Short version: This book is seriously fun, and I had a very good time reading it. Yes, you should read books one and two, but you must know by the number of times I’ve squeed about this series, including in my review, that having to read them is not at all a bad thing. Go read books 1 and 2, then get 3, then lie back and bask in the collective bliss of getting to know the Crows.
ALSO: Trigger Warnings for attempted rape, and violence against (and by!) women (but you knew that).
Long version: I have been waiting semi-impatiently for book 3 in the Call of Crows series. I’ve read both The Unleashing ( A | BN | K | G | AB | Au ) and The Undoing ( A | BN | K | G | AB ) twice, and listened to each while walking my dogs – which resulted in some very long and tiring walks because I wanted to keep going. I love the world of this series, the sisterhood of Crows who fight and snarl and dislike one another but have each other’s backs when in battle, without question. I love the idea of women superheroes in allegiance to a Norse goddess, all driven and fueled by rage – and having a myriad of justifications for that rage, all of which are entirely valid and painful levels of familiar.
The set up of the world is pretty simple but the execution thereof is very not: Norse gods and goddesses have a human team representing their interests on earth (aka Midgard). Those interests usually mean fighting demons or other dreadful creatures, retrieving some lost thing that a god or goddess somehow misplaced (again), and sometimes fighting alongside or against the other clans.
Book three, The Unyielding, picks up shortly after the end of book two – and the chronology of the larger story is partly why you should read the first two. The “big bad” that they’re dealing with won’t make as much sense if you don’t have the background. A lot is already set up, both in the world, and in the characters when this book begins. So The Unyielding doesn’t work, I don’t think, as a stand alone, but as I’ve said, books 1 and 2 are so much fun, I recommend them without reservation. Yes, you have to read three books but they are worth it, trust me.
The heroine, Erin Amsel, has been a major character in each book, and in this one she’s the full focus of the story. Her gift from Skuld, the goddess who creates the Crows, is fire: she can make fire appear on her hands, she can craft ropes of flame, and can stop fire from harming her. She can, in fact, literally burn everything down to the ground.
That ability plays a crucial role in the plan devised by Jace, the heroine of book 2, The Undoing, who, with The Protectors, the clan who represents Tyr, the Norse god of knowledge, heroism, and war, has figured out a possible way to finally beat Gullveig, who is determined to take over earth and destroy everyone and everything (she also has some rage and a bit of a grudge against all the other gods).
Erin teams up almost accidentally with Stieg, one of the Ravens, who serve Odin. (See what I mean about reading books 1 and 2?) (Seriously, go get started now, and you’ll be done by Sunday.) (Yes, they are that good!) Stieg is dispatched by his team leader to keep an eye on Erin, as the clans are starting to realize through their collective research that there may be only one option to defeat Gullveig, and that Erin is the key and the only one who can make that defeat happen.
As a result of that very special status, a lot of other groups, some of whom would totally love to bring about the end of the world, are trying to kill her – so Stieg ends up helping Erin avoid some potentially deadly situations. They are thrown together, and then they stay together once it’s acknowledged by all nine clans that there’s only one way to finish Gullveig, and they have to work together (cue eye-rolling, barely-hidden complaints, and general resentment among those same nine clans).
In this story, there is more quest and adventure than romance – which is part of the reason I can’t set up the squee cannon and fire into the atmosphere the way I have and will for books 1 and 2. I liked this book plenty, and I love how it fits into the world and continues the saga, but as a romance, it’s not as strong and didn’t generate as many feels as the other two.
Part of it is vulnerability, I think. Erin is not very vulnerable – for valid reasons – and Stieg is so candid about his own history that what other characters think is his vulnerable area really isn’t. Plus, once Erin and Stieg team up, they fit together marvelously. When they head out on the quest that drives the majority of the story, that quest takes up most of their attention, and steers the other characters to the end of this book. They have each other’s backs, yes, and they have a partnership that works for the purposes of their journey, so it’s a bonus that their pants feelings lead to frequent and honest enjoyment of one another physically. But there isn’t a lot of conflict aside from getting to know each other’s true selves in little portions as they travel.
