I was lucky enough to get an arc of the audiobook for this novel and it did not disappoint.
I’m not familiar with any of the myths and legends surrounding Beowulf so this felt fresh to me.
The main character Frida is admirable and determined and left with a crippled and disfigured hand after an accident when she was younger. Her dream is to be a shield maiden - a warrior- but as the Lords daughter others have ideas about what her future should look like.
There’s intrigue, violence, mystery, magic and dread but also loveable, brave characters who I could really get behind.
I could absolutely read more in this world. I’d love to see more of Hild and Bjorn!
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

2.5 stars
My biggest issue with this book was the characters. They don't feel believable at all. I don't believe they've never had these conversations before (not just just with the romantic interest but with her other friend too. For some reason bffs for years don't have the most basic and important discussions until adulthood when we're there to experience them). Fryda feels especially fake and like a caricature. Fryda is supposedly an adult but her flirting is so childish/ tween-y and she acts very childlike in other manners too (like in her interactions with Hilde). The writing was also overly descriptive in a distracting way- it was almost like reading a scene script instead of a novel. And honestly, I was just bored hence the DNF halfway through. I really did try to give it a fair shot- it just did not work for me.
P.s. If Beowulf (the character from the epic, not the epic itself) has no haters, I am dead.

3.5 stars rounded up to 4. Freya longs to be a shield maiden, but an accident in her youth makes her believe it impossible. However, she begins to have stirrings of unknown power. With treachery abound she'll get a chance to understand and use this power. The main character Freya is an easy character to follow and root for as she is strong, compassionate, and intelligent. My biggest complaint with this story is the pacing. It felt a bit like a slog at the beginning because the pace was too slow for me. However, it ramped up at the end with an epic battle. Brief chapters from the dragon's POV kept me intrigued enough to keep going through that first half. I listened to this book as an audiobook and felt the narrator did an excellent job bringing the characters and story to life. 5/5 stars for narration!

This is one of those books that I think is better listened to than read (having done both, I am obviously the foremost authority on the matter 😏).

Inspired by a line in Beowulf, Shield Maiden follows Fryda, for whom a childhood injury has circumscribed her life even more severely than her womanhood or high-born status. Her story is intertwined with those of others—most notably her brother, a servant, the slave who loves her, and the dragon of the original legend—and readers only wish that they had all been braided in with equal finesse. Unfortunately, and this is my biggest disappointment with the novel, the dragon's tale seems largely unnecessary until the end of the narrative, making the entire reading experience feel a bit uneven.

Luckily, both Fryda's initial accident and the novel's final third are excellent, allowing the author to deliver an excellent peak/end experience despite any structural weaknesses. The audiobook narration is nuanced and engaging, which enhanced (and sometimes saved) my overall experience with the story.

If, like me, you love new takes on old tales, give Shield Maiden a listen. You will at least love seeing how ancient texts continue to inspire modern storytellers.

Maiden Shield by Sharon Emmerich in her debut novel, was captivating from the beginning.
Fryda, is the daughter the Lord of Geatland. Just like in Beowulf’s story, Fryda had an accident when she was younger, which made her unwanted and/or useless to her
father and twin brother. Fryda cannot get past this even though those around her don’t see her that way. Her life is shrouded by secrets. Beowulf, who is her uncle and her friends Bryce and Theow see past her scars and sees her worth.
Fryda’s story is a modern take on Beowulf, mixed in with old warrior tales, and with great characters. Sharon did such a great job at bringing this characters to life on the pages keeping me hooked all the way to the end. I can’t wait to see what she does next!!

I receive the complimentary audiobook via NetGalley in return for a honest review. Thank you to Hachette Audio, Sharon Emmerichs & NetGalley for giving me access to this audiobook. As always, the opinions expressed are my own.

A YA historical fantasy retelling of Beowulf from the perspective of Fryda. Emmerichs vivid descriptions of the Swedish landscape can easily transport to that time. The narrator, Victoria Fox, was fabulous! Her voice is perfect for this book.

Although YA, I wouldn’t let that sway you from reading this book as it does not read as such. For those who liked Beowulf and/or the Vikings, this should be added to your list.

Thank you netgally for an ARC of this book!

Shield Maiden has all the components of a book I would normally love but I still feel it was lackluster in its execution.

I am not at all a lover of reading through fight scenes but I think they were a highlight of this book. Everything else was either to fast or too slow, and most of it explained to the reader instead of executed within the story.

