I really thoroughly enjoyed reading this first in a series. I loved the whole idea of fate and prophesies and to see how characters react to it. The romance balanced tension and satisfaction well, and of course a cliffhanger ending to torture me until the 2nd book is released. I think this is a good level of fantasy world intricacy where people new and old to fantasy can both enjoy reading. Any books that has me kicking and screaming and giggling and telling my roommates every thing that happens… 5/5⭐️ (i was unable to upload my review to amazon yet, but intend on posting it there as well)

At just under two months before publishing date, I finally finished the ARC of one of my anticipated reads for 2024! It was an unbelievable and unexpected surprise to be given an e-arc of this book.

My overall thoughts are mixed, but lean more positive than anything!

My previous experience with Danielle L Jensen’s writing was with The Bridge Kingdom, which I felt was middle of the road in terms of world development and I didn’t really connect to the characters or their motivations! I read the first book and then decided not to continue with the series, not for any real reason beyond having other books to finish.

THIS however, surprised me in such a good way. I feel like her writing improved from that series, and this world feels full. Full of details and lore and background that leave me feeling content to just exist in the world she’s built.

Character wise, Freya and Bjorn fit traditional romantasy / enemies to lovers / forced proximity tropes that a lot of readers will be familiar with. While Danielle doesn’t reinvent the wheel and do something unbelievably different, she does the tropes justice while adding in unique elements that I enjoyed.

Freya’s character again is not unlike an fmc we’re used to seeing, but she has qualities that enrich the experience of reading about her going through recognizable scenarios. Her trauma is not exploited for the sake of her development, and neither is it brought up unnecessarily as her story progresses. She has a little bit of chosen one syndrome, but I didn’t mind it at all.

Bjorn… he’s Bjorn. No, but really, he’s just a grumpy mmc who’s ‘chosen’ in his own way and much of his backstory is left up to question. His backstory does get brought up later as a way of driving the plot forward and setting up for book two. I don’t think he has that dynamic spark I’m looking for in a mmc, but there’s nothing about him that turned me off. I don’t really buy his early relationship with Freya, and for good reason, but I hope book two will achieve the development I’m looking for!

All in all, I’m giving it a 3.75, rounded up to 4 stars for the sake of this review. I’m eagerly anticipating picking up a physical copy on release day and after that ending, I’ll need to pick up the next book in the series too!!

Thanks again to Random House Publishing group, Del Ray, and Netgalley for the electronic arc in exchange for my honest review <3

It felt like reading Skyrim with some romance mixed in, which made me nostalgic and wanting to get back to my PS4! I enjoyed the Norse themes and the romance was decent too. I’ll definitely read the next one!

This was my first Danielle Jensen since The Bridge Kingdom (loved) and I'm so glad!

I love that this book has a strong female MC with unwanted powers and an unwanted marriage and an unwanted attraction to another, lol! It has the undead and gods and clan wars (think Viking-epic)!

Sometimes the pacing was a bit too slow for me, so I gave it a 3☆, but I had a good time reading it!

Thank you, Netgalley, for the advanced copy!

The premise of a Norse inspired romantasy had me immediately intrigued. While I could appreciate the hardships our FMC has suffered from the very start of the story, not a heck of a lot happened the first 75% of the book. I felt like the last 25% of the book totally saved it. I can see that the author has us completely set up for what promises to be an action packed book 2 full of twists, revelations, and possibly even more heartbreak. I’ll definitely be on the lookout for it.

I really enjoy the way Danielle L. Jensen writes her main female characters and Freya is no exception. There is a strength, confidence, and attitude that is so thrilling to read.

The world building and magic is heavily inspired by Norse mythology. While it was a bit confusing in the beginning, it was nicely fleshed out as the story progressed. The action started quickly and did not stop till the end. There was very little room to get bored or wonder where the story would go next. Bjorn was also a fun character to have along on this journey and his banter with Freya was top tier!

This was a fun take on the romantasy genre. If you enjoyed the author's Bridge Kindom series, you'll definitely enjoy A Fate Inked in Blood.

Rated 4 stars. Thank you Netgally for the ARC ebook.

