User Reviews
Rating: really liked it
Wowza! It was freaking marvelous!
This is not retelling folks, this is epic, heartbreaking, powerful reimagining of Norse mythology by bringing a new character , adding more modernist approach and rewrite the story around her! It’s unique, riveting, moving, intriguing!
This is not only Loki and Angrboda’s love story. This is a woman’s standing for herself and her motives to do whatever it takes to protect her children fulfill their destinies even though her enemies are the more threatening and powerful beings of the universe! She is determined to declare war against the Gods! Hurray!
Let’s talk more about characters:
Loki is the trickster God and most of you visualize him as Tom Hiddleston thanks to MCU! His cunning smiling already imprinted on my brain cells and i cannot erase it with any mind tricks or hypnosis technics (all girls like bad boys so we will continue to love him more than blonde who carries the hammer: no offense Chris! )
Angrboda is complex heroine, powerful, determined, gifted witch of the story. She assisted to the Gods but she was punished by Odin to burn at the stake because she rejected to share her gifts. But she defeats the death and comes back. This is not gonna be her only waltz with the grim reaper. She dies and resuscitates several times. But she’s been stripped by her powers after her fight against the fire, she’s been retreated to the sacred forest to heal herself and tempting God Loki follows her behind.
He literally captures her heart. Their unconventional and forbidden love story just begins at this point. They have three children: Hei: a future ruler, Fenrir: a wolf child and Jormundgard: a half snake.
Angrboda starts seeing visions tell that her children are in great danger. Even though she becomes friends with Skadi to protect her children from the imminent danger approaching to ruin their lives, she is not strong enough to defeat Odin who is determined to finish the job he started.
This is unputdownable, creative, original reading experience and the mythological world the author reimagined and vivid characterization, modern, smart dialogues she crafted were extraordinary!
If you’re great fan of mythologies and new, fresh , creative approaches of rewriting, this books truly fits with your expectations quite satisfyingly.
I went back and forth between 4 and 5 stars but eventually I adored the characterization and new version of the mythology so rounded up 4.5 stars to 5 Holly Ragnarok, true Nordic, witchy, supernatural stars!
Special thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group/ Ace for sharing this digital reviewer copy of one of the most anticipated books in exchange my honest options.
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Rating: really liked it
They say a witch used to live in these woods a long, long time ago . . . They say she loved a man with scarred lips and a sharp tongue, a man who gave her back her heart and more.
The witch Angrboda is known for seid, the power to divine the future. When Odin, the highest of the Norse gods, demands her power for himself, she refuses. He punishes her by burning her three times on the pyre, but she escapes, leaving her smoldering heart behind. When a man shows up in the remote forest she's hiding and offers her heart back, so starts the love story between Angrboda and Loki. Before they are through, they will have set in motion a chain of events that will remake the world as they know it.
This story grabbed me from the very first page. Going in, I didn't know much about Norse mythology and wasn't sure what to expect. But boy, does this deliver. It has everything you'd expect from a mythological retelling: love, intrigue, betrayal, and ultimately redemption. And since every part of this story was new to me, I was able to savor every single development and twist.
The fully formed characters and their relationships very much contribute to this captivating reimagining. Angrboda, in particular, is a compelling female character, uncompromisingly strong in the face of adversity, but also tender and loving. Her complicated relationship with Loki and Skadi, as well as her children, and all the impossible decisions she has to make, are at the heart of this tale.
The writing is vivid and visceral, lending a sense of urgency that propels the narrative forward. The only nitpick I have is that some of the dialogue feels a little too modern with their phrasing and idioms. Instead of being the more formal and reserved speech you'd generally see from mythology retellings, it reads like something I would say in my casual conversations, which felt a bit jarring with the rest of the story. But that's a small quibble.
It was easy to get lost in this rich and magical world. I'm so glad I took a chance on this book. It's whet my appetite for Norse mythology, and I'll definitely be reading more.
