When a banished witch falls in love with the legendary trickster Loki, she risks the wrath of the gods in this moving, subversive national bestselling debut novel that reimagines Norse mythology. Angrboda’s story begins where most witches’ tales end: with a burning. A punishment from Odin for refusing to provide him with knowledge of the future, the fire leaves Angrboda injured and powerless, … injured and powerless, and she flees into the farthest reaches of a remote forest. There she is found by a man who reveals himself to be Loki, and her initial distrust of him transforms into a deep and abiding love.
Their union produces three unusual children, each with a secret destiny, who Angrboda is keen to raise at the edge of the world, safely hidden from Odin’s all-seeing eye. But as Angrboda slowly recovers her prophetic powers, she learns that her blissful life—and possibly all of existence—is in danger.
With help from the fierce huntress Skadi, with whom she shares a growing bond, Angrboda must choose whether she’ll accept the fate that she’s foreseen for her beloved family…or rise to remake their future. From the most ancient of tales this novel forges a story of love, loss, and hope for the modern age.
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Gornichec’s debut is a fabulous, imaginative take on Norse mythology, which despite the popularity of Marvel’s version of Loki, is still a rarer find in fiction than its Greek and Roman cousins. The giantess-witch Angrboda, mother to Loki’s children—a wolf, a serpent, and the ruler of the dead—finally gets to tell her own story, painful and magical and fully inhabited.
A marvelous retelling of Norse myths centered around Angrbord, a giantess, Loki’s first wife, and the mother of monsters. Should sit beside Madeline Miller’s Circe and The Song of Achilles for majestic retellings of mythology.
The Witch’s heart is a very unique love story, one that I honestly was not prepared for. Heavy in Norse Mythology, Gornichec does an amazing job in retelling Ragnarok through the eyes of Angrboda, a witch who escapes death when Odin burned her at the stake, in the process she looses her heart. Loki, which everyone should know about by now, eventually finds it and brings it back to her. This starts the story of a very epic love story.
Angrboda was a very cool character, she’s very logical and practical (something you don’t thing about when it comes to the Norse Gods) and I really enjoyed her POV. Gornichec’s writing was so refreshing and interesting, that I forgot this was a retelling as she made the story of Ragnarok her own.
Overall, a very creative lovestory
Rating: ½
Genre: Fantasy + Retteling
The Witch’s Heart is somehow a retelling that is inspired by Norse Mythology. It is the story of the witch Angrboda, the mother of Loki’s three children. She is the focus of this tale. The story is told from her perspective and the reader will follow her and her relationships with Loki, Skadi, and her three children, Hel, Fenrir, and Jormungand.
I liked the love story at the beginning between Angraboda and Loki. But betrayal happens soon and the witch finds herself lonely and that is when Skadi’s bond with her flourishes. The main character has a strong personality and that is what made reading this book interesting. The author focuses on her relationships highlighting all the rights and wrongs with them but never imposing them on the reader.
I enjoyed reading this fantasy even though in the beginning it was a bit slow for my taste. The second half picks up and things start to get more interesting with all the different conflicts. Although this is a fantasy I couldn’t help it at times but felt like I was reading a contemporary novel. Not sure why I felt that way. Could it be because the relationships were the main focus here? Probably. But how I felt does not mean you will feel the same way about it as well. In general, I feel this story might appeal to many readers who enjoy fantasy and retellings with a strong female protagonist. Give it a try if the premise sounds intriguing to you.
If you enjoy Norse Mythology, you’re going to enjoy this one! This is the tale of Angrboda, Loki, and their three unusual children.
I knew nothing about these characters of Norse Mythology, so I loved watching their story unfold. At times the different characters became a bit confusing, but I wonder if that had more to die with my lack of Norse Mythology knowledge and listening to it on audiobook, than the writing itself. I have since looked into Angrboda & her story but can’t find much, which made me appreciate this story even more.
One of my biggest struggles with this book was the length of the “parts”. This book is broken down into three parts but is absent of chapters, which made it harder to find a good stopping spot.
: There we’re so many unknown characters to me that at times it was hard to keep them all straight while listening to this one audiobook. As I mentioned before, I don’t know if that had more to do with my lack of Norse Mythology knowledge, the audiobook, or the writing in general. However, I enjoyed the narration of this and thought that the choice in narrator really helped to bring Angrboda to life.
This book stayed with me a long time after reading and affected me in an emotional way.
I related to Angrboda so much as a woman and a mother. With her quiet fortitude, her trusting heart, and her willingness to do anything—and endure anything—for her children, she made for a highly sympathetic main character. Her wisdom, empathy, and resilience are powerful—demonstrating that female characters needn’t wield a sword to prove their strength and agency. Angrboda is a woman who has learned to survive in a harsh world under harsher gods.
I really enjoy when authors play with form and choose to incorporate lesser-known figures of mythology within their stories. Angrboda’s story is poignant, moving, and heroic. Genevieve Gornichec brings her to life in a truly unforgettable way.
This is an excellent take on the Nordic tales regarding Loki, so if you’re watching the. Disney series, this is an excellent next step.
