Marvel: Loki Where Mischief Lies (Young Adult Fiction)

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Infuriating and good

I consider myself a big loki fan. I enjoy the sides in him that balance between good and evil. (Short "spoiler") Although, I have to say amora as a character was good, but it was fairly seeable from the start that she had ill intentions with loki. They lost the chance to give theo and loki more time, to which I think they could have given it more. In my personal taste, at least. (Spoiler ende) The end felt a little rushed at times. A little more time there and pages would have done it some good. Other than that, it was wonderful. Beautifully portraying loki in sides and ways that stay true to his character. Especially his younger self before the first thor movie (for refrence). I recommend it, even if it may be hard to get through at times

I had really high expectations about this book. First of all I really like the character Loki himself. I just thought the book would be a bit different. I also liked the other characters but only that makes not the storyline better. The end was kind of obvious and it came really sudden. I loved how the author showed the "other side" of Loki, which is not that much showed in the movies. ⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

OH MY GOD I LOVED IT. My expectations were basically the floor and I only wanted some great time with my teen!trickster. But the book was sooo much more and it was sooo good. The story was kind of simple but still interesting. It focused more on his character and it kinda made me fall in love with this character even more. So if you love Loki then read this book. At this point more people should be like him. He has great views on people and humanity. The book had me at the first page and I wish there was more.

LOKI - WHERE MISCHIEF LIES “

This book is a must read for anyone that is a marvel fan(or not it doesn’t actually matter) I fell in love with Loki and Theo over the book and was happy to see that Amora was included cause she isn’t in the ‚film mcu‘ That Loki is bisexual did we learn in the Loki series but to actually hear him talk about how in Asgard sexuality’s do not matter just made me fall for marvel more. The characters all were written amazing and I recommend this book till my very last breath!

I will love you in every universe Loki 💚

Sooooo I don't really know what to say. I finished this book literally a minute ago and I would spend more time thinking about it, but I don't think that would change anything. Loki: Where Mischief Lies was one of my most anticipated books of the year and so far probably the biggest disappointment. I love Loki and I loved Mackenzie Lee's prior books, but this one was somehow lacking to me. I read it really quickly and there was good banter in there and an interesting story with twists, but it just couldn't hold up to what I hoped this book would be. So let's get to my biggest issue with this book: there was no real development. Loki ended up exactly where he was before. I expected to see different facades of Loki, but I basically there's just this kinda self-conscious but also not really "teen" who banters and doesn't know if he's really evil or not. With the other characters, I don't have much to say either, since there wasn't space to develop them, so they stayed pretty one-sided. And now we can get to the story, which I did actually enjoy, but I think I just expected more of the romance. The Gentleman's Guide of Vice and Virtue had such a good balance between adventure and romance plot, but with this I kinda wish there wasn't any romance at all. Or at least only one. Especially the romance around Amora annoyed me from start to finish. I understand that they had a special bond in the comics, but this could have stayed a deep friendship. Loki was always looking for acceptance and she could've given him that without the romantic undertones. With that gone and the romance basically just being Theo, maybe I would have cared more. Like this, there were two half-baked romances, that both lead nowhere anyway. Wow, this turned more ranty than I wanted. I still gave this book 3 stars, cause I read it very fast and there were enjoyable parts. I also think it's a really nice first step towards way more diverse super hero stories and well ALL STORIES in general. Many people loved this book, so I think especially with a younger audience this book will resonate greatly and I'm super happy about that. It just sadly wasn't what I was hoping it would be.

