Maddy Smith, born with a rusty-coloured rune shape on her hand, has always been an outsider in her village. For the good folk of Malbry believe a ruinmark to be a symbol of the old gods, a mark of magic. And that, as everyone knows, is the road to Chaos. Dangerous. But Maddy enjoys working magic, even if it is just to control some pesky goblins. And every time he visits, her best friend, a good-for-naught Outlander known as One-Eye, has been teaching her more and more about the old ways - about gods and glamours, runes and cantrips.
Now One-Eye is back again, and he wants her to open Red Horse Hill and descend into World Below to retrieve a relic of the old gods. Otherwise, apparently, it could be the End of Everything. Again.
This is an epic journey into the heart of the old Norse tales - wild, dangerous, richly inventive and superbly imaginative.
Download and start listening now!
"This book was a wonderful read, full of Norse gods & goddesses, a captivating plot wound through with twists and turns and many surprizes. I would recommend it to anyone; however our library had this shelved in the juvenile section, but there is some mild profanity, which some parents may not approve of." — Diana (4 out of 5 stars)
"This book was a wonderful read, full of Norse gods & goddesses, a captivating plot wound through with twists and turns and many surprizes. I would recommend it to anyone; however our library had this shelved in the juvenile section, but there is some mild profanity, which some parents may not approve of."
" How does one go from writing Chocolat and Five Segments of an Orange to this? "
" This book was good. It got really confusing though during the action parts and I had trouble following what all was happening. "
" This would be a great book. This book is very well written and has much potential. But Joanne Harris went too far with the characters and complexity. After the first half of the book, I only understood a third of it. maybe if you have a pad of paper and a pencil it would help you like it more. "
" Very fun and smart fantasy. It's refreshing to see someone using elements other than Greek/Roman mythology. The protagonist has just the right mix of naivete and spunk to make her work and to carry the narrative. "
" Not as good as Chocolat or the Lollipop Shoes, a little bit disjointed and hard to follow - but if you like mythology, especially Nordic, and you like your fantasies littered with battling gods then you'll love this! "
" Really delightful, fun read. I found it to be a bit slow-going in the beginning, but the plot picked up after the first 100 pages or so. Runemarks felt like a bit of a cross between His Dark Materials and American Gods. "
" I love Joanne Harris. I do not love Runemarks. "
" I love Norse Mythology way more than Greek Mythology. Bingo! "
" Took me a while, through no fault of the book, but I loved it. Engaging characters, especially Loki, and a rollercoaster ending which I couldn't stop reading. "
" I know this is Joanne Harris but I was very bored! Read over 100 pages and then gave up - it didn't have the oomph that her adult books have. "
" A clever twist on Norse myths and gods. In telling the story of Maddy (Modi) and the fate of the gods, it features a little of everything -Runic magic, goblins, wars, oracles, doomsday prophecies, and shapeshifting gods. "
" Not as good as I thought it might be! "
" This was a nice introduction to Norse mythology for me. As I was reading, I kept picking up names and events that I had read about in other books. It was fun to recall those other stories and have a larger frame of reference while reading this. "
" Loved it. I love mythology, I love it when it is combined with fantasy. I love the way she writes Loki, everything. This is a great book "
" An interesting fantasy involving the Norse pantheon, but I found it disjointed, and the mythology was a bit cumbersome. Someone well-versed in Norse myth would find this MUCH easier. "
" Definitely a book I'd like owning someday! I enjoyed the Norse take on a post-apocalyptic world, and even though the second half of the book became a bit unfocused, it fit the environment they were traveling at the time. Very engaging! "
" Shameless escapism into a norse myth-drenched alternate England where a creepy religion (called The Order) imposes their values (in the form of a book called The Word) on people, as per thier deity (called The Nameless) whilst the fairy folk attempt to undermine them...yummy. "
" I listended to the audio book of this, and it's really excellent. This is the perfect type of tale that is suited for audio. Excellent. The only reason it isn't five stars is because I'm such a strict reviewer. But really every bit as good as Harry Potter, or The Looking Glass Wars, etc. "
" 535 pages of adventure. It is clean for all ages. I liked it ok it seemed a little long and I got a little bored in spots. I wouldn't read it again but I will keep it for my kids. It had a few twists I didn't expect. I liked the characters. There is no romance at all. "
" Gasp *-* I love it <3 Joanne Harris first for teens book *-* Please Joanne write more!! "
" SO far, this book is awesome, pretty happy that i found it "
" Loved it!! The story, the reader, all wonderful. The whole world seemed so real, with its myths, legends, and gods. I'm sad it's over. I want to spend more time with Loki and Half-born Hell. This might be the best book I've listened to in awhile. "
" Shelving this for a while. I'm not particularly enjoying the writing - her sentences are imprecise, fairly boring (in what might otherwise be an interesting story), and the style changes far too often. "
" so, so enjoyable. i didn't find the book particularly extraordinary in the genre, but it was incredibly solid YA fantasy. joanne harris is a great storyteller whose pacing and prose impressed me on every page. "
" i love this book, that's all i gotta say....it might not be for everyone, but i think it's very consistent with the story. very easy flowing, if i can say that. i can't wait for the next book in the series ^^ "
" Found this book at Half Price books and thought "eh, what the hell." Turned out to be really good. Sad to see it was only 5 bucks new. "
" I liked the characters and the story but it was maybe a little difficult to read. But in the end it came together lovely and I was very glad I read it! Maddy is very cool but I can't say I trust ANY of the other characters. I heard there's a sequel coming out, this true?? "
" Four stars due to the slowish start but the rest was Joanne Harris at her best. Highly imaginative and well written as always. I read it one sitting and my eyes are still sore! "
Joanne Harris is the internationally renowned and award-winning author of eighteen novels, plus novellas, scripts, short stories, libretti, lyrics, and articles. Her novel Chocolat was adapted to the screen, starring Juliette Binoche and Johnny Depp. She is an honorary Fellow of St. Catharine's College, Cambridge, and is chair of the Society of Authors. Follow her on Twitter @joannechocolat.
David Timson is an actor, voice actor, and playwright. He is best known for his narration of The Complete Sherlock Holmes audiobook, in which he voices all 125 characters in the Holmes novels and short stories. His narrations have earned eight AudioFile Earphones Award.
Audiobooks Were Restored to Your Cart
[ShoppingCartItemsAddedOnMerge] audiobook(s) were left in your cart from a previous visit, and saved to your account for your convenience. You may view or remove these audiobooks on the shopping cart page.