The Witch’s Heart by Genevieve Gornichec (@gengornichec)
I have always loved mythology, in particular, Greek Mythology. Unlike my son who has an affinity to all things Norse. So when Genevieve Gornichec’s The Witch’s Heart was recommended to me while browsing on Amazon, it had a long excerpt available, I couldn’t stop reading. I was so intrigued that I pre-ordered it.
I’m so glad I did.
The Witch’s Heart is the story of Angrboda and Loki, of the life they shared until it was ripped apart by Odin and Thor and Frigg, and Freya (yup, they’re not your friendly Marvel superheroes, though Loki is true to his nature), It’s a story of loss, and love, and loss again, and betrayal until the events in Angrboda’s life are allowed to take their natural course towards Ragnarok.
To say, the least, I suddenly developed a desire to know more about Norse Mythology, about Loki and his women. I wanted to know more about his children whom he betrayed; yet he said he did this to save them.
I have to say this was difficult reading particularly when Ms Gornichec beautifully tells Angrboda’s story and I like that she provides us with a different perspective of who Loki’s wife was even though Norse Mythology paints her as the Hag of Ironwood. Reading The Witch’s Heart has also led to discussions about Norse Mythology with my son, something I will always treasure.
I am nearing the end of the book and yet, I don’t want to finish it knowing how it will end. I feel so much of Angrboda’s pain, the sacrifices she was forced to make, and her love for Loki.
As for Loki…(I see Tom Hiddleston here!) He is also a misunderstood soul. Yet so many times, he has been given the chance to see the error of his ways. He refuses to, defaulting to the justification that he is a god. And how can he not? When the very people who vilify him in Asgard are themselves fallible. Ms Gornichec provides us with a glimpse of who Loki is and why he does what he does despite Angrboda’s love.
This is one book that will stay with you even after the last page has been read.
Great take on Norse folklore
This retelling was so boring. I was looking forward to the story, but the writing style did not keep my attention. Skipped most of the middle, read the beginning of part 3, but just could not continue.
Perhaps if I knew more Norse mythology, I would have better appreciated this. As it was, I found it very repetitious and overly dramatic.
I love a good witch story, and I’m always ready to read books based in mythology, especially if it features characters who are not usually center stage. That is the case here with Angrboda, a giantess witch from Norse mythology who is rarely known for more than just being the mother of 3 of Loki’s children. Genevieve Gornichec takes this lesser-known character and weaves a beautiful yet heartbreaking story of a woman who is getting what she never dreamed she could have, but knows it will only last so long due to her visions of Ragnarok and the role her family will play in the destruction. Unsurprisingly, this book is perfect for fans of Madeline Miller’s Circe!
Norse mythology retellings are hard. If you want to tell a story that isn’t about the trio of main male gods (Odin, Thor, or Loki), you don’t have a whole lot to work with in terms of a consistent character or storyline, and even what you do have to work with is often riddled with different translations and the impression Christianity left behind on the original stories. There’s also the fact that Norse myth is very clear about everyone dying at the end. Norse myth retellings I see frequently disregard the end of the world story altogether, leaving Ragnarok to be dealt with at sometime in the future, or find some harebrained scheme to stop it. The Witch’s Heart does neither, instead defining the main character and her storyline by the knowledge that the world will end with the end of the novel, and her along with it, resulting in a tale characterized almost entirely by trauma and loss.
Angrboda stumbles into the Ironwood with little idea of who she is, how she got there, and most importantly, what she is capable of. She knows her heart was cut out and she was burned thrice at the stake by the Aesir, the gods of Asgard, for refusing to predict the future for their king, Odin. But now her powers lay dormant, her identity a mystery, with her only remaining memory her burning. It’s when a man comes along to return her heart to her that the color begins to reenter her life. Loki, a giant like her who has taken up a place among the Aesir, lives in an in-between space: he lives in Asgard, but his position among them is small and on thin ice, forever using his magic to get the gods both in and out of trouble. While the two strike up a romance safely outside the eyes of Odin, their children begin to attract more attention. A half-dead girl, a wolf, and a serpent place the eyes of Asgard on them, and with Angrboda’s returning prophetic powers informing her that her offspring may bring about the end of all things as they know it, she is forced to choose between the existence of all creation and her own children.
Genevieve Gornichec’s writing strikes the right balance between lush and accessible writing, giving us the intricacies of Angrboda’s internal struggles and the magical world she lives in without droning on. With Angrboda being on her own so many pages of the book, this easily could’ve devolved into pages of narrative rambling, but Gornichec keeps her chapters trim and neat. Certain sections lean poetic, but always at the right moment, leading us to a gorgeous ending, both lyrical and heartbreaking.
