dnf @ 20%


Very much not a book for me. I feel like if you like Sarah J. Maas's books (or those similar), this one might work for you, since I disliked it in ways I dislike Maas's books.

The main character felt pretty Mary Sue-ish to me. The vibe is def as a stand-in for the reader, which is fine if that's what you're looking for in this genre, but that is not my preference. We're also thrown pretty immediately into the action, which gives us very little time to connect to the characters. (Who, imo, are also pretty bland.)

The general Norse aspects of the world seem like they could be pretty fun, but the pointless misogyny of the world made me soooo much less interested in continuing. Also, as someone with a background in medieval studies, a few parts made me go Yay! while others made me stare at my kindle screen in resignation. (Tho I will say it does NOT seem to have white power vibes, thank God -- always a toss up with any fiction related to Norse history.)

Also, is this what cishet women find sexy????? Call me a lesbian, but ???????? That is just an annoying guy. But ok.

Anyways, not for me! Which is kinda sad bc I was excited to take a chance with this book. Alas.

4.5 stars

This book was very fun and the writing was so different from her other series, but in the best way. It really showed her range as an author. I also liked the grit in the writing with it being a norse story.

I do think the final twist was just a twist for the sake of having a twist. That is what keeps this book from being a five star for me.

I really enjoy Jensen’s writing! The world was well developed as were the characters. Freya was a strong lead and I enjoyed her character growth (though sometimes her choices didnt seem all that logical). The romance was decent but sadly I wasnt as invested in Freya and Bjorn as I wished I’d been. I could visualize the action scenes easily. The pacing did slow for me a bit mid way but picked up again at the end for the most part. Overall this was a good romance/viking book. I do think I might be getting a little tired of viking stories.

"A Fate Inked in Blood" by Danielle Jensen is a captivating blend of Norse mythology and fierce warrior ethos, wrapped in a story of survival and self-discovery. Freya, bound in an unwanted marriage and resigned to a life of fish gutting, emerges as a formidable shield maiden when her circumstances force her into a deadly fight for her life. As Freya trains to control her newfound magic and grapples with forbidden desires for her protector, Bjorn, the tension builds.


Jensen weaves a rich narrative, revealing Freya's latent powers as a goddess-blooded shield maiden destined to shape the fate of Skaland. Through Freya's trials and tribulations, Jensen explores themes of identity, loyalty, and the price of power.

I cannot wait to read the next one in this series!

I was enjoying this up until about halfway through. I'm thinking I don't really care for first person narratives because I get sick of hearing every single thought the main character has. Freya has three characteristics: lusting for Bjorn, feeling responsible/guilt for everything that goes wrong, uncontrollable rage. She's also incredibly stupid. At one point I started to believe that there was some curse placed on her that made her care about her deadbeat family instead of owning her power.

I am okay with tropes and predictable plotlines, but I can't stand idiotic characters.

This might be one of the best books I've read this year 👀❤ Everything went right with this one- the plot, the action, the romance and the character arcs. I got no complaints at all. The fact that I could not stop reading it, tells you enough.

This is the first book to a Norse inspired fantasy. We're following Freya, a fishwife in a small village who is a bit more than meets the eye. She is actually the prophesied shield maiden. The jarl takes her to become his wife and is the key to gaining political power. He unfortunately has a really hot son, who complicates things. It’s very much your typical danielle l jensen book, beautiful writing, swoony romance and just overall really creative.

A shieldmaiden with forbidden powers is forced to help a power hungry king unite the people of Skaland under his rule in this Norse-inspired fantasy romance.

I had a really good time with A Fate Inked in Blood by Danielle L. Jensen. The chemistry between Freya and Bjorn was sizzling right from the get go, though it did peter out a little towards the end. It was still very entertaining to read as their relationship developed. The banter was top tier at the start and I was thoroughly enjoying it until we started getting into the driving plot a little more. Once the conflict started picking up, I felt like the relationship took a back seat, which I didn’t mind, but I did miss it a little.

