Of Starlight and Midnight

 

Of Starlight and Midnight- Amy Kuivalainen

BHC Press

Release Date: March 19, 2023

Rating: 📚📚📚📚📚

Synopsis: Of Starlight and Midnight combines adventure, romance, magic, and Norse myth and shows that some Fates are worth fighting for, especially when the Norns get involved. It’s been two years since light-elf brothers Aramis and Søren fought beside Anya in Russia. The Álfr mountain city of Svetilo is safe once more, but their books and relics are still scattered on the supernatural black market. When Aramis gets a lead on a book of magic, he and Søren decide to investigate and find more than they bargained for.Librarian Asta is still grieving over the death of her mother. All she wants to do is hide at the University of Oslo, unravel the mysteries of the strange book she inherited, and hang out with Tyra—the cool Norwegian cousin she never knew she had. The last thing she wants is to help arrogant Dr. Søren Madsen work on his book, no matter how good-looking he is, but she doesn’t want to get fired so she reluctantly agrees.Søren knows Asta is hiding something and when they are attacked by dark elves, he and Aramis will stop at nothing to learn the truth about the two mysterious women. But Tyra has a past of her own, and she’ll do anything to protect Asta’s secrets, even if it means siding with the dangerous light-elf brothers in a deadly war of dark and light.

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I loved this book so much! The flirty fun and banter between Tyra and Aramis made this book absolutey one of my instant all time favorites.

Of Starlight and Midnight is in the same world as Kuivalainen's Tales of the Firebird series, and takes place a few years later. Unlike The Exorcist and the Demon Hunter, I don't think you necessarily have to read the original series to read Starlight, although it helps. Starlight follows light-elf brothers Aramis and Søren (a favorite of mine in the Firebird series), now reconnected and searching for artifacts stolen from their magical site of Svetilo. They've tracked one to Oslo and librarian Asta seems to hold the key to finding it. Asta is greiving for her mother and would rather spend time figuring out her own life and her mother's secrets than helping arrogant Søren- but a magical attack by dark elves throws everyone's plans into chaos. 

Asta is kind of the stock character in some ways: she has magic and sercrets surrounding her, but she doesn't know it. I liked her because she stood up to Søren and his arrogant attitude from the beginning and completely knocked him off his game. He didn't know what he was doing when it came to Asta and it was fun watching this complete badass from the Firebird series be a confused wreck, and a total sweet guy with Asta as he helps her sort out her life once he's accidentally blown it up.

But it was Tyra who really stole the show for me. Asta's long-lost 'cousin', she is a dark elf. And just like Aramis and Søren are protectors of their people, Tyra is a next level protector. She's more likely to be saving Aramis than need saving, is as lethal with her sarcasm as her blades, and obsessed with modern Marvel and Lord of the Rings movies. Possibly for all the things they got wrong about the mythologies, but she still loves them. Like Søren and Aramis, Tyra has a dark past and plenty of broken pieces to her. But she rarely allows her past to control her present mood and to say she's perfect for lightening up the brothers is an understatement. She literally runs rings around Aramis, yet he's just what she needs in her own moments of doubt.

I wish the book  had been longer, and the ending was a bit rushed. But to me the story was really about the four main characters and their growth, their journey to discovering how their broken peices could fit together and how they didn't have to be perfect themselves to be perfect for someone else. Learning to trust someone and lean on them when they needed to, and giving Søren and Aramis the happiness they deserved, made a great story for me. I have to say I enjoyed it more than The Exorcist and the Demon Hunter. This was a fun, light-hearted, fantasy with entertaining characters. Tyra alone made this one that kept me smiling all the way.

I received an ARC from NetGalley and BHC Press in exchange for an honest review

 

The Witch's Heart

The Witch's Heart- Genevieve Gornichec

Berkley

Release Date: February 9, 2021

Rating: 📚📚📚📚

Synopsis: Angrboda’s story begins where most witches' tales end: with a burning. A punishment from Odin for refusing to provide him with knowledge of the future, the fire leaves Angrboda injured and powerless, and she flees into the farthest reaches of a remote forest. There she is found by a man who reveals himself to be Loki, and her initial distrust of him transforms into a deep and abiding love.

 
Their union produces three unusual children, each with a secret destiny, who Angrboda is keen to raise at the edge of the world, safely hidden from Odin’s all-seeing eye. But as Angrboda slowly recovers her prophetic powers, she learns that her blissful life—and possibly all of existence—is in danger.
 
