ARC REVIEW Ragnarok Unwound by Kristin Jacques

An Urban Fantasy where all the pantheons of Gods exist. Ikepele Ives lives with her best friend and tries to ignore the power flowing under her finger tips. Her mother left her with her father and with no knowledge how to control her power. Until one night she has only once tried to use her powers and it didn't work very well now she has a young Valkyrie asking for her help if not then the end of days for the Norse pantheon is coming. Even though Ragnarok is a prophesied event Hildr, the Valkyrie is telling her otherwise and she needs Ives powers to untangle fate and stop Ragnarok. Together with her best friend Jules she sets off with Hildr to find Loki.

They met his daughter Hel and then Fenrir and Jormungand, who like their father have the ability to shapeshift. With each of them the ties that bind them to Ragnarok get stronger and the more energy she needs that her mortal body can barely contain. By the time she finds Loki, who has escaped from his prison, he is so entwined in Fate's threads she almost kills herself to separate him from Fate's thread. Meanwhile Hel, Fenrir, Jormungand, Hildr, and Jules are fighting off the Frost Giants. Back on Ives home island of Hawaii her father and, unbeknownst to Ives, her Great Aunt the Goddess Pele are fighting off the giants as well.

Overall, it was a fantastic story. I love mythology retold stories and I really enjoyed this version of Loki and his giant children. I love how Pele was thrown in the mix too, as a lover of geology and if I had been smarter I would have gone into volcanology; Pele was the first Hawaiian God I had ever heard of, years ago. I loved all the characters. Ives is a strong female protagonist who is at first trying to avoid her own fate but is thrown into it without warning or a choice. Ives also learns everything her father never told her about her mother. There is a hint of romance for future books but mostly it's character driven and story strong. I love the idea of a Fate Cipher a woman who untangles fate when it gets a little to fubar. I really hope there are going to be more.     

ARC REVIEW Warrior Nights by Sheryl Nantus

 Odin's Bastards #2, I love Norse Mythology so the idea of Valkyries really appealed to me. The first half of the book was slow getting to the point, it establishes Liam and Kara's relationship past and present while Kara tries to remember who she is but other than that nothing much happens. The second half of the book picks up it has lots of action, suspense everything is revealed and  it has a really nice ending.

Liam was a paid assassin until he had his come to Jesus moment after that he dropped everything, gave all his blood money away and started his life over determined to make up for his past misdeeds. Liam found himself in a quaint little mountain town he became a jack of all trades and became Jack. One dark and stormy night that all changed, Kara shows up on his doorstep. If you have read the first book you can guess why Kara is all alone with no memory and only brief glimpses of a man she once knew, for the rest of us newbs we don't figure it out until much later.

Kara and Liam met a year ago and spent a week together, one long sex capade. Liam worked hard to cover his tracks and is at first leery when Kara shows up, but that soon changes to desire and they both give. Together they work in peace for a while until the group Liam use to work with shows up now Liam and Kara have to protect the town from them and brave a snow storm.

Overall despite the really slow beginning it ended well and the characters were great. This can be read as a stand alone, thankfully. The narrative was intriguing; the slow beginning was mysterious I wanted to find out what had happened. I am glad I didn't give up because the ending really paid off. I liked the build up of the relationship between Kara and Liam because you see that it's more than the physical attraction; they give into it fairly quickly but they also connect on a deeper level they trust each other and genuinely like each other despite their pasts and will stand by each other through thick and thin.   

ARC REVIEW The Unyielding by Shelly Laurenston

Book three of Shelly Laurenston's The Call of Crow series, The Unyielding surprised the fuck out of me. Erin in the previous books was a pain in that ass, annoying and it just made you think, what the fuck is wrong with her! Well this one explains it, kind of, it really helps with understanding how her brain works and honestly as the main characters she's not as annoying as she was a side character. Half way through the book I started to view as her as a Harley Quinn  type character, crazy as fuck but everyone still love her (but with way more of a temper and a non-existent fuse). Steig is the strong silent type, my favorite, a difficult and tough childhood but ultimately a viking through and through. His rough demeanor gives him a very intimidating look and a don't fuck with me attitude but really the guy has a soft spot for animals, just ask Hilda the goat. Erin is oblivious enough to not notice his feelings for her or even her feelings for him for that matter.  

