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lady_valhella's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying
Minor: Death, Animal death, and Animal cruelty
_teoeo's review
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? No
2.0
I don't have words for how terrible this book was. Feels like a horse movie (so much horses...) with a "not like the other girls"-mc that is based on a fanfic written by a 13 years old (nothing against ffs written by 13 years old, they are probably better than this book).
Also, it was full of inaccuracies about norse mythology, this was so frustrating.
Also, it was full of inaccuracies about norse mythology, this was so frustrating.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse and Bullying
Moderate: Animal cruelty
sheriffseraph's review
adventurous
funny
hopeful
fast-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? It's complicated
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death and Animal cruelty
Moderate: Abandonment, Bullying, Child abuse, Blood, Toxic relationship, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Trafficking, and Slavery
ezwolf's review
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
The Valkyrie's Daughter is about sixteen year old Sigrid, who has been raised as a stable hand but longs to be a valkyrie and something more in her life. When her home is attacked she accidentally has a vision of a possible future where she is leading the valkyries into battle along with the enemy valkyrie she's fighting, which leads her on a quest to save her home and find out if she's really meant to be more than a stable hand.
I'm going to start with the positives. I really love any fantasy book that includes horses. I am still a horse girl at heart, so I'm always sold on that, especially when it's queer. And I loved Sigrid's bond with her gelding, Hestur. Mariam was my absolute favorite character (though I did like Fisk as comic relief and a good nudge for Sigrid's teasing) and honestly I was probably the most invested in Mariam getting Aesa back than anything else. I loved the queer rep with sapphic and trans characters (I'd have loved to hear more about that though!).
Now the negatives. I was incredibly intrigued and engaged with everything going on...up until the last like 20% where the book kind of lost me. Hilariously, this is when a lot of the actual battle started and should have been the most interesting, but I let myself stop reading to go to bed for the night with 12% of the book left (to be fair, I'd driven across an entire state that day but I hardly ever let a book go unread that close to the end).
With all of this I still probably would have given the book a 4 star rating, but when Sigrid decided to paint her face to make her look more like a warrior or leader, it really pulled me out of the story. I am not an expert on Norse mythology or viking history and I do not claim to me, but to my knowledge and the brief Googling I did just to do a little double check, "viking warrior face paint" does not seem to have been a real thing is just really Indigenous cultural appropriation more than anything. So to include that was disappointing to me.
Including my last grievance at the very bottom since it does contain a spoiler.
***SPOILERS***
I also knew what the big reveal for Sigrid's would be the second Princess Helena was mentioned the first time and honestly I really didn't like the "evil mom" plot.
Thank you to NetGalley and Entangled Publishing, LLC for making this available in exchange for an honest review!
I'm going to start with the positives. I really love any fantasy book that includes horses. I am still a horse girl at heart, so I'm always sold on that, especially when it's queer. And I loved Sigrid's bond with her gelding, Hestur. Mariam was my absolute favorite character (though I did like Fisk as comic relief and a good nudge for Sigrid's teasing) and honestly I was probably the most invested in Mariam getting Aesa back than anything else. I loved the queer rep with sapphic and trans characters (I'd have loved to hear more about that though!).
Now the negatives. I was incredibly intrigued and engaged with everything going on...up until the last like 20% where the book kind of lost me. Hilariously, this is when a lot of the actual battle started and should have been the most interesting, but I let myself stop reading to go to bed for the night with 12% of the book left (to be fair, I'd driven across an entire state that day but I hardly ever let a book go unread that close to the end).
With all of this I still probably would have given the book a 4 star rating, but when Sigrid decided to paint her face to make her look more like a warrior or leader, it really pulled me out of the story. I am not an expert on Norse mythology or viking history and I do not claim to me, but to my knowledge and the brief Googling I did just to do a little double check, "viking warrior face paint" does not seem to have been a real thing is just really Indigenous cultural appropriation more than anything. So to include that was disappointing to me.
Including my last grievance at the very bottom since it does contain a spoiler.
***SPOILERS***
I also knew what the big reveal for Sigrid's would be the second Princess Helena was mentioned the first time and honestly I really didn't like the "evil mom" plot.
