Loki: A Bad God's Guide
Part of the collectionLoki: A Bad God's Guide→A trickster god stuck as an eleven-year-old writes a truth-telling diary while trying (and failing) to be good. Fast, funny, myth-soaked and made for reluctant readers.
- Books5
- Arcs1
- Span2022–2025
- StatusOngoing
The series
At a glance.
Louie Stowell's series follows the trickster god Loki, banished to Earth as a peevish eleven-year-old boy with one month, then repeated second chances, to prove to Odin that he can be good. A magical diary forces him to record the truth, so the books unfold entirely through his furious, funny entries and comic-strip doodles as he survives school, tolerates an equally eleven-year-old Thor, makes and nearly wrecks human friendships, and resists the pull of his own worst instincts. Each book is a self-contained comic adventure, but Loki's slow, reluctant growth, and recurring figures like his friend Valerie and the vengeful elf Vinir, give the series a gentle through-line. Heavily illustrated and endlessly readable, it pairs poop jokes and Norse mythology with real lessons about honesty, responsibility and self-acceptance.
A trickster god stuck as an eleven-year-old writes a truth-telling diary while trying (and failing) to be good. Fast, funny, myth-soaked and made for reluctant readers.
Primary themes
Overall tone
- Funny
- Irreverent
- Silly
- Exciting
Best read in publication order starting with A Bad God's Guide to Being Good, running jokes, friendships and recurring foes carry across the books, though each has its own self-contained adventure.
One arc
The shape of the series.
- INarrative arcBooks 1–5 · 2022–2025Low sensitivity
Loki's guide to (almost) being good
Loki's ongoing, doodle-packed diary of trying to be good and mostly causing chaos.
The series runs as one continuous diary: each book a self-contained comic scrape, from a missing hammer and a cursed ring to a duel-hungry elf and a herd of magical cats, but Loki's slow, grudging progress towards being genuinely good ties them together. Recurring friends like Valerie and Georgina, his rivalry with the insufferably perfect Balder, and the returning foe Vinir give the run its through-line. The register stays reliably light throughout, boastful, irreverent and very funny, with poop jokes and real Norse mythology in equal measure, and no content that would trouble sensitive readers. A dependable, gentle-hearted comedy that keeps sneaking in lessons about honesty, responsibility and owning your mistakes.
Book 1Loki: A Bad God's Guide to Being GoodWalker Books · MMXXIILoki: A Bad God's Guide to Being GoodBook 2Loki: A Bad God's Guide to Taking the BlameWalker Books · MMXXIIILoki: A Bad God's Guide to Taking the BlameBook 3Loki: A Bad God's Guide to Ruling the WorldWalker Books · MMXXIIILoki: A Bad God's Guide to Ruling the WorldBook 4Loki: A Bad God's Guide to Making EnemiesWalker Books · MMXXIVLoki: A Bad God's Guide to Making EnemiesBook 5Loki: A Bad God's Guide to Causing ChaosWalker Books · MMXXVLoki: A Bad God's Guide to Causing Chaos
Fit check
Right for your reader?
Where the series lands by age
- 1
- 3
- 5
- 7
- 9
- 11
- 13
- 15
- 17
- 19
- Best fit · 8–11
- Read aloud · 7–10
- Independent · 8–11
Reluctant-reader friendliness
Very high
Read-aloud quality
Strong
Adult crossover
High
Grows with the reader
Not especially
Sensitivity envelope
Low overall, and consistent.
Where it sits
In conversation with other series.
About the author