Loki Kindle Edition

What if the giants hated the Aesir because they attacked without cause? What if Freya used her magic to go undercover? What if Loki spent his life as the outsider, never feeling accepted by his peers, desperately trying to prove his value and love of Asgard only to discover the truth of his origin is a blood soaked murderous tragedy.What if every assumption we have about who’s good or bad comes into question?These fundamental questions are the basis for this retelling of old mythology. The optics are framed by those who win and, in the long run, those who survive.My only criticism is the language occasionally drifts instilted formality we often see in 19th century literature but on the whole a fun read that kept me engaged and invested.

This is an excellent fully developed tale of Loki and his whole cycle in Norse mythology. It was a great approach to showing the motivations, perplexing prophecies, and the playing out of events and effects of actions. I was a bit intimidated at first as it starts off with a big listing of names and places--I think that is why so many traditional mythology approaches have not been effective for me--the details are so odd and intimidating that I can't really relate. This book excels in that it gives a concise account throughout the book of the mythical segments and then dives into a story in an extremely relate-able manner. This book brought the characters to life from Odin the Allfather to Loki to his wolf son as well as many others. One warning for fans of the Thor/Avengers movie--this book is the real deal and not the sexy young heroes who fall in love with human women. Apparently gods just don't fall in love with mortals. They have enough problems with each other.

I sort of liked this book. I have read the Norse myths, so I did go into this novel with a knowledge of the basic stories and relationships. Below, I outline what I liked and what I did not like. There are a lot SPOILERS in my review, but people familiar with the myths shouldn't experience too many spoilers.THE GOOD:The book is well-written.I liked Loki's realization of the chaos within him. I also thought that his feelings of betrayal and isolation were spot on.Fenrir was beautifully written, probably more beautifully written than Loki. I haven't read a better description of Fenrir, his motivations and his anger before. I really enjoyed his character.THE NOT-SO-GOOD:The pacing was uneven. Sometimes, the story stuttered and died, and it was difficult to continue reading. At other times, I was very exciting and addictive.The italicized sections took away the suspense, and I agree with many other reviewers: do not read these sections.In spite of the title and the book synopsis which claims that this book is from Loki's perspective, it is not. The beginning of the story was told from his perspective and I felt that it did his character justice, but in the middle Fenrir, Tyr and Baldr become the main focus and Loki is nowhere to be found. I didn't necessarily mind this because as I said, I really enjoyed Fenrir in this book. My issue with the omission of Loki is that it left me confused on his motivations later in the book. I will also admit that I did not appreciate the massive change in Baldr's death, since I think the method of his death is telling of both Baldr's and Loki's characters in the myths. Baldr's arrogance is as important as Loki's underhanded cruelty.I was waiting impatiently for Loki's Flyting (the Lokasenna), because that is one of my favorite parts of the mythology. I've always seen it as Loki's Jerry Springer moment and I couldn't wait for him to confront all of the Aesir, show them their hypocrisy and call Freya a slattern...and it never came. This is a key moment for understanding Loki, so I was very disappointed by its omission.

I've started reading this because I really wanted to read something about Loki. You know, after watching Thor and Avengers he was my very favorite villain.This book didn't dissapoint me. I love the story, how it shows different events from Loki's life leading to the very end of Asgard.What really annoyed me was Odin. He's supposed to be the wisest all knowing and yet he acts like he's just a pawn in hands of destiny. He;s the one who messed up everything and lead to his own end. Who does that??Loki seems a victim of all that, but since he's not a very forgiving person he's bound to bring he's wraith to the gods. I'm completely on his side.Anyway, if you're interested in Loki's point of view and want to read a book connected to Norse mythology this is it.

