La sonrisa del lobo

by Tim Leach

Tengo una buena historia que contarte. De duelos y traiciones; de exilio y venganza. Ninguna otra historia importa, si esta se olvida.

Una novela de vikingos con la épica y el poder de las historias contadas junto a una hoguera.

En un mundo de hielo y nieve, el único código que reina es el del honor y la amistad.

Todo empezó una noche de invierno, cuenta el poeta Kirián Sin Tierra. Él y su amigo Gunnar, un granjero con un poco de tierra y un pasado, salieron a acabar con el fantasma que, algunos decían, merodeaba en una granja vecina y acosaba a quienes se acercaban hasta ella. Sin embargo, era un engaño y mataron a un hombre.

En la Islandia del siglo X hay delitos que solo pueden lavarse con plata o con sangre.

La sonrisa del lobo nos transporta, con la fuerza evocadora y la épica de un relato contado junto a una hoguera, a una tierra dura de inviernos sin días y veranos sin noches. A una tierra de antiguos guerreros vikingos que vararon sus barcos pero todavía dispuestos a empuñar la espada, y de poetas que cambian historias por comida y canciones por un techo. A una tierra de hombres que huyeron de reyes y tiranos para ser libres e iguales, y que no temen apoyar a un amigo cuando lleva las de perder. Una tierra sin reglas salvo el honor y la ley, y donde no hay otro deber que el de la venganza.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Historical, Fiction, Medieval

364 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 26, 2017

About the author

Writer, climber, whisky drinker, chess dabbler and general purpose layabout. London exile currently encamped in the North and loving it. I've studied and taught creative writing at the University of Warwick and worked in bookshops in London and Greece.

If you'd like to know any more about me or my books, just ping me a message. Thanks for stopping by!

Reviews

[Sonja Arlow · Rating 4 out of 5]

Strange, tragic and starkly beautiful.

11th century Iceland is a land with no kings, no rulers but a people governed by honour.

Kjaran is a skald, a travelling poet living with a different family each year. He pays for their hospitality by singing songs, telling stories and working alongside the family.

The winter he spends with Gunnar and his family a rumour takes hold of a recently departed farmer who has come back as a ghost to haunt his own land. Gunnar, ever the adventurous warrior vows to kill this ghost. What follows is tragedy, blood feuds, deceit and injustices that shatters this close-knit community.

I absolutely loved this!

I am a big fan of Wolf Winter and this book conjured a similar atmosphere. I was initially worried that because the book focuses on blood feuds that it may be too male centric for my liking, but the author captured my attention so fully I finished this book in two sittings.

He created strong vivid characters, complex relationships and a constant eerie atmosphere.
I will most definitely read more of his work.

And as this was a Netgalley copy I am not sure if this will be in the final publication, but some passages were presented in different colours and I actually really enjoyed the novelty of it.

ARC Netgalley: Publish Date 12 July 2018.

[Tania · Rating 3 out of 5]

The feud began in winter, when a dead man rose from the earth.

3.5 stars. I loved the writing in this book, poetic but not flowery at all. The descriptions were all perfect for 10th century Iceland, almost brutal in its beauty.
"Frozen water does not lie silent. It moans like a dying man. It barks like a mad dog. And when the wind runs across it, one can hear the sound of scratching fingers, of all the dead men that the waters has swallowed, begging to be let out."

Inspired by the world of the Icelandic sagas, the story is about the recently arrived ex-Vikings in this beautiful but harsh country and their customs and beliefs. It definitely has that epic feel to it, and I was swept away by the vivid depictions of the setting as much as the individual characters and their trials.

The only reason that I'm not giving it a higher rating is because it had too much fighting for my taste. I do however highly recommend this to anyone who enjoys atmospheric, action-packed stories about friendship, feuds and injustice set in fascinating times and places.

