I’m a big fan of historical fiction. With all that’s out there in the genre, especially it seems recently, it’s rare to find one that seems so meticulously researched, such a true vision into a long ago past – and even rarer to find one that takes on the Norse culture. So, when I saw Judith Lindbergh’s The Thrall’s Tale a couple weeks ago, I knew I had to read it. I was not disappointed. She offers a glimpse into the fringes – both geographically and genderwise – of Norse society in Greenland, circa 1000 CE. Focusing on the lives of three women: the wisewoman Thorbjorg, her slave Katla, and Katla’s daughter, Bibrau, as they are caught up in the tumult of settling a new land and dealing with the insurgent Christian faith, the story weaves through the intertwined lives of each woman, and their destinies.

Growing up south of Greenland, in Newfoundland, the North Atlantic setting particularly intrigued me, as I could vividly imagine, drawing upon my own childhood memories, the cold, ice and winds of winter, the sea as giver and taker of life, and the sense of isolation from the rest of the world. Also especially compelling was the predominant aspect of religion in the novel, with its brutal yet simple and sometimes beautiful pagan imagery, to the new, foreign Christianity, and its encroachment and eventual acceptance from the Norse populace.

It took the author ten years to write the novel; I hope her next one does not take as long, but is as satisfying a read.