Everything I had hoped it would be, this fantasy romance of Norse inspiration, captivated me from the start. Freya, the main character, was easy to root for but morally complex, adding depth to this captivating read. Norse mythology heavily influences this fantasy, not just the world-building but also the storyline that derives from Norse history. The magic system, an intriguing aspect of this book, revolves around individuals inheriting powers based on the God they have a drop of blood from. Among these chosen ones is our protagonist, Freya, who possesses a drop of Goddess blood.
Thank Net Galley for an opportunity for an honest review

3.5⭐️ rounded up to 4!

First, let me start off by saying this is a stunning cover! Danielle Jensen always nails it with her cover art! I love the OG Bridge Kingdom ones as well.

Speaking of The Bridge Kingdom, I truly loved those books and I believe that may be what contributed to some of my issues with A Fate Inked in Blood. I kept comparing it to BK in my head even though they are so different.

A Fate Inked in Blood is a Norse inspired story about Freya, a fishmongers wife who aspires to be a warrior.

In this world, certain people are blessed with the powers of certain Norse gods and it is foretold that the shield maiden will help unite everyone under one King.

I loved the idea and execution of the shield maiden and thought her powers were unique. Who doesn’t love Norse mythology? Having some of the lesser gods be “present” in this book was refreshing.

However, my primary issue with this book is the romance. I was hoping for more of a slow burn but this did feel pretty insta lusty/insta lovey.

The ending was also fairly predictable, but like others have said, this happens often when reading many books in the same genre.

I also want to point out that there was quite the overuse of Freya vomiting or feeling nauseous 😅

This was still a good book and I’m glad I read it, I just don’t think it will surpass The Bridge Kingdom for me.

Thank you Random House Publishing, Del Rey and Netgalley for this ARC.

Freya is a shield maiden, blessed by the goddess Hlin with an unbreakable shield, but her mother, scared of Freya’s power, married her off to a cruel fisherman. One day, her brothers war band comes through town and she is discovered as the prophesied shield maiden who will unite the country and is taken to be the bride of their leader. Bjorn, the son of the war tribe’s leader, is asked to be her guardian on the journey to unite the lands, but he is also blessed by a god of fire, and guards nothing more closely than his own secrets. Freya and Bjorn are unfated like all the god-born, and must fight to change the fate that has been laid out for them by the seers.

Initially when I heard about this book, the content creator had said it would be the next “ACOTAR” or “fourth wing”. Don’t get me wrong, I love the bridge kingdom, but it’s never really been on that same level of popularity. I get it now. This book was everything. We don’t get nearly enough Viking/norse mythology inspired stories and this was just incredible and I could not put it down.

A Fate Inked in Blood is the start of a new fantasy series that is sure to thrill fans of SJM. The story is interesting, characters are likable, and the pacing is good for the most part. There is spice, but it doesn’t feel gratuitous and the slow burn is very good.

Some plot points felt predictable but that can be said of any book if you read enough of the same genre. There are also a couple of minor plot holes, but maybe I just missed their resolutions when I was reading. I’m really interested to see where this saga goes and I’d recommend this to anyone that enjoys adult fantasy.

It gets 4/5 from me. Thank you for the opportunity to read and review this title. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

What a ride! Norse mythology + strong FMC + spicy romance … count me satisfied.

Freya’s story takes off quickly within the first few chapters, and the pace continues from there. Torn between her emotions, what’s best for her homeland, and protecting her family - the stakes are high for Freya and those around her.

Jensen is a skilled writer when it comes to romantic tension and banter. She does a great job balancing spice and storytelling so it doesn’t overtake the plot.

Read if you like:
🛡️Forbidden romance
🛡️Slow burn
🛡️One Horse
🛡️Bodyguard
🛡️Norse Mythology/Vikings

I am anxiously awaiting the second book, especially with that ending! 👀

Thank you NetGalley and Del Rey Books for the ARC. Opinions are my own.

Posted on Goodreads: I enjoyed the pace and world building of this book, especially all the references to the Norse gods. I wanted to like Freya more but found her anger a little tired. However I am excited to see her growth in the series.

I saw this book recommended on BookTok and was immediately drawn in by the gorgeous cover art and description. The main character Freya was gifted a drop of the shield goddess Hlin's blood when she was conceived. She grew up hiding her magic because it was foretold in a prophecy that she would be used as a weapon to help make a single king ruler of all the people in Skaland. She went from one loveless marriage to another after an altercation occurred and her true identity was revealed, forcing her to be bound to a jarl who believes he's the king that was prophesied. Throughout the book she puts the wants and needs of others before her own, including resisting the attraction she feels for her new husband's son, who possesses a drop of Tyr's blood and is ordered to protect her. If you like Norse mythology, strong female leads, and forbidden romance, then you will enjoy this book.

I really wanted to love this book, but I just couldn’t. I’m somewhat of a fan of her Bridge Kingdom series (which I admit isn’t super high-brow, but it’s entertaining and easily readable). My expectations were I think fairly low for this, and yet I was still disappointed. It follows Freya, who has the blood of a god, and is the prophetic “shield maiden”.

If there’s one thing I hate more than anything in fantasy novels, it’s insta-love (or in this case, insta-lust). I’m pretty sure by page ten they were already eye-fucking each other, and the book lost me from there (which is a shame, because the opening few pages were very intriguing! I was excited!).

Even though I hated that, I still tried to keep an open mind, but I just didn’t find a lot in this story to really bring me in. Unlike her previous series (where it’s a complete fantasy world), this world has Norse gods and is grounded (somewhat) in actual history and mythology—and I think the book suffered because of it. With her earlier work, it was easy to overlook the minimal world building because it was something new and exciting. But because everyone has a passing familiarity with Norse mythology, it became very clear very quick to me that her world-building was lackluster. Name dropping a god’s name here and there, or mentioning runes, doesn’t really make for strong descriptions.

