Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of <i>Olav Audunssøn I. Vows</i> in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

<h4 style="margin-top: 84px;">The Gist</h4>

<i>Olav Audunssøn I. Vows</i> by Sigrid Undset is a masterful historical novel that transports readers to medieval Norway, where love, honor, and ambition collide in a world of political intrigue and religious upheaval. Undset, a Nobel Prize-winning author, demonstrates her unparalleled skill in crafting richly detailed narratives and complex characters that resonate with depth and authenticity.

<h4>The Details</h4>

At the heart of the story is Olav Audunsson, a young nobleman torn between his duties to his family and his passionate love for Ingunn Steinfinnsdatter, the daughter of a powerful chieftain. As Olav navigates the treacherous waters of medieval society, he grapples with questions of loyalty, honor, and the pursuit of personal happiness in a world defined by rigid social hierarchies and strict moral codes.

Undset's prose is lyrical and evocative, transporting readers to a distant time and place with vivid descriptions and rich historical detail. From the rugged landscapes of Norway to the opulent halls of medieval courts, she captures the sights, sounds, and smells of a bygone era with remarkable authenticity.

<i>Olav Audunssøn I. Vows</i> is a nuanced portrayal of its characters, particularly Olav himself. Undset presents him as a deeply flawed yet ultimately sympathetic protagonist, whose struggles and triumphs resonate on a deeply human level. As Olav grapples with the consequences of his choices and the complexities of his relationships, he emerges as a compelling and relatable figure whose journey captivates from beginning to end.

<i>Olav Audunssøn I. Vows</i> is more than just a love story; it is also a profound exploration of faith, identity, and the clash of cultures. Undset deftly weaves together themes of religious conflict, political intrigue, and personal redemption, offering readers a rich tapestry of historical fiction that is as intellectually stimulating as it is emotionally resonant.

<h4>The Verdict</h4>

Overall, <i>Olav Audunssøn I. Vows</i> is a timeless masterpiece that showcases Sigrid Undset's remarkable talent as a storyteller and her deep understanding of the human condition. With its richly drawn characters, lush prose, and thought-provoking themes, this novel is sure to leave a lasting impression on readers long after they've turned the final page.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me a copy of this book! I was so excited that this book was finally translated in English. I had been hearing so many good things about this book for so many years that I almost learned Norwegian just so I could read it. Let me tell you, this did not disappoint and in fact blew past my expectations. Definitely read this.

Epic! I was engaged from the beginning - so very interested and rich in detail. A wonderful novel and I can't wait to read the other books in the series.

At a drunken revel, a very young Olav Audunsson is betrothed to Ingunn, the child of his father's comrade-in-arms, Steinfinn. When his father dies, Olav is taken in by Steinfinn and raised as a member of his family. Nobody pays particular attention to the betrothal, thinking it was just a drunken jest. However, as Olav and Ingunn mature, they develop deep feelings for one another, and eventually take matters into their own hands. This sows the seeds for a tragedy of star-crossed love.

Undset evokes a medieval Norway that feels real and immersive, without inundating the reader with the fruits of research, as some authors do clumsily. The countryside, morals, politics, and customs of the people and the time are made clear. As her characters mature and her plot develops, she sows the seeds for a vast historical epic, of which Vows is just the first of four parts.

I don't think I'll be along for the ride, though. I found it hard to empathise with the impetuous Olav, who seemed to have an unerring capacity to damage his own future. To me, Ingunn and Arnvid were the characters that I was most drawn to, because they seemed to be succumbing to the grinding pressure of fate, rather than the dumb actions of adolescent youth.

This book is great for someone who wants to know the customs and ways of another time period and place, but not a lot happens in the story - not enough for me, anyway. It's just not my kind of book.

Particularly enjoyed this story for it's authentic feel. The customs, the behaviour, the beliefs are all represented so as to set a medieval tone and although we can marvel at strict moral codes they enforced and the 'primitive' lifestyle, for me in conjures up an aura of 'new-worldliness' that has long evaporated.

If you loved Kristin Lavransdatter you'll love this. The new translation was great. Another great historical novel set in the 13th century by Sigrid Undset. It really gives you the feel of Norway in the Middle Ages. For those new to Sigrid, this book is nearly a 100 years old. This is a new translation.

A tad slow in the beginning but overall really enjoyable.

