I absolutely LOVED this. Even though, like Angrboda, my heart was stabbed and burned and broken while reading it—I still ADORED this. I tend to really enjoy retellings with mythological or folkloric backgrounds, but I really have not read much with a Norse mythology focus.

This story is so rich and fascinating. I knew nothing of Angrboda, which is a CRIME, because what a frickin’ fantastic character! Mother of monsters come ONNNNN!!! I loved her, rooted for her, cried for her. I knew of Loki and Fenrir and Hel (Thor Ragnarok whaddup) but learning about all their backgrounds and relationships from this book was a delight, and there’s sooo much to dive into. Loki was devilishly hilarious, Skadi was such a heartfelt joy, Fenrir/Hel/Jormungand were so cute (!) and awesome and the she-wolf was fabulous. What a legendary fam.

I cannot even believe this was a debut, because Gornichec captured everything so perfectly. It reminded me so much of Madeline Miller’s books (who I LOVE) because the worldbuilding and characters were so rich and fleshed out. The story was so gripping and I fell in love with the characters and even though I was a sobbing mess by the end but it was absolutely worth it! This one will stick with me for awhile. I immediately ran out to buy a physical copy the next day and I’m sure this one will end up on my favorites of the year list. Will be anxiously waiting to see what Gornichec does next!