[Yules]

I’m in the midst of writing a novel set in medieval Iceland. Historical research is one thing: you can talk about turf houses, fire pits, scorn poles, feuds, chieftains, and the Althing all you want. But balancing medieval values against modern ones while still infusing characters with relatable emotions is a much more difficult dance. You can’t step too far towards the 21st century reader, or you’ll lose credibility; you can’t step too far back, or characters become opaque and inhuman. What I really loved about Tim Leach’s novel was how the protagonist narrator sparked not only my curiosity, but also my attachment to his emotional logic, foreign as it is. I hope I can perform such an artful dance for my own readers someday.

[Bridget · Rating 4 out of 5]

My second go at reading Smile of the Wolf was much more successful than my first. This time I've enjoyed the writing and become fascinated in the legend style telling of this tale of murder, feuds between neigbours and miserable cold. It tells the brutal story of a landless and poor man, Kjaran who is a teller of stories and singer of songs. In return for his entertainment services he is given a home for a season with the families in his area. Life is brutally cold and the summers are short. This is Iceland and in medieval times. People believe in the old gods and ceremonies. There is a story about a ghost who walks the fields and Kjaran and his friend Gunnar go and investigate. They find the ghost, kill him but he turns out to be one of the neighbours. This is the beginning of an ongoing feud which will result in deaths aplenty and misery for all involved.

Oh the bleak and terrible times this story tells of! But reading this book will make you think and ponder the lives these people lived. There is much blood spilled. This is a book of friendship and loyalty and love in harsh times. It is very good but at times I found the relentless nature of the life depicted in the story quite hard to read.

Beautiful writing and wonderful descriptions of the landscape make this so worthwhile.

[Andy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not a new author to me but a different period from his other outings, that of The Last King of Lydia which was very much a slow burn of a read. And with this being set in Iceland, a bleak outcrop, I’m expecting more of the same especially as some reviews tell of the absolute bleakness of this book, but talk of the poetic language giving it some life. Having read a few books set in Iceland I knew what such reviews maybe meant and was hoping it wasn’t the case ie we’re going to get a decent story in amongst the landscape?

I must report it was way better than I was expecting, you should read a book by Arnaldur Indridason if you want absolute bleakness!! Addendum – I wrote that early on & have to say the second part does surpass even Indridason’s works in places, it’s proper grim stuff but all the same still an enthralling read as you are amazed by man’s perseverance & sheer will to survive!

We follow a Skald called Kjaran, in a narration style, who is very engaging, giving history/folklore of the first settlers to colonise Iceland at the start of the story, it’s perhaps a minor thing I mention but it is of note to the overall storytelling style of the book. The sense of the Icelandic community along with the landscape, and all it’s foibles, is very strong in the text, you really do live & breathe the times through their actions/dialogue/customs/historical detail, you can tell it’s been very well-researched book.

The tale is split into three parts which I won’t say much about except with regard to the term “outlaw” which in a modern context is very different to 10thC Iceland, when laws/customs allowed murderers to go free if a weir-guild was paid to satisfy the aggrieved family’s honour. That might sound a bit too simplistic but it’s the gist of it.

I could write so much more in this review, so much to enthuse about but as it’s a one off I think it could royally ruin it for anyone following.

How it all unfolds is a captivating story, very engrossing, eminently readable & certainly a book I recommend as well as an author to follow.

5 Stars & may well end up being my read of the year.

[Fiona · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Tim Leach's impressive debut novel, The Last King of Lydia, had me excited to find a new author to follow. I was less excited by his second book, The King and the Slave, but enjoyed reading it. Authors who write such excellent first novels give themselves a hard act to follow. Tim Leach writes well and his stories are gripping but I feel the same way about Smile of the Wolf as I did about The King and the Slave. I enjoyed it but feel mildly disappointed.

This saga-style tale is narrated by Kjaran, a wandering poet, a skald. It has all the content of a saga - love, feuds, honour killings and battles, the supernatural, outlaws- and is based at a time when Christianity was known in Iceland but hadn’t yet made an impact (or wasn’t yet compulsory). It might sound strange but this isn’t a book that can be read quickly. I was surprised at how long it took me despite being only 200 or so pages in length. The sentences are carefully constructed and the dialogue stilted. It’s very atmospheric and full of suspense-laden episodes. It’s a good story which I enjoyed without being bowled over.

