‘The Exile’ with story and art by Erik Kriek is a graphic novel that takes place in ancient Iceland.

Hallstein Thordsson is returning home after years of being at battle, but he may not get the welcome he hoped for. It turns out he left as an exile and there are those who find it hard to forgive. There are other stories showing the conflict and culture, including the story of some wood thieves, and how sudden violence can change lives suddenly.

This story has a lot of characters, but I was able to follow things quite well. It’s well written and has some amazing art.

I was unable to finish the book in the alotted timeframe unfortunately. I would have liked to finish it.

Hallstein Thordsson returns to his home in Iceland having spent seven years in exile . On his return he finds that all is not well and that his past still hovers over his family. He discovers that his stepmother has a suitor and she’s not interested but the man will not leave her alone. Hallstein’s return threatens the suitor’s power and all of Iceland may suffer with the weight of the Exile’s return.

I … I really don’t know what to make of this short graphic novel. I have such mixed feelings about this.

The story is quite compelling – it’s not an action/adventure story as one might think, given the title and the cover, but rather a human interest story. And I liked it. But … It grew dull. The pacing of the story is slow and methodical all the way through. And the art does not help this.

Imagine going to a movie and every single scene began the same way – with a long shot, slowly pulling in to a cottage on a shore, birds flying over the water. Every scene! That’s what this book is like. So – many- scenes- begin exactly this way. It’s so repetitive, and while, yes, it establishes both place and mood, we don’t need to establish it when it never changes.

The art otherwise was fine. I didn’t find it overly exciting, and the people as drawn were sometimes much more ‘cartoony’ than I generally like in a graphic novel, and I found the style to be a cross between realistic and a woodcut-looking stylized.

I’ve seen looked at some of the reviews of this book and other works by author/artist Erick Kriek (who seems to have a good following), and I must have missed something that others are finding, but I really found this to be tepid and it doesn’t make me want to rush out and read more works by Kriek.

Looking for a good book? The Exile is a graphic novel by Erick Kriek that could be a really interesting human interest story, but gets bogged down in its setting and mood.

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

Usually, I don't read comic books but I was drawn in by the images and the story (and beautiful images) was amazing! I love how the artists used certain motifs to tie together the panels.

There are only a few simple ingredients required to make a graphic novel compelling and enjoyable to read—a clever and engaging story, realistic characters, and an art design that is both thrilling to the eye and easily interpreted. Erik Kriek’s ‘The Exile’ includes all three elements, and, while it may not be the most original story—it’s a rehash, basically, of every Viking Age epic ever told so far in the Western world—it is still absorbing enough to capture your attention, with Kriek’s illustrations, especially the artistry of them and the gorgeous color-scheme, helping to drive story that has you guessing what will become of his anti-hero Viking main character up until the very last pages.

The story is simple—a man who looks like every Viking male character stretching back to the time of the Viking Age itself is exiled from Iceland for seven years after he kills a friend of his during an altercation over something that occurred with his sister (more on that later). The story starts with his arrival back to Iceland as he traverses with two other loyal companions back to his homestead, where he discovers his father has passed away recently and his step-mother now controls all land and property that was in his father’s name. The main thrust of the plot then begins, as the kin of the man our main character killed years prior discover he’s returned after assuming he would be gone forever, and chaos and violence ensues.

Like I said prior, this tale has been told many times—the main character gets exiled from his homeland, either because of war or strife or some other kind of criminal/war-ish behavior, and readers follow along as he returns to ‘claim what is his.’ While I wouldn’t say this story fits neatly into that last part, as the main character seems to have returned more because he’s tired of war than wanting to reclaim his father’s land and property, there’s mostly every other stereotype found in Viking Age epics, right down to the design of the characters and their brutish ways. However, that’s not entirely a bad thing—a Viking tale told well is still a stellar story, and there was just enough action and original set pieces included in the graphic novel that it held my attention entirely throughout, and the sequence cuts sprinkled in were always easy to understand and helped make the pacing of the story perfect.

The illustrations are what really shine here though—Kriek’s drawings are beautifully rendered, and many of them only consist of three or four colors for each panel, with blood-tinged reds, light greys, slate-like blues, and white and black making up almost the entire palette. The scenes are easy to see and understand, the lines are crisp, and the shading and tone of the drawings help deepen the emotional impact of what occurs on the page. The illustrations almost seem like a modern-day update of the kinds of comics you would see from the 1930s/1940s in regard to their sharp lines/deliberate focus, and it’s clear Kriek put an enormous amount of time and effort into creating the perfect visuals for each panel.

My one hesitation with this book, other than that it’s a little bit of a retread, is that of the main character. If you flip the story around and tell it from the viewpoint of the family of the man our main character killed off-page, he is clearly a villain, and I mean a villain to the point where you can’t even really call him an anti-hero. The crime he commits against the sister of the man he kills is extremely depraved with no excuse (think the most extreme form of sexual assault) and it made me feel a bit uncomfortable cheering for his success afterwards. While I felt slimy doing so during the climactic battle where the main character fights the brother of the man he killed, the ending was perfect in my opinion, and it made me feel a bit different looking back on the main character’s journey. At the same time, making us readers feel even an ounce of empathy for such a horrible man shows superior authorial skill, and Kriek is able to achieve it through baring it all to us readers, whether that’s showing what occurred during the main character’s exile, the crimes he committed that led to him being exiled, or his inner emotional turmoil. In other words, Kriek’s character’s are completely three-dimensional, and it helps solidify how good this graphic novel is.