There’s a criticism to be made in that Angrboda doesn’t do much for the majority of the novel. Her adventure came before the novel even started and now, burned and recalcitrant, she sits for a great deal of time in her little cave in the woods, seeking out nothing more than a steady life with her children. The plot, when it comes, is forced upon her, and every time she turns away from it. I can see how this would be frustrating to a reader who is used to a more Western plot where the protagonist leaps to action every opportunity, but I found this a refreshing change. Angrboda sits in the woods and quietly makes her potions and pots because she has been deeply, gravely traumatized by the Aesir. To have her immediately leap into the fray would be an insult to her character and everything she’s gone through. This quieter exploration of personhood is interesting, resulting in a book that is perhaps less exciting than other Norse retellings but important in another way. Angrboda’s quiet life feels more honest and like a strikingly different portrayal of trauma than what readers are used to. Her seclusion, deep mistrust, and sometimes open hostility, ensure that she stays in her cave, but it makes perfect sense for her character. It also works well as an in-person explanation for why she’s so unperturbed by the monstrous forms of her children; they’re all she has in the world.
My only quibble with the book is that there’s some inconsistency and unoriginality with the way queer people are portrayed that I found both confusing and uninspiring. Anyone who’s familiar with Norse myth knows that Loki spends a decent amount of his time wearing dresses, or conceiving children, or being a woman, or emasculating himself, and those events are told accurately in this book. There’s also a queer relationship between two women portrayed. Sometimes this is brushed off like it’s no big deal, sometimes it’s not, and sometimes it’s a really big deal. It seemed that Gornechic was interested in creating a queer-normative world for some of the characters but not others, looking for characters to give gender nonconformity a side-eye only when it made for a good plot device. With a base mythology so rich in gender fuckery, I feel like this was played a little too conservatively.
In the original mythology, when the end of the world comes and the realms perish by fire, in its place will rise a new world, a greener one, a better one. This finale to the Norse myths is often critiqued, questioned as to whether or not this is how the Nords intended it or whether or not this was some invention of the Christians that later settled in the area. The rebirth in the original myths is uncertain, but the ending of The Witch’s Heart isn’t. This book is a great exploration of how to cope with trauma, of motherhood, and of hope. A quiet book, but a good one.
review blog
I have so much love for this cover and premise. I studied mythology in college because I love history, legends, and folklore. Add in Genevieve’s superb writing style and this book is one I had to read.
One of the things I appreciate the most is how Genevieve humanizes Loki when the reader meets him. He’s often seen as heartless and very much the trickster. Which he still is, of course, but he’s light-hearted and – dare I say it? – a little endearing.
Genevieve masterfully plays on the characters’ strengths and weaknesses. She definitely gives us a whole different and unexpected picture of these characters the Marvel universe has conditioned us to love (or not, as the case may be). She stays true to the temperaments and what could be seen as outrageousness of Norse god myths. I had to chuckle a few times comparing her descriptions against the Thor films.
I think going into this book with a little foundation of the Norse myths would allow for more enjoyment. Or even Greek or Roman. The gods and demi-gods would never hold to the same “code” we lowly humans do.
This book is filled with side-eye humor and an enjoyable read if you love exploring the fantastical elements of legends.
Thank you to Berkley and NetGalley for the advanced copy. All thoughts in this review are my own.
I am terrible with reviews. You would think, as an author, I would have words for how I feel about a book. However, with a novel like The Witch’s Heart by Genevieve Gornichec, I want to make sure I have the right words, so that you go out and get this book. What made me love this book is not that it is a retelling of a myth from the point of view of the nameless (or thrice named in this case) woman. What made me love it is Gornichec’s respect for that character and the small work of women alongside the big work. Angrboda, the Witch in the title, has a role to play in the fate of the Norse gods. At the same time, she is a mother who must wrangle three children, clean the home, cook the meals, and keep it all together while her husband is absent. It doesn’t matter that the absent husband is Loki, and the children are magical beings. Food must still be prepared and toddlers – be they wolves or serpents – need their naps. This is an homage to women of myth who do the work – all the work – to keep the world turning. As a bonus, the writing is exquisite – a true joy to read.
The Witch’s Heart by Genevieve Gornichec is an excellent novel that is full of rich imagery, Norse mythology, and was utterly captivating from beginning to end.
This story brings to light Angrboda, a figure that was only mentioned in passing as the woman that gave birth to Lodi’s offspring, and passed over from there. Here, she receives an intricate, emotional, and passionate story that is so unique and impressive, the reader feels as if this telling must be from ancient sources itself.
Full of emotion, imagery, and suspense that I was able to polish this gem off in no time.
A wonderful, mythical story that weaves together a tale that I will remember for quite a long time.
Thank you EW and Ace Books for this wonderful ARC and in return I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review and opinion.
I am posting this review to my GR, Instagram, and Bookbub accounts immediately and will post it to my Amazon, Instagram, and B&N accounts upon publication on 2/9/21.
The Witch’s Heart is a Norse mythology retelling of Ragnarok and Loki’s hand in it. Our main character is an ancient being who initially worked with the gods of Asgard but had a falling out when she didn’t do as Odin commanded and he burnt her at the stake. Three separate times. The last time, her heart remained on the spike that was driven through her chest. Loki finds it and brings it back to her. This starts a romance between the two as different as they are.
The story is filled with the banter one would expect from Loki, and plenty of dialog. Loki’s hijinks made the story quite enjoyable. Most of the major names in Norse mythology make an appearance, yet the Asgardians are not the good guys in this story. This was a quick read and a stand alone story.