#Review: LONG LOST by Rochelle L Wilcox

 

4 of 5 stars

This story starts with a bang, with Franco being attacked on the streets of LA by his brother Luke. Their fight escalates, and it's soon apparent these two are not humans as they fly up in the air, trying to get the best of each other. Unfortunately, a young human woman, Lia, witnesses their fight--something that should never happen and can not be tolerated. Franco gets the upper hand with Luke, and his brother races off, but now Franco is left with a problem. He must wipe Lia's memory, and she has no intention of letting him near her, so he does the only thing he can and kidnaps her and races to his sister's home in Texas. 

There are lots of cat-and-mouse chases and fight scenes, and along the way, Franco finally reveals to Lia who he actually is. Of course, Lia doesn't believe he's the Norse god, Freyr. Unfortunately, this revelation doesn't happen until about the 30% mark on my Kindle. I could have easily skipped all the in-between fight scenes with Luke, aka Loki and Thor, and just started with Freyr's sister, who happens to be the Norse goddess of love, Freyrj, because Loki and Thor find them anyway. Most of the narrative is driven by Freyr and what he thinks and feels, and I would have liked to see more of Lia's thoughts and not just when Freyr asks her a question. 

Freyrj's husband, Will, is a nice addition to the cast of characters. His love for Freyrj shines through everything he says and does, and I think his presence helps Lia come to grips with the situation she finds herself in. She can't return to LA with her intact memories, and even if Freyr wipes her memories of what she saw that day, there's no guarantee that Loki, Thor, or another member of the family won't kill her anyway to protect their identities. 

The author does a good job of teasing out why the family wants Freyr dead, and the journey to Asgard is fraught with danger from mythical creatures. Who doesn't love dragons and giants? The group finds themselves in peril time after time as they travel through the Earth on their way to Asgard, and I enjoyed Ms. Wilcox's vivid imagination. She has clearly done her research into Norse mythology, especially when the group reaches Asgard and Odinn. Of course, the feud Loki and Thor have against Freyr turns into a battle to the death to win Lia's freedom. Will Freyr prevail one last time against the thunder god, Thor?

While the author does wrap up one of the major plot points in the story, I'm not a fan of cliffhangers, especially ones that carry through to the other books. With three additional books in the series, it doesn't look like there is a final resolution of Freyr and Lia's love until the final book. If you love Norse mythology, this series will certainly entertain you as Ms. Wilcox brings all those myths and legends to life.

I voluntarily read the advanced reader copy provided by N.N. Light Book Heaven, and all opinions are my own.