Rating: really liked it
i have to assume that genevieve gornichec is going to be incredibly popular with the same people that made madeline miller popular, i.e. a readership of mainly cis women who love ao3 and being talked down to by their authors. the witch's heart is a similarly easy read. what i WILL say is ms miller occasionally pulls out a Line that earns its place in the italicized-beneath-the-picspam canon, whereas the witch's heart has the worst dialogue i have read all year.
what hangs me up about most retellings of myths and legends is the sense that the authors are incapable of imagining anything magical or wondrous than has directly happened to them. this extends to characterization: i can draw a fairly clean line from margaret atwood's penelopiad (wherein margaret atwood's seething hatred of any woman who does not share precisely her values and methods encompasses the slut maids odysseus kills AND that slutimus prime helen of troy), to madeline miller's circe (wherein the legendary witch circe gives up her immortality to fuck odysseus's son/bear odysseus's son's children/die mortal and pleased with herself about having borne odysseus's son's children, which is better than being a goddess), to this. the problem here is not just that angrboda is dull, which she is, or that her dullness comes from sexist expectations about what female characters are allowed to feel (she loves her babies! she has no feelings about their strangeness that would interfere with her capacity for Regular Mom Feelings! she has no strong feelings about anything other than her babies, her feelings about which are relatable, thank you very much!) or is deeply unuseful to the plot ('left alone she will simply sit in her house' is not a good protagonist for a standard adventure novel, the plot dips in and out through the front door and leaves - and it's not as if she has any kind of strong perspective, or the author finds any particular delight in interrogating stories through her pov). the problem is that the author has no curiosity about what an ancient god-witch might feel, and no capacity to imagine a female character with feelings beyond the scope of a sex and the city roundtable.
the problem in this case is that the limits of the author's imagination include the bounds of obvious heterosexual discomfort that bleeds through the page. there is a f/f romance shoved into the back quarter with none of the author's mythic investment, but the real problem is loki: known shapeshifter, trickster god, one-time pregnant horse, etc. there are two separate jokes where loki wears a dress, both of which involve 1) a supporting character saying 'isn't that weird' 2) loki saying, with great jughead of riverdale flair, ISN'T THIS WEIRD 3) the heroine saying, in her firm steady comfortable-to-the-contemporary-reader way, Of Course That's Weird, He's Weird, He's A Weirdo, But I Love Him. it broke my suspension of disbelief completely both times, starting with: i just don't buy that that would hit literal trickster god loki's radar for weird?? the efforts to be inclusive - to understand that it is "okay" to "be a man in the dress" even though of course that's "weird" and the reader will find it so - loop all the way back around to offensive: loki (LITERAL TRICKSTER GOD LOKI) has the gender complexity of a harry styles vogue shoot and even that, the author is touching with mildly repelled fingertips, desperately trying to signal to the readers - some people are freaks like this but that's valid!!!
which, again. it's regressive, it's lightly transphobic, but it all comes back from the same wellspring: the author's highly limited imagination. a mind this incurious trying to take on gods and monsters and the beginning and end of the world is frankly setting herself up.
Rating: really liked it
I really really loved this story that reimagines Norse Mythology in a beautiful yet approachable way. I didn't want to put this one down and even got a little sad when it was over.
The story follows Angrboda, a witch who survived a burning by the Norse gods and hides in a remote forest. However, her attempts to be alone are thwarted by a loyal huntress and Loki who help her start a new life in a dark cave. It doesn't remain dark for long as she falls in love with Loki and soon they start a beautiful family. However, Angrboda is haunted by the visions she has of Ragnarok and how her children will have a key role in the demise of the gods. She has to protect them as any cost, but is she strong enough to do it against Odin?
Genevieve Gornichec's writing is beautiful, yet heartbreaking. She paints this wonderful picture of a woman fated for sadness, but determined to make the most of what happiness she receives. She also does a great job showing the complexities of a mother's love, especially when magic's involved. Gornichec's portrayal of the Norse gods and goddesses is also really cool, introducing them slowly and differentiating them from the Marvel movies we've all seen over the past decade. This is not the Thor and Loki of the comics. They are darker, yet fascinating to read about as they fall into their story's roles.