It's so fantastic to see more of Loki than the MCU depicts. This soft young, unsure Loki for the beginning of the first Thor movie. Every Loki I read is self-assured and unafraid to display his magic and cause trouble! But Mackenzi Lee's is adorably cute and in love! His father's sorceress has an apprentice and he would do anything she asked. He's smitten with her, she doesn't care about the opinion of others, gets to use her magic! Loki is constantly seeking his father's approval and doesn't know enough magic, even though he's strong, because he is a prince, and Asgardian princes are warriors, not sorcerers! I'm even more in love with Loki! We meet the characters of this book in a feast, where Odin looks into a mirror to see the future of Asgard. And he is so shaken by what he sees he practically flees the banquet. Loki, unable to sit still, shifts his body and clothes to that of a servant girl and goes to his father's chamber. He doesn't get what he wants as his father sends him out, so he changes gears and enchants a cup so he can hear what they are saying. What Odin saw was his son leading an army of the dead against Asgard. Care to guess which son? It's a difficult answer, isn't it? Loki is heartbroken at knowing it's him, that everyone thinks that... Even Thor accuses him, even though he regrets what he said... It breaks my heart to watch this scene. Loki feels terrible about all this but the Mirror has never been wrong, so how can he prevent the future it showed? How can he convince others that that's not him...? When Loki goes to talk to Amora, Karnilla's apprentice, he comes up with the idea to sneak into the vault to check the vision for himself. Amora does her best to channel enough energy for Loki to see the vision clearly but can't. And when the person leading the army marching into Asgard is still out of focus Loki places his hands to the Mirror's surface., inadvertently summons his magic and shatters the Mirror. For a moment he’s awestruck that he is powerful before a monster that feeds on fear, the Lurking Unknown (very appropriately named), attacks them. Loki and Amora can't vanish it because he is afraid and so they are losing badly when the monster breaks through the vault's door and into the soldiers outside. It grows bigger with their surprise and fear and it's only when Karnilla shows up that it vanishes. Loki tells the truth to Odin and sees the fear wash over his face. But when Amora admits to the crime, alone, Odin is relived. As she is dragged to the dungeons Loki keeps screaming that he was there too, it was his idea, to no avail... When Odin proclaims Amora's punishment, to send her to Midgard where her magic will wither and die with her, she screams and begs. Skipping a few years ahead, closer to the events of Thor 1, I feel second-hand anger towards Odin and Thor. Odin refuses to see Loki is doing his best, instead seeing what everyone sees in him: that his softness is a sign that he is up to no good. And Thor can get away with anything! The two of them are in the Ice Elves realm looking for the Norn Stones, that were stolen from Karnilla, and even Thor's rudeness and outbursts don't get them kicked out. And Loki is the odd one! Loki makes the mistake of proposing to Thor they prove the Ice Elves have a worst security than Asgard by doing something to their power source. The Elves don't have the Norn Stones, but they did want them, just because. Loki and Thor wanted a little revenge for the way they were treated. But revenge isn't always the best plan, as the brothers found themselves half encased in ice by the power source and had to be escorted back to Asgard by very displeased Ice Elves. Of course, Odin was upset, it could have ended in a war! But when Thor blurts that it had been Loki's fault and he had had no other choice but to do as he planned. And good Heavens I absolutely love Thor, especially the Marvel version of him, but some books make me hate him! The way he treats Loki, the way he gives him up to their father as if he didn't want to pummel the Ice Elves' prince, and then is incapable of looking at his brother...! Ugh! You are really not making this easy, Thor! And Odin is no better! He talks to Thor about how a king should behave but barely treats Loki as a court member! And Loki loses control of his tongue for a moment and speaks his mind. So Odin gives him the responsibility he wanted but delivered more like a punishment. Loki is sent to Earth, to assist humans with a Jack, the Ripper-esque, case. And we all know how much Loki loathes humans. Loki's thoughts about humans and London are so damned funny! And it's so clear that this is the Loki we know and love, especially when he thinks things like "Oh, Midgard seems to be in need of ruling. This place is a disaster. Maybe I'll make it my kingdom." It's so funny, honestly! Loki makes his way to the meeting place, the Norse Wing in the British Museum, where he finds his contact, and profoundly dislikes him. The man, Theo, leads him to a storage room and throws Loki some powder to incapacitate him and throws him in a wooden box to be transported to their secret society lair. Sassy Loki in writing is the absolute best! From the moment he wakes up that he slays the conversation with Mrs. Sharp. He doesn't care for human lives, doesn't care that they are dying "mysteriously". He’d rather go back to Asgard and scrub the floors if need be! Besides, they locked him in magic-dampening cuffs. And kind of insulted him by saying he was Lord of Darkness and Everything Evil, so they deserve it. I absolutely love Theo! He is incredibly funny and sassy and his overall personality is amazing! He’s so curious but at the same time has an I-don't-really-care attitude even when he is fascinated. I found it so funny when he said that Midgardian sounded powerful and Loki replies that maybe it was translating wrong! Oh heavens! He's the one to take Loki to the fairy ring, what they call the place where the Bifrost connects to Earth. He knows the deal he made with Odin, so when Loki tries to grandiosely prove him wrong and ends up being ignored by Heimdall, Theo is decent enough not to outright laugh. Instead, he dangles a way to talk to Asgard in his face and makes a deal that will take Loki to see the dead. For reasons beyond my understanding, people put the dead on display and others paid to see it! So that's where Theo and Mrs. S take Loki. And, despite his best efforts, Loki is curious when he sees that the dead are not decaying like they were supposed to and inwardly agrees to help them, if only to satisfy his curiosity. As expected, when Loki contacts Asgard, and is met only with Thor, his brother won't go against their father and let Loki come along with him on his mission. So he's frustrated and gets into a little argument with Theo about it before they are interrupted by Gem about new murder. No one in