With help from the fierce huntress Skadi, with whom she shares a growing bond, Angrboda must choose whether she’ll accept the fate that she’s foreseen for her beloved family...or rise to remake their future. From the most ancient of tales this novel forges a story of love, loss, and hope for the modern age.

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Recent interest in telling the classic myths from the women's point of view and telling the stories of little know Greek women, like Madeline Miller has done in Circe, now enters the world of Norse myths with Genevieve Gornichec's excellent The Witch's Heart.

We all know Loki and his children Hel, the ruler of the Norse underworld, and Fenrir, the wolf. We all know Norse Mythology included a snake who circled the world, though we sometimes forget his name is Jormungand and he is also one of the children Loki had with his giantess wife.  But the myths only mention the name of Loki's giantess wife and the mother of his children once. Genevieve Gornichec imagines what life was like for Angrboda, the Ironwood Witch: wife of Loki, mother of Hel, Fenrir, and Jormungard, and otherwise unremembered in the stories.

Gornichec imagines Angrboda as a woman trying to rebuild a life that has been taken from her over and over by the gods. She may be a powerful witch, but she isn't a warrior and isn't looking for glory or fame- just peace. When she meets Loki she is drawn back into the world of Asgard and the gods, if only on the edge.  She hears tales from Loki and her friend Skadi that anyone reading Neil Gaiman's Norse Mythology, or any other version of the tales, would be familiar with. Tales of Thor and Odin, Baldur and Freyja, but from a different point of view- the giant's view. The view of the 'monster'. It's a fascinating tale with the twist that perhaps it isn't the events themselves that matter, but why they happen. Anyone vaguely familiar with the stories knows what will happen to Loki and his sons. But why? Angrboda herself has visions about the what, but not the why. Her questions become what can be prevented and what can be changed. What does eternity mean and who are gods who aren't remembered? Are we our actions, or the hidden reasons behind them? These are questions all the main characters struggle with, with varying degrees of success in answering them. 

The Witch's Heart is a beautiful story of deep love and sacrifice and (like the myths themselves) pain and joy.  Gornichec's debut novel is a complex, emotional masterpiece that will have you reading it again and again to discover new nuances every time. 

An excellent story for those interested in twists on well known myths and seeing new women's voices soaring.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Ragnarok Unwound

Ragnarok Unwound- Kristin Jacques
Sky Forest Press
Release Date: January 8, 2019

Rating:
📚📚📚📚📚

Synopsis: Prophecies don’t untangle themselves. Just ask Ikepela Ives, whose estranged mother left her with the power to unravel the binding threads of fate. Stuck with immortal power in a mortal body, Ives has turned her back on the duty she never wanted.

But it turns out she can’t run from her fate forever, not now that Ragnarok has been set in motion and the god at the center of that tangled mess has gone missing. With a ragtag group of companions—including a brownie, a Valkyrie, and the goddess of death herself—Ives embarks on her first official mission as Fate Cipher—to save the world from doomsday.

Nothing she can't handle. Right?

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Unraveling fate might sound like a good job, but Ikepela Ives has been ignoring her own fate since her absentee mother dropped that surprise on her three years ago.  Until now Ives' closest contact to the supernatural has been her best friend, the brownie Jules.  Now an insistent Valkyrie is claiming Ives needs to use her abilities as the Fate Cipher to help stop the Norse apocalypse, Ragnarok.  Seeing outside the box and possessing high-level snark may be two of Ives' biggest talents, but will they be enough to help her survive her first day on a new job?

I went into Ragnarok Unwound not entirely sure what I was getting into, or if it was a good idea.  One chapter in and I knew this book was going to be a winner! Ives (don't call her Ikepela!) is a heroine full of snark, courage, and a fantastic ability to roll with weirdness.  Completely unprepared for her job and in total denial of her heritage, Ragnarok forces Ives to confront her destiny.  Like Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum, Ives has no clue what she's doing, but before long is fully committed to doing it anyway and trusting that luck and fast-talking will help her stall until she's figured it out.  And it works.  She's completely believable, and absolutely who you'd want at your side for an impending apocalypse.  

Ives comes at Ragnarok thinking that it doesn't make a lot of sense and that Loki and his children got a pretty lousy deal through it all.  What if they aren't the monsters the legends have turned them into?  On meeting Hel, goddess of death, Ives knows there is far more to the story than what's on the surface.  She becomes determined to figure out her abilities, to save Hel's family and to stop Ragnarok. Things are complicated since Hel's brothers are a giant wolf and the World Serpent; they've lost Hel's father; there are frost and fire giants destroying Las Vegas and Hawaii; the Hound of Asgard protecting Ives' father is completely incompetent; and it turns out that using her Fate Cipher abilities too many times will kill the mortal Ives.

