Customer Reviews

Norse Code

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I don't know what I expecting from the cover. I think I was vaguely expecting another thinly disguised magic warrior woman romance sort of thing which really wasn't what I was in the mood for, but I decided to read it anyway.
I'm glad I did. It's complicated with a lot of characters and jumping between different scenes taking place with the characters, but it's worth it.
It's sometime in the near future. The world is in winter and pretty bleak, civilization as we know it is crumbling, but it's not really mankind's fault. It's Ragnarök. Despite everything humans have done with their free will and inventive spirit, at the end, it comes down to prophecy laid down eons ago, it's up to a lesser known god, a renegade Valkyrie, a warrior, a ghost, and the god blamed for the start of the fall to change it, to save the world from destiny.
It's well written and a great re-imagining of mythology. I enjoyed it completely. It's not fluffy and light like the cover suggests. It's a good story.

_Norse Code_ is a little gem of a book. When so many fantasy books today are small installments in series that may run into the dozens (assuming they actually do ever reach a conclusion!), _Norse Code_ harks back to the days of "done in one". While it's not the slim 190 pages of some classic genre books, at 292 pages definitely not yet another "doorstop" fantasy where you could cut 100 pages and do nothing but improve things.

The story itself is a setting of the Norse "Twilight of the Gods" in the modern world, and successfully treads a very fine line between treating its characters as figures of myth with all the irrationalities of myth and grounded modern men and women who think as we do.

The main characters are Hermod, an Aesir (he is careful not to actually claim to be a 'god') brother to Balder and Thor who after failing to bring Balder back from the land of the dead has been in self imposed exile on Midguard (our world) for thousands of years, and Mist a modern California Valkyrie who is recruting warriors for the final, hopeless battle of Ragnorok. Hermod is a well realized, wry character who though he considers himself to have failed at everything grand he has ever tried, and tries grand things with no enthusiasm still nonetheless never shirks from the tasks he feels set before him. Mist is a bit less well realized but still engaging.

Although I suppose a sequel is possible (for instance, who killed Mist in the first place?), things are generally wrapped up well enough by the books end that none is necessary or expected.

The NorseCODE genome project was designed to identify descendants of Odin. What it found was Kathy Castillo, a murdered MBA student brought back from the dead to serve as a Valkyrie in the Norse god's army. Given a sword and a new name, Mist's job is to recruit soldiers for the war between the gods at the end of the world - and to kill those who refuse to fight. But as the twilight of the gods descends, Mist makes other plans.

This book was amazing! I gave it 5 stars for sheer originality as well as for having great characters and a good plotline. I mean, honestly, how many books have you ever come across featuring the Norse gods and Ragnarok? I vaguely remember Odin and Loki, but the other gods and mythology were new to me. Greg did a great job of providing short backgrounds when necessary, and made it easy to keep track of everyone.

Mist is a new Valkyrie who is not really comfortable with her job of finding new recruits for the final battle between the gods. On her very first job, when her first recruit is deemed unworthy and is set on the road to Helheim (the land of the dead), Mist decides to embark on a rescue mission. She will not only rescue her recruit, but also her murdered sister Lilly. To do this, she needs the help of the only one to ever go to Helheim and back, the Norse god Hermod.

Hermod has problems of his own and would rather just be left alone, but somehow winds up accompanying Mist on her rescue mission. Along with her bodyguard Grimnir and Hermod's loyal dog Winston, they set off on the adventure to end all adventures. And hey, while they're at it, why not prevent the end of the world as well?

If you have any working knowledge of the Norse myths and culture, then you'll most likely enjoy this book. It's wonderfully written, with great dialogue. I'd never heard of the author, just saw it on a bookshelf at a local store, and thought I'd pick it up, because I'm into Norse mythology. I'm glad I did. The author weaves mythology into modernism in a respectable fashion, avoiding the usual cheesiness that comes with less respectable books.

The only book I can think of that is similar in terms of using old gods and new worlds is Neil Gaiman's "American Gods," and this book, in my opinion, far surpasses Gaiman's.

Kudos to this author. Can't wait to read more.

I wasn't very familiar with Eekhout before, but I have since checked out a couple of his short stories which were surprisingly strong. I'm glad he decided to tackle something long form as Norse Code is his debut effort. He most certainly has a bright future in front of him. Norse Code was one of those titles that as soon as I heard it I knew it would be for me.

