A review of West Oversea by Lars Walker

I was delighted to read West Oversea written by Lars Walker. The book is published by Nordskog Publishing, and I have to say they made an excellent decision signing on this author! West Oversea is the sequel to The Year of the Warrior, and Walker has again written a wonderful tale of adventure, heartache, and vikings.

In this epic journey, Irish priest Father Aillil accompanies viking hero, Erling Skjalgsson on a journey to Greenland, and there are many demons and temptations waiting for them along the way.

One of the many blessings of these books is the fact that Walker stays true to the characters that lived in these time periods. With the Christianization of the viking culture, there is an epic clash between the old pagan ways and the new Christianity that is, now in this second book, completely dominant. Christianity and paganism clash in ugly, real, and thought-provoking ways.

I'm a firm believer in showing the WHOLE picture, and though this books is a historical fantasy, it presents an entertaining and enlightening story that doesn't shy away from the reality of that time period.

Also of note is the way Walker writes. He seems to draw inspiration from the original viking histories that have survived over the centuries. It leaves the reader with a powerful sense of the time period.

Did I mention the writing is beautiful.

When I read The Year of the Warrior, Walker skyrocketed to my top five list of favorite authors, and after reading West Oversea, he remains there.

If you want an amazing sword and sorcery historical fantasy, pick up The Year of the Warrior, and West Oversea. You've got to read them both!

(If one wants to read The Year of the Warrior, it's out of print, but you can buy the ebook for $4 HERE. And West Oversea is available pretty much wherever books are sold. I got mine at Barnes and Noble)

2 comments:

Phil W said...

Great review, but you didn't mention that the writing is beautiful.

Oh, yes, you did.

Brandon Barr said...

Ha, good one Phil :)