Norse mythology inspired romantic fantasy? Sign me up! I haven’t cheered for a couple this hard in a while. The chemistry came off the page and their meet cute is honestly one of my favorites.

While I felt that there were some slower sections, I am impressed about how many twists and surprises there were by the end.

How long do we have to wait for the sequel?

Thank you Danielle L. Jensen, Del Rey, and NetGalley for my advanced review copy. My opinions are my own.

Plot - 4
Writing and Editing - 4
Character Development - 4
Personal Bias - 4
Final Score - 4

If more Romantasy was like A Fate Inked in Blood I would be all over this category. Strong world building, solid story plot and a FMC that doesn't make me want to tear my hair out for non-sensical decisions purely to move the romance. A true slow burn with excellent banter, relationship build up, and just the right amount of spice. The story itself is fast paced, action packed.. and quite bloody. Really, all things that I love.

I've heard so many positive things about the Bridge Kingdom but never felt motivated to pick it up. After reading A Fate Inked in Blood, I am making it a point to read some time this year. I look forward to more of Jensen's work and the next book in the Saga of the Unfated.

Thank you NetGalley and Del Rey for the ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Freya is constantly stuck between protecting her family and living for herself. Constantly having to hide. who she really is until one day she must protect herself the way she was always told not to. She becomes the figurehead for her clan and men who seek to gain power are willing to use and discard her to get what they want.

I picked this book up and couldn’t put it down. I was so consumed by it that I even had a dream about Vikings.
Freya’s story was so captivating. Her strength and ability to overcome when the odds were stacked against her, when she felt the weight of others’ expectations, truly made her such an admirable character. Her dedication to her family despite the way they treated her was also very relatable. I liked that she was flawed and that sometimes her emotions were messy.
Bjorn’s character was also incredible. He was his own person while still fiercely defending and caring for Freya. His dedication to her extended beyond just making sure she was physically ok, but also that she was mentally and emotionally able to handle the things being thrown at her.
The mystery behind who the traitor was kept me guessing and second guessing myself. The way the book ended actually had me feeling very hopeful for Freya’s future and I hope it gives her the opportunity to grow and become stronger without the expectation of being someone else’s weapon.

I love this author, who knows how to do romantasy that is action-packed and virtually un-put-down-able. Inspired by Norse mythology, Freya must marry a man she doesn’t want, when she wants to be a warrior. She lusts for Bjorn, who must protect her. It’s a sort-of bodyguard romance! (I love this trope and would love to see it more often). We have a slow burn here, and now I just want more of these two and the incredible world building were introduced to. I especially loved Freya, and want to see how her story ends. She is so loveable (and flawed) and our author did a fantastic job making me so invested in her and Bjorn! I recommend this, and frankly have never read anything by this author that I didn’t love. Can’t wait for the next!

I'll be honest this one was very much a drag. It does a lot of telling you things but not explaining anything to the reader. There were a few moments where I found myself confused and lost on how we got from point a to b and ended up skimming through a lot of paragraphs to try to catch myself back up. I also found myself reading other reviews where readers have said the pacing picked up in the last quarter of the book, but I found myself feeling like it was almost a chore to keep reading due to the constant confusion.

This was just.. fine. In my opinion, the only true interest I felt came around the 75% mark, at which the 'twist' didn't even leave me all that agasp. There's a 50/50 chance I pick up the next book, because while the plotline did drag, I did enjoy Freya as a character overall (Bjorn leaving a lot to be desired, imo).

What an ending!! I need the next book like yesterday. This book has easily made it as one of my favorites of the year. Freya a fierce young woman crushed by her family to conform to what they believe her life should be as a good wife and daughter and to hide the dangerous secret of her blood just to have it revealed and have that family and her fate used against her. Bjorn, the flirty and dangerous and yet caring and gentle Viking. The tension between her and Bjorn was just absolutely fantastic.
I have to say some twists I could see early on in the story, but didn’t weaken the emotional reveals. I can’t wait to see what happens with Freya and Bjorn after that final heart twisting reveal of the truth. Cliffhangers like that are such a bummer when we don’t know when the next book will be released.

I want to say that I completely missed this book in my NetGalley library and I’m so angry at myself! Thank you to the author, the publishers and NetGalley for the chances to read and review this book!

Wonderful, original, and captivating. Danielle can do no wrong when it comes to romance and adventures. Thank you so much for the arc!!

I really enjoyed this! It felt different from The Bridge Kingdom of course, and I really welcomed that. I can’t wait for the next installment!

A Fate Inked in Blood started strongly and jumped right into the action, which I absolutely loved. The pacing continued to fly and every page was entertaining. Jensen created an amazing world through skillful world building and an extensive cast of characters. The ending of A Fate Inked in Blood has absolutely hooked me to pick up book 2, which I am anxiously awaiting! I'm hoping book 2 creates more of a connection between the two main characters that, in turn, can be felt by the reader.

Thank you to NetGalley and Del Rey Books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A Fate Inked In Blood by Danielle L. Jensen is a solid 4⭐️ romantasy with excellent banter, nonstop action, and swoon-worthy romance.

Thoughts
This pairing had me from the moment when Freya threw a fish into Bjorn's face. The banter between them was so good. Every page that they were on together was entertaining to read. As events unfold, the humor does seem to disappear from their relationship, replaced by swoon-worthy and quotable romance. But I do wish that the light-hearted banter didn't have to stop.