The heroines in this series don’t have to change much, but they do grow up, evolve, and become better people – as do the heroes. The conflict becomes more and more external with each book, too. Kera from book 1 needs to learn how to fit in with a completely different squad of fighting people, moving from a human formerly of the US Marines to a Crow among sister-Crows loyal to Skuld. Jace, in book 2, needs to learn how to control her rage and how to embrace the power of it, and overcome a horrible and abusive backstory.
In this book, and in the first two, Erin is a dick. She’s always been a dick. She’s still a dick. And she knows it. She stirs shit because watching people get upset about trivial crap is fun for her. But in this book, her character doesn’t so much change drastically as reveal herself to the reader, to Stieg, and to her sister Crows. She messes with people and she’ll be terribly honest when she doesn’t want to be in a situation (“Bored now. Leaving. Bye!”) but she also acknowledges in some key moments that she knows where people’s truly vulnerable spots are, and she doesn’t go near them. She’s disrespectful 99.6% of the time, but there’s a moral core that has a consistent respect for what really matters.
Erin also adores her powers, and her second life as a Crow. She loves her life, enjoys every moment of it as much as she can, and generally doesn’t care about unimportant or unnecessary stress. She’s very smart, very clever, and also deadly. but I don’t think she changes so much as faces a challenge that scares her and forces her to take something seriously, thus revealing more about herself to Stieg and to the reader. But that “more” was always there; she’s just more open about it in this book. It’s more of a “this is who I really am” revelation than a “now I have developed as a person” type of evolution.
As for Stieg, it’s a similar series of discoveries about his character: all the things he reveals were always there, but he just didn’t share them with anyone.
There is one scene early on that I want to discuss in detail. I read it three times, going back to the start of the chapter to question my own acceptance of it, and because of that I want to explain in some detail so as to allow you to make fully-informed decisions about your reading. Triggery discussion ahoy.
First, references to rape appear a few times in the course of the story. These are some violent people who battle creatures who do even more violent and dreadful things. All of these characters are Vikings, or similar to (the Crows are the exception, as they aren’t of Scandinavian or Nordic heritage. They were originally slaves brought back to life by Skuld). As representatives of a Norse god, there’s a lot of “You’re not really Viking like us,” from the other clans, even though the Crows exhibit the same strengths and powers and loyalty to their goddess. But as I said, due to the repeated viking theme, there are several references to “raping and pillaging,” especially by the creatures that come out of Hel because, well, they are from Hel. Sexual violence is a threat wielded by the evil and monstrous, but there’s also an acknowledgement that this same violence is part of the heritage of many of the characters.
Plus the book opens with a seriously violent flashback to a very, very old battle between the clans. I struggled a bit with that part.
But there is one scene after a battle where Stieg is watching tv and Erin’s at his apartment, and that’s the one I read a few times. Erin takes charge and satisfies herself and Stieg sexually, and I stumbled a bit on the scene and the dialogue before and during, because I wasn’t entirely sure he’d given consent. Or at least given it to Erin.
But as I read it over (and over), I realized that part of my hang up was my own messy gendered thinking, and that he does consent (actively so) though he wants more emotionally than Erin is willing to give at that time.
Erin’s development as a character rests on vulnerability. She’s the only hope for, you know, all creatures in existence on earth. Initially she sort of shrugs it off and accepts it, until she begins to realize that while she’s able to shrug off small stuff, this is the exact opposite of small stuff. This is the least-serious person being tasked with the most serious job. That’s the big picture, the basis of the quest, and that part of her growth is brilliant.
On a personal level, she begins to have feelings for Stieg, and that part wasn’t as strong for me. The lower levels of conflict between Stieg and Erin made this book not as powerful for me as a romance.