I can only hope we get more of Ragnarok's cast of secondary characters in future books. Hel and Loki in particular are wonderfully entertaining and scene-stealing.  There were enough touching moments to see that Jacques has talent for emotional depth as well as humor and is good at doling those moments out just when they are needed.  Unexpected twists and turns, surprise allies and enemies, characterize a book full of non-stop action that you won't be able to put down once you've started!

Full knowledge of the mythology isn't needed to enjoy Ragnarok Unwound, but is always a good excuse to re-read Neil Gaiman's magical Norse Mythology.

Norse and Hawaiian legends meet in a way that Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Xena & Hercules/Marvel fans will love in this first book of a new and delightful series! 

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Norse Mythology

Norse Mythology- Neil Gaiman
W.W. Norton  Co
Release Date: February 7, 2017

Rating (out of 5):
📚📚📚📚📚

Synopsis: In Norse Mythology, Gaiman stays true to the myths in envisioning the major Norse pantheon: Odin, the highest of the high, wise, daring, and cunning; Thor, Odin’s son, incredibly strong yet not the wisest of gods; and Loki—son of a giant—blood brother to Odin and a trickster and unsurpassable manipulator.

Gaiman fashions these primeval stories into a novelistic arc that begins with the genesis of the legendary nine worlds and delves into the exploits of deities, dwarfs, and giants. Once, when Thor’s hammer is stolen, Thor must disguise himself as a woman—difficult with his beard and huge appetite—to steal it back. More poignant is the tale in which the blood of Kvasir—the most sagacious of gods—is turned into a mead that infuses drinkers with poetry. The work culminates in Ragnarok, the twilight of the gods and rebirth of a new time and people.

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The much anticipated Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman brings new life to many of the traditional Norse myths, ranging from the creation of the world to the inevitable Ragnarok.  Gaiman says in his introduction that he was first introduced to Norse mythology in a way that would be familiar to many today: Marvel comics.  The success of the current movies with Chris Hemsworth and Tom Hiddleston    probably has as much to do with interest in the book as the original Mighty Thor Marvel comics had for Gaiman.  Gaiman's introduction gives readers a taste of the research that must have gone into the writing of this book, original sources and theories, connecting the myths to the geography of the people who told them.  However, it is done in an approachable way that will not scare off young readers or those not sure about the book.

The book itself is a collection of traditional myths, mostly focusing around some of the most familiar of the Norse gods: Odin, Thor, and Loki.  We learn how Thor got his hammer, Mjollnir; how Odin sacrificed himself on the world-tree Yggdrasil to gain knowledge; and how Loki tricked a giant into building the walls of Asgard without being paid.  There are stories of dwarfs and giants, monsters and magic, Fenrir the wolf who will eat the sun during the final battle and the Midgard serpent Thor will battle. We learn the Norse explanation for earthquakes and why salmon are shaped as they are.  We watch with a sense of inevitable doom as the gods make poor choices and alienate those who could have been their allies but will instead fight against them in Ragnarok.  Deception and betrayal, love, greed, intrigue, and complicated family life show us not only the world of Asgard but give us hints of the world of the Norsemen who first told these tales.  

The most striking feature of Norse Mythology is Gaiman's beautiful writing.  Gaiman surpasses his reputation as a brilliant story-teller with tales that manage to both retain their original, epic, flavor and blend a subtle modern feel that will ensure they appeal to today's readers- young and old.  The gentle cadence of each story nearly demands they be read aloud (whether you have an audience or not).  Adventure and emotion infuse each tale and by the last stories "The Last Days of Loki" and "Ragnarok: The Final Destiny of the Gods" I was moved to tears by battles both grand and individual.  But Gaiman ends on a gentle note of hope- Ragnarok may be an end, but it is also a beginning.  You close the book wondering what happens next.  The answer Gaiman hints at is that all things are possible and what comes next is what we make of it.

Neil Gaiman brings to life the tales of the ancient Norse sagas with every bit as much talent, wit, and emotion as any of the fictional novels he is so well known for.  Fans of any age, of American Gods and Marvel alike, will love the new life Gaiman infuses into these classic stories and be left hoping for more.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.