I live in hope that Tim Leach will write another masterpiece. Meanwhile, I’ll stay faithful and look forward to his next work.

With thanks to NetGalley and Head of Zeus for a free review copy.

[Jennifer (JC-S) · Rating 4 out of 5]

‘There is no place that is so lifeless, so isolated, as our island in the depths of a winter’s night.’

One night, in the darkness of Iceland’s winter, two friends set out to hunt down a ghost. They ended up killing a man. Kjaran, a travelling poet (a skald) who trades songs for food and shelter and his friend Gunnar, a feared warrior, choose to conceal the killing instead of confessing the crime and paying the blood price to the dead’s man family. They make this choice for what they consider to be good reasons, but their decision leads to a brutal feud. One of the men is outlawed, the other is hunted by the dead man’s family. Eleventh-century Iceland is a harsh, unforgiving place – especially in winter.

This novel has all the ingredients of a saga: betrayal, exile, feuds, fights, honour-killings and love. Kjaran is the narrator, using his story-telling skills to bring people to life and describe events and surroundings. This is not a novel to read quickly. This is a novel in which the atmosphere is important, it’s part of appreciating the difficulty of surviving in a hostile environment. Who will survive, and at what cost? I read the story and shivered.

‘We are the last links of the feud, you and I.’

Note: My thanks to NetGalley and Head of Zeus for providing me with a free electronic copy of this book for review purposes.

Jennifer Cameron-Smith

[Cathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Back in 2013, I read – and very much enjoyed – Tim Leach’s first book, The Last King of Lydia, which tells the story of King Croesus and his eventual vanquisher, Cyrus. In my review on Goodreads (as my reading the book pre-dated this blog), I commented how much I enjoyed the author’s prose style and looked forward to reading whatever he produces next. Well, it’s been quite a long wait but I’ve finally got to read another of Tim’s books and I certainly wasn’t disappointed.

Rather than 6th century Babylon, Smile of the Wolf transports the reader to 10th century Iceland. What immediately struck me was how the author evoked the stark beauty of the Icelandic landscape with its fleeting green summers and long, harsh winters when the Icelanders retreat into the safety and warmth of their longhouses. ‘The taste of those nights is icy water and salted fish, the sound of the burning of the fire and the whistling of the wind, the smell is smoke and sweat and ash and earth.’

The book’s narrator is Kjaran, a skald or travelling poet, who earns his food and shelter by singing songs, reciting poems and telling stories to his hosts. The role of poet is one of prestige in this society where the telling of stories is valued as a repository of cultural history. ‘But there is only one true art that matters to the Northmen and that is poetry… we know what beauty is and it is the voice that sings in the night.’ In fact, there will be occasions when the ability to tell stories will be a literal lifesaver for Kjaran and others.

Kjaran recounts his story to the reader as if we too are gathered around the peat fire. Occasionally the narrative is interrupted by sections in which Kjaran speaks directly to an initially unidentified listener, one whose identity the reader will only learn at the end of the book. With a poet’s keen eye, Kjaran often uses analogies with the natural world to illustrate the events he describes. For example, observing how the children of the family have been unsettled by the atmosphere between the adults present: ‘They always feel discord most keenly, like those birds who will swarm in the sky hours before an earthquake, shaken from their roosts by tremors too soft for us to feel.’

Soon it is Kjaran himself who is shaken from his roost, when he and his friend, Gunnar, kill a man in strange circumstances. This sets in motion a blood feud that will last for years and involve Kjaran in a desperate struggle to stay ahead of his relentless pursuers, battling through snow, ice and cold, and bringing him into contact with strange bedfellows.

Smile of the Wolf depicts a violent society in which honour is everything, exile or death awaits those who breach its unwritten laws, and the quest for revenge can last a lifetime. It’s a male-dominated society in which women have no legal status although, to my mind, some of the female characters in the book are just as terrifying as the male characters, if not more so!

