A Norsewoman in the 9th century AD, Ragnhild is captain of the Raider Bride. She’s married to the Irish lord and one-time king Murchad, whom she’d intended to destroy but now loves. Ragnhild has the strength and authority of a man, and is developing the necessary strategy. Murchad is a Christian, but the other characters are Viking pagans, sacrificing beasts to their gods and, in some cases, in touch with the spirit world. A person of power, a sorcerer or the queen Åsa, can inhabit their totem animal when necessary. The queen in the mound is a supernatural being, and a threatening one. Other threats include two outlaws and Ragnhild’s brother, who has claimed her inheritance. These involve skirmishes, battles, wounds, and death during this brutal era. Not all Norse folk are raiders, however, and prosperous farmers prefer peace. Ragnhild herself reflects on a misbegotten war: “All the bloodshed could have been avoided.” The fourth book in Wittenberg’s series, The Queen in the Mound makes readers wish to have read the first three. However, it’s not difficult to pick up the story or to admire the strong female characters. Whether Norsewomen could become shield-maidens, captain raiding ships, lead troops, and engage in rivalries and warfare, isn’t documented, but archeological discoveries of the graves of powerful women show that some did attain status. Wittenberg’s dramatic flair captures the reader, from the sea battle which opens the novel to the magical elements and skaldic tales woven into the narrative. There’s a golden Irish necklace with mystical powers, a witch-blinded wolf that nurtures a human (two humans, actually), and of course, the frightening queen in the moun

I love these stories. This one continues the tales of Ragnhild the shield-maiden and Asa, the Norse warrior queen. We are treated to several longboat journeys, fierce battles, and a selection of Irish mythological stories. With her Irish husband by her side, Ragnhild and her ‘hird’ of warriors travel in their longboats to do battle with her brother, Harald, to reclaim her ancestral land. As with all these books, this one is liberally sprinkled with strange Norse words like hnefatafl (a board game), hudfat (a sleeping bag), haugbui (a ghost), and hamingja (luck or fate). All are fully explained in the text, and the author provides us with a list of the characters and an extensive glossary at the end of the book. A couple of comments: being unfamiliar with sailing terminology I found myself somewhat at sea at times. I picked out an example of the sort of thing that had me reaching for my dictionary: ‘Off to leeward the pursuing ship luffed up and spilled their wind to avoid a knockdown.’ I did find the storyline a bit threadbare in spots, but the queen in the mound – a ghostly walk-on part – does her best to tie the various strands of the story together. That said, I love these stories. I can hear the clash of seax on wootz steel; I can see the longboats emerging from the mist in the fjord; I can taste the small beer in my drinking horn; and I can smell the Jól log crackling and spitting on the fire. Reviewed for Discovering Diamonds