This book was seriously so fantastic! I had wanted to read it since I first learn about it, because it’s so Up my alley, and I am so glad it lived up to my expectations. It was a badass, thrilling, enthralling read and I loved it.

One of the things I loved most about this book was the world. I have been wanting both oks about Vikings, or inspired by Vikings, for years now and this is the first one I’ve read which I think did it right. The author managed to capture the spirit of Vikings while still making something wholly unique. You could feel the inspiration in the culture of the book. It’s an intense and barbaric culture with battle-hardened warriors. But you also see it in their religion and stories. It felt totally immersive and fascinating.

But the setting also perfectly lent itself to a thrilling fantasy plot. You guys know me, I am a plot junkie. I want a book full of action and suspense that keeps me on the edge of my seat. This book completely did that. There were thrilling battle scenes, more quite moments of uncertainty and fear, there was external conflict and internal conflict, there were big bads and smaller enemies. There was definitely a lot going on here but it all worked together to craft a fantastic plot that really built to an exciting conclusion. I seriously did not want to put it down. I breezed through this book and I loved that about it. I needed a book like this.

The characters too really blew me away. This book very easily could have taken a very cliche path, but it didn’t. The characters were complex and had a lot of depth. First we have our main character of Eelyn. She’s a kickass female warrior, which I love, but she was also incredibly vulnerable. Throughout the book she doesn’t always win and there are times where she lets her emotions affect her in a very real way. I loved that about her. I love that she can kill someone on the battlefield and cry herself to sleep. It made her so real and so raw at times. She felt everything and you felt it with her. All of this really made Eelyn a very compelling protagonist.

But the real heart of this story is about family. It is about doing anything for your family and the people you love. It’s about finding family in the most unlikely of sources. This too could have been really cliche but it never went that far. It gave the book depth and heart. Speaking of heart, I also kind of liked the romance here. I don’t even know how to describe it. It wasn’t quite a hate to love thing, nor was it instalove. It leaned more toward the former though. Either way, it was a good slowburn in that it was one of those romances where I didn’t even know I shipped it until something happened that melted my otherwise frozen heart.

My only criticism is with the synopsis. I know I’m just nick-picking here but I really hate when the synopsis of a book gives a lot away. I understand you want to capture people’s interest but I think you can do that without revealing three-quarters of the plot. It takes all the mystery out of a book when the synopsis tells you what to expect. And I knew exactly what to expect. I knew exactly what was going to happen. I wish the book would have keep something from me at least.

All in all this was an amazing read. It had everything I wanted and more. There was a fascinating world, a thrilling plot that kept me on the edge of my seat, complex and likable characters, and a lot of heart and depth. I have been looking forward to this book for probably a year and it was so worth it. It’s amazing.

This book was amazing. I loved it so much I read it, and then read it again. The characters were amazingly written, and there was so much to take in that I loved every second.

One day, I was scrolling through my goodreads feed and I came across this book. I had been looking for quite some time now for a 2018 release that could make me exicted for its release and since I liked the way it sounded, I didn’t think twice before adding it to my TBR. Then, one random day, as I scrolled through Netgalley, I saw it was available to request, so I did. Once I finally—and miraculously—got approved, I can’t deny that I dove into this book without zero expectations and with a hunger for something new and different that I’d never seen before. And you know what? This book didn’t let me down. The voice that screamed inside my head about how I needed to read this book was right!

Believe me when I tell you that I loved every single thing about this book, it had everything I love in a story and more! It had blood, pain, grief, love, loyalty, strong family relationships, but what I mostly enjoying about it is that is has some very good character growth. Not only did our main character Eelyn grew and changed through the story, everyone else did too. Another thing was the pacing, which was perfect because it wasn’t too fast nor too slow! But my absolute favorite thing about this story was the strong, healthy and loving family bond between the characters.

The author’s writing was fantastic!! It was easy to follow and understand what was happening, and it made it easy to learn and understand about the clans, their beliefs, their differences, and even their similarities.

The settings we get to visit through Eelyn’s story weren’t much, but they were all great. We get to visit the Aska villages, the Riki villages, their battleground, and their worship grounds. This really helps you see the clans and learn about how the clans live after the fighting season.

We get to meet multiple characters through Eelyn’s journey. They were all lovable on their own way and I enjoyed how they changed the story with their presence and their twists. Some of these characters were: Iri, Myra, Aghi, Fiske, Tala, Runa, Inge, Halvard, and the detestable Herja that threatened to get rid of them all.