Thank you to NetGalley and Entangled Publishing, LLC for making this available in exchange for an honest review!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death and Violence
Moderate: Grief, Sexism, Abandonment, Death, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Bullying
poppywarphan's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.25
I guess the writing was just too simplistic for my taste. I'm aware that this is a young adult novel. The title change was a smart choice; otherwise there really wouldn't be any reason to read the book, as it was on its own too predictable.
The positive:
Sapphic
A bit of Norse mythology and worldbuilding
Perfect for horse girls?
Non-significant trans character?
I don't really know what I liked about this book. The last 20% was the best part but simultaneously the hardest to read because I just wanted it to be over with. Sigrid finally got some character development: gained some awareness and stopped acting only on her desires and chasing her destiny. As for the other characters, they were underdeveloped. Summary that turned into a spoilerish rant:
Sigrid is a special snowflake who is bullied by the other Valkyries and looked down upon by almost everyone except some other stable boys. As a baby, she was found among the newborn Valkyries, except with an ordinary horse unlike the others, hence why she can't be a Valkyrie. She wants to be one of them so bad. So, when they are attacked by a Valkyrie troop from Helheim, she, of course, dives into trouble and accidentally kills one of the Helheim Valkyrie's mares. Which is very frowned upon. Each mare is connected to their Valkyrie, and losing it is devastating (supposedly). But Mariam gets over the loss pretty easily and doesn't really hold any hostility towards Sigrid. The Helheim Valkyries steal a magic stone, but before they do, Sigrid sees a vision of herself riding Sleipnir, a legendary horse. She is determined to claim that fate, so she escapes with Mariam back to Helheim because the horse is in its queen's possession. Conveniently, the queen is her long-lost mother and accepts her with open arms. Sigrid doesn't suspect anything, even though it is very unequivocally stated a few times that “a dark look crossed her face” when Sigrid disagrees with taking over Vanahalla. Wonder what that could be 🤔.
Elina obviously wanted her to use the army to seize Vanaheim’s throne. Mariam wanted her not to raise it at all. Sigrid only wanted everyone to see it for long enough to decide she was worthy of becoming a Valkyrie.
So, literally raise an army of the dead just to prove a point? OK.
“Trust me, Sigrid.” Trust me. Like she hadn’t permanently lost Sigrid’s trust sixteen years ago. Yet, here she is. Elina, her mother, tells her she doesn't look like a strong leader, insert the 'girl cuts her hair to be more badass and smears mud on her face' trope.
Insulting word choice aside, what did the man mean, to claim Vanahalla? What did he think they were going to do?
Maybe she’d misunderstood.
Or, perhaps she's just stupid to not notice the obvious.
Elina hadn’t denied it. She’d lied this whole time. Who would've thought.
“If you want to succeed, you need to put yourself first.” Just like she had up until now.
How could Elina have done this? She claimed to care about Sigrid while sending her friends off to die. She’d promised Sigrid an army as a means to become a Valkyrie, but these warriors were clearly not ready to serve her.
See? Only to reach her dream of becoming a Valkyrie. Elina turns out to be a power hungry bitch who doesn't give a damn about her. At least she gains a little self awareness when she realizes what's happening. They battle Elina for the eye of Hnitbjorg and Sleipnir, return to Vanaheim and Sigrid finally gets her recognition.
Gah, OK, I didn't hate it. I just felt incredibly stupid reading it. Can you notice where I started to get really annoyed?
Arc provided by publisher through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
The positive:
Sapphic
A bit of Norse mythology and worldbuilding
Perfect for horse girls?
Non-significant trans character?
I don't really know what I liked about this book. The last 20% was the best part but simultaneously the hardest to read because I just wanted it to be over with. Sigrid finally got some character development: gained some awareness and stopped acting only on her desires and chasing her destiny. As for the other characters, they were underdeveloped. Summary that turned into a spoilerish rant:
Elina obviously wanted her to use the army to seize Vanaheim’s throne. Mariam wanted her not to raise it at all. Sigrid only wanted everyone to see it for long enough to decide she was worthy of becoming a Valkyrie.
So, literally raise an army of the dead just to prove a point? OK.
“Trust me, Sigrid.” Trust me. Like she hadn’t permanently lost Sigrid’s trust sixteen years ago. Yet, here she is. Elina, her mother, tells her she doesn't look like a strong leader, insert the 'girl cuts her hair to be more badass and smears mud on her face' trope.
