The End of Drum-Time

XIX century, Lapland, the edge of the Arctic Circle. A charismatic Lutheran minister, Lars Levi, tries to convert indigenous Sami people to his religion. The Sami live a nomadic life following their reindeer herds through the northern Scandinavia. When Biettar, one of the most respected herders, decides to dedicate his life to the church, his son Ivvar is left alone with their herd. At the same time, Willa, Lars' daughter falls for Ivvar and runs away from her family home.

This was such an epic story. The writing style was exquisite. I was taken by description of dramatic landscapes and learning about Sami living simple life in almost inhabitable conditions. The author captured perfectly their daily struggles with forces of nature and cultural clashes with new settlers.

The core of the plot is Biettar awaking and Ivvars romantic relationship with Risten and Willa. It fascinating to see that although their lifestyle was so different from modern culture, human nature is just the same.

Small negatives - the book was a bit slow to start with, but once I got through the first part, I couldn't put it down. The story has an open end, which I didn't like. I really want to know what happens to them all.

I’ve been really drawn to Nordic stories recently, and this one was particularly fantastic because of how much Sami culture is resonant in its pages.

The writing was JUST gorgeous - it felt epic in scope but also intimate. There’s these bit, beautiful, impressive landscapes juxtaposed with the minutiae of daily life and intimate relationships.

This is a character driven story, rich in detail. The tension created between those who believe in the old way of life and those wanting something more was executed well, and before I knew it I was turning the pages fast because you could see something coming. But the melancholy comes just as much from knowing that a traditional way of life is changing, and culture will inevitably be lost.

I didn’t realise this was based on a real person until later, but that made me reflect on the story even more. It’s told with a lot of heart, and I was immersed. Thank you for this review copy, really beautiful work.

I have really enjoyed this historical novel, which focuses on a small community - in the Arctic circle, between Finland and Russia, where a Lutheran preacher is trying to convert the Sami population, a liquor merchant is trying to sell them alcohol, and the Sami herders are trying to cling to their identity while Russia and Finland decide to close the borders, making it impossible for them to move their reindeer herds. We follow a few characters closely - Ivvár, a young Sami reindeer herder, whose alcoholic father has a divine revelation and becomes religious; Willa, the daughter of the Lutheran pastor, who falls in love with Ivvár; Risten, who was previously in love with Ivvár, but has accepted to marry a better match, and Henrik, the liquor merchant who worries about the debts the Sami owe him.
It was well-written and dramatic, and covered a topic I know very little about but found really interesting. The characters felt really well-written and had enough depth, and the novel kept going further in terms of drama, until the end and the fate of the characters, which felt inevitable.