Book Review: A Fate Inked in Blood

I love Danielle L. Jensen’s The Bridge Kingdom series so I’ve been excited for her new viking fantasy series since I heard about it last year – A Fate Inked in Blood. I finished it yesterday and loved it.

The novel follows Freya, a young woman who is married to a fishmonger due to an arranged marriage. In this world, some people have powers if they have a drop of blood from the Gods such as Thor. Freya has spent her life hiding the fact that she has powers, because her father said it wasn’t safe to reveal. When Snorri, the jarl for their region arrives he learns of Freya’s power when she slips up. She is a shield maiden and has the magic capable of repelling any attack. Snorri was told years ago by a seer that if he married the shield maiden their fractured nation of Skaland would be united and he would become king. Freya goes with him to protect her family. The problem? She has to marry a jarl old enough to be her father (and he’s also married) and his son, Bjorn, has been tasked with protecting her and they are attracted to one another.

I loved this storyline and the characters although Freya did get on my nerves just a little at times. I’m not super familiar with norse mythology, but found this book really engaging and easy to follow! The world is so interesting, but it’s still easy enough to follow for beginner fantasy readers.

As mentioned above, I loved all the characters and I spent all my reading time trying to figure out who was truly trustworthy and who wasn’t. Freya is a great character and so smart and strong willed, but flawed which makes her relatable. And Bjorn is seriously swoon worthy. I can’t wait to see what happens next in the series!

Read this if you want a spicy slow burn, norse/viking fantasy romance with the slow burn and forbidden romance tropes.

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