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All the Horses of Iceland
A New York Times Best Fantasy of 2022!
“All the Horses of Iceland is a slim and beautiful chronicle in the tradition of Naomi Mitchison and Ursula K. Le Guin. …The result is a sorcerous journey through hospitality and enchantment.” —The New York Times
A hypnotic historical fantasy with gorgeous and unusual literary prose, from the captivating author of The Fourth Island.
Everyone knows of the horses of Iceland, wild, and small, and free, but few have heard their story. Sarah Tolmie’s All the Horses of Iceland weaves their mystical origin into a saga for the modern age. Filled with the magic and darkened whispers of a people on the cusp of major cultural change, All the Horses of Iceland tells the tale of a Norse trader, his travels through Central Asia, and the ghostly magic that followed him home to the land of fire, stone, and ice. His search for riches will take him from Helmgard, through Khazaria, to the steppes of Mongolia, where he will barter for horses and return with much, much more.
All the Horses of Iceland is a delve into the secret, imagined history of Iceland's unusual horses, brought to life by an expert storyteller.
At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
“All the Horses of Iceland is a slim and beautiful chronicle in the tradition of Naomi Mitchison and Ursula K. Le Guin. …The result is a sorcerous journey through hospitality and enchantment.” —The New York Times
A hypnotic historical fantasy with gorgeous and unusual literary prose, from the captivating author of The Fourth Island.
Everyone knows of the horses of Iceland, wild, and small, and free, but few have heard their story. Sarah Tolmie’s All the Horses of Iceland weaves their mystical origin into a saga for the modern age. Filled with the magic and darkened whispers of a people on the cusp of major cultural change, All the Horses of Iceland tells the tale of a Norse trader, his travels through Central Asia, and the ghostly magic that followed him home to the land of fire, stone, and ice. His search for riches will take him from Helmgard, through Khazaria, to the steppes of Mongolia, where he will barter for horses and return with much, much more.
All the Horses of Iceland is a delve into the secret, imagined history of Iceland's unusual horses, brought to life by an expert storyteller.
At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
112 pages, ebook
First published March 1, 2022
174 people are currently reading
11703 people want to read
About the author
Sarah Tolmie
13 books78 followersSarah Tolmie is the author of the 120-sonnet sequence Trio, published by McGill-Queen’s University Press (release date 1 April 2015) and the chapbook Sonnet in a Blue Dress and Other Poems (Baseline Press, 2014). She has also published a novel, The Stone Boatmen, and a short fiction collection, NoFood, with Aqueduct Press (both 2014).
She is a medievalist trained at the University of Toronto and Cambridge and is an Associate Professor of English at the University of Waterloo.
She is a medievalist trained at the University of Toronto and Cambridge and is an Associate Professor of English at the University of Waterloo.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 632 reviews
January 14, 2022
"Every horse in Iceland, like every person, has ancestors who sailed here in a ship...their sturdy kin can be seen...working around farms and fjords...[these] little horses of the North, strong as oxen...".
In the ninth century, in the city of Helmgard, Norse trader, Eyvind of Eyri, approached a "substantial merchant" named David and addressed him in river-language (a form of Norse-Slavic creole). He asked if he could buy into his trading vessel. David, not a river trader, planned to travel inland along the Silk Road to the grassy steppes of Mongolia. Eyvind elected to journey with David and his crew, hoping to barter for horses thought to be resilient to harsh weather; strong, wild horses that would make him rich upon his return to Iceland.
This historical fantasy novella, written as a saga, describes Eyvind's experiences in his multi-year journey. He would encounter religious differences. "In the matter of religion he was no better and no worse than the rest of his countrymen...". Many trade routes would be controlled and tolls collected. The trip would take between one hundred days and one year, in each direction, depending upon warfare with the Rus or the Khazars. Finally! David and Eyvind view "a great ocean of tough grass. It went on and on to the horizon, waving like the sea. [They] had come to the country where herdsmen and shepherds were chieftains". Eyvind needed to secure permission to trade for some incomparably different horses, ones that were strong and spirited. Why would an occasional horse go crazy and rear?
