A Fate Inked in Blood - bookrastinating.com

U.S. hardcover, first edition, metallic edges, 418 pages

English language

Published 2024 by Del Rey New York (Penguin Random House LLC).

ISBN:: 978-0-593-59983-9

(3 reviews)

Bound in an unwanted marriage, Freya spends her days gutting fish but dreams of becoming a warrior. And of putting an axe in her boorish husband’s back.

Freya’s dreams abruptly become reality when her husband betrays her to the region’s jarl, landing her in a fight to the death against his son, Bjorn. To survive, Freya is forced to reveal her deepest secret: She possesses a drop of a goddess’s blood, which makes her a shield maiden with magic capable of repelling any attack. And it’s been foretold that such magic will unite the fractured nation of Skaland beneath the one who controls the shield maiden’s fate.

Believing he’s destined to rule Skaland as king, the fanatical jarl binds Freya with a blood oath and orders Bjorn to protect her from their enemies. Desperate to prove her strength, Freya must train to fight and learn to control her magic, all …

Bound in an unwanted marriage, Freya spends her days gutting fish but dreams of becoming a warrior. And of putting an axe in her boorish husband’s back.

Freya’s dreams abruptly become reality when her husband betrays her to the region’s jarl, landing her in a fight to the death against his son, Bjorn. To survive, Freya is forced to reveal her deepest secret: She possesses a drop of a goddess’s blood, which makes her a shield maiden with magic capable of repelling any attack. And it’s been foretold that such magic will unite the fractured nation of Skaland beneath the one who controls the shield maiden’s fate.

Believing he’s destined to rule Skaland as king, the fanatical jarl binds Freya with a blood oath and orders Bjorn to protect her from their enemies. Desperate to prove her strength, Freya must train to fight and learn to control her magic, all while facing perilous tests set by the gods. The greatest test of all, however, may be resisting her forbidden attraction to Bjorn. If Freya succumbs to her lust for the charming and fierce warrior, she risks not only her own destiny but the fate of all the people she has sworn to protect.

7 editions

DrinkThatTea reviewed A Fate Inked in Blood by Danielle L. Jensen (Saga of the Unfated, #1)

Fast read

4 stars

This was one of those books where I could guess several of the plot twists early on, but I enjoyed the ride and preordered the sequel. Liked the Vikings-with-magic setting and that it avoided taking a few of the easier routes to get Freya out of her predicament. By the end, she has a better understanding of what she is but is still navigating her anger and the type of person she wants to be. There's an underlying steel to her, and part of her ongoing struggle is learning to take more active control of her own life while dealing with the fallout of bad or complicated choices she made.

enitsirhc

rated it

Jun 14

DrinkThatTea

rated it

Oct 10

Subjects

English literature
nyt:combined-print-and-e-book-fiction=2024-03-17
New York Times bestseller