As a fantasy adventure, though, it rocks. I love exploring Norse mythology through Laurenston’s imagination and her take on all of it – the worlds, the gods, the sexism, and the fury that all of these gods and warriors who think so highly of themselves have to depend on a clan they look down on, and one Crow in particular that many of them despise.
Erin and Stieg travel through several Norse worlds and Laurenston’s versions are a lot more interesting than other representations I’ve read and seen. Women drive the story in every chapter and in each world or underworld, and each character who is introduced serves as a vehicle to explore and celebrate (in some cases) how women manage rage, power, revenge, and their natural abilities (super-powered or otherwise). Women are the superheroes here, and while there are super-powered men, in this series, women run the show.
The epic battle at the end is massive in scale, and very satisfying to read if you’ve got rage and frustration stored up. The book also ends on a bit of a twist (but not a cliffhanger) and there’s the introduction of a new group of characters — and I’m hoping that all of this means there’s a few more books in this world planned for the future (please please please).
The foundation of the world rests on the idea of a do-over for women who have been victims of brutality in various forms, almost always at the hands of men. In their second lives as Crows, they are more powerful. They are free to do whatever they like. They start over with strength and knowledge that they can’t be hurt as badly by things that hurt them before – especially since they can’t be killed twice in the same way (a rule that is deployed ironically several times in this book).
The do-over-with-more-power idea alone is the start of hours of daydreaming. The idea of finding one’s Crows, of finding the women who stand with you whenever shit gets messy – it’s so powerful, and so necessary. This series, and each book within it, makes me feel better whenever I’m stressed or feeling powerless and overwhelmed. It acknowledges the rage inherent in feeling powerless, and transforms that rage into useful, powerful action. It’s the best kind of catharsis. The Unyielding may not be my favorite of the series, but I still recommend the Crows books loudly to everyone who will listen to me.
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ONE-CLICKED SO HARD. Now to keep my grubby paws off the kindle until my weekend trip!
Listening to audiobooks while walking my dogs has been the best thing for my cardiovascular health – I agree with you, the better the book is, the longer I will walk. I loved the other two books in the series, & can’t wait to start this one.
Every time I see that cover dude I think, whoa, 1980s Michael Pare & get all nostalgic.
I had this on pre-order and literally started reading it the moment it downloaded onto my Kindle. I loved book 2 (Danski may be my all-time favorite hero), and have always kind of liked Erin, although she has never exhibited any of the traits of a “romance heroine.” As a kick-ass adventurer, however, she is awesome.
The mythology in this series is really fun. Definitely read the first two though–I’m not sure most of what is going on here would make much sense without having that background.
Oh, my gosh, yes, Danski is SUCH A GREAT HERO. I like Vig, and I like Stieg, but Danski is one of my favorites. Caretaker alpha leader with nerd passions, glasses, and can casually kill anyone who hurts you. *le sigh*
What I really want is The Adventures of Bear, the Puppy, and Mother Superior (with at least one scene of Bear trying to hypnotize MS with the Puppy). I’m less excited about the adventures of two characters I’ve disliked when they appeared in the other books. That said, of course I ordered it and it was waiting when I got up and of course I’m still excited to revisit the world in general.
Gah!! This makes me so mad that there is a corruption in the B&N file. I’ve got to wait up to 2 weeks to get it. *sniffle* Though, I think Amanda Carlson’s next Phoebe Meadows book is out this week, too. So, I’ll get some of my Norse mythology fix. Or, I could go back and re-read another Laurenston favorite.
@ Teev:
The Adventures of Bear, the Puppy, and Mother Superior sounds great. Maybe we can start a write-in campaign.
I adore this series. I must say, though, that the whole conflict of the larger world taking precedence over the romance is a problem I had with her Pride series as it went on. There was a decreasing amount of romantic tension, which made later books unsatisfying.
That being said, a Shelly Laurenston book with a so-so romance is still a really fun read.
