The Witch’s Heart

For the last couple of years, one of the books that’s been highest up on my TBR has been The Witch’s Heart by Genevieve Gornichec. With her second novel, The Weaver and the Witch Queen, coming out imminently (July 25th, to be exact!), I decided that it was officially time to read her debut. Though I have The Witch’s Heart in hardcover, I ultimately chose to listen to the audiobook version, narrated by Jayne Entwistle. I’m glad I did, because she brought the whole story to life; I loved it!!

Summary

In a distant past time, a witch named Angrboda has just woken up after being burned at the stake, a punishment from Odin. Powerless and hiding in the forest, she’s found by Loki, who returns her heart. The two become friends and then lovers, having three strange children together. But Angrboda is getting her prophetic powers back, and what the future holds could be devastating for her family and the world at large. Should Angrboda accept the fate she foresees… or can she change the future?

Review

From the first chapter, I knew The Witch’s Heart would be a special book. It’s comfortable in slowly building up the story: the setting, the characters, the shape of the plot. And yet it doesn’t feel tedious the way other books can in doing the necessary setup; rather, it gradually sucks you in, absorbing you into a tale as old as time. Indeed, this novel is based on Norse Mythology, and the story is set in an unnamed, distant past. Moreover, Angrboda has already lived full lives, having just come back after being burned (and not for the first time!). 

Bit by bit, we get to know Angrboda, this witch with prophetic powers and a heart carved back into place. She’s mild-mannered but strong and self-sufficient. She knows herself (to an extent!) and won’t be swayed to do things she deems wrong. We also get to know Loki—yes, that Loki—after he returns her heart, befriends her, and eventually becomes her husband. Loki is such a different character: a trickster, silver-tongued, playful, but amoral. He’s nice and fun… but also chaos. Can he be trusted in the long run? Finally there’s Angrboda’s friend Skadi: a tough, opinionated, judgmental woman who will stand by your side no matter what… as long as you don’t betray her trust.  

When Angrboda and Loki start having kids—three of them, each unusual in their own way—the story starts to pick up. There’s momentum and suspense: Why are these kids so strange? What are these worrisome visions Angrboda keeps having? How can she protect her close-knit family from the evils she foresees? Everything builds up to climatic events that change the course of Angrboda’s journey and what the world will soon face. 

The Witch’s Heart is full of wonderful characters, ones you can root for and ones that, problematic as the may be, you can’t help but like. I love the mother-child relationships, especially between Angrboda and Hel. The book also has a captivating plot the retells a story from Norse Mythology. Admittedly, I’m not very familiar with those stories, so this felt new and exciting for me. However, I’m now quite eager to learn more and would love to see other retellings of Norse Mythology, or books set in Norway overall. There is such fascinating culture and history there, and this book very much piqued my interest! 

Audiobook

Jayne Entwistle does an excellent job of bringing the whole story to life. Her voice has the perfect tone and timbre, and she ultimately shaped how I imagined Angrboda’s character. The narration here is perfectly measured yet engaging, infusing the novel with the folkloric vibe that makes it feel like an old mythological tale. I’m glad I chose the audiobook for The Witch’s Heart, because Jayne Entwistle brings an extra energy to the book, making it that much more enjoyable. 

Final Thoughts

I absolutely loved The Witch’s Heart, from its vivid characters to its fantastical events. It’s about knowing yourself and protecting those closest to you, even when all seems lost. This is a fabulous debut, and I look forward to Genevieve Gornichec’s next book, The Weaver and the Witch Queen. It might be too early to say it, but she could become a favorite author of mine! 

Get the Book

You can buy The Witch’s Heart here – it’s available as a hardcover, paperback, ebook, and audiobook.

The Witch’s Heart by Genevieve Gornichec
Audiobook Narrator	Jayne Entwistle
Audience	Adult
Genre	Fantasy
Setting	Norway
Length	12 hours
Format I Read	Audiobook
Original Publication Date	February 9, 2021

Official Summary

When a banished witch falls in love with the legendary trickster Loki, she risks the wrath of the gods in this moving, subversive national bestselling debut novel that reimagines Norse mythology.
 
Angrboda’s story begins where most witches’ tales end: with a burning. A punishment from Odin for refusing to provide him with knowledge of the future, the fire leaves Angrboda injured and powerless, and she flees into the farthest reaches of a remote forest. There she is found by a man who reveals himself to be Loki, and her initial distrust of him transforms into a deep and abiding love.
 
Their union produces three unusual children, each with a secret destiny, who Angrboda is keen to raise at the edge of the world, safely hidden from Odin’s all-seeing eye. But as Angrboda slowly recovers her prophetic powers, she learns that her blissful life—and possibly all of existence—is in danger.
 
With help from the fierce huntress Skadi, with whom she shares a growing bond, Angrboda must choose whether she’ll accept the fate that she’s foreseen for her beloved family…or rise to remake their future. From the most ancient of tales this novel forges a story of love, loss, and hope for the modern age.