A captivating first installment in what promises to be a compelling, feminist Viking fantasy.
The mortal daughter of a god fights to become the mistress of her own fate in this tightly plotted series starter.
Twenty-year-old Freya has spent her entire life hiding her ancestry. In her world—a take on medieval Scandinavia—the Norse pantheon blesses mortal babies with drops of the deities’ own blood, imbuing them with fractions of divine power. As the daughter of Hlin, Freya is the shield maiden prophesied to “unite the people of Skaland beneath the rule of the one who controlled her fate.” After her abusive first husband learns her true identity, he turns her over to the jarl, Snorri, who grants him a divorce so that Snorri may marry Freya himself. Snorri believes his new bride is his key to becoming Skaland’s king. So does his beloved and cunning first wife, Ylva, who desperately wants to see her own son on the throne, but it’s Bjorn—the jarl’s firstborn, Ylva’s stepson, and the child of Tyr—who’s in line to inherit. Snorri appoints his heir as Freya’s personal bodyguard, not knowing that his son happens to be the object of his new wife’s forbidden affections. As for the shield maiden, she barely has time to consider her hopelessly complicated position in Snorri’s court, with other jarls beginning to launch attacks on her people, determined to steal her away from her new husband. All these men are certain she’ll crown a king, thereby determining the fate of their entire nation, but they’ve forgotten one very important rule: The children of the gods aren’t bound by fate. Jensen offers a vibrant and perfectly paced novel that’s sure to delight readers of historical fantasy. Although some of the writing reads a little too contemporary at times—an early passage in which one character is dubbed a “narcissist” is a prime example—the tension among Freya, Bjorn, and the rest of Snorri’s court is simply irresistible.
A captivating first installment in what promises to be a compelling, feminist Viking fantasy.Pub Date: Feb. 27, 2024
ISBN: 9780593599839
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Del Rey
Review Posted Online: Nov. 17, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2024
Through palpable tension balanced with glimmers of hope, Hoover beautifully captures the heartbreak and joy of starting over.
The sequel to It Ends With Us (2016) shows the aftermath of domestic violence through the eyes of a single mother.
Lily Bloom is still running a flower shop; her abusive ex-husband, Ryle Kincaid, is still a surgeon. But now they’re co-parenting a daughter, Emerson, who's almost a year old. Lily won’t send Emerson to her father’s house overnight until she’s old enough to talk—“So she can tell me if something happens”—but she doesn’t want to fight for full custody lest it become an expensive legal drama or, worse, a physical fight. When Lily runs into Atlas Corrigan, a childhood friend who also came from an abusive family, she hopes their friendship can blossom into love. (For new readers, their history unfolds in heartfelt diary entries that Lily addresses to Finding Nemo star Ellen DeGeneres as she considers how Atlas was a calming presence during her turbulent childhood.) Atlas, who is single and running a restaurant, feels the same way. But even though she’s divorced, Lily isn’t exactly free. Behind Ryle’s veneer of civility are his jealousy and resentment. Lily has to plan her dates carefully to avoid a confrontation. Meanwhile, Atlas’ mother returns with shocking news. In between, Lily and Atlas steal away for romantic moments that are even sweeter for their authenticity as Lily struggles with child care, breastfeeding, and running a business while trying to find time for herself.
Through palpable tension balanced with glimmers of hope, Hoover beautifully captures the heartbreak and joy of starting over.Pub Date: Oct. 18, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-668-00122-6
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Atria
Review Posted Online: July 26, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2022
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
This slightly smutty monster romance feels more like a spectacle than a deliberately paced story.
A woman travels to Scotland to unravel her late father’s past and meets a grumpy Scotsman with his own secrets.
Keyanna MacKay was brought up by a single father who was always tight-lipped about his upbringing, so when he dies, she’s left with no family. Key decides that learning about his life before he left Scotland would be a good way of keeping his memory close and perhaps connecting with long-lost relatives. She discovers a grandmother and other extended family in Scotland, but they’re hardly welcoming. “I know who you are....And you shouldn’t have come,” are the first words her grandmother says to her. Lachlan Greer has little patience for the American he’s already written off as clueless. When he witnesses Key’s snubbing by her family members, his grumpy demeanor gives way to begrudging pity, and he starts helping her navigate the local community and try to build a bridge to her grandmother. At first, this book seems to be a contemporary romance with light magical undertones involving a family’s mysterious curse, but it quickly devolves into a monster romance heavy on shock value. While monster romance can be fun, it doesn’t work here. Key and Lachlan’s chemistry is bumpy, and the pace of their relationship as they go from disastrous first impressions to a happily ever after is all over the place. Ferguson tries to combine too many elements—including a grumpy-meets-sunshine pairing, a mystery with sensitive family dynamics, and the complicated logistics of falling in love with a cryptid—leaving several threads not fully resolved. The setting is the most positive element, with Scotland’s lush greenery providing the perfect whimsical background for hunting down long-buried family secrets.
This slightly smutty monster romance feels more like a spectacle than a deliberately paced story.Pub Date: Dec. 3, 2024
ISBN: 9780593816851
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Berkley
Review Posted Online: Oct. 26, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2024
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