It was okay. Altogether I found the setting fascinating. The reader gets to learn about the everyday life, customs, cultures and laws. The writing is beautiful and you get a good sense of the time period, but I struggled with the pacing and found myself bored after 30%. We follow Ingunn and Olav and their goal to marry. They find lots of stones in their path and I found myself wanting them just to get on with it.
There's lots of back and forth and the story felt like it was stalling.
I can recommend this to anybody who likes "hard-core" historical fiction, but beware about a slower pacing and plot.
I don't believe I'll be continuing on with this particular series.

Thank you Netgalley for providing me with a free copy in advance for an honest review.

I was really worried when I first got this book because it was a translation and sometimes those don’t transfer over well, some of the elements of the storytelling are lost. However, the translator did an amazing job and the lyricalness of the story was still there. That is why this is getting a three star. The story itself drove me crazy. It was so slow and I felt like there was very little movement for the characters, it covered a 20 year period I think. I felt like there was really no action. Also dealing with the sentiments and morality of the 12th century drove me crazy, these people need to learn to talk to each other. I think that if I was basing it on the story alone this would be a one star read. But it was beautifully and well written I can understand why the original author won a Nobel prize. Then on top of it all it ends on a cliffhanger, and I don’t know if any further books will be translated..

Part 1 of a 4-part series, this novel covers Olav's childhood and early adulthood. In many ways this book is similar to Kristin Lavransdatter--it is set in medieval Norway and the main characters are the landholding upperclass and those in serving the church. But the main character here is Olav. Before he was orphaned as a child, his father arranged for him to be raised as a foster son, and bethrothed him to his foster father;s daughter Ingunn. They were raised together in benign neglect and have always known about (and remember) the bethrothal. In their mid-teens, Ingunn is orphaned and they decide to marry, thinking in their naivete that it will be easy, they were betrothed.

And that is what this book is about. Ingunn's uncles know they were betrothed, but do not want to honor it. They have other "better" plans for her. They want Olav punished for "defiling" her. With no relatives to stand for him and help him--even as an inheritor of a large estate, and thus a landowning wealthy man-to-be--he has little standing. Ingunn's uncles want to marry her off as advantageously to them as they can--including her father's illegitimate half-brothers--Ingunn has no standing because she is female. Olav only has the church and far away distant relatives to stand for him,. Neither is a guarantee.

The story's focus is on everything they do to try to honor their fathers' wishes--for 10 years or more. Negotiations, poor treatment, hatred, sadness, loneliness, outlaw standing, and lots of waiting.

I look forward to a Nunnallyy translation of part 2, I want to know what happens next!

The continued translation of Sigrid Undset's sagas into modern English is a welcome addition into our modern world. With a distinctive pacing reminiscent of other older Scandivanian authors such as Bengtsson, these books feel wholly their own. The story of these star-crossed lovers as age through time is without formula and utterly invigorating. Give the book time to show you it's beautiful rhythms and you will be swept away.

The setting, thirteenth century Norway, the main character, Kristin and her betrothed and eventual husband Erlend, the story, arranged marriage, adoption, and the monarchy. This novel truly transports you to another time with beautiful prose and phrasing. It is obvious to see in the first few chapters why her works have won the Nobel prize. Although only the first in a trilogy written in the 1920's, it has been translated beautifully and unfolds naturally. A story I wish had never ended. I am anxious to continue the other two parts due to be released over the next three years or so. Highly recommended you pick up this book today!

It is interesting for me that I just purchased a set of Sigrid Undet's Kristin Lavransdatter series because it looked very interesting to me. And shortly after doing so, I find out that translator extraordinaire Tiina Nunnally has translated a different series by Undest. My ancestors are Scandinavian (Swedish, Norwegian, Danish) and I've been doing a lot of ancestry research lately, so literature that gives me a feel for life in medieval Scandinavian has a special appeal for me.

Olav Audunssøn's father is dying and the father asks his old friend, Steinfinn Toressøn, to raise his boy when he passes on. Steinfinn agrees to raise the child as his foster son and also promises that Olav will be betrothed to Steinfinn's daughter, Ingunn. Olav and Ingunn then spend their youth as both siblings, knowing they will be husband and wife as they get older.

But Olav and Ingunn couldn't be much more different from one another and the medieval time in which they live is turbulent as church rules and law clash. There are some in the community who don't believe they are legally married but for Olav and Ingunn all that matters is that they've been intimate and they believe they are married.

But when Steinfinn passes away, Olav and Ingunn travel to the city of Hamar to ask the church to bless their union. The Church, however, is trying to enforce more control over religious behavior and makes this difficult.

Olav does some traveling and is gone for a decade and Ingunn combats her loneliness by being extra friendly with a young man who works for a local priest. This has Ingunn and Olav examining their relationship upon his return.