I’ve noticed that in general Shelly Laurenston series tend to get less and less romance-y as they go (the shapeshifter ones and her dragon series as G.A. Aiken) but I always love her worldbuilding and how unapologetically badass the women are.
I forgot this was coming out today until I saw my email receipt from Amazon, and now I have a pile of library books instead!!!!!!! I’ll have something to look forward to now, and maybe get my butt in gear to read and return ASAP.
It didn’t ruin the book for me or anything (because like I said, we know Stieg was into it), but I didn’t like it much.
Proudly renewed my membership in the Bad Decisions Book Club last night/wee morning hours today. I adore all things Aiken/Laurenston and happily (re)read her work regardless of the time.
It’s true that the romance isn’t as strong in this book but I still laughed out loud often enough to seriously piss off my cats. They retreated to the sofa in disgust when my laughter kept waking them up.
This is a perfect example of just how much YMMV. Yes, Erin is a dick. Repeatedly and often. If you didn’t care for her in the first 2 books, I don’t know how you’ll fare with her as the MC. Personally, I find her funny so this was a win for me. I’m hoping the next book includes her parents’ visit along with their thoughts on, though preferably their interactions with, Steig’s goat.
Also going to add that it didn’t surprise me at all who ends up befriending Erin at the end either.
I agree with @Jen about the consent issue.
Other thoughts: LOVED the goat! Loved Erin’s parents! Loved all the rest of it, though the quest portion was a bit lengthy for my taste. At least it gave the relationship a chance to develop, though there wasn’t much romance to it. That’s fine, I guess, because I find I read these more for the world-building and the characters than the romance.
Great review, Sarah! I agree the romance was very much secondary to the rest of the plot but I didn’t really care because I wasn’t sure how organic more romance would have been in the context of those characters and how they were trying to stop the apocalypse from happening. I would have been thrown off by overt declarations of love, especially from Erin. I could see how they felt about each other was changing and that satisfied me. Also: that ending made me laugh out loud because of how shocked I was by the cliffhanger. Bring on book 4!
Wait, the goat is still running around in this book?
Would that be the same goat of last book?
Yes, I am very fond of that goat. I use that goat to explain how why I adore Larenston/Aiken books, because it’s the one thing that requires barely any context, shows the humor, and allows me to casually mention the kickass females and the over-the-top moments.
Yes, I do not care much for the romance in Laurenston’s books. As many others have already mentioned, it isn’t a strength of the author. I’d rather have a sidelined romance in an action book then have manufactured conflict to fill in the pages.
And I will probably justify and rationalize anything because of the perfection of “The Undoing”. Jace and Ski are awesome in and of themselves, bloodthirsty nerds that they are. But there’s Bear and Puppy and the nuns and the goat and the party (ye gods, the party), and the grandmother, and I better stop or am gonna pull a Bad Decisions Book Club and start rereading that thing at 11 pm.
Does anyone know of a similar series to Call of Crows?
And I would probably forget Laurenston anything because of it doesn’t bother me. Though I’d probably forgive her anything just for writing book 2. Jace and
@Maite, do you mean Norse mythology? If yes, I recommend Amanda Carlson’s Phoebe Meadows series. Book 3 just released today. Not as funny as Laurenston, Christ, she makes me laugh, but heavy on the quirky characters.
Loved the first two books, they made me laugh out loud and sparked Viking fantasies. Can’t wait to read this one.
:::starts silently chanting:::: Payday is in two days, payday is in two days, payday is in two days…
ONE-CLICK TRIGGER FINGER SO ITCHY.
Please, Bitchery, doesn’t help when SB Sarah hides the SPOILER but it appears in the comments! Thanks!
My fault! I wasn’t at my desk to spoiler tag the comments. On it now – sorry!
