Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for Elizabeth Tammi's The Weight of a Soul hosted by FFBC. I have a review of the book, and there's a giveaway as well!
Title: The Weight of a Soul
Author: Elizabeth Tammi
Publisher: Flux
Release Date: December 3rd 2019
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Historical Fiction
Source: Copy for review via NetGalley
Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository | B&N | Google Books
Synopsis
When Lena's younger sister Fressa is found dead, their whole Viking clan mourns - but it is Lena alone who never recovers. Fressa is the sister that should've lived, and Lena cannot rest until she knows exactly what killed Fressa and why - and how to bring her back. She strikes a dark deal with Hela, the Norse goddess of death, and begins a new double life to save her sister.
But as Lena gets closer to bringing Fressa back, she dredges up dangerous discoveries about her own family, and finds herself in the middle of a devastating plan to spur Ragnarök - a deadly chain of events leading to total world destruction.
Still, with her sister's life in the balance, Lena is willing to risk it all. She's willing to kill. How far will she go before the darkness consumes her?
The Weight of a Soul is a beautiful story of love, loss and sisterhood. The biggest reason I was excited to dive into this novel is that it explores the relationship between two sisters who would do anything for each other. I love it when that dynamic is involved. The second part that drew me in was the Norse mythology. I don't know a ton about it, but as I was reading, I realized I knew at least a little more than I thought.
Right from the start, you know that Fressa and Lena have a close bond where they would protect each other and do anything for one another. That bond is put to the test when Fressa is found dead, and there is pressure for Lena to marry her sister's fiance, Amal, which neither wants to happen. Fressa, Amal and Lena grew up together, and Lena never had the desire to strike up a romantic relationship with him, especially knowing how much her sister loved him.
Lena is a complex character. She becomes consumed with grief after losing her sister and is in denial that Fressa has died. Lena becomes more and more obsessed with the idea of traveling to the world of Helheim, where most people go after they die, to try to strike a bargain with Hela, the Norse goddess of death.
You can look at Lena's decisions in several different ways. Traveling to what seems like a hell (Helheim) can seem like a dumb thing to do, but when you take into consideration Lena has this overwhelming grief that she doesn't know what to do with, it actually makes sense, at least to me.
I view Lena as brave and dedicated to Fressa to risk her own life to save her sister. The decision she has to make in order to get her sister back forces her to think about how far she's willing to go to get what she wants, but she agrees to it right away. Would I have agreed to it? I'm not sure, at least not one hundred percent, but I would have a hard time saying no. I'd want my sister back no matter what.
The Weight of a Soul is a book that will stay with me for a long time. I loved the backdrop of the story with the Norse mythology as well as the questions I had about Lena's choices; mostly thinking about the morality of whether she should or shouldn't do what Hela is asking her to do. I love a book that makes you think, and this one definitely gave me a lot to think about.
My Rating: 
About the Author
Elizabeth Tammi was born in California and grew up in Florida, but is currently double-majoring in Creative Writing and Journalism as an undergraduate at Mercer University in Georgia. When she's not writing, you can probably find Elizabeth at work for her university's newspaper and literary magazine. Her other interests include traveling, caffeinated beverages, and mythology.
You can find Elizabeth online on Tumblr at annabethisterrified, Twitter at @ElizabethTammi, Instagram at elizabeth_tammi, and at elizabethtammi.com.
Connect with Elizabeth Tammi
Blog Tour organized by FFBC Tours