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Publishing/Ballantine/Del Rey, and Danielle L. Jensen for an e-arc of A Fate Inked In Blood in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

First of all, let's normalize authors giving us a pronunciation guide. I was so happy to see that Danielle L Jensen put this on her website.
Link for everyone else: https://danielleljensen.com/saga-of-the-unfated/pronunciation-guide/

I really enjoyed this book. I liked the how snarky and fun the Freya was and her banter with Bjorn was well done. I like the way the action and the romance blended together, and the novel had great pacing that made the book so hard to put down, I didn't particularly enjoy the way this one ended, but I'll save judgement on that particular issue until the sequel is released.

This book ended up being a DNF for me. Unfortunately I was not able to connect with the characters as I feel the plot dragged in the first hundred pages with nothing substantial taking place. The writing itself was also somewhat offputting as it used too many subordinate clauses to allow it to flow. This made the pacing feel clunky. I did genuinely enjoy the premise and did buy a physical copy which I hope to pick up again when sometime has passed.

I've been looking for a great roman-tasy book that's not YA and so glad I found this! I enjoyed the historical elements of Norse mythology and life. The world-building was fantastic with an interesting magic system and the novel was well-paced and action-packed. While certain aspects were a bit predictable, this was a solid start to the series. I easily devoured this book and can't wait for the sequel!

Freya has been blessed by the gods with a drop of blood which gives her the magical ability to shield herself from harm. Her husband gives her to the Jarl (like an earl or lord) and he marries her because it's prophecized that she will unite the kingdom and make him king. The fact that this young woman is tossed around from man to man is bad enough, but they treat her like dirt even though she's the most powerful one in the land right now. She predictably falls in love with her new husband's son, and there's a powerful attraction on both sides. Really good book - it kept me totally engrossed although I wish Freya was as strong as she should have been and more confident in herself. She was way too good to her family when they didn't deserve. She needed to stand up for herself and realize her true potential.

Overall, I enjoyed the book enough to continue and I liked the Norse mythology. The slow burn was burning and the spice was spicing. The writing itself was good too.

With that said, I was annoyed and frustrated almost throughout the whole book. Snorri was beyond annoying and practically a one note character. Sure, he showed small moments of endearment towards his wife but not enough to make him a really well rounded character.  If I had to read another sentence about how the gods deemed it so, or the prophecy was told to Snorri, or how it was fated...😵‍💫🫨

And Freya was so frustrating. Like just make a decision for yourself already and stop being so influenced by everyone. I know part of the reason is because of the danger her family is in, but even she realizes what a crappy family she has and still can't stand up for herself. I get it's about moving the story forward because obviously not all characters can be logical and rational otherwise it'd be a boring book that ends quickly. 

Also, this book just doesn't have any likeable characters. Other than the MMC, Bjorn, I didn't connect with anyone else. Everyone just sucked. 

But it was still kind of fun to read and enough for me to check out the sequel, but I'm not running for the shelves either.

I was very intrigued for the first few chapters, but as the book goes on, I realized I was not going to get any actual world building. I myself am not familiar with Norse mythology. I would have enjoyed this much more and probably stuck with it longer if the world and the gods were explained at all. There’s also so much telling in this book. I felt like I was reading someone’s journal instead of a book. There was no interesting prose or stunning writing. It just feels very basic. Freya’s gift is odd and ambiguous, and I had a hard time believing in it. Pretty much nobody in this book is likable. I loved the banter between Bjorn and Freya at first, but then it started to get repetitive. I got bored. I didn't really care what happened. I ended up skimming a lot of the second half. I saw the ending coming from a mile away, and it’s not great. I loved The Bridge Kingdom, so this is very disappointing. I can see it being very well loved by many people because there are a lot of elements that I think will check people’s romantasy boxes, but when I read fantasy romance I don’t just want to read about the romance part. I want the fantasy elements, which include world building and magic systems, and explanations and descriptions. and that did not happen with this one.

