An orc is not someone you want to piss off.
“Hear me, spirits of this wretched pace!” Grimnir roared. “I have lived a thousand mortal lifetimes! I am the Corpse-maker and Life-quencher, the Bringer of Night, the Song of the Wolf and Brother of the Serpent! I am all that remain of the kaunar of the Kjolen Mountains! Taste of my blood so that you will know the truth of what I say!” (Scott Oden, A Gathering of Ravens pg. 128)
As you can tell from this quote, Grimnir is a pretty chill and humble guy.
All he wants is a little revenge against his enemy Bjarki Half-Dane, but of course those pesky Christians keep getting in the way of all that. It’s hard for the last orc to destroy a man (seriously, it shouldn’t be so difficult, especially when one has a trusty seax), but Grimnir isn’t one to sit back and not try his best.
‘Aided’ by Étaín, a Christian woman hiding as a monk, the two make an unlikely pair. Their relationship grows over the course of their journey, which gives a nice dichotomy between their two very different world views. A true clash of the “old” and the “new.”
While Grimnir is a bit (and by bit, I mean a lot) doom and gloom, as any good grimdark MC should be, Étaín is one filled with faith, belief and strength.
Bloody Terrific History, Orc-Style (Emphasis on ‘bloody’)
A Gathering of Ravens is well researched, with a lot of attention to detail and historical facts. What I loved most was sensing the passion the author has for this story bleeding through the pages. Just like the Danes and Christians’ cracked skulls bled over the flagstones of churches.
The writing is strong, and slightly reflective of more traditional fantasy, which I feel matches the story and tone perfectly. This definitely has a saga feel to it, and the touches of magic and legend really hit this home. I also want to mention that it speaks to Oden’s strength as a writer how he effortlessly blends multiple mythologies together into one powerful punch of a book.
If you like to walk on the darker side of Norse myth and history, and you don’t mind a splattering of blood, this is definitely a book that checks all those boxes.
Also, a little advice, if you walk into a cave and a grumpy orc allows you to rest for only the night, don’t overstay your welcome…You might end up with quite the unfortunate headache in the morning.
I will definitely be picking up the sequel, Twilight of the Gods.
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