Scotland Yard particularly likes them and their crazy theories, so while she distracts them, the other two look at the corpse. Theo is kind of a Tony Stark in the making with less money. He has some spectacles that let them see magic. And when Loki loses his balance and grabs the dead man, he grabs his wrist in turn and opens his eyes for a second. Chaos and name-calling ensue as no one knows what just happened. Back at the shop (read headquarters), Mrs. S explains how accidental it was that she started working "with" Odin. Her husband was just that stubborn to prove others wrong and stumbled upon Asgard. But one day Odin was too late in coming to their aid and Mr. Sharp died. Still, Mrs. S doesn't quit their work. When Loki hears that the dead man had a medium's calling card in his pocket and that the woman goes by "The Enchantress" he jumps at the opportunity to go talk to her. And since Theo is sore, Mrs. S is drunk and Gem has to go to work, he'll go alone. When he enters the part of the club where the Enchantress performs Loki is half afraid. Afraid it's her and afraid it's not. So he's standing very still until she notices him and calls him onstage. She "speaks to the dead" which translates, Loki finds, into Amora stealing humans' energy to refill her magic. Loki also immediately understands that she is the murderer. She takes souls to stay alive. Loki wasn't exactly subtle when he said he'd be the one investigating the Enchantress so when he comes back out to the club it's no surprise that Theo is there. He knows Loki is omitting the truth but doesn't pressure him much. Instead invites him back to his place to sleep, and, after having confirmation that Theo is bisexual and the way he blushed when asking this, I ship them so much! Especially because Loki is really into his many freckles, which is really adorable! Honestly, Loki going back to Theo's turns into an awkward interaction for a moment, but then it turns to sweet when Theo tells him the reason he was arrested. Loki can't comprehend that backward thought as much as Theo can’t comprehend how Loki can be both male and female. And their talk about Asgard and Theo wanting to live there just so he doesn't have to be afraid is a little bittersweet... Loki and Amora's friendship is sweet and light despite the horrible things she's been doing. And Loki wants so badly to save her, he'd do anything for her, even lie to people he's come to care about (read: Theo). So he concocts an elaborate lie about the corpses being affected by spoiled magic from Amora, who has been on Earth for years, and how they have to take her away from Earth and bury the bodies so the "virus" dies. Mrs. S doesn't believe him and Theo doesn't either, but he likes Loki (as much as Loki likes him) and so he stands by him. During the show, the main protestor throws something at Amora, igniting her fury. Loki thinks he has calmed her down but then finds her gone from her room and in the street with the woman's body at her feet. He finally walks out on her, or at least thinks he does. I do love it dearly, and the fangirl in me almost squealed, when Loki says that the SHARP Society should be called SHIELD. Especially because there was a mention of a Stark earlier in the story! Loki asks Thor for his help and I can only hope it's to stop Amora or something like that... But that is before Loki falls to her taunts and read the book Theo was reading at the club. And finds everything the humans have been saying about him. All the lies and possible futures... Everything he's not and everything he is. He's devastated and hurt and he hurts Theo in return, running to Amora and giving in to villainy. But he's not sure about his choices, he too frequently thinks it's bad plan. Loki was the one that stole the Norn Stones, to prove to Odin he was capable of ruling when he pretended to find them. And he shows them to Amora, who immediately goes to the plan of overtaking Asgard. With the army of the living-dead. She knows how to use runes to make their plan go faster and of course, she wants 4 of the 5 Stones and this is a very bad plan! Still, Loki goes along with her to the morgue and almost fools Gem (and finds out that Mrs. S and Theo have been looking for Loki because Theo is heartbroken and he almost runs to him!). While there, Amora and Loki divide and conquer to mark the dead but when Mrs. S shows up, and is so gentle when talking to Loki, Amora severs her head... Just kills her in cold blood... And Loki just stands there, not knowing what to do, who he even is... It's devastating, to be honest... When Sunday comes, Theo ends up finding Loki, knocking into him and causing a scene. He is distracted enough that Loki slips the Norn Stones into his pocket before he is dragged away by the police. Still, after a bit of a fight with a policeman, Loki has to share a coffin with a living-dead to get on the train and to Amora. And it's then that he tells her that he knows all about her plans to destroy him and take the throne for herself. I knew Loki would never fall for her that way, not the MCU Loki I know! And so they start to fight. Loki is used to fighting magicless warriors with magic so it's different to fight Amora. But not only that, she is much stronger than expected and she overpowers Loki. She raises her army and sends him away to the last car, where he finds Theo. They have an honest and rousing talk and share a single, lonely kiss that makes the ending that much more difficult and painful... Loki uses a Stone to end the zombies walking about and then to end Amora. Still, he is good enough not to kill her, he wanted to bring her alive to Asgard... But she would not go back to be a prisoner so she let go and probably died... As the fairy ring approaches, Loki and Theo uncouple the cars of the living from those of the dead. And Loki throws Theo to the living's breaking the promise of taking him back to Asgard. And Theo is hurt and disappointed but not surprised, which just breaks one's heart, the reader's or Loki's... Because even he looks away, only catching one last look before the Bifrost takes him... When Loki arrives back in Asgard it is the vision his father saw... But as Thor and the guards fight the dead, Loki helps to kill them with the Stones. Still, his father is unforgiving and horrible and I honestly never hated Marvel's Odin as I do in this book. My heart aches for Loki so damned much. But I'm with him when he decides to become the monster everyone thinks he is. If you have the fame, why not the glory? This book was fantastic from start to finish. It gives insight and more depth to a beloved character, it's well written, the plot is amazing and the characters unforgettable. It is most certainly one of those books that deserve all the stars in the universe and to which I'll always call home and will come back to. Astonishing work by a marvelous author!

