Beyond a Darkened Shore Review (or if Celtic magic, Norse mythology, and undead warriors can coexist

Beyond a Darkened Shore, by Jessica Leake

Beyond a Darkened Shore makes me want to watch Vikings all over again.

Its a grand exploration of what you get when Celtic magic and Norse mythology collide. I'm ashamed to admit that I'd forgotten some of these awesome creatures and stories ever existed going into this amazing story, but I was so glad I did in the end. Things like the Morrigan, and selkies, and valkyries.

What makes this fun, too, is that those stories, and that culture, were so brutal. Good and evil aren't so simple here, and our heroine (who one could argue is basically Lagertha from Vikings with the added benefit of superpowers and mind control, which is a good thing) has to make some pretty complex decisions to see her mission through.

Oh, there's a love story too, if that's your thing. ;)

What Beyond a Darkened Shore is:

A book for young adults that's full of mythos we don't often see in fiction. Also, an intense, often violent adventure wrapped around a romance.

Who it's for:

People who love lots of killing, battles, and TONS of magic in their books (seriously, I want an army of the dead to fight for me, too). Also, people who want all that plus a dose of forbidden love.

Who it's not for:

There's a decent amount swoony eyes in there, so if that makes your eyes cross... actually, the fighting and danger and mystery probably make up for all that. Oh, and unlike a lot of the books I review, this one's not for the younger readers. Did I mention killing and blood and undead armies? Because yeah.

Beyond a Darkened Shore comes out April 18, 2018.

Reminder of Sean's review policy

Sean doesn't give bad reviews of books. If there's a book he didn't quite click with, he just won't review it. Odds are, it just wasn't a book for him, and someone else will love it. Follow the link for more on Sean's Review Policy.