murder, and Alcohol
hannahbailey's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Very enjoyable! Quick, short stories that build on from one another. It has an interesting set of characters - although more female characters wouldn't have gone amiss. Loki was really testing me towards the end. I don't think I could've kept reading about him.
Overall very fun and educational. It was interesting to read the origins of these norse myths (or at least Gaiman's interpretations of them).
Suitable for younger readers, but there are graphic descriptions of darker themes:
TW: death, murder, animal death/sacrifice, body horror, torture, violence, war
Overall very fun and educational. It was interesting to read the origins of these norse myths (or at least Gaiman's interpretations of them).
Suitable for younger readers, but there are graphic descriptions of darker themes:
TW: death, murder, animal death/sacrifice, body horror, torture, violence, war
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Physical abuse, Torture, and Murder