Richly developed fictional adventures of a real Viking on an epic journey through Europe.
In Adrien’s series-starting historical novel, an aging Viking goes on a journey to capture a great city—and to prove himself worthy by doing so.
Viking leader Hasting has retired to a comfortable life on a small islandwith his wife, Reifdis, but he’s still immature at heart; specifically, he’s still smarting that he never received the recognition he believed was his due for capturing Paris in the year 845. He’s certain he can be an honorable father to his newborn boy, but Reifdis, due to his drunken ways, has no such faith and divorces him. “Hasting, you are, as a result of this, commanded by the queen of this land to leave and never to return,” says the local seer. Feeling cursed but driven to prove himself, he decides to lead a mission to capture Europe’s grandest yet most impregnable city, Istanbul (which the Vikings call Miklagard). It’s an audacious plan requiring a vast fleet, so he journeys through Europe to call on friends old and new, sailing around northern France, past what is now Denmark and Sweden, and then upriver to his target. Hasting was a real historical figure who effectively disappeared from the record for several years—a gap that Adrien has filled with this fictional but plausible adventure. The novel also includes historical details regarding ships, great halls, and much more. The lengthy historical notes following the narrative show Adrien’s dedication to accuracy. Hasting’s journey is regularly punctuated by battles, captures, and escapes, making for a staccato, episodic plot, and the protagonist reveals his backstory as the narrative progresses, including prior battles and triumphs; his memories of his first love with a woman named Asa; and his childhood in Christian Ireland. As a character, he’s impulsive, arrogant and aggressive, but also clever, loyal and jovial, making him easy to root for—particularly as he slowly learns that honor can’t be won by force. His companions, however, have less depth. Still, Adrien skillfully crafts a satisfying resolution while teeing up the next series entry.
Pub Date: Dec. 3, 2024
ISBN: 9798302439239
Page Count: 379
Publisher: Self
Review Posted Online: Jan. 9, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2025
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
A pleasant if not entirely convincing tribute to the power of art.
A French art historian’s English-language fiction debut combines the story of a loving relationship between a grandfather and granddaughter with an enlightening discussion of art.
One day, when 10-year-old Mona removes the necklace given to her by her now-dead grandmother, she experiences a frightening, hour-long bout of blindness. Her parents take her to the doctor, who gives her a variety of tests and also advises that she see a psychiatrist. Her grandfather Henry tells her parents that he will take care of that assignment, but instead, he takes Mona on weekly visits to either the Louvre, the Musée d’Orsay, or the Centre Pompidou, where each week they study a single work of art, gazing at it deeply and then discussing its impact and history and the biography of its maker. For the reader’s benefit, Schlesser also describes each of the works in scrupulous detail. As the year goes on, Mona faces the usual challenges of elementary school life and the experiences of being an only child, and slowly begins to understand the causes of her temporary blindness. Primarily an amble through a few dozen of Schlesser’s favorite works of art—some well known and others less so, from Botticelli and da Vinci through Basquiat and Bourgeois—the novel would probably benefit from being read at a leisurely pace. While the dialogue between Henry and the preternaturally patient and precocious Mona sometimes strains credulity, readers who don’t have easy access to the museums of Paris may enjoy this vicarious trip in the company of a guide who focuses equally on that which can be seen and the context that can’t be. Come for the novel, stay for the introductory art history course.
A pleasant if not entirely convincing tribute to the power of art.Pub Date: Aug. 26, 2025
ISBN: 9798889661115
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Europa Editions
Review Posted Online: June 7, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2025
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
An affecting portrait of a prickly woman.
A lifetime’s worth of letters combine to portray a singular character.
Sybil Van Antwerp, a cantankerous but exceedingly well-mannered septuagenarian, is the titular correspondent in Evans’ debut novel. Sybil has retired from a beloved job as chief clerk to a judge with whom she had previously been in private legal practice. She is the divorced mother of two living adult children and one who died when he was 8. She is a reader of novels, a gardener, and a keen observer of human nature. But the most distinguishing thing about Sybil is her lifelong practice of letter writing. As advancing vision problems threaten Sybil’s carefully constructed way of life—in which letters take the place of personal contact and engagement—she must reckon with unaddressed issues from her past that threaten the house of cards (letters, really) she has built around herself. Sybil’s relationships are gradually revealed in the series of letters sent to and received from, among others, her brother, sister-in-law, children, former work associates, and, intriguingly, literary icons including Joan Didion and Larry McMurtry. Perhaps most affecting is the series of missives Sybil writes but never mails to a shadowy figure from her past. Thoughtful musings on the value and immortal quality of letters and the written word populate one of Sybil’s notes to a young correspondent while other messages are laugh-out-loud funny, tinged with her characteristic blunt tartness. Evans has created a brusque and quirky yet endearing main character with no shortage of opinions and advice for others but who fails to excavate the knotty difficulties of her own life. As Sybil grows into a delayed self-awareness, her letters serve as a chronicle of fitful growth.
An affecting portrait of a prickly woman.Pub Date: May 6, 2025
ISBN: 9780593798430
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Crown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 15, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2025
SEEN & HEARD
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