Ice Land: A Novel
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | 4.19 (936 Votes) |
| Asin | : | 0452295696 |
| Format Type | : | paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 354 Pages |
| Publish Date | : | 2015-11-11 |
| Language | : | English |
DESCRIPTION:
exciting Nordic historical romantic fantasy In 1000 AD in Iceland, Freya the Aesir goddess of love seeks a gold necklace created by the Brising dwarves that the Fates warn her can change history. At seemingly the same time sixteen year old orphan Fulla has fallen in love with Vili, whose father killed her father. Meanwhile also apparently at the identical moments, the Norns observe increasingly dangerous volcanic activity especially by Hekla that looks ready to explode.Freya works a deal with the dwarves for the necklace in exchange for escorting their leader Dvalin in a quest to cure his sister's infertility. She actually obtains the necklace. "Writing style hit-and-miss. Characters and plot disappointing" according to Kelly (Fantasy Literature). "This book is my love letter to Iceland and its people," writes Betsy Tobin in her afterword to _Ice Land_. And so it is. Tobin is at her best when describing the landscape of Iceland:"The day we met, I had flown deep into the central highlands, seeking a spot where I could be alone. I found it on a high desert plateau, where a hidden spring had forced its way up through the lava shield, forming an oasis. The water was a brilliant cobalt blue. It spread like fingers across the plateau, and all around it lay a bed of thick, luminous green moss."Tobin's love of Iceland's unusual landscape is clear. Tho. Mythical, Dreamlike J. W. Kennedy I was ready to like this book since I am a big fan of Icelandic Sagas. It did not disappoint. Betsy Tobin's language is stark and simple, much like the plain, unfancy tone of the Sagas. There are a few missed notes but overall the effect is consistent and well-crafted. All the action takes place in the present tense, shifting to past tense only to refer to events that occurred in the past (duh.) The narrative voice switches from first-person to third-person from chapter to chapter. Each chapter is headed by the name of the character who is the focus of that chapter. Freya (the Norse goddess of love)
. Betsy Tobin was born in the United States and movedto England in 1989. She lives in London with herhusband and four children
. But even as Freya travels deep into the mountains of Iceland, the country is on the brink of war. The new world order of Christianity is threatening the old ways of Iceland's people, and tangled amidst it all are two star-crossed lovers who destiny draws them together-even as their families are determined to tear them apart Infused with the rich history and mythology of Iceland, Betsy Tobin's sweeping novel is an epic adventure of forbidden love, lust, jealousy, faith and magical wonder set under the shadow of a smoldering volcano. Warned by the Fates of an impending disaster, she must embark on a journey to find a magnificent gold necklace, on
1000, just as Christianity is taking a foothold and the volcano Hekla is growing restive. The central character, Freya, is an Aesir (a god), who is essentially human but for her ability to fly and her address: she notes that her kind occupy the space that men create for something larger than themselves. In this slick re-imagining of Norse myth, humans, dwarves, giants and gods differ superficially but suffer life's trials equally and are susceptible to love, loss, violence and even the weather. (In