Author Mike Vasich brings Norse mythology to life in way that only a gifted storyteller could. The novel slightly reimagines the Norse legends leading up to the apocalyptic battle of Ragnarök, but stays basically faithful to the core mythology. The story is told through the viewpoints of several of the Norse gods, including Tyr, Freyja, Odin, and, of course, Loki, the King of Lies, whose mistreatment and exile by Odin and the other gods motivates him to bring about the Nordic version of the End of Days. In the novel, Odin is known as the Terrible One, a grim and manipulative being that lives up to his nickname. The other gods are also interesting characters - especially the fearsome Thor and the sensual Freyja - as is Loki, who is both a sympathetic character and a murderous villain.The novel reminded me a bit of some of the great, vintage fantasy tales, like Michael Moorcock's Elric of Melniboné. But Vasich tells his story in a modern and well-written third-person limited point-of-view. The story moves at a quick pace and the battle scenes are masterfully portrayed, being some of the most exciting in the novel. On top of that, the ending is both thought-provoking and satisfying. This is a truly fantastic novel that should appeal to anyone who loves mythology, or simply a really good fantasy tale. I highly recommend it!

With the recent surge of Loki fans from the Marvel movies, no doubt this book will do well among them. Indeed, this book caters well to all - those who are interested in Norse mythology will find the snippets of the original myths at the start of each chapter interesting, and the chapters themselves offer a good retelling of the myths in detail. Those who are fans of Hiddleston's portrayal will have no problem fitting his character into the shoes of this Loki.My one problem is I find this book is inconsistant; When the writing is good, it's very good, such as (*SPOILER...even though the myths are hundreds of years old...?*) when Odin exiles Loki. That whole scene is powerful, heartbreaking and emotional, and the reader really feels Loki's anger and the unfairness of the situation, as well as Odin's burden to be so cold. But when the writing is flat...it's terribly flat. I'm not sure what it is, but often I find myself bored of this book. I love Norse Mythology, but there have been far more exciting adaptions than this book manages sometimes. But again, this is often made up for, as the writing can be very good in places.All in all I would recommend this book, as it is entertaining and offers a decent insight to Norse Mythology and gives new fans a deeper knowledge of his backstory and origins.

I ran across this book completely by accident on the Kindle store, and I have to sat I am delighted that I did. Mike Vasich has crafted a delightful look at the major myths of the Norse cycle, filtered through the eyes of the main antagonist.The book is written as a sweeping action saga, complete with plenty of brutal violence, eerie magic and unforgettable characters. Each of the major players, while more than familiar from the old myths, has been given a distinctive voice by Vasich that brings them into the present; I loved his tortuous take on Odin's knowledge of the future.The events that make up the story are, of course, some of the best and most stirring in mythology, including the tale of the giant mason and that of Baldur's death. What Vasich does admirably well is to weld them together into one epic narrative, each part illuminating the others.The main protagonist, the trickster god of the title, is beautifully portrayed as well; despite performing many wicked deeds throughout the story, Loki the outsider among the Aesir remains sympathetic throughout. You won't be ROOTING for him as such, but you will see his side of the story, and feel for him as you realise that for all his brilliance, he is as much a pawn of fate as anyone else.From the unsettling beginning to the fiery end that is Ragnarok, Mike Vasich has created a truly unique take on the legends, and one I cannot recommend enough to lovers of Norse mythology, or those that just love an action-packed fantasy tale.

This popped up as a recommendation after I had been reading various pieces of Norse literature. I was up for trying it as the character of Loki is an interesting one and it might make an interesting contrast to read something contemporary. Sadly, I just couldn't get on with the style. The writer attempts to put us inside the head of Loki but it really doesn't work so well. It contrasts so completely with the detached style of the source material that it was quite grating to read.

As a big fan of Norse mythology I was very hopeful when purchasing this book but it was quite a disappointing read. There is nothing wrong with the writing exactly, I just found it quite boring. Would possibly cater better to someone with little or know knowledge of the original mythology. :)

Quite annoying read as the author goes over the same scene a thousand times but from different perspectives. The Norse myths are completely changed but doesn't bring anything new to the scene just plain headaches from pure annoyance.Couldn't even finish the book as the chapters are just very very long retellings of the classic myths