In the end, “Sky in the Deep" turned out to be one of the best books I’ve read so far in 2018—right next to “The Banished of Muirwood” by Jeff Wheeler! I enjoyed the action, the pain and the growth, and I loved how the characters—especially Eelyn—changed with it. This book definitely reached deeper than I thought it would with its strong and unbreakable families, and I’m so glad you can now get your hands on this baby so you can understand what I’m talking about and enjoy it.

I quite enjoyed this book. There were a few rough spots (mostly in the romance itself which didn't feel very well-motivated or fleshed out at times. I just wish there'd been more build-up to it so that I could embrace that Eelyn and Fiske were becoming an item). The action sequences were very well done and I liked seeing the every day life of the Riki (and the bit we got to see of the Aska as well). Eelyn's relationship with Iri was well done, a lot of rich emotion going on with her being happy that he's not actually dead but also the betrayal that he survived but didn't try to come home to her and their father. I also liked that though Eelyn started the book hating the Riki, she came to see that they were much more similar to the Aska that she might have once believed.

The final few chapters were rife with drama and action and it was really nail-bitingly entertaining. I loved seeing Eelyn back in her fighting element and getting to see her find the rest of her family again (her reunion with her dad was very touching). All in all this was a very enjoyable read and I wouldn't mind more stories set in this same world.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me early access to this book in exchange for an honest review.

Could Sky in the Deep be the best book I’ve read in 2018? I read this book way back in April, yes, I know it’s already September and I’m just now getting around to writing my review. And YES, Sky in the Deep is STILL the best book I’ve read so far this year. Why am I just now writing my review? Sometimes words are just impossible to express how amazing something is!

First of all, don’t read the blurb! Sorry if you’ve already read it, but it’s too spoiler-y in my opinion and I loved how I really didn’t know what I was getting into with this book. Go in BLIND, I totally recommend it!

Second, in case you haven’t read the blurb, I will give you hint of a few things to expect:

I’ve seen this book listed as a Fantasy, but it really isn’t a Fantasy in my definition: there are no supernatural powers at work here. The only fantastical aspect of this story is the importance of the gods/faith/beliefs of the different clans.
Eelyn is a badass heroine...even when she’s at her weakest. She does suffer through some very brutal things that can be difficult to read. Just a warning.
The book is violent! Duh, it’s Vikings!
The story is VERY character driven, but also has plenty of well plotted fight scenes that I didn’t get bored with like I often do in other books. I really CARED about so many of the characters and worried that anyone of them could be killed at any time.
The romance was BEAUTIFUL. It’s very slow burn, some people might even call it “boring”, but it hit all the right buttons for me.

Finally, there is no cliffhanger! Yay! I only love cliffhangers when the next book is already, immediately available to me. Although it does appear there will be a companion novel released next year...??

To be honest, I kind of found this book to be dull and predictable. I think most of this came from my dislike of the main character. I found Eelyn to be similar to a lot of YA fantasy protagonists, who are supposed to be badasses because of their fighting skills and lack of emotion. I couldn't relate to Eelyn, who was very stubborn and angry. I just wanted to scream at her that she should be happy that her brother is alive rather than being mad that he betrayed their clan. This book was very much about Eelyn coming to terms with her brother and since I was not a fan of Eelyn and thought her anger towards her brother was stupid, I really didn't like this book. There was also a romance that I saw coming a mile away that I felt wasn't necessary.

This was not my favourite type of YA fantasy but if you like books about Vikings and betrayal, you might enjoy this.

This was a hard novel to get into. The novel jumps you into an action scene. However, it throws the reader off guard. It was hard to follow what was going on. It eventually became clear. It is a fast-paced tale. However, it is unoriginal. The characters are stereotypical. The romance seemed forced. Overall, I had time getting the book.

The Viking culture was full of warriors and shield maidens. Men and women alike fought for their clans against numerous enemies. There's was a language of violence and strength through battle. Can vikings hardened by battle, make peace with enemies against a common foe? That's what this unique novel seeks to answer.

I loved this book! The full review will be posted soon at kaitgoodwin.com/books! Thank you very much for this wonderful opportunity to connect books to their readers!

Kiss ass female Viking wielding axes! What's not to love?

This was an incredibly fast-paced, un-put-down-able fantasy.

The plot twists will more than keep you on your toes and the characters and setting will hold your attention. As well as being jam-packed full of action and adventure, Eelyn is rough and tough but yet bright and sensitive.

Overall this was a great full throttle fantasy with a brilliant female protagonist.

