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Viking Saga
VIKING SAGA is a pulse-pounding literary historical thriller, set in 793 AD, when Norway was ruled by many small kingdoms and folk still worshipped the old gods. Halfdan the Black -- a young fighter and beer-soaked poet, with a Norse father and African mother -- vows revenge for the killing of his king. Halfdan's fate leads him through actual historical events, such as the raid on England's Lindisfarne nunnery and the first Norse contacts with Christianity. This spare, cunningly ironic novel is set against a brutal backdrop of life in the "Dark Ages", and features violent action, a unique love-story, odd twists, cool humour, primitive poems and more. Well-researched and fast-moving, VIKING SAGA follows Halfdan the Black as he battles, boozes and rhymes his way to revenge, love, wisdom ... and becoming Norway's first king.
278 pages, Paperback
First published November 7, 2009
2 people are currently reading
35 people want to read
About the author
Mark Coakley
9 books1 followerMurder Bugs: A Love Story is a twist-filled crime thriller about an entomologist helping the police solve a series of horrific killings by insects ... as well as a romance like no other.
My site: https://markcoakleybooks.com
My Twitter: https://twitter.com/markcoakleyBOOK
I am also the author of Hidden Harvest: The Rise and Fall of North America's Biggest Grow-Op and Tip & Trade: How Two Lawyers Made Millions from Insider Trading, both published by Canada's ECW Press.
My books have been positively reviewed in The Globe and Mail, The Toronto Star, The Hamilton Spectator, Canadian Lawyer and Now. I have been interviewed on CTV's Canada AM, CBC Radio's The Current, Vision TV and CHCH News.
https://www.thestar.com/entertainment...
I am a freelance journalist who previously worked as a lawyer, an infantry reservist, an encyclopedia editor, a tugboat sailor, a janitor at a sewage treatment plant, a Greenpeace fundraiser and a parking lot attendant. I graduated from Toronto's York University, started my legal career in Ottawa and live in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
My site: https://markcoakleybooks.com
My Twitter: https://twitter.com/markcoakleyBOOK
My site: https://markcoakleybooks.com
My Twitter: https://twitter.com/markcoakleyBOOK
I am also the author of Hidden Harvest: The Rise and Fall of North America's Biggest Grow-Op and Tip & Trade: How Two Lawyers Made Millions from Insider Trading, both published by Canada's ECW Press.
My books have been positively reviewed in The Globe and Mail, The Toronto Star, The Hamilton Spectator, Canadian Lawyer and Now. I have been interviewed on CTV's Canada AM, CBC Radio's The Current, Vision TV and CHCH News.
https://www.thestar.com/entertainment...
I am a freelance journalist who previously worked as a lawyer, an infantry reservist, an encyclopedia editor, a tugboat sailor, a janitor at a sewage treatment plant, a Greenpeace fundraiser and a parking lot attendant. I graduated from Toronto's York University, started my legal career in Ottawa and live in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
My site: https://markcoakleybooks.com
My Twitter: https://twitter.com/markcoakleyBOOK
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
January 4, 2019
Viking Saga chronicles the life of the legendary Halfdan the Black, who became king to several of Norway’s petty kingdoms and whose descendants eventually unified the country under one realm. It is a modern translation of a saga written by an unknown 14th century Icelandic author, praised by author/translator Mark Coakley for its “lyrical beauty” and “exquisite comedy”, though questioned by scholars over the years for its historical authenticity.
This particular Norse saga places Halfdan the Black to late 8th century Norway, where his rise to power has started with a single-minded plan to avenge the death of his beloved king. He successfully topples his king’s foes, marries the woman he loves, and travels extensively as a poet. His epithet “The Black” is a result of his African lineage, and some people mock him for it, but Halfdan soon gains the respect of many for his authority and fighting skills. The story also discusses betrayal, seduction, even sorcery as often found in age-old sagas, but I thought Mr. Coakley injecting correspondences between Alcuin of York and an English abbess was a clever ploy in setting off the description of the historic Viking attack on the island of Lindisfarne in northern England in 793 AD, which started the Viking Age.
