Viking Nonfiction

The Wolf Age takes listeners on a thrilling journey through the bloody shared history of England and Scandinavia, and on across early medieval Europe, from the wild Norwegian fjords to the wealthy cities of Muslim Andalusia. Warfare, plotting, backstabbing, and bribery abound as Tore Skeie skillfully weaves sagas and skaldic poetry with breathless dramatization as he entertainingly brings the world of the Vikings and Anglo-Saxons to vivid life.

They’re widely known as raiders, pirates, invaders, and savages, but despite their fearsome reputation (or perhaps because of it), Vikings continue to fascinate us today. And it’s not hard to see why. They were brave, rebellious, and fierce fighters—plus, based on Hollywood’s portrayals, they were quite good-looking. While media highlights their violence and toughness, there’s more to the Viking culture than just conquering lands. The Vikings were not just warriors but also traders, explorers, and lawmakers....

Looking for the perfect gift for a history buff - or your next reading obsession? The Weirdest Tales in History delivers 25 full-length, immersive true stories that most textbooks skip, soften, or bury in a footnote - from ancient Rome to Cold War experiments, from medieval courts to modern disasters. Not trivia. Not listicles. Real stories - told the way they deserve. Every chapter starts with a quick snapshot: Absurdity/Evidence/Grimness ratings - how wild, how dark, and how well-documented it is A Truth Meter - rock-solid fact vs debated detail vs likely legend A “Tell-at-a-Party” ...

Bringing together today's leading scholars, both established seniors and younger, cutting-edge academics, Stefan Brink and Neil Price have constructed the first single work to gather innovative research from a spectrum of disciplines (including archaeology, history, philology, comparative religion, numismatics, and cultural geography) to create the most comprehensive Viking Age book of its kind ever attempted.

NATIONAL BESTSELLER *NOW A FOUR-PART CRAVE ORIGINAL DOCUSERIES* A top journalist crosses the yellow tape to investigate a shocking high-society crime. Billionaires, philanthropists, socialites . . . victims. Barry and Honey Sherman appeared to lead charmed lives. But the world was shocked in...

They weren't just raiders. They reshaped the world. In 793 AD, Norse warriors attacked a monastery on the coast of England, and Christendom was terrified. But raiding was only the beginning. Over the next three centuries, Scandinavians founded Russia, conquered a third of England, settled Iceland and Greenland, reached North America 500 years before Columbus, served as the elite bodyguard of the Byzantine Emperor, besieged Paris, conquered Sicily, and carved out the Duchy of Normandy — whose descendants conquered England in 1066. What you'll find inside: The longship revolution — the ...

★ Norse Mythology for Kids ★Step into the thrilling world of Norse mythology — gods, monsters, and epic adventures await! Travel to the land of Vikings, gods, and legendary heroes, where Asgard towers above the mortal world, giants roam the earth, and every story is packed with action, magic, and excitement. Perfect for kids and tweens, this book brings ancient Norse myths to life with fun storytelling, vivid illustrations, and jaw-dropping facts. 👉 Meet the mighty gods and fearless heroes: ✅ Odin – the All-Father, wise ruler of Asgard ✅ Thor – thunder god with his ...

Did Hollywood rewrite the Viking gods? Discover the shocking, brutal, and authentic Norse mythology behind the world’s biggest blockbuster franchise. If you think you know Thor, Loki, and Odin from the big screen, think again. The modern entertainment machine has transformed an ancient, animistic belief system into a sanitized sci-fi superhero saga. But what was left on the cutting room floor? In The Edda vs. Hollywood, author Einar Thoresen offers a deep, unofficial comparison between the surviving medieval Icelandic texts—the Poetic and Prose Eddas—and modern cinema. This book ...

Shatter the Myths of Valhalla and Discover the Blood-Soaked Reality of Viking Medicine For centuries, the history of Norse healers has been sanitized, replacing the grim reality of battlefield triage with romantic tales of ethereal maidens and mystical forest herbs. In The Butcher's Apothecary: Blood, Fat, and the Brutal Reality of Viking Medicine, Tomas Somerled expertly dismantles this historical propaganda to reveal the horrific, unsterilized mechanics of ancient survival. This immersive and deeply visceral exploration of medieval combat medicine leaves the polite academic distance ...

What if everything you were told about Viking democracy was a lie sold by men with swords? The bestselling myth says the Vikings built one of history's first parliaments. The evidence says they built a protection racket and called it law. In Outlaw Country, historian and narrative nonfiction author Tomas Somerled delivers a cynical, ferociously researched investigation into the real Viking legal system — the chieftains who bought their authority like livestock, the witnesses bribed at feasts the week before trial, the blood feuds that incinerated entire families across generations, and ...

