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Thursday, August 11, 2022

Review of Fenris & Mott by Greg Van Eekhout

Fenris & Mott by Greg Van Eekhout
Format:  Hardcover
Publisher:  Harper Collins
Number of pages:  208
Published:  August 2nd, 2022
Source:  Blue Slip Media

Opening Line: "Mott was recording a root beer review video in the alley behind the Mi-T-Mart when she found the puppy."

Mott has just moved from Pennsylvania to California and has been having a difficult time.  Her best friend, Amanda is on vacation in Germany, and they haven't been able to shoot any videos together lately, and now with the move she isn't even sure if they'll be able to again.  While attempting to shoot a video solo in an alley, Mott finds the most adorable white, fluffy puppy in a recycle bin.  Mott is very angry that someone could abandon something so cute and makes a promise to take care of the puppy.  Making a promise is a big deal to Mott, she's had people who've broken their promise to her and so she doesn't take giving her promise to the pup lightly.  Her father was always good about making promises, but now that he has a new family, he hasn't kept up with them.  Mott knows the no puppy rule at the apartment her and her mom live at will be a huge problem, but a promise is a promise.  Hoping to gather information about the puppy, Mott takes him to an animal shelter and finds out that she actually found a wolf pup, and the shelter suggests sending him to a wolf sanctuary.  Just as the guy from the shelter tries to put a leash on the wolf, it takes off and a chase on foot ensues.

Eventually Mott catches up to the wolf pup and finds him being held by a man claiming to be Gorm the Vicious.  The man explains that the wolf is called Fenris, and he is the destructor of worlds, Odin's slayer.  He tries to take Fenris from her and is unsuccessful but cautions her that eventually Fenris will need to be destroyed before he can swallow the moon and end the world.  Soon after the encounter with Gorm, Mott meets Thrudi, who is a Valkyrie, charged with guarding Fenris, before he escaped from her.  Thrudi fills her in on the prophecy surrounding Fenris and his ties to Ragnarok.  They band up to search for answers on how to save Fenris and the world. 

If Fenris and Mott taught me anything, it's that I don't know my mythology as much as I'd like.  I knew Fenris' is one of Loki's sons but somehow missed that he was prophesized to end the world.  Starting him off as a wolf pup and not the huge beast that he becomes was a wonderful change.  It brought about the predicament of Mott not wanting any harm to come to him and the choice of whether to save him or the world.  I also enjoyed the emphasis on promises, that they shouldn't be given out too easily.  That to break a promise is breaking an oath.  Thrudi is an absolutely fun character, it's humorous watching her learn about root beer and hot cocoa while swinging a sword and calling Mott a sorcerer because she can search information on her phone.  What really won me over about her though is the way she tells Mott that she can become one of her Valkyrie sisters who have a bond based on trust, a found family.  Fenris & Mott is a fast-paced action story that would appeal to readers who like the California setting, lots of stops around LA that were entertaining, or readers who enjoy Greek mythology, focused on a destructive wolf pup.  Or just read it for the humorous bits like when they had to chase a dead man's hand through the city streets, which really made me laugh.   

**A huge thank you to Blue Slip Media and Harper Collins for the ARC hardcover.**

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