**Review can be found at https://smadasbooksmack.blogspot.com/ **

I am a sucker for vikings this last year. I know, I am late to the viking party, but I am still there! After binging on all the current seasons of the History Channel show, I was so excited to hear that there was a YA book coming out told from a female vikings point of view. I mean really, who does not love Lagertha? I anticipated a younger version of that character, kicking butts and taking names, non-stop action! Well, that was not this book. If you are looking for an action packed experience, unfortunately keep looking. Sure there were a couple of battle scenes, the book even starts with one, but really this was about the people of the times and how life was in between the battling. I think there were more flash backs of battles than actual battles. But what would I know, maybe this is more realistic to the times than what my brain created for me. (And it didn't hurt that the cover is so gorgeous I had an instant case of cover love, I was going to get a copy of this regardless of content!)

Wow, this was a slow burn for me. It took a while for me to be actually interested in the story (almost 50% of the book was finished!) since it moves VERY slowly but when I noticed that my chest ached and I fought tears for Eelyn I came to the realization that somehow along the way I was invested. This was very much a character study book, with a single narrator that you get to know inside and out. I felt and experienced everything that she did and at times her loneliness and isolation was palpable- they became mine too. I completely understood Eelyn, and without any effort on my part, I bonded with her. There were times where she wished for death and I got it - keep in in mind that I did not want her to die, but I understood her motivations and mind space.

Sky In The Deep was a debut book and I appreciate the difference in perspective and writing style the author used. I will for certain check out more from Adrienne and see what other kinds of worlds she wants to bring to life- I guess there is a companion novel coming out next year that I would love to read (I have lots of speculation on what that will be!). I highly recommend checking this book out even if it is not your usual topic because, yay, Go Vikings!

Un·put·down·able

This book was seriously addictive! I started reading in the morning and I could NOT stop. I just had to keep reading despite having stacks of work to get through. Sky in the Deep is a fantastic historical YA and I'd recommend all to read this book.

The book opens with the eve to a battle. A recurring battle where the gods demand their blood offering every 7 years. A battle in which Eelyn lost her brother 7 years ago or so she thought. Her determination to find her brother led to her being caught and forced to live with her clan's enemy. But there is another threat facing both clans and the only chance to survive is if they stand united against a common enemy.

The story is told solely from Eelyn's perspective. She is an amazing warrior. Despite her smaller stature, her determination and resilience shaped her into an admirable character. All the conflicting emotions she felt, love, hate, guilt, anger, came clearly pouring through the pages. And that slow-burn romance is what really gets me. Unlike insta-love that's out-of-control and ends with a crash; a slow-burn reels you in and kept you on tenterhook 'til the last page.

I'm not familiar with Vikings or any historical facts relating to them so this book reads more like fantasy to me though without much magic, it does feel more like historical fiction. The description of nature and of life has the ring of truth in them (it wasn't an easy life).

I cannot stress enough just how much I love this book! Young and old, I'd recommend that you check out this book!

Thanks to St. Martin's Press & Netgalley for copy of book in exchange of honest review.

I enjoyed the writing style but I kinda wanted more? I don't know what it was, but it felt like the norse mythology and feeling had been americanised.

Disclaimer: I received a free eARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

Overall Thoughts:

Vikings, war, betrayal, forbidden love? Yup, this one ticked all the boxes, and I was so excited to finally be able to read this, and you know what? It didn't disappoint. It was gritty and gory and pretty much lived up to all my expectations.

Things I Loved:

- I'm all for bad-ass female characters that don't take any crap and can handle themselves. Eelyn is all that and then some. She's been trained from a young age to be a warrior, to handle physical pain, to be able to tolerate a lot. Despite all that, it doesn't stop her from having a more emotional side and being, well, human. And slightly teenager.

- The world-building was fabulous! The Aska and Riki are so different, and yet extremely similar in their beliefs and cultures. Both were highlighted brilliantly, and I loved learning new things about the cultures and being able to compare the two. The lore behind their rivalry and the stories of their gods, I thought, was really well done, too, and I felt entirely immersed in this world.

- I am 100% for hate-to-love tropes and forbidden love done right ... and I was totally rooting for it here. I mean, mention of the romance is in the summary, so it shouldn't really surprise anyone at all. I loved Eelyn and Fiske on their own, which just made their romance all the more enjoyable.

- The plot was horribly predictable and there were pretty much no surprises at all in that regard ... but I kind of didn't even care? It feels so odd to say that, because I'm usually one crying foul because I get annoyed when I can call the entire plot ahead of time. But I was so caught up in the culture and the romance that I was like, meh, I know what's going to happen, so BRING IT ON.

Sticking Points:

- The ending was too easy. There, I said it. I won't give away any spoilers, but there was so much build-up and tension and then ... it sort of just deflated? I was a bit disappointed.

