Valkyrie/Between the Blade and the Heart Books in Order

Amanda Hocking's Valkyrie duology is a Norse-inspired young adult fantasy about Malin Krigare, a warrior whose job is to kill immortals and send them back to the afterlife. It is a serious responsibility, and Malin has been raised to see it as a clear line between order and chaos. That certainty does not last.

In Between the Blade and the Heart, Malin discovers a secret that challenges the rules she has always followed. Her search for answers brings her into contact with Asher, a boy pursuing revenge, while her former girlfriend Oona reenters her life. Malin is forced to weigh what she has been taught against what she can see for herself.

The line between duty and loyalty gets blurry fast.

The books use figures and ideas from Norse mythology, but the focus stays close to Malin's choices. She is tough, trained, and used to taking action, yet the conflict cannot be solved by fighting alone. The more she learns about the people in power and the structure of her world, the harder it becomes to decide whom she should protect.

Romance is part of the story without replacing the main plot. Malin's unresolved feelings for Oona add emotional pressure, while Asher's anger and need for justice pull her toward risks she might otherwise avoid. Their relationships make the larger crisis feel personal, especially when the people closest to Malin have different ideas about what the right thing looks like.

The second book, From the Earth to the Shadows, follows Malin as she deals with the revelations of the first novel. New allies and enemies appear, and her search for the truth takes her beyond the places she thought she understood. The stakes expand toward the survival of her world, but Malin remains a direct, determined center for the story.

It is a duology, so the arc moves quickly.

Begin with Between the Blade and the Heart and continue directly to From the Earth to the Shadows. The two novels are also available together in the collection Heart & Shadow, but reading the individual books in order gives the clearest sense of how Malin's trust changes.

Expect action, mythology, queer romance, revenge, dangerous secrets, and a heroine who has to rebuild her idea of justice while the world around her starts to come apart.