Daughter of Doom by Jean-Claude van Rijckeghem

Daughter of Doom

Jean-Claude van Rijckeghem

Levine Querido c/o Chronicle Books · Hardcover · June 3, 2025

Denmark, 870 AD.

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Who it’s for
Viking-age adventure meets questions of fate, faith, and free will in a dark historical tale.
Themes
Fate and free will, Faith
Genres
Historical YA Fantasy, Medieval YA, YA Adventure

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About this book

Denmark, 870 AD. Yrsa knows her place in the village of Mimir’s Stool. Though she was born with a crooked foot, she’s never let anyone underestimate her; after all, she’s the daughter of Toke the helmsman and granddaughter of the fearsome warrior Gudrun the Torch (who, according to legend, stood before the walls of Paris, splattered in the blood of Frankish warriors).

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And no one else in the village shares her ability to see what the Norns, the three weavers who live under the roots of Yggdrasil, the world tree, and craft people’s fates, have in store for them. One day the men return from a raid with a high-ranking hostage, Sister Job, and though the two girls couldn’t be more different, they look out for one another. And when one of the villagers viciously assaults Sister Job and she and Yrsa mortally wound him in self-defense, they’re forced to take to the sea to escape the wrath of the warriors of Mimir’s Stool, and worse, the wrath of the gods. Can either of them escape their fate? Do they even want to? From the acclaimed author of Ironhead, or, Once a Young Lady, comes Daughter of Doom, a dark historical adventure about fate, faith, and free will set on the rollicking seas in the age of Vikings.

Fate at Sea

Viking-age adventure meets questions of fate, faith, and free will in a dark historical tale.

Come here for

  • A vivid 870 AD setting shaped by Norse gods and lore
  • Two very different girls looking out for one another

Expect

  • Sea-borne danger and hard choices
  • A thoughtful push and pull between destiny and agency

Where it sits

Historical YA Fantasy52%
Medieval YA32%
YA Adventure22%

Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.

Publisher categories

  • YA Adventure
  • YA Stories About Girls & Women
  • Europe for Teens
Authors
Jean-Claude van Rijckeghem
Publisher
Levine Querido c/o Chronicle Books
Published
June 3, 2025
Format
Hardcover
Theme
Fate and free will · Faith
Reading lane
YA Adventure