I am bereft!

This is the last book in what has been such an excellent series.

Angus Donald's lead character, Bjarki, is one of my favourite ever heroes. He is a berserker, Fireborn, a renowned and feared warrior. He's also a family man who takes his little daughter to collect honey. In Blood of the Bear, he is torn between his duty to his people and that to his family. Forced to lead the fight against Charlemagne and the Frankish incursion into Saxon lands by old allegiances and alliances.

I feel for Bjarki. But he was born to be a warrior. And he does it so well!

Blood of the Bear is a wonderful, fast-paced adventure that will draw the reader in from the very first page. This entire series has been a pleasure to read. It is such a shame that it is ending - but the finale is not to be missed!

The fifth and final book in this very entertaining series. Bjarki Bloodhand, viking and “berserkr” is living a peaceful life with his wife and kids, not much need of the two bear spirits living within him. His sister, Tor, is out raiding while he focuses on fatherhood and being the local leader.
But before long he is convinced to join the Saxon rebellion against the Franks and their new fangled Christianity. The Franks are using violence and to enforce their religion and the Saxons are using violence to stand for their old ways and Pagen Gods. No real good guys here sadly. But from the Saxon point of view, having a famous warrior and berserkr on their side would be a bit of a bonus. But how to get him out of retirement…?
In this Bjarki is the character everything happens around, he is hampered by a strange illness and, as usual, it is his sister that carries the story. The politics of the time and the power of the forces supporting Christianity are key here, an interesting period we don’t hear much about but that allows the author leeway to weave fiction and history into a thrilling story.

Great read! Author wrote amazing story with big history in the background. I do love all main characters in this series and how they developed and changed. Every fan of historical fiction will enjoy reading it.