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Saga:
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About the BookBased on medieval Norse legend, Saga is a novel of enormous power, one of those rare historical fictions which the reader knows is authentic in its evocation of another time and place. We meet Arnkel, the fierce Norse chieftain of Swan's fjord who has sworn to recapture the lands his bitter, aging father has sold off, robbing his son of his inheritance. Arnkel feuds with his neighbors, exploits the desires of his closest supporter for another man's wife and hires assassins to carry out his will. Arnkel schemes against Snorri, a rival chieftain; their claims against each other are taken to "the Thing," the country's tribal council, where clans meet to celebrate as well as to settle disputes. The land is stalked by evil––whispering elves are everywhere––and violence is a constant threat: neighbor distrusts neighbor and no one knows where or when death will strike. The difficult reality of life is always in the foreground; one can virtually see and feel the harsh beauty of the land, the passions and the rivalries of the clansmen and women. This unique novel makes medieval Iceland come alive: its rituals, the role of the supernatural, the enormous influence of law. Saga is a novel never to be forgotten. Reviews“A masterful retelling of an Icelandic Saga. Janoda’s rendering of the physical and intellectual landscape is effortless. One hopes that his excellent piece of historical fiction will find a wider audience than its esoteric subject matter might suggest. Highly recommended.”—Library Journal “Janoda’s book is a model of how to turn a saga into a novel.”—Times Literary Supplement “If the mob bosses of the Sopranos spoke Old Norse and wore chain mail, they would feel right at home in this absorbing historical melodrama. Debut novelist Janoda paints a richly textured portrait of Icelandic culture, brimming with multigenerational cycles of bloodshed and violence. A gripping recreation of an ancient genre.”—Kirkus “Saga earns an honourable place among the many good novels developed from the Icelandic sagas.”—Globe and Mail “As focused as Jane Austen, as macabre as Stephen King, Jeff Janoda traces out the hidden springs of power in the micro-society of an Icelandic fjord. He tells a tale of complex feud with all the fullness and detail of a modern novel, but leaves its violent and treacherous heroes as enigmatic as before. A brilliant blend of scholarship and insight.”—Tom Shippey, author of The Road to Middle Earth “. . . detail rich . . . [this] novel does what good historical fiction is supposed to do: put a face on history that is recognizable to us all.”—Booklist “Readers will be mesmerized by the melding of myth with the everyday life. Saga resonates with the song of the sagas of old. For that alone, it is worth the read.”—Regina Leader-Post “Brilliant and unsparing in its depiction of a savage land. Janoda makes us smell the smoke, the peat, the half rotten beef, and feel the terrible cold.”—Historical Novels Review “A darkly grim narrative tapestry . . . compelling and ultimately rewarding.”—Paradox Historical Fiction Magazine “Janoda breathes a fiery and emotional life into this saga. He uses wisdom and craftiness to draw readers into the bloody feuds and intrigue of medieval Iceland.”—Logberg-Heimskringla “Jeff Janoda proves himself to be a master storyteller as he brings tenth-century Iceland brilliantly to life. Saga is a powerful and absorbing read, rich and authentic in detail, sharply insightful, and brimming with finely rendered characters. . . . This is storytelling at its best. In short, Saga is superb!”—Anita Gordon (writing as Kathleen Kirkwood), author of The Heart Trilogy “Janoda’s characters are eloquently depicted in their passions and pagan beliefs, brought to life in a tale over a thousand years old.”—Viking Heritage magazine “Janoda’s great strength is that he has found that rich vein of human greed, folly and striving which lies buried deep within the best of the sagas. Saga brilliantly evokes the older saga, in the form of a modern novel.”—S.W. Mirsky, author of The King of Vinland’s Saga About the AuthorJeff Janoda is a teacher in Ontario, Canada, where he lives with his wife and two children. He has published short stories in Aboriginal Science Fiction magazine, and several online and printed reviews of movies and books. This is his first novel. |
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