Devo essere sincera, per questo libro avevo delle aspettative alte e ben precise, pensavo fosse un libro scherzoso e misterioso ma quando finalmente l'ho letto mi sono ritrovata fra le mani una storia che parlava di pregiudizi, di predestinazione e di temi che pur essendo in chiave ottocentesca da una parte e divina dall'altra non sono distanti da quelli con cui ci ritroviamo a combattere tutt'ora. È un libro leggero, si legge in poco e quasi non te ne rendi conto quando finisce, chiudi il libro e ti metti a pensare a come tu possa avere letto un romanzo così impegnativo e così leggero allo stesso tempo. Questa è la magia della letteratura, una magia che senza dubbio Meckenzi Lee sa usare. Vi consiglio assolutamente di leggere questo libro

The end broke my heart … poor Loki!!! 3,5 ☆

Ein wirklich tolles Buch, nicht nur für Marvel Fans. Mackenzie Lee hat einen beeindruckenden Schreibstil, der die Geschichte sofort zum Leben erweckt. Dabei werden die Charaktere so dreidimensional gezeichnet, dass es vor allem bei Loki, der selbst nicht genau weiß, wer er eigentlich ist (Held oder Bösewicht oder nichts dergleichen?), sehr nahbar macht. Ich konnte wirklich gut mit ihm mitfühlen und seine Intentionen verstehen. Dabei war die Handlung echt interessant und ich wollte unbedingt wissen, wie es weitergeht. Außerdem haben mir auch die zwei Mini-Romanzen sehr gut gefallen, da sie natürlich gewachsen sind. Sie Warensendung ehr unterschiedlich, aber beide absolut nachvollziehbar. Nur einen Kritikpunkt habe ich: Ich verstehe die Alterseinschätzung nicht ganz. Das Buch ist offiziell ab 12 empfohlen und als Coming-of-Age deklariert. Mir war nicht ganz klar, wie alt Loki zu Beginn des Buches sein sollte und wie das in "Menschenjahren" einzuordnen ist. Außerdem gab es doch teilweise auch ziemlich blutige Szenen, die mich in einem Jugendbuch eher irritiert haben. Mir persönlich hat es genau so gefallen, aber ich würde es durch die Komplexität und teilweise auch Brutalität eher als Buch für etwas ältere einschätzen.

Love Loki

If Loki is your favorite character in the MCU you are going to love with novel. It is Loki's villain origin story and while it takes some time to start the murder mystery novel feel the synopsis talks about the ending is absolutely worth it and just the last page made me gasp and smirk at the same time. We get to learn more about Asgard and how Loki (and Thor) grow up as well as the way of life in Asgard and how Loki came to be the Loki we got to know in the Marvel movies.