I highly recommend this to fantasy readers, especially those who love mythology and stories that humanize god-like figures.
**read thanks to an ARC from ACE**
Rating: really liked it
What Madeline Miller did for Circe, Genevieve Gornichec does for the Norse giantess witch, Angrboda. Known for nothing more than being the mother of three of Loki's infamous children, Gornichec brings this woman, mother, and warrior into the world's radar. An epic story of love, loss, and destiny, Angrboda is woven into a complex individual, a devoted mother, and a loyal lover, until her whole world falls apart and she must face her cruel past.
Rating: really liked it
Loved the audio narrator! Damn if this book wasn’t all kinds of sad!! It was still good but damn!
Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾
Rating: really liked it
2 stars
I think the Circe by Madeline Miller comparison is unwarranted (and insulting) because Circe is just on a whole different level from this book. I suppose the surface comparisons (book based on mythology centering on a witch character) are accurate, but should we judge a book by its inaccurate marketing?
I'm reviewing The Witch's Heart as a hardcore Loki and Angrboda + monster fam stan, so I may be biased as I have my own headcanons/versions of how this would go. The first 150 pages are WEAK and BLAND underscored by the ceaseless banter btw Angrboda and Loki and the fact that Angrboda has amnesia of her past forms from the beginning.
The amnesia immediately eliminates any semblence of character motivation/desire (or the "I want song" in Disney terms) in favor of making us sit through the mystery of who the Mother Witch really is. Shocker, it's Angrboda herself. Literally everyone knew his except for Angrboda herself. The lack of self awareness for the main character of a book marketed as feminist and like Circe is STAGGERING. Angrboda is at the mercy of fate, as we all knew going into this book but there's really no work on her part to be an active force in her own damn story. She's strung along by fate and preordained plot convenience rather than taking us on her own story. Circe at least had personal DRIVE; This Angrboda just has... her cave?? and a lucrative trade deal with Skadi?? She just doesn't stand out as a protagonist. What does she want besides her kids back bc mom feelings, which are valid but we already knew that from the lore. That's about it.
The banter between Loki and Angrboda (it gets better past pg 150 as a whole but god) was intolerable. The author couldn't stop herself from extending the conversations for longer than they had to be. The establishment of their relationship was mainly done through dialogue and little of anything else and was rather weak. While this worked in hindsight because Loki is the useless asshole husband who never stays (rather than my wishful thinking he'd be a useless husband who does stay in this version), and maybe it's better there was never *that* deep of a connection between Angrboda and Loki since the dialogue was that shallow from the get go. Only when their relationship was strained by The Betrayal (you'll know what it is once you get to it), did I actually care about what they were saying to one another. If I weren't such a fan of this couple in Norse myth to begin with and read this without any knowledge of them, I would have closed the book straight up based on the first 50 pages.
Loki and Angrboda are some of the most interesting (to me) figures in Norse myth and it's honestly a shame to see them done so vanilla like this. There is no deeper probing into them as characters past the obvious surface level nor is there any attempt to make them all that standout from what we know about them already in norse myth. I swear to god if we had an isekai webtoon comic with the same Angrboda and Loki setting, I would be living and utterly catered to. But we're not in that universe right now. Their children aren't even all that well characterized either. Considering The Witch's Heart had all the room to be a book about Angrboda and THEM as a family in a way we've never seen done, Gornichec sticks too close to a preordained formula to do anything unique with them with the small exception of Hel's very brief ending.
This version of Loki just fails to be anything but a two-timing manchild. He falls short on almost every front and yes it's almost exactly 50 pages in where he and Angrboda get married. You could argue that him being a two-timing manchild is the point, but in a retelling where you could do almost anything 'cause there's magic and shapeshifters among other things, you could actually make him idk a good father and husband or gasp, a good, interesting character, even given the whack ass circumstances Asgard places on him. Where is the potential for a Angrboda-Loki power couple? Not here.
