Little bit of a slow burn but all in all, I thoroughly enjoyed Odin's Child. Authentic take on Norse Mythology, with a great ensemble, more than serviceable penmanship and a thrilling ending. Genuinely enjoyed it!

Thanks for the chance to read this title from Norway. A really enjoyable fantasy, magical, story. Stories about the old gods, roman, greek, norse,, like this one, are my favourites to read. I enjoyed the story and the characters.

Odin's Child begins with one of the best opening chapters I've read in a fictional piece in quite some time, reminiscent of Sabaa Tahir's "An Ember in the Ashes Series". The reader is instantly thrown into the action and the fantasy world, as Thorrald finds an abandoned child and must make a decision to let her live or end her life. The reader is then transported 14 years later with Hirka, the young girl from the prologue, alive and well, living amongst a people from whom she is different -- tailless. As the Rite approaches, a sort of coming-of-age ritual to measure a child's ability to bind the Might (magic), Hirka becomes more and more nervous about her inability to do anything with the Might! With the help of her friend, Rime, she's hoping she can pass by the watchful eye of the Seer and pass the Rite to live a normal life with her friends and father. But obviously that can't happen! Follow Hirka along on her epic quest to navigate fitting into a world where she doesn't belong.

The best way I can describe this book is "sprawling". It's been a long time since I've read a fantasy novel that truly transports me to a different world so completely. It did take me a little while to feel comfortable with how everything worked since the author chooses to envelop the reader into the world rather than rely on explicit descriptions and explanations of how things work. It took me awhile to read the first 50% because of this, but it wasn't painful, just a remarkably different YA experience. The one thing that I didn't love was the foreshadowing with Urd's character and some of the other details about minor characters. It felt unnecessary to leave some of that information unknown, and made some of the scenes with these characters a bit confusing for me.

I loved the character development of Hirka, Rime, Eirik, and even some of the "villains" in this book. I'm antsy to read books 2 & 3 at the end of this year and next year! If you are a patient reader who is looking for a unique story and an immersive experience, you'll want to read this one.

For readers looking for a fantasy adventure with a different point of view from conventional, English-language fantasy novels of the past few years, Odin’s Child is the book for you.

A squalling infant appears from the other side of the stone rings during a violent storm of snow, rescued by a man in a society of magic-wielding, tailed bipeds with powers called “the Might.” While rescuing infants from certain death in sub-freezing temperatures is in all cases a wonderful thing, in this case, the infant, who does not possess a tail, should have been left to freeze. The alternative, which plays out in Pettersen’s multilayered fantasy, is that the child will only grow up to have to suffer the same fate at a later time, when all young people must submit to the Rite ceremony, where those without the power of the Might are discovered and eliminated.

Pettersen’s Raven Rings books are a new discovery for me, and once I saw the option on Edelweiss to review it, I immediately requested it. I absolutely love reading fantasies from other languages and cultures that have been translated into English. They provide, for me, a window into fantasy I’ve not heard of and most times, like in the case of Odin’s Child, offer a new lense to look through to fantasy that I have not seen before.

Aside from the fantastic world building, the best aspect of Pettersen’s fantasy lies in the characters. Hirka was incredibly relatable to me; I felt she was neither a “Mary Sue” (which I don’t hold vitriol toward as much as other readers do) nor an antithesis of one, having some unrealistic strength she uses for her revenge or some power that makes her artificially stronger (and extremely violent) than every other character in the story. The other two main characters, Rime (the love interest) and Urd (the villain), complement each other in their roles in the story perfectly, and leave the narrative balanced in a way that weaves itself together perfectly at the end, which, I must note, will make the reader who loves the book want to read the next one immediately, but I must wait for it to be translated along with the third one, both of which I will be reading and most definitely purchasing for my shelf.

In regard to translation, the book is also easy to read, considering it is a translation. I did not find it necessary to reread things a couple of times to process the syntax of the writing. It was easy to understand. I have read translations of things that were in English and used English words but made no sense and felt like I still had some translating to do as I read. I know there are some reviews of other language translations with poor experiences in this area, but I felt the English translation did not have any issues—at least for me.

I could go on and on after a reread of this about all the tiny things I loved about it, particularly how atmospheric the setting is (a healthy amount of the book takes place in the woods) or how wonderfully the tension is built when focused on Urd and his plotting; but I would leave no details for readers to discover on their own.

A solid 5-star read for me. Highly recommended

My profound thanks to NetGalley, and particularly Arctis Books, for the ARC, for which I heartily give my own very positive and enthuisastic opinion.

I love any and everything Norse Mythology and this book is no different. The story itself was wild and unpredictable. It takes you on a fantastic journey and while I was hesitant at first when I started it I loved reading every minute of it because of how unique it was.

Okay, let me just say — I was not expecting this.

I don't think I've read any Norse inspired fantasies, despite my absolute adoration of stories centred around Norse mythology (I'm looking at you, Assassin's Creed Valhalla), so I was really excited to get into this.