"In Iceland, ghosts are robust but this ghost who came to speak to Eyvind had a faint, windy voice, lips moving soundlessly." Perhaps Eyvind was gifted with magical powers in his deaf left ear. Might he communicate with the spirit world and help the ghost of Borte, the chieftain's dead wife, find peace? A white horse, kept pace with Eyvind, moving "steadily and purposefully" through the herd. This horse with no name, a small compact horse from the Northern Steppes, would make the long, difficult journey to Iceland accompanied by twenty brown and black horses. And, so ends the saga of a magnificent white horse, the most famous of all horses in Iceland.
Author Sarah Tolmie's extensive knowledge of Norse history and merchant trading along the Silk Road was most informative. Heavy on history and slow to introduce horse trading to the tome, some readers might find this read to be more history than folklore. This reader, however, was delighted!
Thank you Macmillan/Tor-Forge, Tordotcom and Net Galley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
In the ninth century, in the city of Helmgard, Norse trader, Eyvind of Eyri, approached a "substantial merchant" named David and addressed him in river-language (a form of Norse-Slavic creole). He asked if he could buy into his trading vessel. David, not a river trader, planned to travel inland along the Silk Road to the grassy steppes of Mongolia. Eyvind elected to journey with David and his crew, hoping to barter for horses thought to be resilient to harsh weather; strong, wild horses that would make him rich upon his return to Iceland.
This historical fantasy novella, written as a saga, describes Eyvind's experiences in his multi-year journey. He would encounter religious differences. "In the matter of religion he was no better and no worse than the rest of his countrymen...". Many trade routes would be controlled and tolls collected. The trip would take between one hundred days and one year, in each direction, depending upon warfare with the Rus or the Khazars. Finally! David and Eyvind view "a great ocean of tough grass. It went on and on to the horizon, waving like the sea. [They] had come to the country where herdsmen and shepherds were chieftains". Eyvind needed to secure permission to trade for some incomparably different horses, ones that were strong and spirited. Why would an occasional horse go crazy and rear?
"In Iceland, ghosts are robust but this ghost who came to speak to Eyvind had a faint, windy voice, lips moving soundlessly." Perhaps Eyvind was gifted with magical powers in his deaf left ear. Might he communicate with the spirit world and help the ghost of Borte, the chieftain's dead wife, find peace? A white horse, kept pace with Eyvind, moving "steadily and purposefully" through the herd. This horse with no name, a small compact horse from the Northern Steppes, would make the long, difficult journey to Iceland accompanied by twenty brown and black horses. And, so ends the saga of a magnificent white horse, the most famous of all horses in Iceland.
Author Sarah Tolmie's extensive knowledge of Norse history and merchant trading along the Silk Road was most informative. Heavy on history and slow to introduce horse trading to the tome, some readers might find this read to be more history than folklore. This reader, however, was delighted!
Thank you Macmillan/Tor-Forge, Tordotcom and Net Galley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
March 30, 2022
This slim novel is a picaresque reimagining of events in the ninth century, fusing history and legend. The prose has a lilt and cadence that gives the narrative the aura of a fable. The core of the novel, though, is a chronicle of a time when Christianity was intersecting with pagan religions while culture and commerce were in transition.
Eyvind of Eyri was a Norse trader. He was a pragmatic man whose primary concern was commerce. While trading in the city of Helmgard, he was confronted by the emerging dynamic between Christianity and paganism. His ship’s captain, motivated by political expediency, required that his traveling contingent convert to Christianity. Eyvind, not a particularly religious man, had an individualistic streak and bristled at this coercion.Ever adaptable, he aligned with the Jewish trader David, a merchant plying inland routes, on a expedition to the Mongolian steppes that could last for several years. Eyvind hoped to trade for sturdy horses that he could bring back to Iceland, enriching himself in the process.
