Review: The Broken Sword

5 stars. Even if I didn't go in knowing that this book has been referenced, borrowed from, shadowed, echoed, rebooted and reinvigorated many times over the years, like all good sagas, I would've been able to tell that this is a foundational piece of work right away. Borrowing in turn from the Norse sagas, The Broken Sword is epic - epic like the ocean, or a thunderstorm, or an orchestra. Awe-inspiring. Heavyweight. Mythological. Dense!! And very beautiful. Full of vivid, colorful imagery and lush descriptive language. 

And... incest. Idk, very gross, but I did get the sense that there was a point to it - not a cheap twist for shock value, in other words. I suppose it's employed as a narrative device and also a commentary on the stubborn inflexibility of one's fate, which we've seen before. And maybe also to push up against Freda's moral/religious code, which drives her split with Scafloc, which drives him into a darker character: full of resentment and bitterness, with a singular focus on vengeance and violence. Maybe it was another way of tangling with the pagan/christian conflict, though I do not think pagans were incestuous. It's fine! People who are smarter and more well-read than I can grapple with it.

Speaking of: the Tolkien of it all. I was surprised, I think, to recognize something in this: a familiar tune, or an awareness that an itch was being scratched - an itch only previously scratched by Tolkien. There are many similarities, but what struck me the most was the sense of a fantasy being told as a historical myth. There are also many differences: Tolkien is better on a linguistic level. But he and Anderson are closer to siblings than you'd think (sorry couldn't help myself). Once again, people who are smarter and more well-read than I can grapple with this, though why they are pitted against each other so much baffles me.

Anyhoo, our tale begins during a Viking raid, when the warrior Orm kills and ousts the residents of an English stronghold. A survivor, banished to the woods, jumps on the chance for revenge when she is visited by Imric, an elf. She tells him of a new baby, born to Orm and his wife, Christian yet unbaptized. Imric sees his own opportunity in this, and conducts magic to produce a changeling, whom he then swaps for the human baby. 

And so we follow these two: Skafloc and Valgard, as they grow up where they were not born. Meanwhile, the trolls and the elves are at war, the gods - old and new - interfere as it suits them. It's a story about destiny and fate and bloodshed, love, grief, moral conflict, trauma, loyalty, magic, darkness, and much more. 

I was absolutely captivated. It's not perfect: it took me a while to get through - and I thought about docking a star because sometimes my mind would drift during the slower parts. While the women have interesting and important parts to play, the descriptions of their figures are icky at best. But I have to give it 5 stars. My favorite moment: Skafloc's encounter with the giant blacksmith in his cave - the horrific imagery is incredible. Speaking of which, I highly recommend checking out some of the original paperback covers... they are quite something. 

The Broken Sword on: Amazon | Bookshop.org | Goodreads