Unearth the Gritty, Squalid Reality Behind the Myth of the Clean Northman For too long, the modern imagination has been hijacked by a sanitized, impossibly clean vision of the Viking Age. Popular culture has painted the Northman as a proto-metrosexual warrior who bathed weekly and smelled of pine needles. Winter's Itch: The Filth, Frost, and Fleas of the Real Viking Age shatters this comforting illusion. Author Tomas Somerled employs a rigorous "Pathology of the Hearth" framework to treat the medieval living conditions not as polite history, but as a biological crime scene. Prepare for a ...

The romanticized Viking saga is a comforting lie. Discover the brutal reality of the 793 AD Lindisfarne raid. In Wolves on the Tide: The Slaughter of Lindisfarne, Tomas Somerled dismantles the heroic myths of the Norsemen to present a gritty, historically uncompromising autopsy of the attack that ignited the Viking Age. For the monks of St. Cuthbert’s sanctuary, the ocean was an impenetrable divine wall. They possessed no early warning systems and no defensive naval patrols. On June 8, 793, that profound geographical delusion invited their total annihilation. Introducing The Asymmetric ...

A teacher in Chicago at the beginning of the last century, Jennie Hall wrote a number of engaging history books for children. Viking Tales follows the story of Harald Fairhair from the time he is given his own thrall at the cutting of his first tooth, through his exploits as a Viking adventurer, to his crowning as King of Norway.

Discover the dark, starving truth behind the most misunderstood warriors in history. For centuries, Victorian nationalists, romantic poets, and Hollywood screenwriters have spoon-fed us a narrative of the Viking Age characterized by excess vitality and hyper-masculine energy. We are taught to view the raids on Lindisfarne and Paris as the arrogant flex of an unstoppable, well-fed military machine. Tomas Somerled’s BONE-THIN RAIDERS dismantles this retroactive propaganda piece by piece. Through a rigorous, multidisciplinary forensic investigation known as the Metabolic Trauma Protocol, ...

Ragnar Lodbrok: Hero or fantasy? – Many chapters on Vikings, Norse mythology, and history Immerse yourself in the fascinating world of the Vikings! This comprehensive non-fiction book tells the story of Ragnar Lodbrok, one of the most colorful figures in Norse mythology. In 18 chapters, the author highlights both the legendary adventures and the historical facts – from the Battle of Brávellir to the fight with the lindworm to the end in the snake pit, whose historical authenticity is disputed. You will learn how Ragnar and his sons are connected to Reginherus, Horik I, and other ...

Blood and Treasure is the story of the economics of conflict from the Viking Age to the war in Ukraine. 'Absolutely fascinating and totally absorbing' JAMES HOLLAND 'A brilliant book' MARTIN WOLF, FINANCIAL TIMES CHIEF ECONOMICS EDITOR 'Chock full of marvellous nuggets, this fascinating book is...

Discover the brutal, unvarnished truth of Viking-era medicine and battlefield survival. For generations, the Norse sagas and modern mythmakers have fed us a sanitized fantasy of the unfeeling Viking berserker. Beyond the Shield-Wall: The Savage Medicine and Silent Agony of the Viking Age by Tomas Somerled completely shatters this cinematic lie. This immersive historical nonfiction book plunges you into the terrifying reality of 9th-century warfare, revealing the horrific trauma and crude medical interventions that defined survival in the Dark Ages. The Norse did not possess a magical ...

The shocking, brutal truth behind Viking history that the sagas refused to show you. Are you tired of sanitized tales of majestic warriors? Smothered in the Hall: The Brutal Reality of Viking Sleep uncovers the terrifying, untold history of how the Norsemen actually lived and barely survived the Scandinavian night. Step inside the Iron Age longhouse, not as a cozy sanctuary, but as a compromised containment vessel of overlapping hazards. Through the rigorous "Nocturnal Biocontainment Framework," this book exposes how the architecture of the Viking home actively weaponized the winter against...

New York City lawyer Donna has a firm grasp on reality. But when an old woman’s golden spindle sends her back in time—and straight into a fierce Viking jarl’s bed—she thinks it’s all a delicious dream. Seeing Donna appear out of thin air, Sigurd believes she’s a goddess…and he sets about worshipping her in the sexiest ways possible. But when she tries to leave, he takes her captive, unwilling to lose any advantage she may bring in an upcoming battle.

These Nordic narratives from the Middle Ages include the tales of two famous Viking leaders. The first is Harald Finehair in Norway and his sons Eric Bloodaxe and Haakon the Good. The other is about Leif Erikson in Iceland, the first European to have visited Vinland (North America).