A Fate Inked in Blood is a fast-paced book following Freya, the wife of a less than optimal fisherman, as she tries to write her own fate when she is being told that it has already been written. Freya is a powerful character whose story and personality leave you rooting for her through all of the hardship that she faces throughout the book. The story of war, love, betrayal, and the meddling of the Nordic gods has me craving the next book. The plot holds many twists and turns, some more predictable than others. Overall, the book was well written, captivating, and full of just the right amount of romance. This was my first time reading anything by this author and I can say I will definitely be reading more from her.

Thank you NetGalley and Del Rey for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

An absolute journey to read! The characters are so interesting and the storyline is overall captivating. From beginning to end, I couldn’t put the book down.

Danielle Jensen dives into a new fantasy sub genre with Nordic mythology in A Fate Inked in Blood. Following the story of Freya, a young woman in a terrible marriage, who finds out that she is the shield maiden who is meant to unite the nations of Skaland, but under the rule of a terrible and tyrannical king who only cares about power, and is then bound to marriage to the king after killing her husband. Freya is put under the care and protection of the king’s son Bjorn, where a forbidden romance blossoms.

As Freya struggles with her destiny and her feelings, she learns about her powers along the way and makes decisions that puts herself in danger in order to save innocent people.

I’m a personal fan of Danielle Jensen’s books but this one fell short for me. The romance did not feel natural to me. Nor could I connect very well with the characters. The language used kept jumping from old to modern English, and throwing in some modern slang that felt out of place. So there were inconsistencies that kept taking me out of the story. I personally love Norse myth, but conversations and dialogue in this story took me out of the plot and storyline constantly, especially with spice scenes added that felt incredibly out of place and unnatural based on settings and conversations. And I found myself setting this book down multiple times. I do believe the storyline has promise, and I will be picking up the second book, but I think Danielle Jensen does better with politically driven books with a subplot of romance rather than focusing so much on adding spice in the book.

If you love Norse mythology, politics, forbidden love, tension and banter, and meddling gods then you are going to LOVE A Fate Inked in Blood!

Skaland is a place where Gods can grant you a drop of their blood and give you incredible power. But due to a prophecy, Freya has spent her entire life hiding her power… until one day she’s found out and everything changes.

But the children of the gods are considered unfated, so does that mean the prophecy will come to pass or will Freya get to write her own story?

“You’re mine, Born-in-Fire. And I’m yours, even if only the two of us know it.”

The forbidden love in this book is JUICY. There’s so much tension, humor, and banter. This was straight up like the literary form of edging, it was just fantastically done.

I could not put this book down. I absolutely had to finish it and I’m saying it now, this is going to be one of the best releases of 2024.

Thank you Random House and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review!

The book follows the story of Freya, a young woman trapped in an unwanted marriage and longing for a life of adventure and freedom. Her dreams become a reality when she is betrayed by her husband and forced to fight for her life against his son, Bjorn. In a surprising turn of events, Freya reveals her secret - she possesses a drop of a goddess's blood which gives her extraordinary powers as a shield maiden.

As the story progresses, Freya is bound by a blood oath to the jarl and must navigate dangerous tests set by the gods while also trying to control her newfound powers. But the greatest challenge she faces is her growing attraction to Bjorn, who has been tasked with protecting her. Their forbidden love could have dire consequences not only for themselves but for the fate of the entire nation.

The world-building in this book is phenomenal. Jensen has created a rich and vivid world of Norse mythology, with intricate details and descriptions that transport the reader into the story. I found myself fully immersed in the culture and beliefs of the Skaland people, and the political tensions and power struggles added an extra layer of intrigue to the plot.

Freya is a strong and determined protagonist, determined to prove herself and break free from the constraints of her gender. Her journey of self-discovery and growth as a warrior and a leader was compelling to read. And her dynamic with Bjorn, who starts off as her enemy but becomes her ally, is filled with tension and passion that kept me on the edge of my seat.

I also appreciated the themes of loyalty, sacrifice, and the consequences of power that were woven into the story. It added depth to the characters and made their struggles and choices feel more real and relatable.

Overall, A Fate Inked in Blood is a thrilling tale of love, magic, and destiny. I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys fantasy, mythology, and strong female characters.

This is a book I have been wanting to read for a while, as I have greatly enjoyed the author's other bodies of work. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC which does not influence my review of the text.

