Totally awesome - it broke my Sarah J Maas-induced reading slump!

First things first – Freya is a debut novel by a cool dude about a badass woman. I always check out reviews of books before reading them, but this time, I was the first to post a “review” of sorts on Goodreads and in going back to read the new reviews since the book was released in March (I read it in November), I have to say, I understand the complaints, but the pros outweigh the cons and the promise of more outweighs what the first book may have lacked.

Freya is the perfect book for young adults who spent their childhood reading Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson series and are looking for a mythology book that is a touch more grown up. The pacing is quick, the plot moves along at a steady pace, and the supporting cast of characters is richly described. While they may not yet be full realized, there is a lot of opportunity for them to grow and for the readers to get to know the various deities and mythologies better.

Sara/Freya is a fabulous narrator – in a debut, first in a series, YA fantasy, the most essential part of ensuring readership is to have a fully realized main character and Sara/Freya is such a character. And while some may complain about a pretty big structural point, that Freya is in first person, and there are certain things about Freya, what she is thinking, her background, and such that we as readers are not privy to, I personally enjoy the suspense and delight in the “not-knowing” aspect of the final plan to take down the big bad corporation. Freya marries the best parts of first and third person narration spectacularly.

I have only two complaints, and one is a silly one at that. The first, if Nate is going to be our main supporting actor, he needs a bit more of a role than simply “worshipper of Freya.” And the second, the silly one, the name Sarah, my own name, should always have an “H” at the end. ( )

What fun! The goddess is alive and working at Disney World, and scheming to take down the evil corporation that is subjugating gods.

The world-building is spectacular and I thought the author did a nice job balancing the necessary world-building descriptions with plot. I really liked the characters, Freya/Sara and Nathan, but thought there was a disconnect in how Laurence depicted Freya and how she appears in the Norse legends. But I can ignore that and enjoy the story. ( )

Freya is pretty much an intersection between one of my favorite books, American Gods, and one of my favorite t.v. shows, The Librarians. As you can guess from the title, this is the story of Freya, Norse goddess of love and war, and where she is now -- a mental hospital in Orlando, Florida. She's been hiding out voluntarily for decades, weakened from a lack of belief and weary from being around for a thousand years. She still has value to someone though because a man shows up, offering her strength and believers, if she will only come and use her skills to help the corporation he works for. She refuses and immediately becomes a target for destruction. Her only chances for survival are the acquisition of a high priest, Nathan (who she abducts from the hospital), and the will to overcome her own godly nature.

With just a few iffy descriptions (ie., lots of throwing around of the word "crazy" at the beginning of the story in the hospital) that may have gotten fixed before the final version, this story was incredibly fun and action-packed. Freya a.k.a. Sara was a great main character and I really enjoyed exploring her inner self. The tie-ins to Walt Disney World were amusing and the other gods were varied and interesting. Even the villains had some depth to their characters, which made for a more satisfying read. There was also a nice mix of magic and technology, of ancient and modern.

It became apparent at just the right time in this story that it was the first in a series and I couldn't be happier. Laurence could only introduce so many gods in this book and there are many more that I'm now dying to see in a modern setting. I also wouldn't mind if this got picked up and made into a movie because there are so many strong females and good magic and action in it! However, I would want Freya to be played as a curvy and beautiful size-10, the way she is described in the story, and not as the svelte girl the publisher chose to put on the cover. (Sorry, svelte girl.)

http://webereading.com/2017/02/new-releases-traveler-and-freya.html ( )