The mediocre world, combined with my general dislike of the main characters’ relationship (for the most part), made this mildly enjoyable at best. I still think her writing style is highly readable, but this was not my favorite work.

Freya is just a normal woman married to a fisherman, or so she seems. She is more than meets the eye with having abilities given by one of the Gods. Throughout the story we follow Freya on a journey to discover what her fate is and what her land is truly standing for. One thing I would say about the book is that it took a while for me to get into. There was a lot of world building, which is completely expected with fantasy, but I felt a little lost with her journey. Again I really enjoyed it but it took me longer to get through. I do like the relationship that Feyra and Bjorn built together and the change of events towards the end when Bjorn really showed who her truly was.
There was definitely heart break in the story, I do feel like if we had more about Bodil that her death would have hit harder. I can't wait to read the second book though because I want to learn more about the Gods and what they have in store for Freya's future.

I blew through this in one sitting and it was a very satisfying way to spend my day off. I LOVE Norse mythology so I was so excited to read this. I loved the magic system, the idea of people being chosen by a god and blessed with their gifts from birth. The setting was great, it's Vikings so what more can you really ask for?

I think the romance was great, for the most part. I loved the scenes at the end of the book before... But Freya and Bjorn had chemistry I guess you could say from the very beginning. Not truly insta-love or anything, more like insta-lust. The attraction is pretty out in the open from the start, which I feel like makes it a little bit less of a satisfying slow burn for me and maybe takes away some depth from the romance. Bjorn is also supposed to be like this god and a ladies man but his character never fit the narrative (aside from people talking about it). I also really struggled with character motivations. Several characters throughout the book do and say things that really don't make the most sense/ I can't theorize a reason for. Like, why?

This was still really fun and I am definitely interested in continuing Freya's story. There are plenty of good action scenes, some sprinkles of feminine rage, and it gets bloody, as any Norse inspired story should. And the ending, predictable or not, is definitely enough to have you outside Danielle Jensen's house begging for book 2.

This book had fantasy, romance, magic, fighting, and Norse lore. I liked the characters, they were flawed and interesting. I felt the story had good pacing, questions were answered quickly and parceled out. The ending wasn’t a dump of information and then a sudden ending. Even if some parts of the ending was foreshadowed it was written well enough that I was satisfied.

This was a good read! Freya had me hooked from the beginning of the story. The pacing is great for the majority of the book, the plot easily moves along with plenty of action and tension between Freya and Bjorn. I was a little tired of Freya's hesitation to choose her path towards the end of the book, but the ending had a nice twist that will have me on the lookout for the sequel.

Fantasy, mythology, norsemen, and historical fiction all rolled into one makes for an exciting read. There was never a dull moment in this book despite its longer length!

I (incorrectly) assumed by the cover and author that this was a YA book but it is actually an adult genre has a fair amount of swearing and spice. So keep that in mind if you're sensitive to it.

It's also the first in a series and ends on a cliffhanger. I think fans of Fourth Wing or Thone of Glass will probably enjoy this

I honestly loved this book. From the very first couple chapters I was 100% invested in Freya and her journey. I immediately hated her entire family. I liked Bjorn from early on and only grew to enjoy his character more as the story unfolded. The story was easy to read and yet very compelling. It was fast paced and had me thinking about it when I had to put it down. The magic system reminded me of several other books but the blood tattoos gave it a new twist. I would definitely like to read the sequel.

4.5 ⭐️

Oh WOW! This book was fantastic. The world building, magic systems, and lore was amazing. I can't wait for the masses to read this book. This is definitely one of my top 5 fantasy romances I have read.

Loved the Norse Viking inspired story. Danielle Jensen writes banter, tension, and romance so well. This is the first book in her new duet and I am excited for the next book.

Tropes:
- Forced Proximity
- Norse Gods/ Viking Inspired
- Bodyguard
- One Horse
- Forbidden Romance
- SLOOOWW BURN - AHHH the Tension

I have already preordered this book and I can't wait to get it on my shelf.

First i want to say thank you to Danielle Jensen, Random House Publishing, and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this as an ARC ebook!!

OK WOW. I went into this not sure what to expect but I ended up loving it. Normally I don’t like such fast paced books but I think Jensen did it really well. Freya and Bjorn seriously have the best banter. I was kicking my feet and giggling for half the book. I liked the Norse mythology & magic systems. It wasn’t over complicated but still made the plot interesting. The ending was extremely predictable which is the only thing I disliked about it. I’m looking forward to the next book!

Absolutely amazing romantasy read! The spice was so good too, which is super important to me. I will definitely be reccomending this one on booktok. I see it being a very popular book when it's released with the romantasy girlies.

Thoroughly enjoyed this book! It was so good. I am not normally a forbidden romance fan. However, this was so beautifully played out. I loved the character of Freya and her strength, care, and fire. It was beautiful to watch as her character developed. I enjoyed being immersed in this world. The only complaint I have is that I have no idea when I will be able to read the next one...

I absolutely loved this! The beginning was a little slow for me but i loved the character building and the mysterious aspect to this romance. i also liked that it gave off similar vibes to the tv show the vikings

Thank you net galley and the author for my ARC!
I loved that the main character and love interest had immediate chemistry between them. Easy world building made it easy to could immediately be interested in the story line and not learning about this new world you are placed it. Gives me Viking vibes. The action begins almost immediately and keeps happening through out the book. I somewhat caught on to the plot twist towards the end of the book but was still upset to learn what happened. The book ended on a cliff hanger and I am looking forward to reading the next one!