Shield of the Vanir: The Lost Chronicles

by William R Humble

Overview

As the drums of war sound through Vanaheim, sixteen-year-old Arna severs her relationship with Maeve, resulting in heartache--and the loss of royal protection.

Soon after, Arna's brother Ragni is conscripted, and she loses her best friend, emotional support, and yet another layer of protection.

Left alone to care for her younger siblings, Arna flounders, and flees with the children to Yggdrasil to evade Queen Mab's wrath.

Provisions are scarce and new dangers lurk around every turn.

Arna must face her darkest fears and delve into her own burgeoning powers if the children are to have any chance of survival.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781957529172
Publisher:	Fawkes Press, LLC
Publication date:	05/28/2024
Pages:	378
Sales rank:	710,369
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.84(d)
Age Range:	13 - 18 Years

Editorial Reviews

2024-04-20
A lesser-known branch of the Norse deities’ family tree takes center stage.

Now that Arna’s oldest brother, Ragni, serves the goddess Freya, their often-absent mother, the goddess Gullveig, counts on Arna to keep her other siblings safe as war approaches. Sixteen-year-old Arna and her younger brothers and sisters have yet to erupt, or manifest godly powers. Arna feels her responsibility keenly, ashamed of having previously prioritized her ex-girlfriend over her own family. When an encounter with bullies goes badly, Arna leads her siblings out of Vanaheim via the World Tree Yggdrasil to Alfheim, where they find its people, the alfar, at war with the invading Aesir, who are Odin’s kin. Along the way, they’re rescued by a foreign trade delegation that includes Emika, a beautiful shapeshifter with whom Arna falls in love. While battling the invaders alongside the alfar, Arna searches for Gullveig, whose powers they need. The Norse mythology in the book borrows from both video games and traditional sources. Arna’s more a larger-than-life movie superhero than teen protagonist, which may pose barriers to readers’ becoming invested in her. Having learned her life lessons before the novel opens, Arna faces few challenges beyond adding to the cartoonishly vast enemy death count in a war that lacks a clear rationale or objectives. Emika and friends are cued as fantasy Japanese; most other characters appear to be the equivalent of Northern European.

Gamers may enjoy this war novel that features light character development. (Fantasy. 14-18)

Kirkus Reviews