- There were plot points that I felt were just sort of left open and not tied in by the end. Which maybe that's fine and those questions didn't need to be answered and those points were irrelevant, but I'm nosy and I want to know these things.

Trigger warnings : lots of violence, torture, slavery, attempted rape.

I was so nervous about reading Sky in The Deep since I got so obsessed with Vikings (again!) this summer and I wasn’t sure how I will feel about a YA Vikings-inspired book, but it lived to the hype and to my high expectations.

I loved how the author incorporated some of my most favorite aspects from the Vikings’ era like how important honor, family and their clans were to them. I always adored this period because despite the betrayals and the oh-so-many battles, people were so loyal and dedicated to whatever they felt like they belonged to. Our modern society can’t relate.

And everything was so bad-ass in this book from the battle scenes that were very realistic and not boring at all (because I don’t know about you, but sometimes when I read battle scenes, I just go far away and start thinking about something else entirely) to the romance that was subtle, yet very touching (the forbidden love trope is here and you’re going to live for it!!).

FAVOURITE THINGS
- Eeylin was a great heroine, I loved seeing her struggle with getting too comfortable in the Riki clan, an enemy clan because she was so loyal to her father and her clan. Also, her relationship with her brother was so complex and well built because even though I wanted them to make up and be on good terms again, it was understandable how Eelyn couldn’t get past what she perceived as a betrayal on Iri’s side.
- Myra and Eelyn’s friendship was super cute, I wish we got to see more of them fighting side by side and being powerful sisters.
- The family dynamics in this one are absolutely great, I’m pretty sure all of them would die for each other *heart eyes*
- The action scenes were A+, 10/10 would recommend. It would just make you want to get an axe and hit things or maybe not??? Kids, don’t do it at home.
- slow-burn, enemies-to-lovers trope.
- I also loved the gods and their story and how that impacted the tribes, it was really cool.

“Vegr yfir fjor. Honor above life.”

THINGS I DISLIKED
-While I really liked the romance, at times it felt a bit underwhelming because the love interest wasn’t around a lot and we didn’t get many scenes with them before they kiss. I wasn’t confused when they kissed or something because I was expecting it, I just wanted more interactions between them before it happened, you know. Because they went from disliking each other to somehow standing each other to ‘we have a deep connection, I can just feel it, you know it, I know it’ and yeah, it felt a bit rushed. Most probably because there were other things going on, a little more important, but still you understand where I’m coming from.
It has a slow start, but if you stick with the book, you’ll most probably enjoy it!
- I feel like this book would have been better if it was a duology because there are lots of things happening and sometimes the development of many characters suffered because of action scenes or other plot-lines that were going on.


All in all, I would recommend this book to everyone who’s interested in Vikings and loves YA lit or who loves action-packed novels and strong heroines.

Thanks to Wednesday Books for offering me an e-ARC of this book, this hadn’t influenced my review, nor my rating!

I found myself deeply conflicted, reading this book. In a classic case of Fantasy!Stockholm Syndrome, the main character's core identity is wiped completely away and replaced with an attachment to her owner and eventual love interest. That's right, Eelyn is enslaved—a state which, in her Askan (read: Norse) religion, will cost her the god Sigr's favor and any place in the afterlife—and taken captive by, then sold to, an enemy Riki warrior. She's understandably devastated by both her physical abasement and her spiritual damnation, but thanks to a weird storyline involving her missing brother having been previously saved by the Riki warrior and defecting to the Riki himself, and the musclebound attraction of her unexpectedly kind slave owner, Eelyn comes around. A skilled warrior herself, she is transformed by some magical cuddles & etc. with the Riki, and persuaded by her brother's arguments, she decides to unite the Aska and the Riki in the face of a greater threat: another invading people group, this time a group unfortunately lacking in sexually attractive slave owners. Because no adults would ever think of getting over their differences in the face of a common enemy, it's left to these teens to break from tumbling each other in the hayloft long enough to convince their elders that despite having been at war for generations, they should just go kill some other people and worry about all that pesky "you killed my husband but now I'm supposed to watch your back?" nonsense later.

Ah, to be young again. It's been so long since I trusted, much less lusted for a person who beat me at the one thing I liked to do, then enslaved me and made me give up my culture afterward! But hey, battle scars are sexy and I'll do anything for a man who knows how to purge pus from an infected shoulder wound.

I'm Vikings trash like 90% of readers, but no thank you.

That said, Young does put great sentences together, and I really liked Eelyn in the first twenty pages. Eelyn's world comes across as well-researched if somehow fantastic in the choice of names and gods and so forth. This is marketed as young adult fantasy, but if you squint and ignore the name choices, this could just as easily be historical fiction.