I've been finding myself lately contemplating the balance between fantasy and romance within the romantasy genre. The balance here was exactly what I enjoy. World building that isn't overly complex, flirty banter, action sprinkled in, some high stakes, a twist or two, and some steamy moments. Don't expect A Fate Inked In Blood to be the fantasy novel you want with sophisticated world building. It's romantasy through and through.

The particular twist at the end is one I've read many times now in romantasy books. So there aren't any points given for uniqueness or shock factor. It's the ending that makes me know exactly how the next book will pick up and how we will get a hate to love do-over in the second book. This is the only reason I'm not super excited to keep going. But having really enjoyed the Norse mythology, I am still interested in this series.

Overall, it was very enjoyable, but not groundbreaking. It didn't depart from the romantasy mold, but that's okay! I may be entering my Norse Mythology Era because this was just so fun to read.

This review is posted on Goodreads and Instagram (@_bookish.brittany).

This book started out strong but I found the character development lacking in place of world building and war. I found it difficult to care about the action because I didn’t feel invested in the characters. It was also seriously lacking the romance department. The big twist at the end was obvious and predictable. Overall I didn’t love this and I’m not going to continue the series.

Thank you so much to Net Galley, the author, and the publisher for providing me with a free copy of “A Fate Inked in Blood” by Danielle L. Jensen in exchange for an honest review. All of the following opinions are formulated on my own. Any quotes in this review should be cross-referenced with the final copy for any possible edits.

Overall rating: 5 out of 5 stars(!!!!!)

My review: A Fate Inked in Blood by Danielle L. Jensen, the first in a fantasy series, is a story that follows Freya who is bound in an unwanted marriage as she dreams of life as warrior. Her husband betrays her in order to a region chief who wants to use her to become king. Freya finds solace in Bjorn, a warrior sworn to protect her. As per usual, the characterization and worldbuilding in Danielle's novels is just absolutely stunning. In this novel, we watch the world be intricately set up for the next book in the series. And let me tell you, the last 20 pages of this book are just jaw dropping. They have you staring at a wall. This book may be a smidge difficult due to the pronunciation of some of the names and words. Don't worry though, there is a pronunication guide available and google is always your friend if you don't know much Norse mythology. I personally did not have to look up anything and was able to get through even though I know absolutely NOTHING
about vikings and the like.

<b> Notable Themes, Elements, and Tropes: </b>
- Bodygaurd
- Vikings
- Forbidden Romance
- Norse Mythology & Gods

I absolutely loved the banter between the two characters in this book! It had me wanting to read more and not put down the book. I was really interested in the magic system in this book and the gods who are helping these children be born with such gifts. Some things in the book were very predictable. I knew that he would be the one to be the traitor and I knew that she would have the blood of two gods when she started having the two voices talking in her mind. The romance was not very often in the book so I'm thinking that book two will have more once they make up between each other. I really would have liked to see more scenes of her doing her training with the other women and have it go on a little longer and see how she learns to work her power. We didn't get to see much of it. I really can't wait to read book 2 and see how this world grows and the plot thickens.

A Fate Inked in Blood is a Viking fantasy novel that follows Freya, a fisherman's wife with dreams of becoming shield maiden. Freya has a drop of a goddess's blood, which gives her extraordinary magical powers with her shield. After killing her husband and becoming officially claimed by the goddess, Freya fulfils a prophecy that predicts that she will unite Skaland. To keep her safe, Freya is assigned the hottie Bjorn as a bodyguard, who also has a drop of a god's blood. Attraction and Viking antics ensue!

I had such a good time with this book! Historical fantasy is one of my favorite genres, and this book reminded me again of why I like it so much. Few things make me more excited than fantasy, Vikings, and mythology! The magic system being tied with the Norse gods was very unique and led to some good tension. I liked Freya as a character and felt like Bjorn was a good complement to her prickly ways. The romance was hot and I liked how it progressed. The end is a cliffhanger which made me excited to read the next book!!

I highly recommend this book if you're at all into historical fantasy, Vikings, or are just looking for a good read. 5 stars from me. Thank you to Random House Publishing Group and NetGalley for the eARC, my thoughts are my own!

Interesting premise with the relationship between humans and Norse gods. With two more books coming, I hope that is explored more. Fans of ACOTAR will definitely like this book, but it also contains the same Romantasy downfalls. The bones are so interesting, I was hoping the author would delve more into the world/gods/magic building. It is extremely easy to root for the main two characters and the language used is simple (if not modern at times), making this an easily consumable read. I'll most likely read the second book.

Thank you Netgallery and author for this copy! I loved this book so much it was absolutely amazing as expected from Danielle Jensen! I loved Freya's character and how fierce she is, she was ready to take on the world and as the story progressed I loved it even more, it was told I such great depth and with lots of development between Freya and Bjorn and I cant wait to see what's next in the series!

Unfortunately, I don't think this book was for me - but that doesn't mean it isn't for others. If readers loved the Bridge Kingdom, I think they'd like this, but it just fell a little flat for me. I did love the Bridge Kingdom, but just didn't connect with this one. Still incredibly well-written.

Great new fantasy series set in Norse myth. Unique story with lots of surprise twists. Best for readers to have a basic understanding of Norse myth. Looking forward to the next book!