At first I was kinda just... confused. Nothing was making sense. I don't know, maybe I wasn't in the mood for fantasy, or some things were getting lost in translation, but I was not enjoying myself. Concepts were constantly being mentioned with no explanation, and it felt like everyone knew what was going on except for me. I want to be transparent here; I was 200 pages or so into this and I was bored.

The original plan was to give this two stars, at most. But this is a 4.5 star review! I decided to throw the original plan away.

Because after reaching the 300 page mark, I could not, in good conscience, give this book any less than four stars. Even that didn't feel right, so here I am giving it 4.5 rounded up. And it deserves it for redeeming itself so well.

I loved these characters, especially Hirka and Rime (and Kuro). Yes, they were a little cliché, but I loved them all the same. The world of Ym? Beautiful. The Might as a magic system? Exquisite. The story of a girl trying to find her place in a world where she doesn't belong? Outstanding. I just loved it all. I genuinely can't believe that the first and second half of this were the same book. But I wouldn't be surprised if I ended up actually enjoying the first half after a reread; a lot of my initial frustration with this story came from me being confused by the worldbuilding, which, thankfully, I'm no longer confused about.

And the ending? Let's not talk about the ending. That felt like what I imagine having your heart wrenched out of your chest feels like. I'm literally going to teach myself Norweigan so I don't have to wait for the next book to be published in English to read it.

Thank you NetGalley for a copy of this in exchange for an honest review.

First thoughts
I just couldn't get through this one, unfortunately. I tried so hard to push through this but I found the pace incredibly slow and despite making it to 60%, it just didn't feel like this was going anywhere. I nearly guilted myself into keeping going but for now I'm putting it down. For such a long book, I really needed some more action and plot progression to keep me interested!

Odin's Child
This is the story of Hirka who was born without a tail. She's raised by an adoptive father but doesn't know this until she's nearly an adult. The story follows Hirka through her discovery of this fact and how she grapples with coming to terms with her identity. Her inability to wield the magic in this world brands her as an outcast and ultimately inspires her to run away. The plot largely revolves around setting up the world, the politics and introducing a good handful of supporting characters to beef up the story, as it were.

Why I DNF'd
In short, I got bored and I was not inspired to pick the book up. If anything, this actually made me sail straight into a reading slump. As much as I loved the world that Pettersen was creating, and I did find the new race that is introduced in this book (humans with tails) interesting, the execution of the idea was dry and super slow. I felt that the 60% of the book that I did read honestly could've been done in a third of the page count. I couldn't really tell you what plot progression even happened during this time, it's all world-building.

The Might (magic) was also an interesting concept but considering the main plotline is that Hirka can't access this magic, we are left wanting to see more of the magic of this world, and it never quite delivers.

So to sum up, this book is a slow burn that I couldn't get into. There are so many great reviews out there for this where people have loved the world that Pettersen has created - but I just can't count myself among them.

Happy reading!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

AMAZING!! If you love Norse myths, unusual epic fantasy, hidden secrets, fascinating world and characters this book might be for you but it could be a better experience if you read Norwegian because I'm sure that must be so much better in its original language.

Anyway, the story of Odin's Child is captivating but it took me some number of pages to get immersed completely in this epic adventure. This was a surprise and a unique experience. You must be patient in order to get to the good stuff and it might be the case for many amazing epic fantasy books. I loved Hirka as an heroine . I heard that the second book will be so fantastic and I can't wait for the translation. I'm so sad that it took me this long to discover this book and to read it.

This was my first YA book that was based around Norse Mythology, usually most YA is based around Greek Mythology so I was excited to dive in.
The main character, Hirka was born without a tail which is extremely unusual and she almost feels incomplete. When she’s 15 and seen as mature, she’s expected to go through a “ritual” of sorts but without her tail, Hirka is unsure that it’s even possible so with her best friend, Rime she goes on a journey of self-discovery - kinda.
This was a solid read and I am so glad I went into it blind as I really enjoyed it more not knowing what to expect or what was coming.
There were a few predictable moments and some that I never saw coming.
I’d highly recommend this to anyone around 14 upwards.
I’d absolutely read more by this author.

Very high fantasy! Epic journey! It dragged at times but the overall brutality of life was intriguing. Definitely read when your in the mood for a grim fairytale

Thank you to NetGalley for providing this book in exchange for an honest review

The premise for Odin’s Child interesting and thought it was well written. However it was really hard to get into and something was missing for me. However, I do recommend this book, because even though it didn’t resonate with me, it’s absolutely a well written book with a fascinating world and characters.

I cannot wait for the remainder of the trilogy to be translated because I had a hard time putting Odin’s Child down!

Spectacular world building, this was my first Norse based read and the cast of characters staring Hirka and Rime was to put it simply marvelous. This is a coming of age story full of secrets and self discovery. Hirka is a teenager in this novel so she may not resonate with many readers however she did allow me to look back upon myself at that age to draw some loose connections. Especially when it comes to Hirka’s teen girl fantasy and obsession in some ways with Rime, part of me just wanted them to get together to end some of the more uncomfortable areas but nonetheless great story, would definitely read the rest of the trilogy.

