Supernatural books are my FAVORITE and this one did not disappoint. The cover is stunning, the author's writing is fantastic, and you will LOVE the main characters! I mostly love supernatural books because of the worlds that they describe and deliver you to. The plot will keep you flipping through the pages faster and faster and I'm already counting down till the next book!

I'm between 3 and 4 stars with this book.

Amanda Hocking is an author whose work I love to read, and this book about Valkyries with a Dystopian world full of Others seemed really cool, you know? It turns into a sort of detective story with a secret from the past coming back to haunt them all, and if not taken care of, the end of society could be destroyed.

I liked that a lot of unfamiliar myths were in here, though personally it took em out a few times because I had to know about the demons or creatures she was interacting with. I did love her friends, and the people she met along the way of her journey. A few things lagged for me, and the ending left me a little wanting, but I thought it was an overall pretty good book.

Between the Blade and the Heart (Valkyrie # 1) by Amanda Hocking is full of Norse mythology, romance and action. Malin is a Valkyrie in training who learns something her mother did, had tragic consequences and now is working to rectify this. In this new universe Hocking created, mortals and immortals live side-by-side and it’s interesting to see how each type of being interacts with others and how that influences their beliefs.

What I liked about Malin is the fact that you see her strength and how she is honing her craft. Another awesome thing about Malin is that she is a bisexual character. It’s not something that you see in books often and she was torn between woman and man. It got a little repetitive, her wishy-washy nature but it was neat to see.

What I didn’t like, was you were just thrust into that world and expected to know what was going on. Yes, as you read on you learn more but I still feel like I may have been missing a lot of information. Like was there a prequel I didn’t know about? Then there were characters that I did not get the purpose of them being written for a brief moment and then forgotten until they need a place for Bowie.

Anyways, I do want to know more. When the next book in the series comes out I will buy and read it. Would I recommend it? If you need a fast read and like Hocking’s other series I say go for it!

The editing wasn't there, which I understand for an ARC. I needed more world building for a fantasy story of this size. I don't see this standing out in the current market. There wasn't a strong enough hook to get me past the gorgeous cover.

*I received a free ARC copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.*

This was a rather quick and pleasant read.

The story takes place in an alternate world where humans and immortals (demons, ogres, vampires etc.) co-exist. And there exists another group, the Valkyries, who were chosen by the gods to play grim reaper to the immortals.

The book puts into question the idea of destiny or pre-determined fate versus our free will to choose. If one decision can change the course of history, is that because it was always meant to happen or because that very action went against the greater plan? Thus altering its course. A rather interesting question really. And one that we continue to question from beginning to end.

Amanda Hocking’s newest YA Fantasy novel, Between the Blade and the Heart (the first in an expected duology), takes on Norse Mythology in a dystopic, unrecognizable United States where mortals and immortals live together, walking a delicate line of cohabitation in an attempt to keep the peace and strike an equilibrium between mortal and immortal on earth. Though categorized as YA, the novel, which is expected from St. Martin’s Press in January 2018, features sex and alcohol usage and probable leans close to New Adult than YA.

Malin, the novel's protagonist, is a Valkyrie-in-training, one of those fabled women whose purpose in life is too keep this balance, by “returning” immortals to their extra-wordly existence and ending their time on earth. Her warrior woman skills were passed down to her from her mother, and her mother before that, and so on. Her purpose is clear: follow orders, maintain the balance, don’t fall in love. However, when a mysterious (and of course uber-handsome) stranger breaks into her apartment and tells her a dangerous secret about her own mother, these core beliefs are shaken, and Malin must decide where her loyalties lie and what, or who, she is willing to sacrifice to do what needs to be done.

I really enjoyed this book! I know that more hard-core Hocking fans felt that they didn’t connect with the characters as deeply as in her other novels, but I really loved Malin. She is strong and powerful, but as part of a group of strong and powerful women, not just a special snow-flake who is exceptional in every way. This is something I really loved about this book. For once, it is not just a young girl with a group of men, proving how badass she is. The Valkyries are all badass women!

Equally refreshing is that Malin is not afraid of sex or her own desire. It’s great to start to see a spectrum of sexual feelings, experiences, desires, drives, etc. across YA and New Adult lit. She has real flaws too: she is stubborn, impetuous, and not great at discussing her feelings. She also claims not to love or know what love is, a carry-over from a lesson her mother instilled in her form a young age: be strong and don’t feel too much and Valkyries don’t fall in love or commit long term to anyone. Because of this, she tends to use physical intimacy as a way to feel close, protected, and safe. And yet, she also cares deeply about the people around her, and struggles with letting herself acknowledge this.

Her own fight to figure out her feelings are centrally evident in her relationship with her ex-girlfriend, Quinn, another Valkyrie, with whom she shared and incredibly intense and passionate relationship. While they are no longer together, lingering feelings on both ends lead to multiple complications, especially as Malin finds herself falling for Asher, that mysterious stranger who turned her world upside down. Yes, I know. Another love triangle. But what is particularly refreshing about this love triangle is that Malin cares about and is attracted to people and does not need to define or explain how she can love both Quinn and Asher (based on gender at least, she most definitely compares the two to try and figure out what she wants).