I did enjoy the disability representation, but I would have enjoyed it more if we got to see how it affected the FMC more, instead of her taking off her aids before and after an event. Is she unable to make certain movements during battle? Does the aid ever get damaged to the point of needing repair or becoming unusable? Having that insight could round out the believability of her character.

I was super excited to dive back into the world of Beowulf, but I had a hard time following along with the story and keeping the names and characters straight. The naivete of the main character was a bit unbelievable and made her somewhat unlikeable. There is A LOT of setup for the ending and it dragged. The writing style is full of imagery and has a lovely tone. I enjoyed how the story ultimately turned out.

I received a complimentary copy of this audiobook.

As this was my first audiobook I was very pleased I was able to finish it!! I loved the characters in here so much. Freida and Beowulf and Theo top faves. A story where leaders are a little more complex than you first imagine but also the good ones CAN come out on top. Thank you NetGalley, Sharon Emmerichs, and publishers for this ARC!

A beautifully written retelling of Beowulf from the perspective of his niece, Fryda.

Fryda journey is that of reclaiming her own life and power against those who would see her silenced. Where her wishes are not just for her self but for those of her people.

The writing quickly immerses you in the landscape of the Swedish clan where you can easily picture story you are being told and understand the world around Fryda and her people. There is not in your face world building her but a picture that easily forms in your mind of this medieval world.

We are also lucky to have not only Fryda’s point of view but those of others in the story which helps to really develop the story and gives you that extra depth to the tale.

Fryda for her headstrong and determined nature does seemed to have lead a blind life to the true going ons of the clan behind the men in power and seems to trust before questioning anyone.

I also loved the added magical, power element that all great viking tales should really have a sprinkling of.

A little disappointed writing this, but I DNF this book. I think the audiobook wasn't made for me and completely lost my interest. Also, since I am a French-speaking Quebecer, I believe that the level of English did not suit me. I understood the general idea, but I think I should have read the book to get the feel of the atmosphere. In short, the story certainly has potential, but I didn't feel the desire to continue. Thanks to NetGalley for this opportunity!

Not my typical read but I really liked this one. I listened to it while working and I would actually find myself stopping to really listen because I was so engrossed in the story.Looking forward to reading more by this new author.

This is a beautiful historical fantasy featuring a lively protagonist, Fryda, who becomes a strong sword fighter while also having a disability. I love these kinds of characters who grow up with a disability and work hard to become stronger than the people around them without disabilities. So Fryda was almost instantly endeared to me - she never blames other people or wallows when things go wrong - she’s a bright force of change in the world around her.

That being said, I also despised her brother and sometimes even found it hard to read when he was about. I guess that’s the sign of a great writer though - the ability to make me feel so much toward a fictional character.

Regarding the audiobook narration; I really appreciated the narrator. Her voice gave a maturity and calmness to Fryda that made me like the character even more. I thought she did a great job with the men’s voices and I was able to pick out who was speaking from voice alone. And I think the narrator did a wonderful job with the dragon’s sections. It felt mysterious and eerie and full of longing.

The story is based on a part of the epic, Beowulf, but centers around a dragon and the people and events leading up to encountering the dragon. It felt like a fresh take on the story and manages to give a feminine perspective. I would have loved even more information and story dedicated to the shield maidens themselves.

The atmosphere was very powerful and really transported me back to early Scandinavia.

I really liked Beowulf’s character - an aging king whose feats are living legends. I also enjoyed and would have liked more time from the Dragon’s point of view because that was beautiful.

While the romance in the story was tentative and sweet, it did not play a major role in the book. I loved that it felt like a relationship full of kindness and respect. But it felt like a minor storyline.

All in all this was an original, atmospheric retelling of a portion of Beowulf from the perspectives of a woman in the background and a dragon.

thank you to netgalley for the advanced reading copy. I really enjoyed this and will be getting copies for my shop.

I feel a bit conflicted with this book—the audio was lovely, the writing was good, the plot kept moving, but I found most, if not all, of the characters unlikeable. There were too many examples of the author stating an attribute of the characters, only for them to act differently than initially described. Overall, it made for an irritating reading experience especially when some of the magical elements are never fully explained.

All that being said, this a debut novel and I will be on the lookout for more of Emmerich’s writing.

Listened on audio.

I did not like Freya. Being Norwegian I was excited for a book closely linked to Norse mythology, but it fell flat for me. DNF’ed about 30% in.