If you’re looking for a literary companion to movies like ‘The Northman,’ or really any kind of graphic novel that helps get you in a wintry kind of mood, look no further than ‘The Exile.’ You’ll find vast late-autumn/early-winter landscapes, epic sword-and-shield clashes, and conflicted characters that are well-rounded and fully developed, something that is rather hard to do over the course of a 192-page graphic novel. I’ll be looking forward to whatever Erik Kriek puts out next in English translation after this stellar offering.

Thanks to NetGalley, Living the Line, and Erik Kriek for the digital ARC of 'The Exile' in exchange for an honest review.

Hallstein Thordsson has spent the past seven years in exile after he killed his friend and neighbor over an attack on his neighbor's sister. He cam back to Iceland with two friends he gained while reeving around England and Ireland to find his step-mother being wooed and swindled by the same man - Einar, the brother of the man he killed. Despite all attempts to be peaceful, It all comes down to revenge, specifically who wants what the most. Will Hallstein manage to get the peace he wants or will the call of blood be two strong? An interesting tale.

Thanks Netgalley for the opportunity to read this title!

I know a Dutch book cannot possibly have any say in what the publishers of a translation say about it several years down the line, but there is some indication here when you read press chat calling "The Northman" a "smash-hit film [that] grossed $35m". They also say there are hardly any Viking-era comics, so for those who realise $35m means it tanked big-time, and for all who dreamt their way through "Northlanders" comes this – and it's about as great as you'd think from such blurb. It's an overly-convoluted yet simple story of a man forced into exile for murder, who returns and thinks he might have justice and/or a fine life. 12 certificate sex, rampant flashbacks and driftings-off to the dreamlike world of the dead follow, before the truth of it all comes out in the wash. Except there are too many machinations going on from too many people for this to be clear, logical, and most importantly entertaining enough, meaning all the effort in the classily two-tone illustrations is more or less all we can come here for. Those and the world-building perhaps make this two and a half stars, but a lot else still keeps this a disappointment.

The minimalistic art style adds depth to every page of this Viking adventure tale across Iceland. Highly recommend if you want to take a break from the every day and become a Viking for a few hours.

I'm very happy I randomly found this one on NetGalley. The art is absolutely beautiful and I can't believe you can create such vivid and beautiful artworks with only a few colours. The characters all were very unique looking and fitting very well in the Viking setting. The landscapes were stunning and I got cold only looking at them. Together with the dark story I'm keen to see more! I take 0,5 stars off, because I sometimes had some trouble reading the font.

Thank you to Erik Kriek, Diamond Book Distributors, Living The Line and NetGalley for this eARC in exchange with my honest opinion.

An action-packed Viking tale of murder, rape and redemption. Our main character seeks to return home and live the rest of his life in peace. But trouble brews when those who know him want vengeance. The art is detailed yet lacks the color I believe it needed to flesh out the scenes. Ultimately the story falters at the end when it could have been wrapped up nicely. Instead, there are still more questions that need answered.

Wow. This was excellent, full of ambiance and intricate storytelling. I found it interesting that from another perspective the "hero" of this story would have been the villain and I enjoyed how complicated the situation was. I think, because of all the moving pieces, I wanted the story to be more tightly told, but I do get that part of the charm of it is the setting and the FEEL of it, so I understand.
The story has no answers for the reader, which does make it feel very real. I wanted more from some characters. I think Vigdis has the potential of being the main character of her own story. I also wanted more from the son's (Ottar) story... his character seems like a setup that leaves you a bit unsatisfied. I guess it's a good thing to be left wanting more in this world. I enjoyed this read and will look for more by the author.

Fantastic art direction carries this magnificent comic forward. Telling a tale of Vikings and the bitter Colds, The Exile is a marvel. The way the artist rendered this story makes it easily among the best of the year.

A Viking story from Iceland. Hallstein Thordsson returns home after the seven years. He was exiled for several offenses and now wishes to find peace and make amends with his family and those he wronged. But his father has since passed, so he decides to help is “stepmother” on her farm and reclaim his inheritance.

The art in this novel is very unique. Although I wasn’t too fond of the character illustrations, the settings and transitions were well done (there were often birds between transition scenes). The story was engaging and well paced.

Note: there is nudity (male and female). There is also a sex scene, but not full graphic nudity there. It also has violence and an incident of rape. I am having trouble whether I would have this in my library unless it were for upper high school (maybe) or adult visitors.

Thank you Netgalley and Diamond Book Distributors for this ARC. Will there be a sequel? It seems like there could be more to this story.

Loved the book. Read it in a wimp. It looks good, the drawings are superb and the difference between good and evil is obvious (the colour). Great story., It has everything one could want in an old Icelandic story. Violence, cruelty, shamanism, women, love and envie

I enjoyed this story, the use of lines and color or the lack of in the illustrations were my favorite part.

Unfortunately I was unable to read this epub as my devices couldn’t open the PDF file or it otherwise wasn’t supported. But the concept and everything else I have seen of it sounded wonderful and unique so I’m still rating it three stars.