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The Assembly of The Elder Troth would like to welcome you to our website. Please click on the links to the left to enter the relevant area of our site. Heil and welcome to the Articles section of the Assembly of The Elder Troth website. Here you can find items written by many wide and varied folk. The idea is to provide a venue for discussion, debate and education amongst the folk by giving people an individual flavour to the information provided. Every article here is the work of its' author. Copyright rests with the Author, reproduction is prohibited without the authors permission. The Eye of Odin Reviewed by Dirk Schmitt Author: James Richard Larson Whether you are interested in the Viking Era, sea tales, or just a good read, then The Eye of Odin by Jim Larson is definitely for you. Set in the 10th Century against the backdrop of the coversion times when Christianity and the ancestral Troth were coming to loggerheads more and more, it is the tale of Thorvald Asvaldsson whom is father to the famous Erik the Red, father to the even more famous Leif Eriksson. The Christian King of Norway, determined to eliminate the Ancestral Troth from Norway, causes Thorvald, a 'Heathen' to be banished after a killing which is deemed to be a murder. With little choice but to leave Norway, Thorvald decides to travel to Iceland, still close enough to Norway to allow trade and contact with old friends, but far enough away to ensure safety. But as is always the way, such safety is never assured, with Thorvald's arrival in Iceland being the impetus for a greedy, murderous Christian ex-slave to take umbrage at the sale of land to Thorvald. The scene is set for conflict between Godars, and others, with love, hate, jealousy, murder, justice and the ever present escalation of conflict between Christianity and the Ancestral Troth proving for some truly great storytelling. Anyone whom is familar with the Sagas will be very happy with the form and style of writing exhibited by Jim. Detailed enough to provide a clear picture in our minds, including explanations of ideas and terms where necessary for those whom mightn't be as familiar with the concepts in the work as those of use for whom the Northern Folkway is part of our lives. The writing is clear with emphasis on the relationships of the characters and the actions which they undertake, providing for a fast pace of movement in the narrative. This is a large book, at 480 pages, on par with many of the great writers such as Tom Clancy, Clive Cussler et al, and clearly will take some time to read, but it's well worth the effort. I personally found the brief pauses to explain things a bit distracting, but it must be understood that this is coming from someone whom is familar with the terms and concepts, and where-as it tended to break the flow of the story for me, for someone less familiar, I am sure that they would be appreciative of the extra information. In all, a fine work and one which would sit well amongst any of the more well known adventure writers. And Jim is working on the sequel to this book which we hope to see soon. Available directly from iUniverse for $25.95 USD plus postage HOME | Articles Home | Top Of Page Images and Contents Copyright © Assembly of The Elder Troth 2002 - 2007 or as specified. For communications regarding this website please e-mail webmaster@aetaustralia.org Page maintained by Schmitt Services Last Update: Wednesday, December 7, 2005
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