This journey took Eyvind through a world that existed before the formation of modern day city states. Dangers abounded. Trade routes were controlled by groups with different cultures, customs and languages. Linguistic variations made communication difficult at times. The travelers had to be sensitive to local customs and idiosyncratic beliefs. Without grounded points of reference, every encounter was filled with cross cultural exchanges and shifting perspectives.
There are two sequences that stood out for me as illustrative of the cultural and perceptual maze Eyvind encountered. In the first sequence, Eyvind assisted a chieftain in ridding himself of his dead wife’s ghost. The reader must decide if the resolution of this incident was based on fantasy or on pragmatism grounded in medieval superstition. Secondly, on the return journey to Iceland a
white horse unerringly leads Eyvind and the herd away from danger. Was this magic or a symbiotic loyalty and empathy between animal and man? Each reader must decide. Belief in unexplained spiritual, otherworldly events have reverberated in intellectual thought throughout time.
Much of the charm of this novel derives from the sometimes magical prose that blurs the line between history and legend. The imaginative narrative frames the story of horses coming to Iceland through the eyes of one ordinary man. His perspective reminds us that legends and sagas take the stories of ordinary people and elevate these stories over time into myths and legends.In this way, small individual stories become large as time passes in history’s annals.
Eyvind of Eyri was a Norse trader. He was a pragmatic man whose primary concern was commerce. While trading in the city of Helmgard, he was confronted by the emerging dynamic between Christianity and paganism. His ship’s captain, motivated by political expediency, required that his traveling contingent convert to Christianity. Eyvind, not a particularly religious man, had an individualistic streak and bristled at this coercion.Ever adaptable, he aligned with the Jewish trader David, a merchant plying inland routes, on a expedition to the Mongolian steppes that could last for several years. Eyvind hoped to trade for sturdy horses that he could bring back to Iceland, enriching himself in the process.
This journey took Eyvind through a world that existed before the formation of modern day city states. Dangers abounded. Trade routes were controlled by groups with different cultures, customs and languages. Linguistic variations made communication difficult at times. The travelers had to be sensitive to local customs and idiosyncratic beliefs. Without grounded points of reference, every encounter was filled with cross cultural exchanges and shifting perspectives.
There are two sequences that stood out for me as illustrative of the cultural and perceptual maze Eyvind encountered. In the first sequence, Eyvind assisted a chieftain in ridding himself of his dead wife’s ghost. The reader must decide if the resolution of this incident was based on fantasy or on pragmatism grounded in medieval superstition. Secondly, on the return journey to Iceland a
white horse unerringly leads Eyvind and the herd away from danger. Was this magic or a symbiotic loyalty and empathy between animal and man? Each reader must decide. Belief in unexplained spiritual, otherworldly events have reverberated in intellectual thought throughout time.
Much of the charm of this novel derives from the sometimes magical prose that blurs the line between history and legend. The imaginative narrative frames the story of horses coming to Iceland through the eyes of one ordinary man. His perspective reminds us that legends and sagas take the stories of ordinary people and elevate these stories over time into myths and legends.In this way, small individual stories become large as time passes in history’s annals.
April 10, 2022
Enjoyed the way it captured the language of the sagas and similar medieval writing. Stoic and stilted in the best possible way.
A couple of times I felt it got a bit bogged down with what I'm assuming was the author trying to justify her timeline or some minutiae of the steppe cultures. I just wasn't too concerned with that overall. Just keep the story rolling. Show me some weird shit.
Loved all the steppe stuff. Loved Hoë’lün and the magic. Made the horses real without needing horse expertise on the reader's part.
Snappy and short, read it in a sitting. Enjoyed it and wish there was more of this kind of medievalism out there.
EDIT: just wanted to add that I really got a lot out of this interview with the author.
A couple of times I felt it got a bit bogged down with what I'm assuming was the author trying to justify her timeline or some minutiae of the steppe cultures. I just wasn't too concerned with that overall. Just keep the story rolling. Show me some weird shit.