Second time I joined the Bad Decisions Book Club because one of Sarah’s review. I started reading it at 6 a.m., just for 1 hour before I had to be at work. I finished 5 hours later. Fortunately, my job is flexible in terms of schedule, if not I would be in severe problems. Call of crows is amazing on top of brilliant. I identify with the heroines of these books, I want to be as bad ass as them. Don’t wait, run to read this series.
@Maite: try Darynda Jones’ Charley Davidson series: First through Eleventh Graves. If I had unlimited funds I would have tee shirts made with the snarky comment that begins each chapter. Really, though, the only author who combines the snark with the kickass heroines is G.A. Aiken.
@Maite: I’ll second Charley Davidson. So much snark! I’ve been making my way through that series this year. There was a fabulous deal on the books and everyone always raves about Reyes.
Okay okay okay. I normally do NOT give books a second go round after I drop them buuuuuuuuuuuut…
I might have to pick up The Unleashing again.
I ended up dropping it the first time around because the dialogue seemed really all over the place, and that jarred me hard out of the story. Plus I had trouble connecting with the central characters because there was so much world building in the way. I feel like I’m the odd man out and maybe I just didn’t stick with it long enough, CAUSE THE BOOKS SOUND AMAZEBALLS.
Dammit if ever I was tempted to try again, Sarah got my ass wanting to try getting into this series a second time.
@Jacqueline, you’re not totally alone! I really really wanted to like this series because the bitchery loves it, but I DNF’ed the first one. The info-dump dialogue and multiple characters got to be waaaay too much, and I guess the humor just didn’t quite work for me.
I feel like I’m kicking someone’s puppy, but there you go.
No, it’s really, really ok and totally understandable. I adore this series, but I’m also pretty familiar with the unique style that is Laurenston/Aiken’s writing and am ready for it. It isn’t for everyone, and I totally understand that 100% No puppies were harmed in this disagreement.
Thanks Chris Alexander and roserita for the Charley Davidson rec. Totally agree on it as (fortunately for my sleep) I’ve already books 1 to 8. I DNF’ed 9 though.
And I so want the t-shirts of the chapter headings.
I will be giving the Phoebe Meadows series a try. Anything with Norse Mythology is a win for me. (Anyone else here read Joanne Harris’s Runemarks?)
I will not have any spoilers, no way! I’ve waited for this book for a very long time. I read the first one on recommendation of SBTB, and besides Harry Potter, I don’t think I ever was so invested in a world. I was totally in within the first 5 pages.
I love the tales of women being thrown together, yet having each other’s back. I am a huge Norse mythology geek, so when that is added, along with hot men-hard to resist.
Erin is a funny character, I am re-reading the first book-and I remembered how you kind of love her yet hate her. They set up the Steig romance in the first part of the book, she is in a tree kicking him to see when he’ll break, and he takes it for a long time, until he is DONE! I admire authors that set the scenario so early.
@Kim W OH PRAISE BE UNTO CUPID’S ASS! I’m not alone in my No Go for this author! I had forgotten about the epic info dump, which was also reeeaallly hard for me to fly past.
I for real wish I could try again though, BECAUSE I AM GOING THROUGH THE BIGGEST PARANORMAL ROMANCE SLUMP OF MY DAMN LIFE!
I review romance novels on my YouTube channel and I make a legit effort to cycle through at least 3 subgenres; historical, contemporary, paranormal. I’ve been good on the first two but the last man, the last! It’s been drop after drop and I’m starting to worry…DO I NOT LIKE PARANORMAL ANYMORE?!?!?! *screams to heavens/falls to knowws/beats chest/cries*
I loved the first two books way better than this one. I had high hopes for Erin’s story and I have to say I am a little let down. There was just no tension between Erin and Steig.
Also, there is a book called the “Hunting Season” by Shelly Laurenston which also takes place in the universe of Crows and Ravens. Does anyone know how that ties in with these books?
Hey Priya!
It’s the same world, but a different group of Crows. The “Hunting Season” crows are in New York.