The historical content of this saga enticed me to learn more about Halfdan the Black, Alcuin of York, and Lindisfarne. On the whole, it was an okay read; not really a page-turner, and not out of the ordinary to finish in one or two sittings, too (it actually took me like forever to finish it), but it was a pleasant enough introduction to ancient Norse customs and folklore.
This particular Norse saga places Halfdan the Black to late 8th century Norway, where his rise to power has started with a single-minded plan to avenge the death of his beloved king. He successfully topples his king’s foes, marries the woman he loves, and travels extensively as a poet. His epithet “The Black” is a result of his African lineage, and some people mock him for it, but Halfdan soon gains the respect of many for his authority and fighting skills. The story also discusses betrayal, seduction, even sorcery as often found in age-old sagas, but I thought Mr. Coakley injecting correspondences between Alcuin of York and an English abbess was a clever ploy in setting off the description of the historic Viking attack on the island of Lindisfarne in northern England in 793 AD, which started the Viking Age.
The historical content of this saga enticed me to learn more about Halfdan the Black, Alcuin of York, and Lindisfarne. On the whole, it was an okay read; not really a page-turner, and not out of the ordinary to finish in one or two sittings, too (it actually took me like forever to finish it), but it was a pleasant enough introduction to ancient Norse customs and folklore.
September 21, 2022
I enjoyed the Saga of Halfdan the Black so, so much. I read it bleary eyed into the night. I picked it up again in the morning.
I'm a huge fan of the original Conan movie with Arnold and this book gave similar feels. Halfdan is a bit of Conan. Or a bit like Amos in the Expanse. The kind of dumb-smart-kind-brutal nobody with a soft spot for women, especially smart women who confound him, and who finds himself in a situation beyond his control that will test his mettle and potential for greatness. This legendary-historical thriller is written in the saga style, a kind of plain speaking that focuses on the down and dirty in life, action, the fate of unknowns thrust into situations that will transform them into famed warriors and kings, the fate of warriors and kings who lose their way, the fate of the people who are caught in brutal struggles for power.
On another note, Coakley takes sides in the debate over whether the historical Halfdan was a black man or a man with black hair. There is a certain kind of scholar who cannot imagine that Africans might have traveled to or were enslaved on such faraway shores and he's usually an old, white fart who only sees himself and his kind in any place and time of significance. There is evidence that there were Africans on those shores and I'm here for the stories about them.
This is a hell of a book. I loved it.
I'm a huge fan of the original Conan movie with Arnold and this book gave similar feels. Halfdan is a bit of Conan. Or a bit like Amos in the Expanse. The kind of dumb-smart-kind-brutal nobody with a soft spot for women, especially smart women who confound him, and who finds himself in a situation beyond his control that will test his mettle and potential for greatness. This legendary-historical thriller is written in the saga style, a kind of plain speaking that focuses on the down and dirty in life, action, the fate of unknowns thrust into situations that will transform them into famed warriors and kings, the fate of warriors and kings who lose their way, the fate of the people who are caught in brutal struggles for power.
On another note, Coakley takes sides in the debate over whether the historical Halfdan was a black man or a man with black hair. There is a certain kind of scholar who cannot imagine that Africans might have traveled to or were enslaved on such faraway shores and he's usually an old, white fart who only sees himself and his kind in any place and time of significance. There is evidence that there were Africans on those shores and I'm here for the stories about them.
This is a hell of a book. I loved it.
February 9, 2017
I ended up power reading this in basically one long stretch of procrastination. Interesting. The little church intermissions are sort of stupid. It's funny how old Christian church politics seem sillier and more backwards than the pagan history. Perhaps that was the purpose? To mirror image the fantastical of the accepted and the discarded?
September 3, 2012
This historical thriller is set in 793 AD and follows the rise of Halfdan the Black. When his King is killed on a raid, that he survives, Halfdan decides to avenge his king, as he pledged to do when becoming a warrior. Based on true Norse legends of the rise of King Halfdan to power. A surprisingly good read.
Read
May 9, 2011very eventful and colorful
Read
January 5, 2013good adventure story filled with magic, love, battles, revenge, lust and love. What is there not to like?
June 5, 2014
Get the reader feel the life of a great Viking
Want to read
March 20, 2015smashwords
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews