2014 MIDWEST BOOK AWARD GOLD MEDAL for CHILDREN'S FICTION. Listed among 2014 BEST BOOKS FOR GIRLS by A MIGHTY GIRL. ODIN'S PROMISE is a historical novel for middle-grade readers, a story of the first year of German occupation of Norway in World War II as seen through the eyes of a young girl. Eleven-year-old Mari grew up tucked safely under the wings of her parents, grandma, and her older siblings. After Hitler's troops invade Norway in Spring 1940, she is forced to grow beyond her "little girl" nickname to deal with harsh new realities. At her side for support and protection is Odin, her faithful elkhound. As the year progresses, Mari, her family, and her neighbors are drawn into the Norwegian underground resistance movement. "Readers will cheer for Mari as she discovers her inner strength - and the courage to help celebrate Norway's spirit of resistance." - Kathleen Ernst, author of American Girl's Caroline Abbott series and Chloe Ellefson Mystery series. "Beautifully written, emotionally taut novel of one girl's coming of age during war time." - Gayle Rosengren

This book is about the Old Norse god Odin. It includes references to all occurrences of Odin in the Old Norse/Icelandic texts, including Saxo’s Gesta Danorum, the eddic poems, Snorri’s Edda, and Ynglinga saga and analyses the high medieval reception and literary representations of Odin rather than the religious character of the god. This is the only existing study of Odin in all the Old Norse/Icelandic texts and applies a contextual method: the different guises of Odin are studied on the basis of the various textual contexts and on their background in the literary and Christian intellectual milieu of the time. Contrary to existing studies, this method is non-reductive in that it does not aim at providing a synthesis about Odin’s original nature on the basis of the differing textual uses of Odin in the Middle Ages. The book argues that the perceived complexity of Odin, often highlighted in research, is first and foremost a function of the complex textual material spanning a wide variety of genres each with its particular literary conventions and of the reception of Odin in early modern and modern mythological studies.

Bjorn's Gift is the second book in the Odin's Promise historical novel trilogy. Teen Mari faces greater hardships and dangers in her small Norwegian village during the second and third years of WWII German occupation. Soldiers and Nazi supporters move into her neighborhood, school presents unexpected threats, and oppressive new laws are imposed. Mari assumes increasingly dangerous resistance responsibilities and risks, trusting only her family and a few close friends. She struggles to live up to her brother Bjorn's faith in her and understand how lifelong friends can suddenly become enemies. Difficult decisions force her to admit that few things in life are as easily sorted into good or bad, right or wrong as she once believed, including classmate Leif. 1943 signals the start of yet another year in which no one can predict if or when Hitler will be defeated so the Nazi occupation can end. (Conclusion: Mari's Hope)

As a member of a very special military unit, I'm not paid to make mistakes. The short version is I got separated from the rest of my team and failed to regain contact. A serious blunder. I took a knee during a security halt, dozed off, and when I woke up, they were gone. It's not supposed to happen, but it happened. Shit always happens. I'm a tough, well trained, experienced, special operations commando. A member of the elite Gray-Black (GB) Squadron and we are regular participants in what has become a nightmare of global conflict. My whole life is the GB and fighting and I am very good at what I do. But I've messed up seriously and made myself expendable. My boss has decided that the best way to get rid of me is to put me back on the ground in the middle of a hornet's nest and let me die. I have other ideas.

SWORD OF THE WAR GOD, THE EXCITING NEW HISTORICAL EPIC FROM TIM HODKINSON, OUT NOW! Not everyone will survive, but who will conquer all in Odin's game? AD 934. Eighteen years ago, a young woman fled her home to save the life of her unborn child. Now he is grown, a witch foretells that evil from her past is reaching out again to threaten her son. Outlawed from his home in Iceland, Einar Unnsson is thrown on the mercy of his uncle, the infamous Jarl Thorfinn 'Skull Cleaver' of Orkney. Einar joins forces with a Norse-Irish princess and a company of wolfskin-clad warriors to play a deadly game for control of the Irish Sea, where warriors are the pawns of kings and jarls and the powerful are themselves mere game pieces on the tafl board of the gods. Together they embark on a quest where Einar must fight unimaginable foes, forge new friendships, and discover what it truly means to be a warrior. As the clouds of war gather, betrayal follows betrayal and Einar realises the only person he can really trust is himself. Reviews for Tim Hodkinson 'For fans of BERNARD CORNWELL, GEORGE R.R. MARTIN AND THEODORE BRUN' Historical Novel Society 'An excellently written page-turner, with a feel for the period which invites you into the era and keeps you there' Historical Writers Association 'A gripping action adventure like the sagas of old; and once finished, you just want to go back and read it all over again' Melisende's Library

Called an 'occult religion' for adepts, a 'creed of iron' for warriors, and a 'secret society' for higher men and women who value 'knowledge, freedom and power', the Odin Brotherhood honours the gods and goddesses of the Norse pantheon.

Transports readers to the cold landscape of wartime Norway, as a brave, young heroine faces the cruel reality of oppression to join the underground resistance and do whatever it takes it save her family and her country. - Michelle Houts, author of Winterfrost. MARI'S HOPE delivers the dramatic conclusion to the trilogy begun with Odin's Promise, awarded the 2014 Midwest Book Award for Children's Fiction, and Bjorn's Gift (2016). In Mari's Hope, set in a small village in occupied western Norway in the final years of World War II, young Mari has become a valued helper to the village doctor. She also plays a role in her family's efforts in the local resistance, despite ever-present dangers, especially from the snooping soldier called Goatman and from Leif, her one-time school friend, now a German collaborator. As the German war efforts falter, the pressure increases on the occupying troops to hold Norway firmly in their grip. But freedom-loving Norwegians will do their best to thwart those plans. Praise for the series: "An exciting look at the occupation of Norway, through the eyes of a young, brave girl." - Angela Cerrito, author of The Safest Lie.

"Packs a punch worthy of the Thunderer himself. It rocks!" -- Joanne Harris, author of The Gospel of Loki "Holdt wows in her Norse mythology inspired debut an electrifying adventure" -- Publishers Weekly, starred review A dead man, walking between the worlds, foresees the end of the gods. A survivor searching for a weapon releases a demon from fiery Muspelheim. A village is slaughtered by Christians, and revenge must be taken. The bonds between the gods and Midgard are weakening. It is up to Hilda, Ragnar, their tribesmen Einer and Finn, the chief's wife Siv and Tyra, her adopted daughter, to fight to save the old ways from dying out, and to save their gods in the process. Following in the steps of Neil Gaiman & Joanne Harris, the author expertly weaves Norse myths and compelling characters into this fierce, magical epic fantasy.