Honestly, I really, really wanted to like this book as much as everyone else seemed to. The synopsis sounded fascinating and I loved the fact that there were two warrior clans who have battled against each other since forever and now they have to come together against a common enemy. However, I found the execution of the book to be a bit dry and lacking. There were certainly a lot of action but that was it. The world building seemed subpar and the characters development were minimal.

From the synopsis, it seemed as if the “ruthless clan that was supposed to be legend” wasn’t as grandiose as I had imagined. I was expecting some legendary fighters and whatnot but other than the fact that they were large (there were a large number of them – far more than the Riki or Aska individually), that was pretty much it. They weren’t even considered as legends because they raided Eelyn’s clan, the Aska, a long time ago so, for the Aska, they certainly knew that this clan existed. Plus, they didn’t even show up that much in the book. The only important role they played was raiding the Riki clan and thus uniting the Aska and Riki and they were all slaughtered quickly after. So much for being ruthless and legendary…

As for the character building, I honestly didn’t see much appeal for Eelyn. The only thing she seemed to care about was her clan and fighting, which is totally fine, but then the author put a love interest there which really offset her character. The romance that developed wasn’t unexpected as this is a YA novel but I think this book would have been far better if this romance was not there. It took away some of the core plot and Eelyn’s character development.

Overall, I think this book is hyped up for no reason and the gorgeous cover is certainly distracting as I was honestly expecting greater things. The storyline itself was also really easy to guess – there wasn’t any real plot twists especially since the synopsis essentially gave the whole book away.

Such a great story! I am always fascinated about books that use a culture or people from history. I love the use of Vikings and their culture and watching the characters develop and grow. Not to mention the mythology and magic! Such a great story!

Fun YA set in a Nordic type land, every 5 years the Aska and the Riki meet in the battlefield and clash. Our main character gets captured and taken slave/prisoner by the Riki, but it is bc she sees her supposed to be dead brother fighting as a Riki.
Good book about the power to change and see beyond differences. Love story was slow build and mild. The villains, the Herja, we not fully explored or explained, they were a mysterious big bad with no known purpose of why they expanded their raiding efforts and about where they came from.

I am extremely late in reviewing Sky In The Deep, but I've been in such a YA funk this past year and didn't want to read a book I was excited about when I was obviously in a bit of a slump. But my YA mojo has been slowly coming back this summer and I've been particularly keen on reading YA fantasy novels. This book is about warriors and enemies and that just sounded right up my alley.

Sky In The Deep started off with a bang with me. The opening scene was a battle between the Aska and the Riki, two enemy clans. This set the tone for the entire book. It was dark, bloody and full of violence. On the very battlefield, our Viking heroine, Eelyn sees her brother, who she thought had died 5 years earlier. Injured, she is captured by Fiske, a friend to her brother, and is taken to the wintry mountains of the Riki village to be kept as a servant in Fiske's home. Eelyn was a fiery character, just as I was expecting for a book with such a premise. She was vehemently contentious against Fiske and his family in the beginning, as she was someone who was fiercely loyal to her clansmen. Her anger, her strength, and her allegiance radiated through Sky in the Deep, making her a character that you passionately want to root for. She was angry at her brother for becoming one with the Riki and she was angry at her circumstances of being stuck with the Riki. There is just something about angry female characters that I find very compelling!

We also get to know the Riki's village life and culture better through Fiske's family. I wasn't quite sure what to make of Fiske at first. He did kidnap her, after all. His intentions became much clearer as the story moved forward. As with Eelyn, he too was fiercely faithful to his kinsmen and family and was willing to do anything for them. He eventually became a love interest for Eelyn, showing his affections for her in subtle ways. Though I wasn't exactly swooning over this romance as it was a little quieter than I was hoping for, I thought it was sweet. What was a prevailing theme throughout Sky in the Deep was the strength and power of family relationships. I loved how the book had such a strong focus on it. Young explored the frayed bond between Eelyn and her brother, as well as her bond with her father. We also see the "soul bond" between Fiske and Eelyn's brother.

I found the world building in Sky in the Deep also compelling. The book explored the lives and culture of both the Riki and the Askas through Eelyn's lens. We also learn a lot about the Gods they worshipped and where and how the rivalry between the two clans emerged from. Where the book faltered a little bit for me was the pacing. I found the first half to be rather slow and uneventful. It was only past the 60% mark that the true action began to materialize, so the final battles and ending seemed a bit rushed, in my opinion.

Regardless, Sky in the Deep was a fun read. It wasn't without its flaws, but it was a solid debut with likable characters. There is supposed to be a companion novel next and I'll be looking forward to reading it for sure!