The only strength I'd say this book has going on for it is the interactions between the female characters being nuanced but even that is a little tainted by how quickly the Skadi and Angrboda romance was shoehorned in at the very end just 'cause. Skadi was great and carried this book for me in the beginning until she got completely brainrot for Angrboda's love that friggin' Freya and Sigyn (and EVEN Frigga!!) had better interactions with Angrboda by the end.
In the end this book doesn't really have a lot to say aside from just being a straight up retelling of Angrboda lore. I feel Gornichec could have taken more creative liberties to make this more of her own story, but if the straightforward retelling was what she was going for I think she achieved at least that with The Witch's Heart. The message about the Aesir constantly fucking everyone else over for their own agendas could have been better handled, as Loki and Angrboda are both giants and outsiders. This part of their dynamic was explored only a little bit and then Loki went back to hoe hoe hoeing between his wives and not taking responsibility yet again while Angrboda was a freaking doormat for this man for years. Skadi was completely justified in wanting to castrate him, but I really hoped it wouldn't actually be the case. I'm glad Angrboda is bi, but both of her relationships with Loki and Skadi needed a lot more work in the writing to be compelling. Loki at least has the advantage of more page time and Skadi being the stronger character overall, but god I'm not satisfied with either of them as Angy's partner. Maybe that's the intention but god why.
Angrboda gets better and more active as a character after her children are taken, but given we are told she is the Mother Witch from the get go and the rest of her story is about her realizing she is indeed the Mother Witch takes away the impactfulness of this self discovery. For all her and Loki's talk about choosing their own fate, they stick pretty close to Ragnarok fate anyway.
As a shameless monster fam stan, I did enjoy the little details like baby Sleipnir making an apperance and grown Jormungandr and Fenrir still calling Angrboda "mama" like the respectful sons they are. I can excuse Hel being rude to her mother since she's going through her rebellious teen phase and is severely traumatized + her queen of Hel duties, but still. Minus is that Fenrir eats Sleip :( oops, please get along in the next life as brothers, ok?
In short: A straightforward (to a fault) telling of the events of Norse mythology regarding Angrboda. The author could have taken more creative liberties to make the characters shine as her own but stuck too closely to pre-established material for my liking. I did like the cameo of baby Sleipnir, though. Circe's better by a long shot, but if you've never read about Angrboda you might enjoy this anyway. In the end, this is just one version of how the story could go and if it works for you, it works. I'm not too disheartened by this attempt, but I have to say I'm happier with my own version of Angrboda. I wouldn't recommend this for people who actually like Angrboda and Loki and the monster fam, though. 'Cause you and I know they can be so much more than what they were here *micdrop*
EDIT 3/7/22: To everyone who enjoyed my review, thank you! For those who asked me for recommendations where Loki and Angrboda are done better or to my liking, I'm sorry I don't have any, at least for novels in English. I will just say that the relationship dynamics I prefer are more often found in manga and anime. I know that's unhelpful, but this is also partially why this book bummed me out so much. :(
Pre-review:
I'm shaking because I've always wanted an Angrboda-centric novel so this is likely my most-anticipated book of 2021.
Rating: really liked it
Why I chose to listen to this audiobook:1. my GR friend, Yun, gave a marvelous review; and,
2. after our honeymoon to Scandinavia in 1988, I've always been intrigued by the Vikings and Norse mythology. This story focuses on Angrboda, one of the trickster god, Loki's, wives. Since I am more familiar with his other wife, Sigyn, I wanted to check out Angrboda's story.
Note: I have not seen any movies (Marvel or otherwise) depicting Norse deities, but I did watch (and enjoy) the TV series, Vikings which often alluded to their gods.
