Runed is a bonkers read. The Norse god Loki survives Ragnarök and wakes up when his Icelandic ice tomb melts. He’s alive, naked and in the body of a twenty-first century woman. If he’s to locate his runes and return to godly form, Loki must quickly acquaint himself with his new body and the modern world.

Runed

Odin, however, has sent one of his ravens, Huginn, to keep an eye on Loki. Huginn is incarnated as a— wait for it—cross-eyed chicken.

After he wakes, Loki is rescued by Gunnar Magnesson—think Chris Hemsworth as Thor but dressed in a lumberjack shirt and jeans. He’s an archaeology student working part-time as a tour guide who’s returning home to America to resume his studies. Gunnar Magnesson returning to America is important to the plot. Loki’s runes are calling to him, and he’ll have to travel west to find them. So, Loki stows away on a plane to New York, Huginn in tow, and is rescued again by Gunnar Magnesson after they land. By the way, Loki always refers to the male lead by his forename and surname.

Since this is the first of three books, Runed describes a road trip to Atlanta to obtain the first rune, Laguz. Loki is accompanied by Gunnar Magnesson and his stoner friend Freddie, a robot builder with wealthy parents and a WeedPop business that’s diversified into lollipops.

Runed has a crazy but believable plot, and its main character narrates it with a great voice. In addition to the comedy, the relationships are well developed. While Huginn is supposed to be spying on Loki, the two grow fond of each other and the chicken’s loyalty to Odin—with the occasional neck squeeze from Loki—is tested. Loki is constantly distracted because his female body is attracted to Gunnar Magnesson. The man is a gentleman and protective towards her. He believes Loki’s behaviour is the result of a mental breakdown, and so he won’t return her advances. Freddie, who’s funding the road trip, is a good friend to Gunnar Magnesson and grows equally generous to Loki.

Rune is well-written and filled with plenty of fun moments. There’s also a great plot twist to watch out for in this first instalment of the Asgard Awakening series.

Image: amazon.co.uk, 02-Jun-20

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