At times, I felt that the tossing around of the word “love” was a bit flippant and lacked some of the necessary emotional development, particularly between Asher and Malin. For someone who is constantly wondering whether she is loved or can love, Malin does not spend much time thinking about what it means to love someone, romantically or otherwise. Her relationship with her best friend, Oona is probably my favorite thing about this book. Two women working together, not fighting or competing, with complimentary skills and personalities, standing up for each, looking out for each other, etc. Sometimes, it reads as if Oona is playing the mother to Malin’s petulant child, but as the books progresses she gets her own moments of personality that help shift this a bit.

This tangle of relationships however, is only part of the story. This rag-tag team must figure out how to work around their own personal dramas to figure out how to take on the task at hand: writing a wrong left unhandled and dealing with its possibly earth shaking consequences. The plotting and intrigue of the action portion of the book were a lot of fun and Hocking does a great job of weaving personal turmoil within the larger action of the novel. There are so many fun immortal creatures to meet and powers to explore, and I love the Norse mythology. Oona herself, though a human, has some magical abilities, though it’s sort of unclear how the magic system works.

The larger action of the story centers around questions of free will, and the lack of clarity here is my biggest qualm with this text. Without saying too much, the idea of destiny or fate weighs heavily on all of the characters and the seeming resolution that destiny guides all of them is not really my cup of tea. This is the first in a series, so I’m sure these questions will be explored more deeply, but this notion of fate’s plans take away a lot of the gray areas that make characters and worlds interesting and complex, so I hope more on this is to come in the next book!

Overall, I love reading this story and absolutely cannot wait for the next one! I am most definitely going to go back and read some of Hocking’s other series while I am counting down the days until I can find out what happens to this fun and lovable cast in this super interesting world!

When Amanda was an indie author I remember buying her books like crazy and devouring them. I loved them all and just couldn't get enough. And as much as I loved her writing, for some reason, her past couple of releases have been good, but I haven't felt that frenzied loved for them or her characters like I once did.

Maybe it is me and my tastes have changed or maybe her writing has, either way, as much as I wanted to love this and connect with it, I just didn't. That doesn't mean it was a bad read because it wasn't, in fact I loved the Norse mythology attached to it, it was interesting and something different which was nice but again, with as much as I liked a lot of it, a lot of it also didn't resonate with me. Doesn't mean I will stop trying this author or reading her, maybe I just need to set my expectations on a different level than they once were.

Having said all of that though, I do think a lot of readers, old and new, will like this and enjoy it because it really is a good story overall.

I absolutely love Amanda Hocking as an author so when this ARC came up I had to read it. I almost passed when I read the reviews but I am so glad that I did not, this book was so interesting and great. I loved all the mythical beings in this book and the story of Malin; how she questioned herself until she realized she was someone important in the scheme of things. Thank you NetGalley and Amanda Hocking for allowing me to read the ARC and write a honest review.

Maybe it was me on this one, but I just thought it was all right. I love love love the Kanin Chronicles and the Trylle series by Amanda Hocking. I also read Freeks earlier this year that had a cool oddity vibe. My main problem here was that i just could not get invested in the story. The writing is well done, and I could visualize all of Hocking's descriptions. The story itself even has some cool aspects, but I just wanted a little more from the lead character. I still want to see what the next book has to offer!

Amanda Hocking is one of my favorite authors. I love reading her series. I remember when Trylle and The Hollows series first came out and was reading them when she was trying to get her name out there and I am so glad she has become what she did. Her writing is fun and fast paced and her words really connect with the reader, at least me.

This book was excellent. Like, honest to goodness fantastic. The main character, Malin, is so easy to connect to and easy to love. And to follow her on this path of confusion and betrayal, along with a path of love (not cheesy or unbareable at all) and fighting for what is right, you really fall into her shoes as if you are in the story and I think that is one of Amanda Hocking's superpower.

Thank you netgalley for an honest review.

I received this ARC copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. So thank you netgalley and publishers.
Let me start off by saying I LOVE Amanda hocking ♡ I've read so many of her books and absolutely adore them! She is definitely one of my favorite authors ever, so when I seen this book I knew I had to have it!  I mean it's amanda hocking and Norse mythology, Can it get any better?!?!?
This book is like Game of Thrones meets Blade runner.
The sypnosis is as follows " as one of Odin's Valkyries, Malin's greatest responsibility is to slay immortals and return them to the underworld. But when she unearths a secret that could unravel the balance of all she knows, Malin must decide where her loyalties lie and if helping the blue-eyed boy Asher enact his revenge is worth the risk—to the world and her heart." This is such a good, action packed, fun, quirky, and quick read, but no surprise there! Amanda did a Wonderful job in recreating a world in Norse mythology. I just absolutely adore her work and can't wait until she comes out with more books! If I see her name, it's automatically on my to be read list! And I will be buying a physical copy when it comes out!