“Fates woven, hearts broken, life is given and life is taken. The time has come, for A Reckless Courage.”
Set in an immersively epic Norse-inspired world, A Reckless Courage is a deeply intimate and character-driven tale of love, parenthood, loss, addiction, redemption and healing that will leave you wanting more.
Even though this is a prequel novella set in the existing world of the Sagas of the Fleshed Lands, I personally felt like Putt does a magnificent job of easing new readers into this intriguing world with its rich culture and lore. The scope of this story might be very small and intimate, but from the very first chapter, the epicness just bleeds off the page.
Putt really goes all out in A Reckless Courage, both in terms of world building and in terms of tackling heavy and emotionally sensitive topics. The core of this story is the complex yet heartfelt relationship between the former priestess Åslaug Grímrsdóttir and former shieldwall warrior Örvar Haakonsson, who are both tested beyond belief when the Gods bring the most terrible tragedy upon them.
Now, while I admire Putt for depicting their grieving process, emotional turmoil and interpersonal struggles in such a brutally raw, messy and honest way, I do have to admit that most of the emotional gut punches didn’t totally land for me. Whether it was the limited pagecount, the multiple time jumps, the slightly stiff dialogue, or simply he fact that my lived experience as 22-year-old woman with no child wish is so different from these characters, there was something about the storytelling in A Reckless Courage that just kept me at an emotional distance.
That said, I really enjoyed how the world opened up slightly as they both reconnected with their past lives they thought they had left behind for good. Especially the camaraderie between Örvar and his warrior brethren and the heartfelt dynamic between Åslaug and her sister (who is the true MVP in my eyes) really pulled me in, which ultimately increased the personal stakes for me and made up for some of my lack of emotional investment. Not to mention the subtly mystical hints of divine meddling in both of their lives, which added such a riveting air of tension and intrigue to the narrative that completely entranced me.
If this is what Putt can deliver in a novella, then I am very intrigued to check out what he has pulled off in Kinslayer, book 1 in the Sagas of the Fleshed Lands. In turns darkly tragic and inspiringly hopeful, A Reckless Courage is a chracter-driven yet action-packed prequel novella perfect for fans of John Gwynne’s The Shadow of the Gods and M.L. Wang’s The Sword of Kaigen.
Thank you to the author for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