Norse Code can almost act as an entertaining primer to Norse Gods and their associated lore. Eekhout manages to deftly include nearly every aspect of Norse mythology in some fashion. Even tiny aspects are discussed in depth while they are barely mentioned in the legends. The book centers on Hermod Odinson, the wandering god, who is often considered a minor player in the mythology but in this he grows into a star. The book quickly switches gears from what I thought was going to be more of a typical Urban Fantasy placed mostly on our world but turned into a tour of all the Nine worlds of Norse mythology traveling to the very roots of the World Tree. This is most assuredly the coming of Ragnarok.

Norse Code is action-packed and fun, but I did have a few problems with it. Overall, it was almost too quickly paced and many of the problems the characters encounter are solved too easily. Some more fleshing out of the coming of Ragnarok would have been good especially in the worsening of the human realm just to connect the reader a bit more. I felt that the book did lose something by not following up more on the NorseCode company which is only mentioned at the beginning and little elsewhere. It almost seemed like this should have been book 2 in a series. The main female character Mist could have used a bit more emotion, but I guess being a Valkyrie it is understandable why she isn't. Even with all of these problems Norse Code is still very much a worthwhile and enjoyable read. The battle scenes with the Gods and other creatures are well done as are the depictions of creatures such a Surtr a giant fire being.

The dialogue is especially funny in the most unexpected scenes as Hermod always makes it seem that he is out of his element or out matched. Fans of American Gods and Thor comics will find something to love in these pages. Norse Code will definitely keep you compelled enough to get to the finish line just to see what all this talk of Ragnarok is all about. The ending certainly surprised me. For a first novel this is a fine showing.

Norse Code

Genetic searching for actual descendants of ODIN. Quests through LA and worlds of Norse Mythology... some great fight scenes and a great ending. This is a great, fun, summer read. AND... if you didn't know anything about Norse Mythology you get some names that you want to Google. It's great. Get it.

This started promisingly but didn't really gain any momentum. Characters are thin and barely there, and I don't think the auther looked much further into Norse Mythology than a quick Wiki-search would provide. If you're writing about Ragnarok you'd better bring the thunder, and I didn't feel anything but relief upon finishing this book.

I can say one thing, if this is Greg Van Eekhout's first and last book, I think he can retire pretty proud of himself. As a fan of any mythology, I have to recommend this book. It brings the myths to life in all their dark, violent glory. Ever wonder what Ragnarok would look like? Read this book. I have decided this book is as close as I'd like to come to the Norse end of the world.

Yes, this book is violent and gory. But it should be. It would have lacked the important impact otherwise. Think about it, heaven is preparing for the final battle on the side of Odin during Ragnarok, with brief periods of drinking mead served by comely maidens, er valkyries. These myths have a built in blood and guts factor. Like the best books, I felt like I was right there in the action, knots in my stomach as Fenrir devours the moon, while his ever-ravenous pups devour the sun and whatever else gets in their way. The Midgard Serpent engages Thor in the final battle, and the ship of the dead, carrying Hel, the Norse goddess of death's troops, comes from Helheim to fight the final battle against the Einherjar.

Well thankfully there is a reluctant and disgraced god, Hermod, and a runaway valkyrie, Mist, to stave off Ragnarok. Mist is looking to rescue her sister Lilly from Hel's clutches in Helheim, and Hermod is the only living person to go there and return. He went there to retrieve his brothers Hod and Baldr, who died unjust and untimely deaths (long story, read the book). In payment for his aid, she agrees to help him save the nine worlds, which include Midgard, what we call Earth. It sounds complicated, and well it is a bit, but it's so entertaining, and so interesting reading about all these events. This book really is urban fantasy at its best.

Although some might want a faster paced read, I felt this book is very much worth the investment in reading it. The descriptions are so vivid, and it is clear that Mr. Van Eekhout did his research, which he earns my admiration for doing. And for telling a story that is so readable, fun in parts, and almost dreary in others, as only the myths are; and increasingly hard to put down. Although reading Norse Code doesn't replace reading the Prose Edda, I would say that this book would do very well to introduce a novice to Norse mythology, and what a cool ride it is along the way.

This book starts rather slowly, but you definitely want to hang in there. Heck, there's even a great, eight-legged horse (Slepnir).

