Cecilia Holland Varanger

Varanger

Cecilia Holland

Forge, Apr 2008, $24.95

ISBN: 9780765305589

Late in the tenth century, cousins Conn and Raef Corbansson know they are fortunate to be alive as their side lost the battle of Hjorunga Bay. They escape by a fur trading ship, but end up frozen in place in Novgorod. The city ruler Lord Dobryana aware of the Corbansson exploits offers the "free warriors" a chance to escape the icy winter by joining the crusade to raid the Byzantine Empire northern port city of Chersonese on the Greek Sea.

Getting there takes forever and arriving there proves difficult as Chersonese is not an easy city to take. Worse Conn and Raef soon realize their new comrades in arms are ruthless backstabbers who live for treachery.

The superb fourth Dark Ages Viking saga (see THE SERPENT DREAMER, THE SOUL THIEF and THE WITCHES' KITCHEN) is an exhilarating historical thriller that continues the adventures of the second generation. The locale, for the most part, is different than the three previous novels; as such it adds freshness with the Vikings raiding the Byzantine Empire. The story line is fast-paced and filled with plenty of action, but it is the vivid window into the era that makes Varanger a fabulous insightful tale.

Harriet Klausner