The Ring Breaker by Jean Hill

In the twilight of the old gods, when the last Vikings rule the seas, two cursed orphans meet on an Orkney beach and their fates collide.

Stripped of honour, facing bleak loneliness ahead, Skarfr and Hlif forge an unbreakable bond as they come of age in the savage Viking culture of blood debts and vengeance. To be accepted as adults, Skarfr must prove himself a warrior and Hlif must learn to use women’s weapons. Can they clear their names and choose their destiny? Or are they doomed by their fathers’ acts?
I really enjoyed this book , great characters and descriptions of their way of living.
I am always conscious when reading books set in times so far back that authors give the demeanour / personality / voice of their characters using their own interpretation of how life may have been and therefore how the character would have gone through life .

The Ring Breaker by Jean Gill is a well-crafted historical story that evokes the brutal but rich Viking world. It is based during a time when there was a great deal of tension between the fading religion of the old gods and the growing Christian faith, as well as the uneasy alliance between the ruling Jarls of Orkney.

Against this backdrop, we are introduced to Skarfr, an orphan who is initially placed in the care of a Skald (like a Bard) until he is introduced to the intrigue of the Jarl Court. There he meets another orphan, Hlif and they forge a bond, determined to step out of the shadows of the sins of their fathers.

I made the decision this year to read more historical novels and I am pleased to say, I very much enjoyed this book. I think it helped that I knew very little about the Vikings and the history going into this story. It is beautifully written, immersive and manages to capture the dramatic and stunning landscape of Orkney well. I found myself completely lost in the story and adored the character development of Hlif with her quiet intelligence and perseverance.

The story weaves historical fact and fiction seamlessly, and I really appreciated how much research has gone into this novel. Although, it uses old place names and language from the time, I didn’t particularly find this off putting.

I would caution any reader who is expecting a typical blood thirsty Viking fantasy (this is not it). Any fantasy elements are intertwined with the cultural and political beliefs of the time, providing a richness to story.

I am very much looking forward to reading the sequel!

Thank you to Netgalley for providing a digital arc to review.

Jean Gill’s ‘The Ring breaker’ explores Viking sagas in a human way.

A boy rejected by his father and left to die as a baby and a girl cursed because of the sins of her father meet on a beach, neither one knowing their fates would become so entwined. The Ring Breaker follows the story of real life Jarl Rognvald from the perspective of fictional Skafr. Loyalties are made and questioned, respect earned and thwarted. There is so much about this book to love. The confusion and growth of young love. The learning of what it means to be a man by a boy we watch grow up.

Jean Gill weaves the story together as if it were itself an epic saga. Reading it felt as though going out to sea with gentle waves and calm breeze leading to dangerous storms and calm once more. I look forward to the next book and to learn what more the gods have in store for Skafr and Hlif.

This book tells the story of Skarfr, a boy forged in the cruelty of his foster father, and Hlif, a young girl forever marked by her father’s actions. Both of them will fight to leave behind their past and shape a new future, one without their fathers' shadows that are constantly haunting them.

I really loved the story, the strength of the characters, how they fight to change what’s written. Totally recommend!!

Thank you to NetGalley and The 13th Sign for the advance reader copy.

Beautifully written and engaging. A fantastic take on the viking lore of the Orkneys. Really looking forward to reading the rest of the series.

This is an excellent example of well-researched and fully immersive Historical Fiction! Gill certainly did her homework on the Viking age and it absolutely shows. It's grounded in truth, but it still gives us wonderfully impactful story-telling and elements of the fantastical. It's epic and thought-provoking and contains that incredibly adventurous Viking spirit, while not being too gory or violent, which I appreciated.

One very unique aspect to this book that I absolutely LOVED, was it's parallel to the structure of the Norse Epics and Sagas! I've read a handful of them and this was such a wonderful tribute to that form of storytelling. I especially loved Gill's use of poetry, reflective of the use of poetry in the great Epics. As a fan of the genre and a scholar of history, that was a nice treat!

The scope of this book is massive, the only thing that threw me a bit was the time jumps towards the end, but other than that it was relatively easy to follow. There's a lot of place names, and characters with similar names; but that's to be expected in this genre, and with the Vikings especially.

I would absolutely recommend this book to anyone interested in the Viking Age or in Historical Fiction, and I cannot wait for the next one!

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC to review!

The Ring Breaker is a deeply researched, richly textured historical fiction set in the Viking culture, with a story that combines coming-of-age and romance plots. I enjoyed the author's lyrical prose, poetic elements, and allusions to Norse mythology. A good read for fans of fantasy and historical fiction who enjoy detailed world-building, myths reimagined, and ancient worlds.