Insulting word choice aside, what did the man mean, to claim Vanahalla? What did he think they were going to do?
Maybe she’d misunderstood.
Or, perhaps she's just stupid to not notice the obvious.
Elina hadn’t denied it. She’d lied this whole time. Who would've thought.
“If you want to succeed, you need to put yourself first.” Just like she had up until now.
How could Elina have done this? She claimed to care about Sigrid while sending her friends off to die. She’d promised Sigrid an army as a means to become a Valkyrie, but these warriors were clearly not ready to serve her.
See? Only to reach her dream of becoming a Valkyrie. Elina turns out to be a power hungry bitch who doesn't give a damn about her. At least she gains a little self awareness when she realizes what's happening. They battle Elina for the eye of Hnitbjorg and Sleipnir, return to Vanaheim and Sigrid finally gets her recognition.
Gah, OK, I didn't hate it. I just felt incredibly stupid reading it. Can you notice where I started to get really annoyed?
Arc provided by publisher through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Content Warnings
Minor: Antisemitism, Blood, Bullying, Death, Abandonment, and Animal cruelty
allisonwonderlandreads's review against another edition
adventurous
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
This is that particular brand of ya book that gives us the MOST misunderstood teenager with the MOST fabulous chosen one destiny and the MOST secret, sparkly identity that even she doesn't yet know. I was looking forward to the Norse mythology aspects, but the plot fell into generic rhythms of storytelling that failed to capture my attention. The writing was a big issue for me. There wasn't anything spectacular in the way settings, feelings, or actions were described to ground me in what was happening. As my attention drifted, I failed to form a bond with characters or take much interest in what they got up to.
A band of misfits should have captured my undying devotion, but flat personalities and basic, surface-level banter prevented me. Even a sapphic romance could not save this story for me because it was so bland; it largely features Sigrid's circular inner dialogue trying to figure out if she's experiencing a crush and isn't Mariam so pretty, etc. There isn't much excitement or joy or humor or really any emotion to flavor the experience and make it tangible.
At 50%, I was ready to quit and futilely shake my fist at the continuation of my reading slump. At 58%, our main character had a meltdown about A) not being trusted by her friends whom she does not trust, either, and B) not being the only one entrusted with her crush's most traumatic memory because it implies Sigrid's not special. And that's when I caved and called it a day. It's a rare DNF for me, folks. I sincerely hope Sigrid does some soul-searching and experiences vast character growth in the latter half of the book, but I was tired of plodding along, waiting for it to happen.
A band of misfits should have captured my undying devotion, but flat personalities and basic, surface-level banter prevented me. Even a sapphic romance could not save this story for me because it was so bland; it largely features Sigrid's circular inner dialogue trying to figure out if she's experiencing a crush and isn't Mariam so pretty, etc. There isn't much excitement or joy or humor or really any emotion to flavor the experience and make it tangible.
At 50%, I was ready to quit and futilely shake my fist at the continuation of my reading slump. At 58%, our main character had a meltdown about A) not being trusted by her friends whom she does not trust, either, and B) not being the only one entrusted with her crush's most traumatic memory because it implies Sigrid's not special. And that's when I caved and called it a day. It's a rare DNF for me, folks. I sincerely hope Sigrid does some soul-searching and experiences vast character growth in the latter half of the book, but I was tired of plodding along, waiting for it to happen.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death
Moderate: Bullying
Minor: Abandonment
foreverinastory's review
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This was such a fun Norse book! And it was super queer normative aside from still being heavily based in the binary. Also the MC is a horse gay.
Rep: Sapphic female MC, sapphic love interest, trans female side character, two BIPOC side characters.
CWs: Abandonment (mother/child), alcohol consumption, animal death, blood, bullying, death, violence, fire/fire injury, grief (from loss of companion animal), toxic relationship (mother/child).
Rep: Sapphic female MC, sapphic love interest, trans female side character, two BIPOC side characters.
CWs: Abandonment (mother/child), alcohol consumption, animal death, blood, bullying, death, violence, fire/fire injury, grief (from loss of companion animal), toxic relationship (mother/child).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Alcohol, Animal death, Blood, Bullying, Death, and Violence
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Grief, and Toxic relationship
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