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annablume's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
hopeful
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I have many problems with this book although I thoroughly enjoyed it. I didn't love the ending. I feel the way the book dealt with themes of sexual violence and rape is in some part shorthanded, cut short to further the overarching plot, which is my biggest quarrel with this novel. Some "plottwists" at the end came with no surprise at all. Throughout the book a bunch of very convenient things happened that may pull you out of it, but for me it was ok. Just one deus ex machina moment toward the middle was too much for me. Omat suddenly knowing Norse I enjoyed the descriptions and depiction of nature and the protagonist's way of life and culture very much.
Other reviewers have articulated this already but the chapter(s?) where Omat and Brandr waltz into the "painted men's" settlement bug me. They have been displaced attacked by Omat's people and are currently under attack by Brandr's and are basically just there to give Omat the ability to speak Norse and see Brandrs past and teach a moral lesson. It's not good. Also I didn't like how at this point the norse mythology and language took over. I didn't like it, and then it intensified leading up to the finale, which ugggh. No I didn't enjoy Ragnarok. But I enjoyed the book as a whole a lot and had fun reading it. I enjoyed Omat, their family, culture and relationships. That's why I gave it 4 stars.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Misogyny, Rape, Violence, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Incest and Slavery
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