Loved all the steppe stuff. Loved Hoë’lün and the magic. Made the horses real without needing horse expertise on the reader's part.
Snappy and short, read it in a sitting. Enjoyed it and wish there was more of this kind of medievalism out there.
EDIT: just wanted to add that I really got a lot out of this interview with the author.
April 18, 2024
3.5 stars
short review for busy readers: a historic fantasy telling of how the first Icelandic ponies came to Iceland. Written in the style of the old Norse sagas. Magical realism, Dark Age folk beliefs and cultures around the Black Sea make up a large part of the flavour of the text. Based in historical fact. Short read.
in detail:
Are you a horse fan? Then this novella might be for you. Like old Norse sagas? Even more for you. Are you okay with some magical realism and exotic ghost stories on top of the sagas and horses? Then you’ll love this one.
While the research that went into this story is top notch, the story itself is highly niche, being historic fantasy of a very particular kind. I struggled with it somewhat because I'm just not a fan of old literature, esp not very old literature.
Mildly recommended if you’re looking for something short that’s different and enjoy ye olde Norse saga narrative voice.
short review for busy readers: a historic fantasy telling of how the first Icelandic ponies came to Iceland. Written in the style of the old Norse sagas. Magical realism, Dark Age folk beliefs and cultures around the Black Sea make up a large part of the flavour of the text. Based in historical fact. Short read.
in detail:
Are you a horse fan? Then this novella might be for you. Like old Norse sagas? Even more for you. Are you okay with some magical realism and exotic ghost stories on top of the sagas and horses? Then you’ll love this one.
While the research that went into this story is top notch, the story itself is highly niche, being historic fantasy of a very particular kind. I struggled with it somewhat because I'm just not a fan of old literature, esp not very old literature.
Mildly recommended if you’re looking for something short that’s different and enjoy ye olde Norse saga narrative voice.
April 13, 2022
A delightful and short thing, filled with history and horses and ghosts. I wanted more in general, more closeness to the characters and more of their lives and more of the adventure. But there's a delight in that wanting more of something and also of not having a version of this that's far too packed with all the little things.
March 1, 2022
Ahoy there me mateys! I received a copy of this historical fantasy novella eArc from NetGalley in exchange for me honest musings . . .
Horses were me first love before the sea stole me heart. And I loved Iceland when I visited there. So of course this novella was a must read. And I truly enjoyed it.
This story is set in the 9th century and follows Eyvind of Eyri as he travels from Helmgard to Mongolia with a trading caravan. Once there he finds sturdy horses and aims to bring them back to Iceland. This is a slow paced journey that has the feeling of the parts of the Icelandic sagas that I have read.
The horses are in the later portion of the story but the main takeaway is Eyvind's journey and the people and different cultures he meets along the way. I found Eyvind to be a thoughtful and lovely character. There are evocative magical elements dealing with ghosts and other beliefs. Overall the writing style was wonderful and loved it. I just wish it had been a little longer because it ended too quickly.
I will certainly be trying more of this author's work. Arrrr!
Horses were me first love before the sea stole me heart. And I loved Iceland when I visited there. So of course this novella was a must read. And I truly enjoyed it.
This story is set in the 9th century and follows Eyvind of Eyri as he travels from Helmgard to Mongolia with a trading caravan. Once there he finds sturdy horses and aims to bring them back to Iceland. This is a slow paced journey that has the feeling of the parts of the Icelandic sagas that I have read.
The horses are in the later portion of the story but the main takeaway is Eyvind's journey and the people and different cultures he meets along the way. I found Eyvind to be a thoughtful and lovely character. There are evocative magical elements dealing with ghosts and other beliefs. Overall the writing style was wonderful and loved it. I just wish it had been a little longer because it ended too quickly.
I will certainly be trying more of this author's work. Arrrr!
April 30, 2022
Gosh, was this bad.
I went into this expecting a lyrical fairy tale, a made-up legend.
this was not that.
