The Night of the Scourge

Butangen, Norway, the years before WWII: Astrid Hekne has inherited the fighting spirit and hypersensitivity of her grandmother, who was a protector of the mythic Sister Bells that had once hung in the village's centuries-old stave church.

The priest Kai Schweigaard, now in his eighties, is wondering how his death, prophesied in a centuries-old tapestry, will come to pass. He delves into the myths about the Night of the Scourge, which, according to old village beliefs, is when the known world will be scraped down to bare rock.

Then Norway is occupied by the Nazis. Astrid joins the Resistance, and Kai is thrown out of his own church. A suspected betrayal within Astrid's own family unites the Sister Bells in Dresden. Special effort and sacrifice, not only from the Hekne family, will be needed to combat the postwar rumours and mistrust.

This family drama, set in the tumultuous times of WWII, beautifully completes the Sister Bells trilogy. But while it connects to the previous books in surprising and thrilling ways, it can also be read as a standalone, a beautiful novel of magical realism that intertwines Norwegian folklore and myths with a rich story of hardship and passion.

Translated from the Norwegian by Deborah Dawkin

Praise for The Bell in the Lake - a Times Historical Fiction Book of the Month

"A beautiful example of modern Norwegian folklore" Guardian

"Lyrical, melancholy and with beautifully drawn characters" Daily Mail

"Mytting's cleverly crafted story heads inexorably to a moving conclusion" Sunday Times