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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
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