Loki Unbound is the fifth book in the Wolves of Odin series. I've read book 2, but none of the others. It took me a little while to get back into the characters, but more than anything, it's because Hardrada was such an important character in book 2, and he's not in this one:) Once I realised this, I worked out what was happening.

This book takes us to Jorvik and Swaledale, north of Jorvik, where our cast of warriors and seeresses are faced with a seemingly impossible task: reclaiming a lost mining area from the local Viking. The Viking has built some fairly impenetrable defences and has a warrior of immense renown amongst his warriors and his own seeress. But Halfdan, Gunnhild, and Bjorn are not to be stopped in their attempts to aid the bishop of Jorvik and, in exchange, gain something they really want as they work towards facing their own enemies in the Scandinavian lands.

Told from the viewpoint of our main characters and with some retrospective story elements concerning Bjorn, which worked really well, this is an engrossing tale of the time that I thoroughly enjoyed. I will have to go back and read the stories I've missed in this series.

SJA Turney is an author I trust to tell me an excellent story, be it Roman or Viking, and he didn't disappoint.

My thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for my review copy.

Simon Turney continues his Wolves of Odin series in book five of six, following the quest of Halfdan Loki-born. After the Wolves’ escape from France with Aelfric, Archbishop of York, they journey to England and are tasked with removing the Norseman Gunnar from Swaledale, an area rich with lead that the archbishop wants to mine for his own profit. This means taking out Gunnar, his powerful Völva, Hrafn, and his giant berserker, Arkil. From the beginning of their journey (Blood Feud) Halfdan has been trying to kill Hjalmvigi, the wicked priest who constantly eludes him, so Archbishop Aelfric’s promise to have him excommunicated is the only thing which binds the Wolves to comply with the machinations of the nailed-God’s representative.
I am gripped by this series, which can be graphic and dark, but if there’s one thing Turney can do, it’s tell a brilliant story, and he always has a masterful grip on his narrative, relying as much as possible on historical places. The series sinks its hooks in fast -- think Cornwell’s Last Kingdom, Gilman’s Master of War, Kristian’s Raven. The novel can stand alone, but just for the non-stop adventure I recommend reading the books in order. Outstanding Viking historical fiction!

Action packed, adventorous, fast paced: a well researched and gripping historical fiction I thoroughly enjoyed
Highly recommended
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine