Reviews

For those looking for a modern re-telling of the famous Viking sagas, you’re in the wrong place. Famous Viking exploits do come up, but merely to illustrate a point about Viking culture, religion or politics. Price is more interested in helping us understand who the Vikings were as a people. Gender relations, trade, religion and community are the main areas of focus. That’s not to say that Price ignores the raiding and violence that have made the Vikings famous today, quite the contrary. The Vikings were a violent people, and for hundreds of years it was the foundation of their economy. But they were also a much more complex society than how they are widely remembered today. This is a book for those who want to understand more than the sailing and raiding aspect of this culture. Price delves deep, but he never bores the reader with mundane details. I loved it, and now I kinda want to go back and watch the Viking series on History channel to see if they got it right or not. Highly recommended for history nerds.

andy_bookworm5137's review against another edition

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adventurous informative reflective slow-paced

4.5

heidemoose's review against another edition

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adventurous informative medium-paced

3.25

tomleetang's review against another edition

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4.0

Neil Price is much more skilled as a researcher than a writer, but his book is fantastically informative and scrupulously sourced. As long as you can get passed the dry, droning tone of the text, it's an excellent resource for all aspects of Viking life.

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