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Square Sails and Dragons

by Celia Lund

270 pages; quality trade paperback (softcover); catalogue #05-0658; ISBN 1-4120-5758-2; US$19.95, C$22.94, EUR16.39, £11.47

Set sail with Leif Ericsson and crew in this saga-based novel. From Greenland to the Hebrides to Norway - skilled seamen, unique Hebrideans, a zealous king and women whose love can spell disaster enliven this 10th-century story.

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About the Book

About the Author

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About the Book

The last thing young Leif Ericsson needs on his first command is a stowaway aboard his trading vessel. After relegating Terje Gundersson to care for polar cubs and eat left-overs, Leif must resurrect him from the hold to replace an injured seaman.

A storm tosses the ship in battered disarray to a Hebrides island, where Terje benefits from the stay there under the tutelage and friendship of Leif's foster-father and former tutor, Thykir the German. But Leif, invited to live at the longhouse of the Lord of the Isle, becomes romantically involved with the chieftain's mysterious daughter, and will leave behind a dark secret.

When they reach Norway's beautiful Trondelag region, brave but zealous King Olav Tryggvason determines to lead Leif into Christianity, a sure way to incur the wrath of his renowned pagan father, Eric the Red. Terje falls in love with a young noblewoman of the court who can not bring herself to reveal some things she should.

In the background of Leif's gradual conversion to Christianity, dangerous developments take place for his friend, whom he must protect until they sail.

From Greenland to the Hebrides to Norway, unique characters enliven the pages of this tenth-century novel: The volatile Eric the Red and his tolerant, intelligent wife, kind and eccentric Hebrideans, stalwart and stubborn seamen, a brave but zealous king and beautiful women whose love spell disaster.

The author skillfully weaves dramatic fiction with accounts of Norse history based on the various sagas; the result brings Viking emotions of a thousand years ago to the present - where they are best defined as our own.

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About the Author

While raising a family, Celia Lund harbored her love for writing on a peripatetic path through California, Washington, and Utah. Recently taking a hiatus from successful poetry and short story genres, she used her fascination with Norse sagas to create this debut novel. Now widowed, with four grown children and two grandchildren, she lives in Salt Lake City, near her daughter.

Reviews

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A thousand years ago, Norse society spread through colonization and raiding. The tenth century settlement of Greenland was founded and ruled by Eric the Red, a man kicked out of Norway and Iceland for murderous deeds. Greenland's remoteness in Square Sails and Dragons is appreciable; it's people can count on little but their own precarious harvests. The country consists of two settlements and surrounding farms, too small for formality or much social stratification. The traditional Old Norse religion hangs on there, despite the expansion of Christianity into the northern countries.

This saga-based tale follows Eric's capable son, Leif Ericson on a mission to establish trade with Norway and bury the hatchet with King Olaf Tryggvason, an active Christianizer. Terje Gundersson, an orphaned commoner, stows away on the voyage. He is desperate to escape the image of his parents' and sister's last living moments on a collapsing rope-bridge: "...he watched the entire structure on his side break away, and the three of spill into the air like fish dumped from a net."

The ship founders on shoals off the Hebrides. Local ruler Lord Kalek and his willful but alluring daughter Thorgunna play hosts until repairs are complete. Leif leaves a little Leif-let behind, a conscience-needling decision. Terje's untapped intelligence is his great asset. Determined to learn, he earns Leif's esteem by becoming an able seaman in short order. Terje acquires language skills under instruction from Leif's former tutor, Thykir the German. His own disastrous romance arises while wintering at the royal court of King Olaf in Nidaros (modern-day Trondheim). The zealous king accumulates converts with persistent verbal argument and persuasion of the sword, certain that "'...what is good for him is good for all of Norway, and even those who chance to visit his land.'" He works especially hard to convince Leif, who could pass conversion on to all of Greenland, contrary to Eric the Red's vehement wishes.

Condemning gossip is sparked in Nidaros by the public performance of a malicious "skald," a highly structured poem. The identity of a Greenlander accused of impropriety is withheld by the poet, but once word gets back to King Olaf, the offender's welcome is revoked. The crewman in question "... secretly sought the hand of a betrothed courtier, attacked a king's officer and incurred the ban of outlawry... "

The nuanced supporting character Thykir has a rich internal life. Though he misses his original homeland, as foster father to Leif he's a more important personage than he could have been barring exile. Lund's dual arcs together form a durable understructure - a partly-documented figure coming into his own, alongside a fictional striving young commoner. The historical facts check out, from Norse customs to nautical terminology. Actual and constructed characters blend harmoniously. Square Sails and Dragons is an adventure suitable for adult and teen readers.

Three stars

Todd Mercer

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Excerpts

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Catalogue Information

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