Review: ‘Storytellers’, by Bjorn Larssen

Storytellers

In March 1920 Icelandic days are short and cold, but the nights are long. For most, on those nights, funny, sad, and dramatic stories are told around the fire. But there is nothing dramatic about Gunnar, a hermit blacksmith who barely manages to make ends meet. He knows nobody will remember him – they already don’t. All he wants is peace, the company of his animals, and a steady supply of his medication. Sometimes he wonders what it would feel like to have a story of his own. He’s about to find out.

Sigurd – a man with a plan, a broken ankle, and shocking amounts of money – won’t talk about himself but is happy to tell a story that just might get Gunnar killed. The blacksmith’s other “friends” are just as eager to write him into stories of their own – from Brynhildur who wants to fix Gunnar, then marry him, his doctor who is on the precipice of calling for an intervention, The Conservative Women of Iceland who want to rehabilitate Gunnar’s “heathen ways” – even the wretched elf has plans for the blacksmith.

As his defenses begin to crumble, Gunnar decides that perhaps his life is due for a change – on his own terms. But can he avoid the endings others have in mind for him, and forge his own?

Purchase Links:

UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/Storytellers-Bj%C3%B8rn-Larssen-ebook/dp/B07P8Z74CC

US  – https://www.amazon.com/Storytellers-Bj%C3%B8rn-Larssen-ebook/dp/B07P8Z74CC

My Review

Thanks to Rachel and Bjorn for organising the tour and sending me a copy of this book.

Gunnar the lonely blacksmith lives in a forge outside a tiny town with his dog and horse. A stranger, Sigurd, imposes on his hospitality by having the bad manners to break his ankle climbing a cliff. In the 18 days that follow a story is told and Gunnar changes his life. The story follows two timelines that meet in a violent climax, during which Gunnar gets to see the end of the story his guest has been telling played out in front of him. There’s a psychopathic serial killer, possibly more than one, in the tiny Icelandic town Gunnar’s lived in all his life.

I’m not sure how to place this book, genre wise, which is going to really mess with my shelving system. There are crimes, murders, several in fact, but it’s not a traditional crime novel. There’s love, but it’s not a romance. Folklore, but it’s not a fairy tale. I don’t know.

I did enjoy it, I read it in three sessions, needing a bit of a break because I kept getting anxious that Gunnar would top himself or Brynhildur would force him to marry her, or something equally appalling.

The plot was different. I enjoyed the device of having two stories, decades apart, being told at the same time, and trying to work out who the mysterious Sigurd was, even as he retold the story to fit himself and to justify his actions. The story highlights the human tendency to tell ourselves stories to justify our behaviours, to blame others for our wrongs, real or imagined, rather than admit that we’ve behaved badly. We can even convince ourselves that the stories are the truth.

The characters were full of life, especially Gunnar. I truly empathised with his depression and his addiction struggles, and was pleased for him when he survived. Grendel made me laugh and their interactions were quite touching at times. Grendel may have been a hallucination caused by alcohol withdrawal, or not, but he was as real as any other the other characters, even if only Gunnar and Ragnar the dog could see him.

The writing was lucid and enjoyable to read, it flowed without any jarring incongruities. The descriptions of time and place felt authentic, to the best of my knowledge.

Author Bio –

Bjørn Larssen was made in Poland. He is mostly located in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, except for his heart which he lost in Iceland. Born in 1977, he self-published his first graphic novel at the age of seven in a limited edition of one. Since then his short stories and essays were published in Rita Baum Art Magazine, Writer Unboxed, Inaczej Magazine), Edurada.pl, Homiki.pl, and Holandia Expat Magazine. He is a member of Alliance of Independent Authors and Writer Unboxed.

Bjørn has a Master of Science degree in mathematics, worked as a graphic designer, a model, and a blacksmith. He used to speak eight languages (currently down to two and a half). His hobbies include sitting by open fires, dressing like an extra from Vikings, installing operating systems, and dreaming about living in a log cabin in the north of Iceland, even though he hates being cold. He has only met an elf once. So far.

Social Media Links –

www.twitter.com/bjornlarssen

www.facebook.com/bjornlarssenwriter

Giveaway to Win 5 x copies of “Iceland: Making Memories” (INT)

*Terms and Conditions –Worldwide entries welcome.  Please enter using the Rafflecopter box below.  The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over.  Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data.  I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/33c69494240/?