A Norwegian writer. A translated book. And what a book it is!

From beginning to end I was in love with this book.

As fantasies go, this one is right up there with the best (IMO), and that’s saying something because it’s YA, and I don’t usually like YA, but this time I did. I really, REALLY did.

Picture this …. cozied up on the couch, snuggly blanket over knees, cute wee dog tucked into feet, fire flickering away, book in one hand, Maltesers in the other. Bliss, yes? Then picture the next morning, eyes red, lipstick askew, shoes on the wrong feet, different earrings in each ear, racing down the motorway yelling at every m___ f____ to get the hell outa your way!

That was me after staying up all night reading Odin’s Child.

OK, I may have exaggerated a weeeeee bit, but you get my drift. The book is good, DAMN good, and if you love a read where you can truly lose yourself in another world, another place that tantalizes and fascinates at every turn, then this is the book for you.

600 stars out of 5

I want to start this review by mentioning that it's a translated book from Norway. I haven't read much translated work but this is in the top 10 of best books I have ever read.

Reviewing this book is kind of tricky in the sense that a lot happens in this book very quickly. There's a somewhat large cast of characters, but they are easy to differentiate. I didn't have the time I wish I had to just sit and read this book, so it took me longer than I would have liked. This book is very fast-paced, so when I was able to I'd fly through chapters.

Hirka is a great character. I loved everything about her character. She is so selfless and cares deeply for the wellbeing of others, even often those who would do her harm. She goes through so much in this book. And her path is very heartbreaking. I am excited and worried about where her path leads her in the rest of the series.

Rime is a very interesting and complex character as well. There were moments when I was less interested in where his story was headed, and just wanted to get back to Hirka. But as I got to know his character more, the more I wished he had more page time. His path was very interesting and I wasn't sure where it was headed, and I wasn't expecting it to end up where it did. I hope he's part of the rest of the series.

Urd, as an antagonist wasn't what I was expecting him to be. At times he was what could be called a "typical" antagonist, but his methods were more hands-on than most I've seen in books. He wasn't above getting his hands dirty, and he often preferred it to make sure things went according to plans, and only used outside help when he couldn't take care of it himself. My only small gripe is a spoiler, so I don't know how to address it.

The way things were wrapped up, felt a little rushed to me. But maybe that is just how it was paced to set things up for the sequel, which I am very excited and anxious to read. I have no idea where things are headed from here, or if Hirka will ever make it back "home". I hope she does.

I absolutely love this book! If you are like me, you probably have a fascination for mythology of the Greek or Norse variety! I strongly recommend this book to people who love Norse Mythology! I am so excited to read more by the author!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to review this book. I haven't read a lot of translated works before this but my gosh was this a great place to start. The Worldbuilding is great with a mix of likeable characters and interesting take on norse mythology. Again, something I haven't read a lot of before, well this was my gateway and let's say it is well and truly opened. I look forward to reading the next two books in this trilogy when they are released too!

I don’t read too many translated books, so I was excited to read this one based on Norse mythology and wasn’t disappointed one bit! I in general tend to like mythology inspired books, and reading one where I was less familiar was exciting and entertaining. I really loved the characters and the worldbuilding; it felt fresh and unique, and plot was also really enjoyable. All in all, a great reading experience with intriguing characters and captivating plotlines.

I've always been fascinated with Norse Mythology and more so as of late. This book scratched an itch I didn't know I had. Perfect for fans of The Gospel of Loki or Neil Gaiman's Norse Mythology. This is a wonderful fictional account of Odin's Son.

This book is the first in The Raven Rings Series, a fantasy series set in an otherworld inspired by Norse themes and mythology. It is nit exactly a happy ending but there is sufficient amount of closure to the story. The protagonist is a young girl Hirka, raised by a single father a skilled healer, but is seen as other by the people she is surrounded by, but supported by her childhood friend, who himself feels like an outsider in the elite nobility his family is a part of, who are strong in their form of magic called "Might".
Their world is made up of 12 Kingdoms where 11 exist under a council headed by a godly Raven " Seer", but one remains independent. Their prime enemy are the Blind ones, a sinister kind of creatures that remain quite a mystery well into the book.
This book deals with the concept of fearing what is unfamiliar and how rumour mills work to agitate the public against innocent people. It also deals with how those in power pull the wool over the people's eyes, if only to protect them.
All of this is done so subtly through the medium of this preindustrial fantasy world, you feel like you are part of the landscape, like one of the sacred Ravens watching the political machinations and Hirka's journey.
I'll be on tenterhooks till I can get my hands on the rest of series!

I gave up trying to read this title, as it was a PDF and the NetGalley app struggled with its format.

However what I read (the first 1/4) was incredible interesting. I honestly can’t wait till it’s published in Australia so I can pick up a copy and continue reading :)

Thanks NetGalley for the chance to read it :)