What an unexpectedly amazing book! The title caught my eye, because I had just read some Norse mythology, so I picked it up hoping it would be a silly but fun read (and fearing it would be garbage). To my surprise, however, the story was epic, deep, moving, fascinating--and, yes, fun. The title, cover, and blurb on the back do not do any justice to the quality of the book, or accurately represent what it's about.

Ragnarok is approaching; the chain of events leading up to it were set in motion long ago. But Hermod, son of Odin, is worried that he's accidentally sped things up, and he doesn't really want that kind of responsibility. After all, he hasn't been to Asgard in thousands of years, and he hasn't kept in touch. Mist, meanwhile, has only been a Valkyrie for three months--since she and her sister were killed in a drive-by shooting--but she's already ready to take matters into her own hands and rescue her sister from Helheim and from Hel, the terrifying queen of the dead. Only one person has ever been to Helheim and back, and that's Hermod. Together, they just might be able to accomplish both goals...but destiny can be pretty hard to escape from.

They imagine the chain of events like a line of dominoes, and they want to figure out how to stop them all from being knocked over. So along with Mist's partner Grimnir and Hermod's dog Winston, and a few other people they meet along the way, they journey through Helheim and among the nine worlds that make up Yggdrasil, the world tree, looking for the piece to remove. But everything they do seems to topple yet another domino and bring them closer to Ragnarok.

The NorseCODE genome project is actually a great idea, and it might be fun to read a book or short story just about that, but it's only a very tiny part of this story. And that is not a complaint. The scope of this novel is so much greater than just a clever idea. Here we deal with destiny, with betrayal, with responsibility, with staying true to oneself, with love...Hel, there's a freaking apocalypse! There's also plenty of buttkicking and swords and even zombies, in the form of draugr, the shambling dead. There are also a lot of details and imagery from Norse mythology, which were done excellently. There are also some different and fascinating interpretations of aspects of some myths, which didn't detract from the originals in anyway, but made them more meaningful.

The characters in this story are mythic and legendary, but even though some of them are g-ds, they're so very human. There are many heroes, but there are also many characters that the heroes are fighting against, many of whom I would hesitate to call villains. After all, everyone already knows that Ragnarok will happen and what the result will be, and most know their own parts to play in it. If some are tired of waiting around for it, or have plans to make the best of it, does that really make them bad guys? This is one of the many interesting questions that this book raised in my mind.

I was really not expecting to like this much, but holy crap was it good. Great, actually. You have to get past the title--it's cute and clever, but it trivializes the book and it's almost completely unrelated to the plot--the cover, which is not a good representation of the epic-ness and the many heroes and POVs of the story, and the summary on the back, which is kind of misleading, and you'll find a real gem.



First line of the Prologue: "On the last true day of spring the nine world will ever know, my brother and I fly recon through the land of the g-ds. From this high up, Asgard shimmers."
First line of Chapter One: "Only two hours into Mist's first job, things were already going badly. For one, the duct tape had come loose over the recruit's mouth, and he was screaming so loudly that Mist was sure he'd be heard through the walls of the van, even above the roar of Route 21 traffic."

The cover of this book is a little misleading because it suggests that Norse Code is another run-of-the-mill urban fantasy featuring a kickass babe with attitude.

It does have a kickass babe, the Valkyrie Mist, but the book is a lot more epic in scope than most urban fantasies. Plus the male protagonist, Hermod, is at least as important to the story as Mist. It's also a lot more apocalyptic than a typical urban fantasy. It is about Ragnarok, after all. The last few lines (beautifully written) remind me of the last lines of Milton's Paradise Lost, when Adam and Eve leave the garden while the angel waves the fiery sword.

Sorta makes me wish for a sequel. I'd love to see how Hermod and Mist deal with a world full of frost giants and elves and other refugees from Ragnarok. They are both fully realized characters who grow and change during the book, and I'd gladly read about more of their adventures.

The writing itself is excellent. Van Eekhout has an exceptionally deft style with many funny lines and lots of vivid figurative language that serves to make the world come alive. The book contains so much inventiveness and fun that despite the looming apocalypse it's an enormous amount of fun.

Because of the Norse gods element, the obvious comparison is to Neil Gaiman's American Gods, and the book does share some similarities with that book, though I think van Eekhout's book surpasses Gaiman's (I still think Gaiman biffed the ending). Weirdly, the comparison that came to mind was Terry Pratchett. Van Eekhout's work has the same kind of epic feel as Pratchett's does, the same kind of humor with an underlying seriousness and humanity.