Synopsis:
From felling dead trees in the Colorado Rockies to slitting the throats of her enemies, Antje had her work cut out for her. Too bad the Norse gods don’t offer paid time off.
After a premonition of a terror attack nearly kills her, the god Odin jolts Antje into a violent and confusing spiritual awakening. Seeking answers, she travels to the world’s most exclusive school for magic concealed beneath Copenhagen. Immediately thrust into a world of dark magic and global conspiracy, Antje discovers she’s no mere mortal—but the incarnation of a valkyrie.
With the help of Cole—a charming CIA agent—and the school’s eccentric professors, Antje unravels a sinister plot: the Dark Queen and her putrid army are planning a siege on humanity. Antje must thwart the carnage, not only for Midgard’s sake—but to prevent all of the nine realms from plunging into eternal darkness.
There’s just one problem: there’s no manual on how to be a valkyrie.
CHOOSER OF THE SLAIN is a dark fantasy thriller packed with magic, Norse mythology, gore, dark humor, and a cast of lovably complex characters. With copious twists and turns, this book will keep you guessing until the end. This is book 1/9 in the WATERS OF WYRD series
Favorite Lines:
“My first boyfriend in forever literally just vanished into thin air on our first date.”
“So, in exchange for a lethal weapon, they require wine? These gods sound like my people!”
My Opinion:
I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.
This story follows the basic structure that many fantasy books do. An individual learns they are gifted and joins a school to learn more about their history and their abilities while other major plot points are also at play. While Chooser of the Slain seems to follow this general formula, Oliver makes it all her own.
I thought this was a unique twist on a classic fantasy book formula/theme and the Norse mythology just added bonus points to really make this book stand out. Oliver did a fantastic job at world building, character writing, and I especially liked the magic system in this one. I personally also thought it was great that the main character was close to my age – I found I was able to relate to her more. Sometimes I read books and these main characters are accomplishing fantastic feats at 16 or 18 and I find it hard to picture.
I also want to put a plug in for the chapter titles, I thought they were witty and I enjoyed them throughout. I also thought the illustrations that accompanied them were a nice touch.
If I had to complain about one thing, it would be that it felt a bit too fast paced. It felt like a lot was crammed into a short period of time especially the romance; it developed too quickly. While I am a sucker for a good slow burn, I’m not saying that this had to be a slow burn but I think it unraveled too quickly in book one and I think that it could have been more spread out especially with so much more left in the series.
Summary:
Overall, I thought this was an addicting read. If you like Norse mythology, action, adventure, romance, and dark fantasy then this book could be for you!
Check out the book trailer here
Check out Chooser of the Slain here