Undset's writing, and Nunnally's translation, is beautiful and extremely accessible. We get drawn in to the story by the language, we are held in the story by the remarkable characters who are ordinary and real and fascinating.

In many ways this reminds us that everyone has a story to tell. You don't need to be a superhero or the leader of a rebels in a dystopian world to be worth reading about. You can be a young couple in medieval Norway, looking to find your own way and dealing with the changes going on in the world and have a story worth sharing.

But there's so much going on here. In addition to the story of these two people, we are getting a story about a country going through a religious revolution and a Church finding itself in a position to influence its beliefs into a government, through the people. The title "Vows" is incredibly apt here, telling not only of the vows people make to each other, but the religious significance of vows.

I enjoyed this and am eager to dig into the Kristin Lavransdatter series but will wait until I've read the rest of the books in the Olav Audunssøn series.

Looking for a good book? Olav Audunssøn: I. Vows by Sigrid Undset and translated by Tiina Nunnally is a book you don't just read, but experience, and this is well worth experiencing.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

3★
“And as he grew, so did his love for the only one he felt was truly his possession and his destiny, though he barely noticed this himself. His affection for her was a matter of habit, long before his love acquired enough radiance and color that he became aware of how it had filled him. That was how things stood until the summer after Olav Audunssøn had turned sixteen in the spring. Ingunn was then fifteen winters old.”

I admit I expected something special from an author who won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1928 when the author was 36. I believe the translator is also an award-winning translator, so that just whetted my appetite. This was first published in 1925, the first of a four-part saga about The Master of Hestviken.

I’m sorry I don’t read Norwegian, so I have no idea how good the translation is. I found the style uneven and wooden. Too much of it sounded more like a newspaper report than a novel.

“And when the marriage ale celebration was held at Frettastein for Haakon Gautssøn and Tora Steinfinnsdatter a short time before Advent, no one from Miklebø attended. The wedding then took place just after New Year’s in 1282, and afterward the newly married couple traveled around to visit the young wife’s kinsmen, for Haakon was the youngest son of many brothers and therefore had no estate of his own in Vestlandet.”

A minor quibble, for example, is that the word “folks” was used constantly when “people” or “folk” would have sounded more appropriate. As it was, the phrasing sounded weirdly modern, but I think that’s probably the translation, not the original text.

“And if they agree with the arrangement that was made by their parents, nothing more needs to be done; they can live together as married folks.”

It's the story of two children, a daughter and a foster son who are raised together after being betrothed by both their fathers to be wed when they reach marriageable age. Ingunn and Olav are the boy and girl, both of whom are nice enough characters. There is plenty of background and history to fill us in on life in Scandinavia in the 1200s. It was cold and harsh.

There was also great beauty – of course!

“Big clouds drifted across the sky, casting shadows that turned the forest land below a dark blue, with spaces of green meadow and white fields gleaming brightly in between. And the fjord was gray with shiny dark currents on the surface that reflected slivers of the autumn landscape. Occasionally the sun would come out, and the sharp golden light would sting their eyes and bring a blazing heat, but as soon as a cloud moved in front, the sun’s warmth would quickly disappear. And the ground was cold and raw.”

That’s what I mean by uneven. Just as I would get bogged down in a rather dull recitation of facts, there would be a lyrical interlude into someone’s thoughts and imagination. I did enjoy the historical aspects – the lifestyle, the beds, where people lay side by side to visit and chat privately but innocently. There isn’t a lot about everyday life, though, as there is in some historical novels. Perhaps that’s a more modern addition, now that research is so much easier.

The children are fast friends, and as they hit their teens (in the introductory quotation) they are beginning to see each other differently. Olav realises – quite suddenly – that ingunn holds a strong attraction for him in ways that were completely new to him.

The marriage laws, the relationships, the alliances, the promises, these are all the same stuff of the royal families of Europe, but this is Norway in the 1200s. The characters represent different families – almost tribes, if you will – and the links between allies or the conflict between enemies, rule everything.

I was interested in how men (I think it was always and only men) were able to atone for their killings by paying some kind of fine, if it was acceptable to the family who had been wronged.

I was also interested in the wearing of the wimple by married women, who were required to hide their hair, much as other cultures demand. At one point, Ingunn has worn a wimple for 18 months, as she and Olav are considered ‘married’, but later, someone says well, no, you aren’t really, so take it off and let your hair down. She feels almost denuded and insists on braiding/plaiting her hair severely rather than let it flow beautifully.

