I am awed and fascinated by this book. Never before have I read fiction set in Iceland until today and I loved it; not only does it enthrall me with its pure beauty geographically but I am amazed by its unique culture, people and the Icelandic legends. However, what strikes me most is their literature specifically the Icelanders' sagas which describe events that took place in Iceland in the tenth and early eleventh centuries during the so-called Saga Age. Some are well-known like Njals Saga and some are less well-known like Gaukur's Saga. Nobody knows who the authors of the sagas are.
What are they? The sagas are family histories dealing with the three or four generations of Vikings who had settled in Iceland around 900 AD until the coming of Christianity in 1000. They are Iceland's best-known classical works of literature. According to Ridpath, "the heroes were complex men with many weaknesses as well as strengths, but they had a clear moral code, a sense of honour and a respect for the laws." The author wrote that there had been many a scholarly debate about how historically accurate Iceland's sagas really were. He maintains, "Most of the people and many of the events mentioned in them had really existed, but then there were also passages that were obviously pure invention."
And so, one thousand years ago, an Icelandic warrior returns from battle, bearing a ring cut from the right hand of his foe.
Much later, seventy years ago, J R R Tolkein, the Oxford professor and writer, working from a secret source, creates the twentieth century's most pervasive legend.
Presently, at the time this story takes place in modern Iceland, Agnar Haraldsson, an expert on Old Icelandic literature, is murdered.
Everything is connected, but to discover how, you will have to tread the path of the protagonist, Detective Magnus Jonson, from Boston to Reykjavik to solve this combination of a modern murder mystery mixed with more than a handful of Iceland folklore. It is a great read, superbly written, very imaginative and I should have picked up this book long ago. Highly recommended.
About the author: Michael Ridpath grew up in Yorkshire and read History at Oxford. He then spent eight years as a bond trader in London before giving up his job to write financial thrillers. He lives with his wife and children in north London. Visit his website at www.michaelridpath.com for more information on the Detective Magnus Jonson/Fire and Ice series.
Where The Shadows Lie is the debut in the Fire and Ice series published in 2010.
Rating: 5/5
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