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latad_books 's review for:
The Valkyrie
by Kate Heartfield
Three people come together: Brynhild, an exiled Valkyrie stripped of her flight and exiled from Valhalla by a capricious Odin, Sigurd, a man looking for his heroic destiny, and Gudrun, a princess of Burgundy, who is looking for a way to protect her land from the invader Attila the Hun, who also happens to have a dragon he can call on. None of these people is ordinary, and their different abilities and skills prove to be critical in dispatching threats and fighting off a conqueror.
Author Kate Heartfield brings her trove of research to bear on this Norse myth-inspired story set in a far past, where magic is alive in the world, and gods and otherworldly beings still walk the land.
A grieving and in pain Brynhild is used by Sigurd to prop up his name after they jointly kill a poisonous lindworm. She is later tricked by him, and is pulled into Gudrun's life. Gudrun uses her sense and honesty to win Brynhild to her cause, with Brynhild training warriors and Gudrun using her magic to strengthen her land. Along the way, Brynhild and Gudrun develop deep feelings for each other, and Sigurd proves to be a terrific warrior but a vain man jealous of his reputation.
There are a number of things that made this story compelling: Gudrun's wielding of magic, Brynhild's prowess, the conflicts amongst the characters, the political maneuvering necessary to win against the conqueror, and the exposure of petty games between the gods. Though the middle slowed down a little too much for my liking, I liked Brynhild and Gudrun immensely, and their developing relationship kept me reading to the end of this enjoyable novel.
Thank you to Netgalley and to HarperCollins Canada for this ARC in exchange for my review.
Author Kate Heartfield brings her trove of research to bear on this Norse myth-inspired story set in a far past, where magic is alive in the world, and gods and otherworldly beings still walk the land.
A grieving and in pain Brynhild is used by Sigurd to prop up his name after they jointly kill a poisonous lindworm. She is later tricked by him, and is pulled into Gudrun's life. Gudrun uses her sense and honesty to win Brynhild to her cause, with Brynhild training warriors and Gudrun using her magic to strengthen her land. Along the way, Brynhild and Gudrun develop deep feelings for each other, and Sigurd proves to be a terrific warrior but a vain man jealous of his reputation.
There are a number of things that made this story compelling: Gudrun's wielding of magic, Brynhild's prowess, the conflicts amongst the characters, the political maneuvering necessary to win against the conqueror, and the exposure of petty games between the gods. Though the middle slowed down a little too much for my liking, I liked Brynhild and Gudrun immensely, and their developing relationship kept me reading to the end of this enjoyable novel.
Thank you to Netgalley and to HarperCollins Canada for this ARC in exchange for my review.