The hook is placed and set within the first page. Freya is a spitfire.
 
The story is about a young fishwife named Freya who, unbeknownst to her, has a drop of gods blood in her veins. Her blood is that of the goddess Hlin who was a shield-maiden, and whose power is protection. But there is also a second gods blood in Freya, and this god is one of death and destruction. When her powers manifest, she is married off to a Jarl old enough to be her father who was once told a prophesy about a shield-maiden who would have the power to make a King of the one who controls her fate. The prophesy does not specify him, but he takes Freya as his second wife as a means to try and control her destiny. Immediately other Jarls seek to claim or kill her by attacking her home and people. She begins to fall for the Jarl's strong and handsome son Bjorn who is also a child of the gods, and whose fate is bound to hers.

The premise is intriguing. The opening and first 75% of the book laid a good groundwork for Freya's journey, but it kind of fell apart for me at the end. She becomes less logical and more action based which makes it feel like her reasoning is bouncing all over the place, and therefore the story is bouncing all over the place. This may be intentional, because the longer she uses her god powers, the more she feels like she is not herself: the gods are literally talking in her mind and influencing her actions. As this is not the end of the story (not sure how many books this series will be), I assume that in the next book she will learn to better control her actions, or she will succumb to them and act as a tool for the gods.


This story puts a lot of emphasis on the threads of fate, but the threads of fate theory is a bit confusing. It is said that all people are controlled by fate, as their stories are already written. But the children of gods are unfated, and therefore have the power to weave their own threads and change their fates. I suppose this confuses me because you have to believe in fates in order to change your fate, but no one knows what their fate is, so there is no way of knowing if you are changing your fate, or walking the path that fate has laid before your feet. See? It's confusing.

Overall, I really liked this book. I enjoyed Freya and Bjorn's relationship and I want to see where it goes.

Freya is married to a man who disgusts her, living a life that leaves her hungry for more. Thanks to her nasty husband, she finds herself in a fight to the death that forces her to reveal her biggest secret.

I enjoyed this book so much. The banter between the two main characters was top-notch. The slow-burn romance was epic. It also has a plot entirely outside of the romance, which I enjoy.

While I really enjoyed the premise and overall storyline of this novel, the writing style felt very different from other works by this author. The world building was good, and the lore was really interesting but I felt like the characters were inconsistent and not fully developed. The pace of the story also felt very off. It had a strong start but then they kind of stayed and did one thing. The relationships between Freya and her family didn’t feel strong enough for them to warrant her reaction to threats against them, and her relationship with Bjorn was a little too fast as well. I think the story has a lot of promise but I hope the author spends more time developing the characters their relationships to justify their actions to match the story. Looking forward to the second one, but hoping for some better dialogue and stronger relationships.

I received an eARC through NetGalley, Random House Pubo, and Del Rey
🛡️
Review: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/🌶️
Holy smokes, this book was so good.

This is a Norse-Inspired mythology complete with mentions of Odin, Thor, Loki, and gods who bless humans with a drop of their blood. They are the unfated. Gifted with the power of the gods who blessed them, but not even the Norns know their fate.

Freya is a fishmonger’s wife who wants to be a warrior. The opportunity presents itself for her to proof her skill in battle, but it is a battle to the death against Fire-Hand, the Jarl’s heir, who wields a fiery ax from the god of war. Ultimately she reveals her own power. And now she must fight the fate that was prophesied. But can she alter the prophecy and choose her own fate?
🛡️
This is an amazing story filled with Norse mythology, “Viking” clans, power struggles to become King, prophecy, fates, power of the gods, sacrifices to the gods, battles, and betrayal.

It is also filled with bickering, banter, alliances, un-questionable desire, and heartbreak.
🛡️
The pacing is great. It’s non-stop action with twists and turns.

The last few chapters had me 👀staying up until the wee hours in order to finish.

This is like Thor meets Vikings meets LOTR.

