Heathen is a coming out story interwoven with Norse mythology.
Heathen tells the story of Aydis, a Viking young woman who can fight as well as any male warrior. After kissing a girl (and liking it), her father is forced by the tribe’s elders to punish her. Aydis must marry a man of her father’s choosing or he must kill her. Her father pretends to kill her but instead banishes her from the tribe.
With only her trusty horse, Saga, Aydis decides to rescue the Valkyrie Brynhild from a mountain surrounded by fire. During her quest, Aydis meets and sometimes fights many Norse gods. There are three chapters in this volume and this summary is only part of chapter one. Many more adventures occur later.
The coming out plot was interesting though short. Hopefully, this plot line will be explored more in future volumes of this series. The mythological setting was my favorite part. Who doesn’t enjoy a good quest complete with battles with temperamental gods? The author does a great job explaining the back stories of the gods without overdoing the detail. The artwork is unusual but clearly sets the fantasy mood.
If you like Marvel’s Thor movie/comics or the great Neil Gaiman book, Norse Mythology, Heathen will be a real treat for you as it was for me.
Thanks to the Vault Comics and netgalley for giving me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.