Positives:1. I have to say that I did learn a lot about this character that was unfamiliar to me. I was constantly Googling Angrboda, who as a giantess witch, mated with Loki and produced three "monster" children. I also learned more about other Norse gods, goddesses and various supreme beings and their demise during Ragnarok which Angrboda prophesized;
2. although slow-moving at times, the plot led me to connect with Angrboda's trials and tribulations through her various relationships, especially with Odin, Loki and her children; and,
3. this audiobook's narrator, Jayne Entwistle, kept me focused!
Niggles:I get that this is fiction, but it always frustrates me when an author makes a character into something they are not (even in mythology!) in order to market a book for a wider audience.
Overall, if you enjoy learning about mythology from various cultures, you may want to read this book!
Rating: really liked it
One of my favorite books of the year and my pick for the Fantastic Strangelings Book Club. It made me cry but in such a good way.
Rating: really liked it
What a unique mash-up of genres in this book! I love a witch story, and I adore this cover!
Angrboda has been banished and even burned at the hand of Odin when she is found by Loki.
The two fall in love, and they have three children together. Each child has a destiny Angrboda keeps a secret until their futures are in danger.
The Witch’s Heart is an epic story, stunningly written, engaging, consuming, original, and awe-inspiring. The depth and marvel to the story, as well as the skilled writing, reminded me of Signe Pike’s epic works, of whom I am a gigantic fan.
Don’t let the witches and paranormal aspects scare you off. This book will enchant anyone!
I received a gifted copy.
Many of my reviews can also be found on my blog: www.jennifertarheelreader.com and instagram: www.instagram.com/tarheelreader
Rating: really liked it
↠ 4.5 starsA witch twice resurrected and the god of mischief tempt the wrath of the gods in this reimagined tale of Norse mythology. Banished to live in solitude, the witch Angrboda can remember only fire and the fury of Odin; but when Loki Laufeyson, the god of mischief, appears one day outside the boundaries of her wood on errand to return her heart, she begins to see new possibilities. Long years pass, and throughout the changing seasons Loki returns and their love blossoms. Angrboda gives birth to three of their children, each one more unusual than the last, and raised in secret in the protected forest away from the prying eyes of Asgard. The witch of the woods cannot hold the gods at bay forever though, and when a betrayal severs the protection over the forest, her children are taken. To enact revenge upon the gods, Angrboda will need to reach deep into the expanse of her magic, becoming once again the very thing they feared enough to burn.
Now it’s no real secret that I am a fan of the retelling, but it feels as if I have been waiting eons for someone to take a proper stab at a Norse mythology related one. Just as it seemed I may never find any, along came this remarkable novel. The Witch’s Heart is everything I was hoping for, a celebration of Norse mythology tied up in a wholeheartedly original, dark, and twisted tale. As someone who is well versed on the topic through my primary education, I absolutely loved all the callbacks to the source material. Genevieve Gornichec weaves a compelling narrative around the Norse figures we have come to know and love, providing her own take on key myths and characters. To put it simply, this book is magical. Each step further into the story revealed more depth to Angrboda’s character through the growing power struggle with her magic, to the competing conflicts with the Asgardians. Angrboda specifically, was such a flawed and complex individual which contrasted nicely with the morally grey nature of Loki and the oftentimes fragile basis of their romantic relationship. There were certain moments when I felt that the pacing did drag, but that was just completely overshadowed upon reaching the last quarter of the book. The whole journey came full circle with epic battles, reconciliations, and a development so heartbreaking it shattered my very soul. It's funny that I was waiting so long for someone to take a stab at this, that instead the author decided to stab me in the heart. I really haven't been this thoroughly wrecked by a book in a long time so I will need anywhere between 7-15 business days to process my emotions. I am also taking this book’s existence to mean that there are more Norse mythology retellings headed our way and if they're anything like this, I cannot wait to read more.
Trigger warnings: death, blood, violence, murder, attempted murder, abuse, pregnancy complications, death of a loved one, injury, grief
Rating: really liked it
This book is fantastic.
