The Gospel of Loki by Joanne M Harris

The Gospel of Loki

By Joanne M Harris

Synopsis from Goodreads:

The first adult epic fantasy novel from multi-million copy bestselling author of Chocolat, Joanne Harris.

The novel is a brilliant first-person narrative of the rise and fall of the Norse gods - retold from the point of view of the world's ultimate trickster, Loki. It tells the story of Loki's recruitment from the underworld of Chaos, his many exploits on behalf of his one-eyed master, Odin, through to his eventual betrayal of the gods and the fall of Asgard itself. Using her life-long passion for the Norse myths, Joanne Harris has created a vibrant and powerful fantasy novel.

Loki, that’s me.

Loki, the Light-Bringer, the misunderstood, the elusive, the handsome and modest hero of this particular tissue of lies. Take it with a pinch of salt, but it’s at least as true as the official version, and, dare I say it, more entertaining.

So far, history, such as it is, has cast me in a rather unflattering role.

Now it’s my turn to take the stage.

With his notorious reputation for trickery and deception, and an ability to cause as many problems as he solves, Loki is a Norse god like no other. Demon-born, he is viewed with deepest suspicion by his fellow gods who will never accept him as one of their own and for this he vows to take his revenge. 

From his recruitment by Odin from the realm of Chaos, through his years as the go-to man of Asgard, to his fall from grace in the build-up to Ragnarok, this is the unofficial history of the world’s ultimate trickster.

My Review:

5/5 Stars

I’ve read a lot of book based on different myths ( mostly Greek myths). I think Norse mythology has to be my favorite. Like most people I like Loki’s sarcasm and pranks he pulls. I also enjoy Tom Hiddleston’s portrays of Loki in the movies. But as far as where he came from and the rest of the background to his stories and pranks I knew little about. ( I’m a bigger fan of Odin and Freya out of all the Norse Gods) 

That all being said. I LOVED this book. I thought it was funny and a great read. It brought some wonderfully funny and intriguing incite to why Loki acted the way he did and told stories from his side of things. I’m not sure how all this compares to the actual Norse myths but it did make me want to read more of the actual myths just to compare them to Loki’s versions. 

You got your wonderful mythology, humor, crazy antics and of course Loki’s poor me attitude ( He really does try to make it seem like everything his did wasn’t all his fault) I found this to be a fun entertaining read. It was rather long and wasn’t one of the books I could sit and read all night but I would enjoy two to four chapters a day. When I get a chance to read all the Norse Myths I plan on revisiting this story again.