I borrowed the audiobook on my own through Libby because I was approved for the title after the publication date and it was archived before I could listen to it.
The narrator was great, even though it was a little difficult to get into the voices for some of the older men.
The only minus points are for the story itself. The FMC is naive as she should be at her age, but it detracted from the overall story during the first half.

This is a historical fantasy with a twist on the story of Beowulf. Fryda is the daughter of a lord in Beowulf’s kingdom, who was injured years earlier during an earthquake which led to one of her hands being injured and subsequently disfigured. Despite this she is desperate to become a shield maiden-a noted fighter and protector so trains with the blacksmith and a kitchen hand in secret to become good enough to achieve this. There is so much happening alongside this though! Sibling rivalry, schemes, long kept secrets, romance and DRAGONS! Well, that’s me dragon to be precise but still. This book covers so much more than I was expecting it to and I really enjoyed it. Fryda is a fantastic main character who doesn’t let her status or family dictate how she should behave or what she should do and her relationships with the other characters in the book are wonderful. The audiobook narration by Victoria Fox was excellent and I’d be more than happy to listen to other books read by her.

Part historical fiction, part fantasy, Sharon Emmerichs’ debut novel Shield Maiden is an immersive, well researched retelling of portions of the epic poem Beowulf. The titular Shield Maiden is Fryda (“Free-da”), a young woman who overcomes great adversity to realize her destiny over the course of the book. When a horrible injury leaves her hand disfigured as a child, not much is expected of Fryda as she grows into adulthood. A harsh father and a… troubled brother are both pretty rotten to her, leading her to find companionship from servants, slaves, and other workers in their burh (think medieval era fortress). When Fryda’s uncle, King Beowulf, descends on their home for a celebration of his 50-year reign, trouble soon rises from threats within and without the walls of the burg. Fryda must summon her courage and power to save the home she loves.

There are a lot of good things to talk about in this book. We have a good amount of representation for the time period of the story, with the FMC having a disability and other supporting characters having diverse backgrounds. Emmerichs wrote the villains particularly well, and I loved to hate them. There is a lot to learn about the culture and customs in this time period from this book.

Overall, this was a good debut novel, and I think Emmerich is capable of wonderful work. I look forward to reading what she writes next. I would recommend this book to readers who have an interest in the time period, the Beowulf story, or looking for historical fantasy with representation.

Shield Maiden by Sharon Emmerichs is a debut fantasy reimagining of Beowulf featuring a heroine with a disability. The audiobook version is narrated by Victoria Fox.

Though the daughter of a lord, Fryda has longed to become a shield maiden, in part to follow in her uncle Beowulf's footsteps. Assuming her dream was shattered after an accident in her teens, at age twenty she has started to feel an uncontrollable power rising within herself. And deep below, buried in her gilded lair, the last dragon is drawn to Fryda's untamed power and begins to wake from a long and cursed sleep.

In college I studied Beowulf a few times, including memorizing the opening stanza. Thanks in part to that, Beowulf has a fond place in my heart. Shield Maiden focuses on the very end of the epic poem, during the 50th year of King Beowulf's reign.

Emmerichs did a great job with this reimagining! I inhaled the audiobook within 24 hours. The narrator, Victoria Fox, does a pretty great job here. There were a few character voices that sounded a bit similar to me, but overall I greatly enjoyed the listen. And take a look at this cover, it's GORGEOUS and has so much detail. I love it.

As someone who likes history, and studied this time period in college, I really enjoyed the detail in these pages. There is a lot of description of the buildings, clothing, and oral storytelling of the Geats.

Overall I did like the prose, but the plot was a little meandering. There were some scenes that felt like jump cuts from where we were just before. Fryda is also a bit too naïve. The point-of-view shifts around a lot as well; I typically prefer either full chapters of one POV, or less jumping around.

There's a good amount of diversity here. Fryda does not have full use of one of her hands, after falling into a chasm during an earthquake when she was thirteen. Her childhood friend, Theow, is coded as suffering from PTSD when he smells smoke he is not expecting. Fryda's best friend Hild is a black indentured servant whose people initially hailed from Romans in sub-Saharan Africa.

I'd recommend this one to anyone who has a fondness to Beowulf, or who liked books like Grendel by John Gardener or Claire North's Songs of Penelope series.

CW: violence, gore, drug and alcohol abuse, assault, sexual harassment