Honestly, when I started it, I was a little underwhelmed. There is a slow start, following Angrboda through her everyday life in the woods as a witch who cannot remember the lives she has lived. But then the book becomes un-put-down-able. An epic tale that spans thousands of years, love, heartbreak, tragedy, and of course the end of the world, this book will pull you in and leave you with tears streaming down your face (at least, it did to me).
Rating: really liked it
1/26/2021: Hello, friends! We’re two weeks out from the US release of THE WITCH’S HEART, and I just wanted to drop by with some additional info before it’s out in the world.
CONTENT WARNINGS: burning alive, sutures, near pregnancy loss, childbirth (x3), family separation, torture
I wrote the first draft of this book for NaNoWriMo in 2011 and it’s still really surreal to think that it actually exists and people are reading it. Thank you so, so much for giving THE WITCH’S HEART a chance.
Rating: really liked it
NORSE MYTHOLOGY MADE FEMINIST!As a Dane, I am
somewhat well versed in Norse Mythology (it being the mythology of my ancestors, after all) but I hadn't ever really connected with the witch, Angrboda. Perhaps because she is, in traditional Norse Mythology, never really described as anything more than the mother of Hel, Fenrir and the Midgard Serpent. So I was excited to see her expanded as a full fletched character. While you can't exactly call this 'accurate' - it is mainly a work of fiction - it felt authentic and real.
👍 What I Liked 👍Angrboda: Finally! Angrboda is a woman in her own right! Not just because of who she partnered up with or gave birth to. She has a story of her own, which has here been told masterfully by Gornechic. This not a story you will ever see in any 'official' books on Norse Mythology, but it still felt like it could have been. It felt very authentic and Angrboda was the deserving center of the story.
Goddeses: It was such a treasure to see how many other goddesses, like Skadi, Gerd and Freya, was given more attention as well. They had wills, desires and ambitions of their own. Too often we tend to think of Norse goddesses in terms of the men in their lives - here they are characters in their own right.
Loki: If you only know Loki from the MCU, you don't know very much about him. Yes, he is a trickster in original Norse Mythology, but never really in a sinister way (except for that one time with Baldr, though....) I felt that this book did a very good job of showing Loki as he truly was - but also to expand on his character. He was more complex in this book. We get to see under his skin, to get some kind of explanation for why he behaves as he does. And we see how many different faces he has. It was very fascinating.
Relationship: There are several noteworthy relationships in this book, but I particularly liked Loki and Angrboda, Loki and Hel and Angrboda and Skadi. Loki and Angrboda had a very untraditional relationship, and while Loki never gave her all she deserved, it was clear that he was really dependent on her and truly cared for her. It was a side of Loki, that is not usually shown in the original mythology. And the relationship he has with baby Hel is so adorable! The relationship between Skadi and Angrboda is definitely one built on trust and respect, which is the best kind there is.
👎 What I Disliked 👎Circe: The only thing that bothered me a bit was how much this book reminded me of
Circe by Madeline Miller. If you scratch out the names of each book, you're pretty much left with the same story. A witch lives alone in a secluded place, only sporadically visited by others. She meets a man, who gives her less than she wants - but who also gives her the biggest gift, a child. After the birth of the child, she learns that motherhood was her calling all along. See? Pretty much the same book...
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Rating: really liked it
This book utterly consumed me. When I wasn’t reading it, I couldn’t stop thinking about it. In canonical Norse myth, Angrboda is only briefly mentioned as the giantess who births Loki’s three monstrous children. In The Witch’s Heart, she transforms into a powerful tragic figure, a witch who has altered the course of the world and suffered as a result. Her strength as a mother is brought to the forefront, all the more impressive for the nature of her children. Disparate elements and canon pillars of Norse myth are woven together so skillfully that it feels as though this could be the beating heart of Norse myth itself. If you love Madeline Miller’s Circe or Norse mythology, especially Neil Gaiman’s retelling, this is an absolute must read. It will stay with me for a long time to come.
