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Ciara, the Princess of Mide, cannot remember a time when the Northmen were not plundering her country’s shores, but recently, a crow has been appearing to her, whispering warnings of an even darker threat. Her people dismiss her visions as pagan nonsense. They’ve always been wary of her and her unearthly ability to control her enemies’ minds and actions, but, if the visions are to be believed, Ciara fears this coming evil will destroy much more than the island of Eirinn.
If Ciara wishes to defend and protect the land she loves, she’ll have to go against her every instinct and team up with Leif, a young Northman leader, who shares her prophetic visions. With Leif’s impressive battle skills and Ciara’s prowess in controlling the enemy, they may be the only two who can save their world.
I’ve always been fascinated with mythology and was excited to discover that Beyond a Darkened Shore is rich with Norse and Celtic mythologies featuring gods, valkyries, giants, dangerous creatures, and flesh-eating monsters. But while I liked reading Leif and Ciara’s story, I couldn’t say I was fascinated to the point I couldn’t put it down. There are plenty of things that make this story unique, but it felt bland to me and I didn’t really connect with the characters. Along with featuring an enemy-to-lovers insta-love I just couldn’t believe, I was annoyed that the Norsemen were portrayed as womanizers who seemed to think only of taking the main character to bed every time they saw her.
Still, I loved the setting and the strong family bonds between the brothers and sisters who were portrayed, as well as the dogged determination of characters who refuse to give up against insurmountable odds.
Rated: Moderate, for frequent, and sometimes graphic, violence, including battle carnage and countless gruesome, gory deaths. Several jokes are made about taking people to bed and intended rape is insinuated. A girl is removed from wet clothing to stave off the cold (while the male character appreciates her body). One scene also features undressing and passionate kissing, including kiss with tongue, which leads to fade-to-black sex. There is also a story told in which a naked woman seduces a man. A ritual to summon the dead is featured. There are only one or two uses of mild and moderate language.
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