Smile of the Wolf is a compelling story of friendship, love and betrayal and I thought it was brilliant. In its depiction of a quest for revenge that becomes a sort of madness until ended by an act of mercy, I was reminded of John Ford’s great Western The Searchers but played out against a backdrop of ice and snow rather than prairie.

I received a review copy courtesy of publishers, Head of Zeus, in return for an honest and unbiased review.

[Calzean · Rating 4 out of 5]

11th Century, early days of Iceland; only 100 years after the first Althing. A travelling poet and his host for the winter kill a ghost to find out the ghost was a man. This starts a feud, the poet spends three years in exile and the blood letting continues. This is a book that is part Icelandic saga and part wild wild West but with ice.
The plot is relatively simple so for the book to be enjoyable it has to be able to paint a realistic environment. For most of the book I was looking for a blanket and beanie as the author did provide a feeling of cold, deep cold. The main characters all have interesting stories, there are men and real men, the women are wise or wicked and life is really, really tough.

[Adam Lofthouse · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the most unique books I have ever read. So beautifully written; such a fantastic story.
Kjaran is a bard, a teller of tales, a singer of songs. He wanders the desolate lands of Iceland, spending his winter in one home or other, never staying in the same place for long.
He is no warrior, no great swordsman, he has nothing but his voice with which to earn his keep, his food.
One fateful winter he stays with his friend, Gunnar, and together they hear the story of a ghost, haunting a nearby farmstead. Gunnar is a warrior of fame, a veteran of the shield wall, he seeks to kill the ghost that has people cowering by their fires in the cold and dreary nights of winter.
Together, they hunt the ghost, and they bring it down. But the ghost is a man, and the man has family who will miss him. Now, they must make a choice. Confess the killing and offer the blood price, take the inevitable feud that will follow? Or bury the body, tell no one, and hope their murder goes unnoticed.
To their mutual shame they choose the latter, though it does not last long. Three brothers come for vengeance, three men seeking their heads. Gunnar will slay one in single combat, Kjaran will be sent into exile, hunted by another.
Here the story takes a very different turn, as Kjaran is taken in by a fellow outlaw, and spends three desperate winters in the mountains of northern Iceland. One spring day a stranger approaches the outlaws, a preacher for the White Christ, a warrior. Taken in, he tells tales of the glory of Christ, of forgiveness and eternal life in heaven.
Kjaran resists the calling of the new god, but upon the end of his exile, when finally he can return south, to the sun, to warmth, to civilisation, he finds Gunnar dead, his longhouse burned to the ground, his wife and daughter dead. He finds Gunnar’s son mortally wounded by the fire, is sure each rattling breath will be the boys last.
He takes him to the nearest farm, and there Kjaran finds his betrothed, married, living with another man.
His heart broken, hope for a new life smouldering in the ashes of Gunnar’s longhouse, he seeks to end the feud, to finally bring down the last remaining brother of the ghost.

As I said at the start, this book is exceptional. Storytelling of the highest calibre. It takes some skill from an author to absorb their reader so completely in the landscape, to paint such a vivid picture of tenth century Iceland in their minds, Tim Leach does this so very well with this book. You can taste the salt on the air, picture the ragged landscapes, the snow capped mountains. The plot itself is brilliant, compelling, and so very sad. It drew me in, hooked me. I listened to this on audible, and any excuse I could find to pop out for a walk or a short drive, just to listen to a little more, I did.
Everyone should read this book, I know it is a story that I shall never forget.

[CA · Rating 5 out of 5]

2019: tenia miedo de leer este libro porque solo lo había leído el año pasado y a lo mejor el recordar más de la historia le quitaba emoción pero no a pasado para nada.
Ver como cometían error tras otro sabiendo el final a sido una tortura muy satisfactoria y a diferencia de mi primera lectura donde no le prestaba mucha atención a las partes en segunda persona esta vez las supe apreciar (y sufrir por ellas)
------------------------
Si hay algo de lo que estoy cansada es historias de "venganza" donde protagonistas abandonan su venganza a las 10 páginas porque se enamoran o por alguna lección moral como "la venganza solo trae más odio, hay que perdonar" porque si bien ese es un muy buen consejo en la vida, no es lo que quiero leer en un libro.

No me importa que tan doloroso sea o que al final no lo logren al menos quiero que lo intenten y este libro es exactamente eso. Ambos, protagonistas y antagonistas, tienen un solo objetivo que es la venganza y están dispuestos a perderlo todo para conseguirla.

[Charlotte Render · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm part way through this book, and every time I read it I have Liam Neeson's voice in my head reading it. I don't know what to do about it other than continue in this fashion.

Great book.

Provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[R.J. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Technically three and a half stars because I can’t see myself re-reading this dark, deeply tragic book, but it’s a superbly written and immersive historical drama that creates a very powerful image of what it might have been like to live in 10th century Iceland.

[S. Bavey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set in 11th century Iceland, the narrative takes the form of an epic tale or saga from the storyteller’s past, told during a long Winter, for entertainment purposes during the relentless, never-ending darkness of both days and nights in the Frozen north.

The Storyteller, Kjaran, is a skald, a skilled poet and singer whose talents have kept him alive in the past. It is a tragic story of accidental murder and pig-headed feuding:

‘But you are a fool if you continue the killing..’
‘And a coward if I do not.’
‘And there is the trap...’

We are told of the desolate, desperate life of an outlaw in the icy mountains of central Iceland and the tragedy of returning to society to find the feud has continued and your friends have suffered immeasurably. The pride and stubbornness of the men of this time and their passionate bloodlust is conveyed well through the author’s skillful characterisation:

“There is a longing of a man who faces hopeless odds in battle. It is the longing to kill one man at least, to not die without spilling the blood of one who has come for you. You have killed one, the mind seems to say, and that is enough. Lie down and die if you wish, for you have done enough.”

Revenge drives these characters and despite its lawful conclusion, there seems no possible end to the feud, which is so central to this story that it takes on a life of its own:

‘Be patient. The slave takes revenge at once—‘
‘But the coward never does,’ he said, finishing the proverb for me.

The prose is beautifully descriptive and poetically written. It is easy to imagine the cruel, snowy, glacial landscapes of the central mountains and the lush green of the Salmon River valley. I found myself feeling chilly while I read the descriptions of Kjaran in the mountains, suffering so badly from the austere temperatures that he loses his fingers:

“The pain of the cold was akin to nothing I had felt before and I bit the folds of my cloak to keep myself from crying out. Then abruptly, like the striking of lightning against the ground, I felt nothing at all.”

As much as I loved my trip to Iceland in the twentieth century I most definitely would not like to have been there during the eleventh century as described here. A harsh, unforgiving country filled with harsh, unforgiving people.

The story is slow paced but not easy to put down. I would recommend The Smile of the Wolf to lovers of historical fiction, descriptive imagery and people who don’t mind feeling a little cold while they read (grab a blanket before you begin).

[Terry Tyler · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've been lucky lately - this is the third novel I've read in the last month that competes for the title 'favourite book of the year.' It's a gem, and I loved it.

Smile of the Wolf tells the story of Kjaran, a wandering storyteller, and the consequences of one lonely night when he and his friend, Gunnar, set out to hunt a ghost. Instead, and unintentionally, they kill a man. The ensuing feud colours the rest of their lives and those of the people they love.

I'm sure the word 'stark' has been used in many reviews already, but it's the one that comes to mind before any other, for me, in describing this book. Tim Leach knows 10th Century Iceland - this reads as though he understands every trek across harsh landscape, every gnawing hunger pain in the wastelands of the outlaws, every shred of misplaced bravery in these people's hearts as their lives are ruled not by a king, but by their code of honour, a far more brutal taskmaster.

It's a story of heroes and courage in the face of death, of singlemindedness and the will to live, of love, friendship, gods and ghosts, freedom and survival; I didn't skip a word. It's terrific - read it.

[Melisende · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well told story of a blood-feud in Iceland, written in the stylings of the medieval Icelandic Sagas.

Our narrator, Kjaran the Landless, a poet, a skald, a wandering minstrel, does what he does best, he tells us - the reader - the story of how he became involved in a bitter feud, and the fatal consequences of all those touched by it. To tell you more, would be to spoil the story, and like all good Viking-age poets, Kjaran must weave his tale at his own pace, revealing little by little, but never out-staying his welcome.

[Sara Olmo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Una historia sobre duelos, amor, amistad, lealtad, honor y sobre todo venganza.

La novela está narrada de una manera muy peculiar, ya que en ciertos momentos el protagonista Kiarán se dirige al lector, bueno más bien a la persona a la que le está contando su vida ( al final de la novela se revela a quien se la cuenta ).
Además el libro está dividido en 3 partes:

-El pleito.
-El proscrito.
-La venganza.

Todos los personajes son entrañables, hay momentos bastante duros, en los cuales podemos conocer a gran profundidad a Kiarán.

[Rabspur · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the best novels I have read in recent years set in Iceland at the time of the Vikings (one of my most favorited era's in History) without giving too much away, it Centre's around murder, and revenge, a real page turner. First time I have red a book by the author, well written and easy to follow. I will check out his other Novels and if they are anything like this I won't hesitate to give them a read. Highly recommended.

[Sasha · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a book to savour; it’s too bleak a story to really enjoy.
The setting is medieval Iceland and I could feel and taste the harsh landscape, the snow, the cold and the hard mountains.
Our characters are trapped in a society that has no kings or cities, but values men’s honour above all. This is a society where women have no part in the system of honour but where a clever woman can manipulate it to her own dark and dangerous ends. So we watch as the men and their loved ones spiral to their inevitable and brutal deaths, with moments of joy few and far between - a night at a friend’s fireside, a few hours with the woman you love, a morning idling in the sunshine.
Sad and bleak, but beautifully written, powerful and compelling.

[Adrienne · Rating 5 out of 5]

This, my friends, is some amazing storytelling.

[✧ · Rating 5 out of 5]

the pacing is so mwuah apart from the three year skip but i guess that would make sense

i wanna reread again

[The Idle Woman · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was absolutely thrilled when I was offered a review copy of Tim Leach’s new novel. His first two books told the story of the Lydian king Croesus, a lyrical tale of a man who falls from majesty to slavery, and learns to live again, drawn from the Histories of Herodotus. This third book takes a new direction, unfolding among the icy crags and rolling valleys of 10th-century Iceland. It’s a tale of revenge; blood; vindictiveness; loyalty; and honour; but, more than anything else, it’s a story of friendship. This is the tale of the farmer Gunnar and the poet Kjaran, recounted with the tragic grandeur and poetic cadence of the great sagas, prickling with ice and flame...

For the full review, please see my blog:
https://theidlewoman.net/2018/06/09/s...

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

An unconventional story which unfolds against an exotic setting (10th C Iceland).
Rich, intriguing prose, written in the first person, is used to create textured, evocative descriptions - which make for a slow-burning, satisfying read; the plot is possessed of some good bursts of pace and scenes of deep introspection.
Leach is a highly skilled author who fully achieved his aim with this ambitious, difficult literary venture, in which brave risks aplenty were taken.
I also found the characters to be very interesting.
Expect the unexpected.

[Alex Bon · Rating 4 out of 5]

RIslandia del siglo X. La tierra del hielo perpetuo; los vikingos han llegado en sus barcos a una isla inhóspita, agreste, hostil. Con el propósito de ser libres, de no servir a ningún rey. Dejan los saqueos para convertirse en granjeros. Sin embargo la libertad les costará encadenarse a una sola ley: honor y venganza por honor.
Sobre este panorama Kiaran nos narra un relato sobrecogedor. Kiarán Sin Tierra, escaldo (cantante y trovador, poeta, contador de cuentos) un hijo de esclavo, sin derechos, con pocas oportunidades. No obstante un joven bueno y honrado, además de fiel amigo, con un gran corazón, un manojo de virtudes en pocas palabras. Kiarán intercambia canciones por un techo durante el invierno en casa de Gunnar.
Gunnar es el símbolo de la fuerza, el que protege siguiendo estrictamente las leyes, es un hombre transparente que ama a su familia por sobre todas las cosas.
Ambos hombres son justos y honorables que fatídicamente se involucran en un secreto que los marcará con la deshonra y en consecuencia serán perseguidos por las espadas de la venganza. Así comienza la historia.
Aquí las mujeres no tienen voz ni voto, sin embargo son el eje que determina la dirección. Son el amor, el pilar de la familia por la cual un hombre es, pero también son causa de locura, pasión y traición. Vemos ambas partes en dos mujeres, Dalla y Vigdis.
Me encanta la narración tan ágil y rápida, mantentiene el suspenso en todo momento, el utor lo adereza con detalles curiosos y otros que ya conocía sobre la vida diaria en este mundo escandinavo . A lo largo de la trama surgen cambios muy bruscos de manera que no es predecible, al contrario acaban por darle un toque excitante.
Otro punto a favor son los personajes secundarios al ser completos.
En cuanto al argumento es sencillo y fácil de entender: se trata de dos inocentes perseguidos enfrentandose a obstáculos que en más de una ocasión significan la vida o la muerte a manos de sus enemigos o el implacable frío. Se presentan hechos brutales característica de los vikingos (no apto a corazones blandos) Y el final me resultó sorprendente. Totalmente inesperado. Un poco crudo, pero no digo más.
Al final todo lo que importa es la venganza.

[Craig · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not usually my preferred genre but thought I'd try something different based on good reviews of this book.

10th century Iceland and a man outlawed as a result of taking the rap for a murder ventures into the unforgiving landscape of Iceland's mountains to serve out his time and then return to the woman he loves.

The bleak environment and desperate nature of Kjaran's predicament is beautifully captured. However the blood lust that runs through the novel, albeit due to loyalty and honour, made it hard for me to warm to the characters for at least the first half of the book. That and the bleakness and desperate nature of the story made this a bit it of a slog for me for the first half of the book. Im glad I persisted as the story did pick up and round out to an emotional and appropriate ending. Overall I enjoyed the book as a whole however parts of the journey were a bit of a slog.

[Kemery Myers · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 Stars

Full Review: medium.com/@essentialreadingsandrevie...

The Smile of the Wolf is a rare treat of a saga that Leach tells with utter simplicity, poetic brilliance, and comforting bleakness. The story is completely captivating and doesn't soften its grip until it's over. I wanted it to end as much as I wanted it to keep going, but it ended with as much bleakness as was true of the rest of the story.

Highly recommend listening to Saga by Adrian Von Ziegler while reading this story!

[Vicky · Rating 4 out of 5]

Here is another brilliant historical novel from Tim Leach. He writes in a very beautiful language, creates such a memorable characters and takes his readers into the world of the old, where snow, cold, sagas and bloody feuds run the life on the Iceland's bare land.
The story is very intense, dramatic and full of suffering. This old culture is unforgivable and cruel, but there is a place for real friendship, love and sacrifice.

[Marc Salas · Rating 4 out of 5]

A partir de la mitad el libro pega un enorme subidón, desde ese punto he intentado acabarlo cuanto antes para conocer el final. Ambientación vikinga, personajes bien llevados y trama con giros inesperados. Leach consigue recrear todo esto con una narrativa que me ha parecido muy elegante y descriptiva.

[Linley · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the depths of an Icelandic winter that seems to last forever and without access to electricity or cars, I would want a good storyteller by my fireside. And the tale that they would tell would be a long, slow one that had me on the edge of my seat wanting the next chapter. This book is exactly that.

Highly recommended to mature readers who can manage the pace of a great saga.

[Alejandro · Rating 5 out of 5]

Increíble, ha habido momentos en los que leía 30 páginas y ni me daba cuenta. No me esperaba que estuviera a la altura de engancharme tantísimo.