This was phenomenal, and I absolutely can't wait until the next book! (Which currently doesn't have a release date so RIP to me.) From the beginning, I was hooked into Freya's story, and really enjoyed getting to follow her on her journey to not only figure out who she is, but also what she wants. Add in Bjorn? I was double hooked and couldn't quit turning the pages. This was everything I could want out of a book that's a Viking inspired romantasy series, and was a hearty mix of both romance and fantasy, which I was a fan of - Jensen balanced out both genres well. And that ending! I'll be sitting in the corner crying until the next book comes out, no biggie.

Set in a world inspired by Norse mythology, the first book in the Saga of the Unfated duology follows Freya, a restless young woman who has always dreamed of being a sword-wielding shield maiden. Instead, her family pushes her into a marriage with a cruel but wealthy husband, and she spends her days gutting fish rather than raiders. But when her husband betrays her to win the favor of Jarl Snorri, forcing Freya into a fight to the death, her long-held secret is exposed: Freya possesses a drop of the goddess Hlin’s blood, granting her the ability to repel any attack, magical or otherwise.

With her family’s lives up as collateral, Freya agrees to be bound to the ambitious Snorri through a blood oath and be named as his second wife. Despite the dire circumstances, Freya seizes this opportunity to become the shield maiden she’s always dreamed of being. Yet while one of Freya’s desires is sated, she discovers a new yearning while being battle trained by Snorri’s devastatingly handsome warrior son Bjorn (dark hair, chiseled features, lots of tattoos — you know the type). Being Freya’s sworn protector, Bjorn is instructed to never leave Freya’s side, leaving her little time to clear her head of those pesky forbidden thoughts — ones which, if acted upon, would have deadly consequences.

Far from home and surrounded by enemies, Freya must use every ounce of her cunning, willpower, and strength to navigate political conspiracies, brewing wars, bloody battles, tests from the gods, and her ever-building desire for the rugged Bjorn. And while the men of Skaland fight to control her fate, Freya must decide how much she’s willing to sacrifice for her people and a prophecy — or whether she’s willing to defy destiny and weave a new fate all her own.

I don’t care whether you’re someone who is typically into Norse or Viking stories. Nor do I care if you’re someone who doesn’t often find themselves browsing the romance section. A Fate Inked in Blood is such a well-rounded read that it appeals to readers across the (bookstore) aisle. We’re talking thrilling action, compelling characters, interesting magic and mythology, political intrigue — and yes, a slow-burn romance with some satisfying spice sprinkled throughout.

Loved this fresh take on romantasy, featuring Norse mythology and a unique magic system. Jensen is a master at building heated romance and insane tension between characters and the world. And that cliffhanger! This'll be a popular one for sure, for fans of Jensen's other work and fantasy like Sarah J. Maas.

Another amazing story (and hopefully series) from Danielle. I love when I am wrapped up in the history and mythology. Not to mention, I love a kick-ass heroine, and not necessarily that she is strong and can fight, but that she doesn't give up. But she also picks her battles. Freya seemed smarter than some young adult heroines, though I wouldn't call this a young adult book at all. Bjorn is absolutely swoon worthy and a contender for a book boyfriend. I cannot wait for the next book!

This book was so so good! I love Bjorn and Freya and I cannot wait to see how their relationship plays out in the next book. This has been one of my favorite books of the year and I hope the second one comes out soon because that ending made me so excited to see what comes next. Highly recommend!!

This book!! Five stars don't seem like enough. I loved this book so much and cannot wait for the next one! Danielle is a master story teller and I am enraptured with this story. This story had me in a chokehold in the best kind of way. The tension, chemistry, and action alone had me kicking my feet but add in the fact that it's a norse mythology inspired fantasy vikings romance? Perfect, absolute must read! Freya and Bjorn live in my head rent free.