For a promised legend, the stroy was surprisingly uneventful and unemotional. It was more like a vacation, we didn't even spend much time on the road. And the magical parts were both unoriginal and boring, SPOILER most of the horses aren't even magical.
The writing was okay, but never stand-out.
The part that bothered me the most though, was the portrayel of women in this story. Their is one elderly witch who's a mother and independent, but aside from that we have nemaless concubines, a few wives and constant mentions how useless women are (particualarly as priests) - this book actually went out of its way to tell us that.
I get it, both the protagonist and the narrator were men in pagan times/medieval Europe... but then, why did that need to be the case. This novella would be so much better and interesting if either of them were a woman. Either a young, independent woman as protagonist or an older, cranky lady narrating the story... or even both.
This is even written by a female author.
But as it was, I was thoroughly dissapointed and annoyed and feel now inclanation to pick this author up ever again.
I went into this expecting a lyrical fairy tale, a made-up legend.
this was not that.
For a promised legend, the stroy was surprisingly uneventful and unemotional. It was more like a vacation, we didn't even spend much time on the road. And the magical parts were both unoriginal and boring, SPOILER most of the horses aren't even magical.
The writing was okay, but never stand-out.
The part that bothered me the most though, was the portrayel of women in this story. Their is one elderly witch who's a mother and independent, but aside from that we have nemaless concubines, a few wives and constant mentions how useless women are (particualarly as priests) - this book actually went out of its way to tell us that.
I get it, both the protagonist and the narrator were men in pagan times/medieval Europe... but then, why did that need to be the case. This novella would be so much better and interesting if either of them were a woman. Either a young, independent woman as protagonist or an older, cranky lady narrating the story... or even both.
This is even written by a female author.
But as it was, I was thoroughly dissapointed and annoyed and feel now inclanation to pick this author up ever again.
February 28, 2022
With its quiet, measured pace, and terrific, well-researched details, this book reads more like a straight historical. Except for a few, wonderful things that pull this novella into a different, slightly eerie place:
-a dead woman’s ghost that haunts a qan’s tent, and requires a ritual to leave
-an otherworldly, white horse who has a strong influence upon the group of the qan’s horses that main character Eyvind buys.
-the sounds only Eyvind can hear with his deaf ear.
There is both an awkwardness and seriousness to Eyvind, a man with certain intractable views, unwilling to compromise on some things, but also open to the otherworldly. He is unusual in his willingness to roll with the uncanny, and also ordinary, in his desire for profit and some degree of distinction. He is a quiet observer, and marked from the outset of the story by his easy conversations with David, the merchant who accepts Eyvind on his long route on the Silk Road to trade with the qan.
Sarah Tolmie gives us a Europe, Middle East and Asia similar to ours, with its hatreds, wars, trade and superstitions. But this world is also not exactly ours, as there are actual mages, and Eyvind regularly sees ghosts in his homeland, and is spoken to by the qan’s dead wife after arriving on the steppes.
I loved the way Tolmie conveyed her story, as a retelling of events by someone living years after Eyvind, giving the events both a sense of remoteness and grandeur, a myth recounting how Iceland came to have such hardy, tough horses, thanks to one trader and a strange and powerful mare.
Thank you to Netgalley and to MacMillan-Tor/Forge and Tordotcom for this ARC in exchange for my review.
-a dead woman’s ghost that haunts a qan’s tent, and requires a ritual to leave
-an otherworldly, white horse who has a strong influence upon the group of the qan’s horses that main character Eyvind buys.
-the sounds only Eyvind can hear with his deaf ear.
There is both an awkwardness and seriousness to Eyvind, a man with certain intractable views, unwilling to compromise on some things, but also open to the otherworldly. He is unusual in his willingness to roll with the uncanny, and also ordinary, in his desire for profit and some degree of distinction. He is a quiet observer, and marked from the outset of the story by his easy conversations with David, the merchant who accepts Eyvind on his long route on the Silk Road to trade with the qan.