I loved everything about it and can’t wait for the next book to be release

A woman married to a god is challenged to fight to the death to become a warrior, but it’s all a clever ruse to have her reveal her secret powers—she is the shield maiden! Now she is destined to marry a king and help win the war. Overall, the story just didn’t reel me in and capture my attention. The main plot focuses on the drama of her first marriage being terrible, making crude sex jokes and then ultimately throwing an axe at him. That part was epic, not going to lie. Then, the drama of having to marry another man who already has a first wife. The dialogue feels forced and unrealistic for the setting and period. There is action, but the writing lacks eloquence to truly bring the excitement to its full potential. The pacing was slow with unnecessary detail. If I were going to recommend, I would recommend to a New Adult audience who doesn’t mind the basic writing skills and who enjoys more drama.

Okay I need more Norse fantasy books in my life. I loved Freya as our main character and I love Bjorn as our main love interest. It's common in books for characters to act as though they can't be together and the reason makes no sense but this book is maybe the first time where it makes sense and it's makes the tension very high. I loved it. Also the ending!!! I did not see that coming at all!

4.5 stars

I took off 0.5 a star because this was marketed as a romance, and I did not feel like it had a happily ever which is supposed to be guaranteed in a romance book. Jensen creates a rich world set in Skaland where if you are born with a drop of a god's blood, you are granted powers. The person has to speak the name of the god in order to activate their powers. Freya has to hide the fact that she is a child of Hiln to protect herself and her family. When her husband betrays her to Jarl Snorri, she has to activate her powers for the first time to survive a fight to the death with Bjorn, Snorri's son. Freya feels a growing attraction to Bjorn, but she knows that she cannot safely act on her feelings. Freya finds herself being used by the men in her life to fulfill a prophecy that was foretold about the daughter of Hiln. Will she be able to make her own fate?

I thought the slow burn in this book was a bit too slow, but I guess it makes sense for the characters. I imagine Jensen had to set the stage for the next book in the Saga of the Unfated series. I really enjoyed the character development of Freya and Bjorn. I dislike cliffhanger endings, and I felt like it was a cop-out. I enjoyed the world building and the Norse-inspired characters. If you loved the historical setting and romance in the television shows Vikings or The Last Kingdom, you will enjoy this book. Fans of Fourth Wing and other romantasy books will not want to miss this slow burn and enemies-to-lovers story.

Content: violence, sex, death

Thank you to Random House Worlds Publishing and NetGalley for an eARC of A Fate Inked in Blood in exchange for my honest review.

A Fate Inked in Blood is a Norse-inspired fantasy with a large romantic plot, dealing with themes of loyalty, fate, independence, and good versus evil. I enjoyed how Jensen was able to create a Chosen One plot point that felt fresh and interesting and the overall pacing of the story was great! I found myself wanting to read nonstop. Overall, I was pleased with my reading experience.

I have a few remarks concerning some parts of the story that would have benefited from more development. Freya's character revolves around ambitions to protect her family and follow a path of good that will protect her people of Skaland. I wished that her character had more motivations for development, as at times it felt like most of her choices were made from on impulse and emotions--she never really thought ahead on much. In fact, Freya's emotions constantly bowled her over at every turn; she was either engulfed in rage or weeping in despair or, way too often, v*miting for some reason. I kind of got a little annoyed with her at times, wanting her to just take a breath some times. She was also constantly at odds with most of the other characters, and it felt isolating and unhealthy that Bjorn, the love interest, was her only ally and person she favored 90% of the time, as Freya was hyper critical of everyone else. Going in hand with that, there is a lot of showing and then telling in this story, articulating every single emotion or motivation of characters and then having those characters voice what we were just shown, which lent itself to a feeling of redundancy. These are just some things I noticed and did not deter me from enjoying the story.

I'm definitely going to continue the tale in the next installment and look forward to seeing where Freya's story takes her. I think that the characters and the story will only grow stronger from here and I can't wait to see how everything develops.

A Fate Inked in Blood is an action-packed fantasy romance that's sure to satisfy readers of the genre. The main male character, Bjorn, is dreamy and complex, and Freya, our female lead, is brave, smart, and willing to do whatever it takes to help her family. The world-building is great, with clashing villages, gods, fate, destiny and magic woven throughout. This was a lot of fun to read, although Freya makes some questionable choices that had us shaking our heads. The action was well done, and the spicy scenes were excellent--plus, that ending! Can't wait to read the next book to see where the story goes.