The Bell in the Lake: The Sister Bells Trilogy Vol. 1: The Times Historical Fiction Book of the Month

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He does not shy away from just how harsh life is in this place and these times, and presents the consequences matter of factly. The bargain is a decent and practical one, switching out the old bells for the newer ones which the church had obtained to take their place.

Kai Schweigaard, the new pastor of Butangen, feels uneasy with this coexistence of traditional beliefs and Christianity. In fact, he's rather relieved when a government mandate forces him to replace the stave church with a larger building that can fit all his parishioners. The church is to be taken down and reconstructed in Dresden. A German architecture student, Gerhard Schönauer, arrives to make detailed drawings of the church before its dismantling. Das Buch funktioniert als historischer Roman perfekt und enthält eigentlich sämtliche Themen, die mich an Norwegen selbst faszinieren (alte Stabkirchen und Architektur, die wunderbare Sprache, die Verbindung zu Deutschland, der altnordische Glaube, die Schwierigkeiten, sich im 19. Jahrhundert kulturell zu gebahren und dann doch so wundervolles hervorzubringen, die Abhängigkeit zu Dänemark/Schweden). So also each of those involved are very aware of their positions, and the complication any romantic involvement would bring with it, from Schweigaard's awareness that his fiancée would be a much more appropriate wife for a pastor on the career-path he can expect to find himself on to Astrid's awareness that life in Dresden would be very different and probably lonely for her compared to the life she knows here.At what moments did you feel Astrid, Kai Schweigaard, and Gerhard Schonauer were most challenged individually and collectively? She's desperate to keep the bells locally, and eventually comes up with a plan which just might see to that, as there's one more valuable piece of the church that's gone missing over the years, and she knows how Schönauer can get it.

This spellbinding gem took my breath away and I ventured with some question to the bestselling Norwegian author Lars Mytting. His answers will be live on 3/31/21 at mysteryandsuspense.com When the architect named Gerhard arrives from Dresden, he sketches the stave church, asks questions about missing dragon heads and a portal - a door frame. He was sent on this once in a life time project by his professor and was briefed about history of stave churches, of which Norway once had over 1000 stave churches, now down to just 50. Artistry is being smashed across the country, and the architect is here to oversee the deconstruction of the church and later reconstruction of it in Germany.

November Book Selections

The Bell in the Lake" by Lars Mytting is the first historical novel in a planned trilogy. To Astrid, Pastor Kai Schweigaard personified the comfortable old ways and traditions in an unchanging community while Gerhard Schonauer painted a picture of a colorful new life in Dresden. I enjoyed the descriptive passages denoting the history of Stave Churches. Highly recommended. A deeply atmospheric historical fiction novel, rich in Norwegian stave church history and forklore. The Bell in the Lake is based on local myths and real people and the story is well researched.