Thanks to the author for the free copy of this book.

A thousand years ago after Ragnarok, the Norse gods struck a deal with the Fates to prevent all-out war again - every hundred years, the gods would lose their powers, gifted to Favoured humans who would join them on Asgard to ensure the safety of the realm. Amanda is the newest Favoured and finds herself among a class of others, learning about her new powers while something sinister begins to stir in Asgard.

This YA blend of Norse mythology and Harry Potter was irresistible. I found Amanda and the other teenaged Favoured mortals so endearing, and the author places them in a complex, intriguing world. The beginning of the story, as Amanda is learning what the heck is going on, is a bit of an information dump, but I'd assume that most readers are like me and do not have a strong grasp of Norse mythology so much of the explaining was quite welcome.

This book would be great for any kids who show an interest in high fantasy but still like a bit of fun in their books. The main crew of kids is silly and sweet, never taking the self-importance of the gods too seriously. Asgard is filled with strange magic and I'm already looking forward to seeing how this universe expands in the next book in the series.