Perfekt Control
The Ære Saga # 2
ST Bende
Genre: New Adult Paranormal
Publication Date: February 9, 2016
Brynn Aksel is a valkyrie—a battle goddess tasked with protecting both the God of War and the future of Asgard. She fends off giants and dark elves with an iron fist, a glossy smile, and no less than perfekt control. She’s focused one-hundred-percent on rising through the valkyrie ranks, and not at all on her lifelong crush on Henrik Andersson—the one guy in all the realms who could be her undoing.
Henrik serves as War’s other bodyguard, and he’s too focused on protecting their shared charge to realize that Brynn’s a girl. When an unprecedented surge of darkness abducts the Goddess of Love, Brynn’s already-steely focus is singularly directed on her new assignment—accompany Henrik to recover the realms’ source of light before the cosmos descends into chaos.
While battling demons, dragons, and the not-quite-dead, it becomes clear that immortality does not equal invincibility. And when Hel herself puts a hit on Brynn, the valkyrie has to decide if staying in control is worth losing everything . . . or if it’s time to rule the realms.
Bende has brought us yet another exciting adventure where the world we know collides with the Asgardian legends and characters we have come to love! Henrik and Brynn have been two of my favorites ever since they were introduced to me for the first time in the Supernatural Chronicles Anthology. I love their banter, genius, and comradery. As you see more of their relationship in the first book of this series, you start to get excited for what happens when they finally have their chance. Bende does a great job of combining their strong sense of honor and duty with the reality of love and loss. Perfekt Control is a beautiful friends to more story that upholds everything we know about the Asgardian world and gives the reader a sweet and exciting story to experience.
This book is told through Brynn’s POV, so we know exactly what is going on in her head. If you have read the series, it is no surprise that she has developed feelings for Henrik. She is contacntly fighting her desires, honoring the Valkyrie code. The internal struggles are realistic for a young woman who is in love but cannot act upon it. She is filled with conflict, wanting what she cannot have and learning to bottle it up and embrace their platonic relationship. Brynn is a strong female lead character. In situations like the one in this book, the heroine can be whiny and frustrating. Not here. In this story, she accepts the emotion and makes a conscious decision to do what she is called to do and protect those she loves at all costs. Her journey in this book made me love her character even more.
This book picks up right where the first ended. There is trouble brewing and the group is in hiding, trying to determine their next step when everything explodes into chaos. This book starts off fast paced and keeps the reader moving quickly, just like the characters. Time is of the essence and they must do everything in their power to get back what was taken from them. The pace of this story is brilliant, giving the reader an understanding of the efficiently and duty these Asgardians place above all else. It allows the reader to understand Brynn’s predicament better. The love story is deeper than your average tale. It is a love that is sacrificial and strong, growing for years and learning to accept what can be and what cannot. This fact allows us to understand the predicament and the duty they all hold so dear.
Perfekt Control brings us back to a world that is exciting and unique. It allows us to see into the lives of the characters we have come to know and love in an adrenaline laced story. I loved seeing Tyr and Mia living in the midst of their love story. I enjoyed getting to know the other secondary characters better, making me even more excited for their stories. This book is true to form and reflects the best of Bende’s writing. I am so excited to see where the series takes us and seeing more of Brynn and Henrik!