Reviews

The Valkyrie by Kate Heartfield

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erin_henn's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

madistechoxo's review

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Started a different book and never came back to this one

megsbookishtwins's review against another edition

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4.0

I received this free from the publishers via netgalley in exchange for an honest review

rep: sapphic m/c's, f/f romance

content warnings: death, murder, violence, threat of sexual violence

The Valkyrie is a queer retelling of a Norse and the Germanic tale of Brynhild and Gudrun. The main sources used are The Song of the Nibelungs, the Völsunga saga, the Rose Garden of Worms, and the Prose Edda. I'm not very familiar with these particular stories, but I do know the basics, and I enjoyed the female perspective we got on the story. The Valkryie is narrated by our two protagonists, Brynhild - our fallen valkyrie - and Gudrun - princess of burgundy - as if the two were narrating their story to each other.

An enthralling read filled with monsters, epic battles, heroes and villains, and an endearing and tender love story.

annineamundsen's review against another edition

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3.0

The real enemies to lovers: in the original myth they're enemies fighting over the same man, in this one they're lovers.

I love how this story retells the myth - to take it from a story of jealousy and rivalry and turn it into a story about love and perseverance. I felt like their love came out of the blue though, and I felt like them actually falling in love was left out.

I like the casual queerness and how it's just normal. We don't need homophobia or a big coming out in every story

CW: murder, blood, war, death of a sibling

readwithheather's review against another edition

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4.0

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Having read a few mythology retellings through fantasy recently I was really excited for this book - and it didn’t disappoint.

This is a retelling of Norse mythology and has everything from mythical creatures, heroes, villains, politics and epic battles. It shows a world intertwined of Gods and Mortals and the game of power played at every level.

For a fantasy read, the world building isn’t complex and with the addition of character cameos from Odin, Loki, Freyja & Attilla it makes the world feel wholly familiar all at once.

The story is told through a dual POV between Brynhild, a fallen Valkyrie disillusioned by the god she followed, and Gudrun, a princess/witch seemingly destined to a political marriage to serve her people and save her home. What begins as a heroic folklore tale of battles and war ends as a tale of love between these two main characters.

spookyelm's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

abookaddictsbookshelves's review against another edition

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2.5

*I received an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. My thanks to Harper Collins UK and NetGalley*

- Note: While I did receive an e-copy to review, I ended up listening to the finished audiobook -

2.5 stars

Brynhild is a Valkyrie, chosen by Odin, the All-Father to enforce his will during mortal battles, both saving and killing those Odin chooses.

Then Brynhild is exiled to Midgard, where she must decide how she wants to live her life.

Gudrun is a princess who loves her home and people. Together with her brother, the king, and her mother, Gudrun fights to keep her home safe from the greedy, war-loving Atilla,

Brynhild and Gudrun are brought together by Sigurd, a man who wants to be a hero and a legend.

Can Gudrun save her home?

What will Brynhild decide to do now she is exiled to live a mortal life?

I like Norse mythology, so I was excited to read this book. However, I ended up being a little disappointed.

I found both Brynhild and Gudrun to be likeable protagonists - they both wanted to help people and put the well being of others before their own. However, I didn't feel that I really connected with either of them. Sigurd was an interesting character, but I felt that he could have been fleshed out more.

The story is told from Brynhild and Gudrun's perspectives, and as if they are telling each other what has happened while they were apart. I found this different and didn't dislike it, but I wasn't sucked into the story and I didn't feel invested.

The plot was mixed for me. There were times when I enjoyed it and found what was happening interesting, but there were also times when I was a bit bored, so the pacing could have been better.

The romance wasn't one of my favourites as I couldn't feel the connection between the characters.

The writing was easy to follow.

I'm disappointed that I didn't enjoy this more.

Overall, this was a mixed read.