This book was wow, it was a rollercoaster ride from the start. So much happens I couldn't even possibly begin to try and sum it up in a couple of paragraphs without rambling on and giving away the whole book. It can work as a stand-alone but I really wouldn't recommend it to much of what has happened is important. But the journey up until now has been been fighting to prevent Ragnarok, too late, and now all the other faiths are telling them, "It's your fuck up you fix it". Everyone has been working to find out how to stop Gullveig, and after all their research they discovered only one way to do it and only one of them can do it, the craziest of them all Erin. Meanwhile Erin has a theory on who the high priestess for Gullveig is and with the help of an unlikely partner, the Raven Stieg. Stieg found Erin attractive from the beginning but her abrasive personality was off-putting. But trouble seems to find Erin no matter where she goes and Steig is determined to stick close by and protect her from her enemies and from herself. It's up to them to save the world.

Overall, Outstanding! my favorite so far.

ARC REVIEW The Undoing by Shelly Laurenston

Book two of the series Call of Crows The Undoing was entertaining. Once again I love Norse mythology, basing it an Urban Fantasy on my favorite mythos of course I'm going to read it. Like the first book I loved the storyline, thankfully the characters were not as annoying as in the first, I think in part that I just understood them better. What got me this time, it touched a little in the first book but more so in this one, the personalities and representation of the Gods. Odin cut out his own eye to gain knowledge, and wandered the Earth in search of knowledge, I have a hard time believing he would pick strippers as his valkyries. Tyr and Odin both share the mantle of God of War ( like father like son) and Try is known for courage and wisdom he doesn't act like it. And while I will agree Marvel's Thor is a complete idiot there are stories in the Edda that show he was very cunning. With books that use mythology as a base I have to constantly remind myself that I have to allow for artistic license because it is a work of fiction and sometimes you have to tweak reality to make a better story.

Jace Berisha is probably the black sheep of all the crow sisters. Where everyone else is rambunctious, loud, and just all out drama queens you will more than likely find Jace hiding under the house reading a very dark and depressing book. When she was alive she was the rebellious wife of a sick and twisted cult leader with illusions of grandeur. He killed her and when she asked to choose death or crow by Skuld, Jace choose crow and in turn almost killed her husband, it's a shame she didn't succeed. In her new life Jace swore never to have to live like she use to so she avoids anything social unless she absolutely has too. It is suggested that Jace find a job and do something with her second chance and with her affinity with languages she takes a job translating books for Tyr's Owls. She fits right in with the quietly fierce book snobs. Ski Eriksen is the Protector for the owls. He is the one who offered the job to Jace knowing her affinity and also kinda having a crush on her. Jace is oblivious to Ski's interest until he plainly states it, from then on it a smooth romance for them. They are like two peas in pod.

The conflict, very exciting more brutal human sacrifices and it turns out the unkillable goddess wasn't dealt with like they thought in the last book she is out and on the loose ready to kick off Ragnarok.   The other pantheons (like super ninja nuns and the four horsemen of the apocalypse) tell the crows deal with it before it sets off a chain reaction to all of the other apocalypses. To top it all off Jace's religous nut of an ex is out of jail and is set on getting her back but what he finds at the Crow's House has given him the idea to cleanse them from this world and "attempts" to kill them all (LOL).

All in all setting aside my feelings for how the gods are portrayed I really did like this book. It had great humorous moments and great action and fight sequences and a really sweet romance.  

ARC REVIEW The Unleashing by Shelly Laurenston

Nothing calls to me like saying a Norse Mythology inspired PNR. But this first book in Shelly Lauenston's newest series Call of Crows was just ok, don't get me wrong I want more I will read the next books in the series it's just some of the characters rubbed me the wrong way. I think that's what influenced my opinion; throughout the book they did things that irked me, by the end of the book it was better. I loved the the storyline it was nice as Kera was discovering everything about her new life the more you learned as well. I like where the story is going this book ended but the story arc is open for more books, and I'm hoping that when the character I don't like gets her book it sheds a different light on her and I end up liking her.

Kera Watson died, she survived over seas fighting a war in the middle east only to die in an alley by some thug beating his girlfriend. Next thing she knows she's naked in a strange house fighting so weird berserker guys with an obscene amount of strength and an abnormal amount of strength herself. Unfortunately her new life isn't self explanatory and neither are her new "sisters". The only one forthcoming about any information at all is Vig. The strong Viking, follower of Odin, one of his Ravens; Vig has had a crush on Kera ever since he first saw her at the coffee shop and when he saw her dying in the alley he called on the only one who could help. Now he is the only one helping her figure things out and she just may be the whole changes everything for the Crows.

Overall it was good, the beginning is confusing because none of the other Crows are very confiding it takes awhile for Kera and you to figure things out but it almost pays off in the end. I love Vig and I love the concept I am eager to find out where this goes.