The Digital Renaissance: Review: Northern Wrath

Tuesday, July 5, 2022

Review: Northern Wrath

Northern Wrath by Thilde Kold Holdt
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was an epic norse tragedy with fantastic world building based upon norse mythology and culture that was so well researched it felt as if it could have come straight out of the Eddas (without the feeling English was not the primary langauge of the story teller). Just as important, than author appears to know just how much to change to much the world hers while at the same time keeping it familiar to anyone who has had any exposure to norse culture. Within this walk well developed characters that I can understand and even identify with (including some of the minor villians ... such a Finn. In fact, I was so invested in these characters, I was a caught a little off guard at the end: a few plot points remain open (that I assume with tie into the sequels) and, of course, it is a tragedy ... which considering the style should not have surprised me as much as it did. Thinking back on the story, I had the same reaction to the "Eaters of the Dead" by Michael Crichton ... and so they author joins a somewhat exclusive club as having provided me with one of my favorite stories. Highly recommended - looking forward to the next story.

I was given this free advance reader's copy (ARC) ebook at my request and have voluntarily left this review. #NorthernWrath #NetGalley

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My Ratings Explained ...

[ ***** ] Amazing Read - Perfect story, exciting, engrossing, well developed complex characters, solid plot with few to no holes, descriptive environments and place settings, great mystery elements, realistic dialogue, believable reactions and behaviors; a favorite that I can re-read many times.
[ **** ] Great Read - Highly entertaining and enjoyable, exciting storyline, well developed characters and settings, a few discrepancies but nothing that can’t be overlooked. Some aspect of the story was new/refreshing to me and/or intriguing. Recommended for everyone.
[ *** ] Good Read - Solid story with a 'good' ending, or has some other redeeming feature. Limited character development and/or over reliance on tropes. Noticeable discrepancies in world building and/or dialog/behavior that were distracting. I connected enough with the characters/world to read the entire series. Most of the books I read for fun are here. Recommended for fans of the genre.
[ ** ] Okay Read - Suitable for a brief, afternoon escape … flat or shallow characters with little to no development. Over the top character dialog and/or behavior. Poor world building with significant issues and/or mistakes indicating poor research. Excessive use of trivial detail, info dumps and/or pontification. Any issues with the story/characters are offset by some other aspect that I enjoyed. Not very memorable. May only appeal to a niche group of readers. Recommended for some (YMMV).
[ * ] Bad Read - Awkward and/or confusing writing style. Poor world building and/or unbelievable (or unlikeable) characters. Victimization, gaslighting, blatant abuse, unnecessary violence, child endangerment, or any other highly objectionable behaviors by Main characters. I didn't connect with the story at all; significant aspects of this story irritated me enough that I struggled to finished it. Series was abandoned. Not recommended.