Wit and Sin

My review originally posted on Joyfully Reviewed: http://www.joyfullyreviewed.com/new-reviews/daughters-of-odin-antho

Kara, Mist, and Jola, three of Odin’s daughters, have lost their sense of humanity and their parents will no longer overlook it. The father of all gods is about to teach his daughters a lesson. He sends each daughter to a different time, along with an amulet. The person who first finds the amulet in each time period will be that goddess’s master until he or she gives the amulet back to the goddess freely. The trio has until winter solstice to get their amulets back or they will lose their immortality and never see each other again.


“Kara” by Lyn Armstrong - 1 star
Kara has become selfish over time and doesn’t like it in the slightest when she finds herself in 9th century Scandinavia. Forced to be a slave for the handsome Viking Erik, Kara has to work harder than she’s ever had to before. She also finds unexpected pleasure in Erik’s arms. But with Erik’s brother threatening to attack his colony, Kara must decide if she’s willing to sacrifice a chance to go home for the man who’s swiftly capturing hear heart.

It’s hard to like a heroine who is a selfish brat, but it can be done. Unfortunately, Kara seems to learn about selflessness by chance rather than any actual change in character. The sacrifices she makes aren’t really sacrifices, which seemed at odds with the premise of the anthology. Even if I could overlook Kara and focused the good parts of the story, namely Erik, I still could not like “Kara.” Lyn Armstrong frustrated me in scenes with the villains because she seems to use sexual molestation to titillate, something that is a complete turnoff for me. I’m sorry to say that “Kara” ended up being a lackluster start to the book.


“Mist” by Melinda Barron - 3 stars
Mist is downright irritated when her father sends her to Victorian London. When she overhears a man and a woman arguing about a necklace, she assumes it is the amulet she is meant to find. Mist makes a deal with the woman to steal the amulet, she doesn’t expect that the necklace in question is not her amulet, but one meant to destroy a demon. She’s in for an even bigger surprise when the man who buys the necklace she’s supposed to steal also finds Mist’s amulet.

“Mist” is by far my favorite story in the anthology. It’s an erotic treat packed with sensuality, lessons learned, and the very beginnings of love. Mist, who has lost all sense of compassion, re-learns how to treat people, and the lesson isn’t easily learned. Her “teacher,” so to speak, is Albert, a deliciously sexy warlock on a mission. One of the reasons I liked “Mist” so much was that Albert was already involved in the paranormal world. It made his acknowledgment and adjustment to Mist’s revelation that she’s a goddess much more believable. Overall, I enjoyed “Mist” – it was fast, sexy, and had spark.


“Jola” by Ann Cory - 2 stars
Jola, the youngest of the three sisters, has found herself in modern times. She also finds herself in the care of the very sexy vintner Landon. Jola has every intention of seducing Landon and getting back her amulet before solstice, but she’s captivated by Landon’s generosity and hardworking nature. She also discovers that his family business is in trouble, thanks to his overbearing twin. Will Jola risk sacrificing her happiness to help Landon?

“Jola” is one of those stories that starts off with a bang and ends with a fizzle. Odin says Jola has lost her purity, and though she doesn’t magically regain it, she does learn what it means to love one person, which I suppose is close enough. I loved the dynamic between Jola and Landon and if the story were longer, it could have been great. Where “Jola” falls apart is in the last three-quarters of the story. Ann Cory goes strong until then, but near the end “Jola” switches pace and feels rushed and slapped-together with a tacked-on bow regarding Landon’s handling the supernatural elements popping up in his life. I honestly wanted to like “Jola,” but it just ended up not being the story for me.


Daughters of Odin has a fun premise and three capable authors at its helm, which is why I was disappointed that I only ended up liking one of the stories. On the whole, Daughters of Odin could have benefited from each of the stories being longer. I’d have liked to feel that the characters were a bit more three-dimensional. I’d also have preferred that development of the romances felt more organic; the only one that was truly believable to me was Mist and Albert. All in all, Daughters of Odin wasn’t everything I hoped it would be, but perhaps another reader will be more enchanted by it than I was.