[It fascinates me how people today criticise cultures where women cover their hair although their own cultures probably fostered similar restrictions in the past. Consider nuns, for example. But I digress.]

The young couple is together, thwarted, separated, reunited, separated . . . and you’ll have to read it to find out. There is romance for romance lovers and there is a bit of action and history. I read to the end, really just to see if there was a cliffhanger, but I found it too uneven to consider pursing any further volumes.

Thanks to NetGalley and University of Minnesota Press for the copy for review.

Undset has been on my radar for quite some time, and this is the first of her works I’ve made the time to read. It will not be the last. Not only am I eager to continue this series (in the Tiina Nunnally translation, please!), but I am even more interested than before in getting to Kristin Lavransdatter.

Olav Audunsson is a classic character at once recognizable and still rounded and empathetic. This coming of age introduction to his personality and his trials serve only to whet the appetite for the rest of his story. There were moments where I gasped aloud at the turns of events as our young hero (?) finds his footing in love and life. Highly, highly recommend.

Thank you to University of Minnesota Press and NetGalley for the Advance Release Copy in exchange for an honest review.

As sorry as I am to say this, I found this book immensely boring. I tried to get into it, but it read like the Bible. And I found that book boring too. I did read the whole thing, but it was a challenge.

2/5 Stars

Perhaps it is the timing, but I gave up trying to read the book after several attempts. I did enjoy the translator's notes, but found that I was unable to stay focused and was not drawn to the characters and that the straight-forward delivery was interesting but not engaging. I cannot give a fair review as I did not get very far, but I do think it would appeal to historians or those interested in medieval Norway.

My daughter and I have a term for a certain genre of movie that could be seen and understood as either tragedy or comedy. It's Nordic humor. In literature this appears in such novels as Jane Smiley's The Greenlanders and in Halldor Lexness Independent People. Olav Audunsson and Kristin Lavransdatter are very lean as far as humor but there is still adequate contrast to enable the reader to avoid frequent tears. I loved reading about Kristin's very long and winding life so was not surprised or put off by the peculiarities of this new translation of an old book by an award winning author. If I will be looking forward to reading the remaining volumes as they are translated. It may be a good idea to try a sample before making a commitment. to this book.

I received this from Netgalley.com.

"Olav Audunsson: I. Vows" by Nobel Prize winner Sigrid Undset is the first book in a new English translation of the tetralogy previously translated as "The Master of Hestviken" and published in 1925. Olav and Ingunn are the epitome of star crossed lovers and have many factors against their love.

Having read and thoroughly enjoyed Kristin Lavransdatter last year, I was excited when this book became available. Book 1 in a tetralogy, I hope the rest of the series will also be on Netgalley.com.

4.5☆

The translator, Tiina Nunnally, waxes confusingly ecstatic about the prose style of author, Undset, calling it "lyrical" on the one hand and "plain" on the other. She praises the author's descriptions, especially of the natural landscape of Norway, but has nothing to say about scenic and action passages -- perhaps because they aren't scenic and get little development? Naturally, a reader would expect the person who works on a translation of a novel would have to enjoy working on the project. Likewise, a novel reader's expectations are different from and more demanding than those of a 'devoted translator'.. Sadly, "Olav Audunsson" lacks too many aspects of the novel to give the reader much else than a long telling narrative that lacks scenic showing.

Consequently, the characters don't live beyond seeming like pawns the author moves about the story board.; they feel manipulated rather than alive. Is it because of an early 20th C. style that doesn't adhere to more desirable technique required by today's readers? Not really. Plenty of other authors, writing at the same time and even a century earlier, were masters of scenic story telling who created vivid self-motivated characters whose personalities were multi-dimensional. So, I feel justified in faulting the writer.

Beyond style and characterization that is like that in biblical stories (genealogical and structured for the author's purpose of getting a point across) the plot in Undset's book is thin and foregone. Again, the fault is in the writing. Instead of surprises, readers get repetition; instead of a unique reading experience, the reader feels little "pull" from the power of narrative to be drawn into the life and incidents of the hero and heroine. Nor is there the satisfying feeling after one reads a truly good novel, that it is memorable and will resonate in memory long after one closes the covers. I'm not shocked that "Olav Audunsson" is a near "forgotten" and overlooked work in our era. because I'm already beginning to forget it

For me, the novel was uninteresting, not compelling, and can only rate a recommendation to other readers for the experience of learning what the Nobel Committee found to be prize-worthy in the first decade of the last century.