3.5 stars

Okay I liked this but I'm going to be real - I HATE CLIFFHANGERS. This is not a spoiler - the author's note states it is a cliffhanger. My preference for a series that follows the same leads for each installment is that there are no MASSIVE cliffhangers at the end of each book. IMO each book should end without giving me anxiety lol. I enjoy Karina's books so this isn't against her or her writing this is me against cliffhangers. ( )

River of Shadow is a Finnish mythology with touches of Beauty and the Beast and Hades and Persephone woven into the tapestry of world-building and storytelling.

Twenty-four-year-old Hannah has learned that her father has passed away. Wrecked with grief and guilt for not staying in touch with her beloved father, Hannah heads to Northern Finland to attend her father's funeral, but the moment she arrives, things are not what they seem. Her father's coffin is empty and the two people who welcomed her to her father's lodge seem to be out for her.

When Rasmus tells her that her father is still alive and down in the Underworld, Hannah sets off to find him and bring him back, but Death is not going to simply hand over her father without a price and Hannah finds herself willing to take her father's place instead as so long as Death allows him to live his life.

There is a prophecy in the Underworld and Death believes it has something to do with Hannah but Hannah has no desire to stay. She wants to return to the World Above and forget everything she has been through here, but Death is not about to let her go so easily.

This is the FIRST book that I have seen that goes outside of the Greek and Roman mythology that seems to be saturating the fantasy romance genre and though this makes me happy, it also seems to bury a lot of other mythology that needs to be told - Egyptian, Norse, Finnish, and everything else in between. In this world, Death is a far different character from his Greek and Roman counterpart. The world-building of this new Underworld is different, fresh, and quite interesting if you were to lay it against the Greek and Roman version. I loved his world. I loved that the Dead had the ability to redeem themselves from their past and were given jobs within Death's household and in other places.

As for Hannah, I did not like her nor could I stand her. Her character lacked growth throughout this book. And though I get her reasonings for heading into the Underworld, she seemed to lack the where-to-do to understand that unless Death allows it, you are stuck in his world. So, instead of taking Bell's advice, she does the complete opposite. She gave me a huge headache.

The plot wrapped around the Finnish mythology was the chef's kiss.

Final Thought:

I did not that Death is the book boyfriend I needed. ( )

"You can call me Death. And I will call you mine."
"Anyone who harms you will be no more, that is my promise to you."
When 24 year old Hanna's estranged father dies, she reluctantly makes a trip to Northern Finland for his funeral. When Hanna discovers her father's body is missing, things get really weird. A mysterious man, Rasmus, tells Hanna the truth: her father was a powerful shaman who went into Tuonela, the Realm of the Dead, to barter for more life and is now being held prisoner by Tuoni, the God of Death. The only way to save her father is for Hanna to travel with Rasmus to the underworld. Willing to do anything for a second chance with her father, Hanna accompanies him to the dark and bloody realm. Hanna offers herself in exchange for her father, and Death intrigued by her beauty and fierceness accepts the bargain. But even the most noble sacrifices come with hidden costs...
So this book was hyped up by a lot of friends and I was hoping that it lived up to the hype. My only issues with this book were the world building, because I hate spending so much time on world building (I know it's important) and the flipping cliffhanger of an ending. I loved the characters in the book they are all very intense. Clearly there is some mystery surrounding Hanna that I can't wait for later books to dive into and the Realm of the Dead is in some serious turmoil that I need to know more about. So basically the story line is amazing, and the world building is done well. You get just enough to make you want to read the next one!
But let's get down to the important part... Death and Hanna... the sexual tension between these two is intense and well written. We didn't get much time with the two of them together, but what we got was beautiful and I need, no I demand more of it in my life. Death seems like the perfect level of broody. I mean the dude straight up unalived someone for her. My only regret is that the book didn't give me more of these two. However, does it make me desire book number 2 even more... you bet... so run don't walk and get this book. ( )