Sarah Tolmie gives us a Europe, Middle East and Asia similar to ours, with its hatreds, wars, trade and superstitions. But this world is also not exactly ours, as there are actual mages, and Eyvind regularly sees ghosts in his homeland, and is spoken to by the qan’s dead wife after arriving on the steppes.
I loved the way Tolmie conveyed her story, as a retelling of events by someone living years after Eyvind, giving the events both a sense of remoteness and grandeur, a myth recounting how Iceland came to have such hardy, tough horses, thanks to one trader and a strange and powerful mare.
Thank you to Netgalley and to MacMillan-Tor/Forge and Tordotcom for this ARC in exchange for my review.
July 11, 2023
SHE FED HIM RAW HORSE DICK. I WISH I WAS LYING
April 10, 2022
Actual Rating: 4.5/5
For those who enjoy well researched historical fantasy this book will be amazing for you. I normally don't enjoy traveling stories but watching this man travel from norther Europe to Mongolia to obtain horses for his home Iceland was so engaging while also teaching me a lot that I didn't know about the global state of things in the 9th century. It had a very folklore tone with a wonderful blend of magic, superstition and spiritual. I want to re-read this again just to learn more since I know I missed a lot of references on my first read. I recommend this to people who enjoyed the historical fantasy aspects of Bear and the Nightingale.
For those who enjoy well researched historical fantasy this book will be amazing for you. I normally don't enjoy traveling stories but watching this man travel from norther Europe to Mongolia to obtain horses for his home Iceland was so engaging while also teaching me a lot that I didn't know about the global state of things in the 9th century. It had a very folklore tone with a wonderful blend of magic, superstition and spiritual. I want to re-read this again just to learn more since I know I missed a lot of references on my first read. I recommend this to people who enjoyed the historical fantasy aspects of Bear and the Nightingale.
April 10, 2022
Maza, jauka sāga. Lieliska valoda un pārliecinoši ievelkošs stāsts.
There is nothing that a child of nine and an old woman, between them, cannot teach you about a village life.
“What does a ghost have to do with religion?” asked Eyvind. “Death is the other half of life. It happens to everyone. It makes no matter what gods they believe in.”
Magic was not about comfort but symmetry.
Deserts are in the mind.
There is nothing that a child of nine and an old woman, between them, cannot teach you about a village life.
“What does a ghost have to do with religion?” asked Eyvind. “Death is the other half of life. It happens to everyone. It makes no matter what gods they believe in.”
Magic was not about comfort but symmetry.
Deserts are in the mind.
February 21, 2022
Unfortunately, this missed the mark for me. The tone of this story read more like a dry history textbook than a hypnotic historical fantasy. I was very interested in the folklore and historical context. However, the author tried to cram in too much in just around a hundred pages. There was a lot of vocabulary and very little context to assist me in parsing out the meaning of most of it. I felt too distant from characters to care about their development. Overall, this could have benefited from being longer. Thank you to NetGalley and TorDotCom for sending me an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
March 6, 2022
A lovely novella, and one I would recommend if you're looking for something short to break up the TBR. The writing is lyrical and immersive, and for anyone who's a history/horse lover I think this would be a hit.
February 27, 2022
"It occurred to him that access to power often resided with unexpected, even unwelcome people."
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All the Horses of Iceland is exactly the type of myth retellings that I like. Eyvind is a man scarred by a childhood illness, he has lost his hearing in one ear and is unable to father a child. He decides he to try to make his fortune by joining a successful merchant he has crossed paths with in the local market. David is a successful Jewish trader who traverses the Silk Road through central Asia, he is worldly in a way Icelander Eyvind is not. We follow the journey across the sea and the vast continent as they encounter the local peoples, some friendly and some not. Eyvind experiences different cultures, learning all sorts of new tactics and tools to bring back to his people.
Along the way he experiences some ghostly activity and learns about the magic within himself. He acquires horses which he thinks will revolutionize life in Iceland and he needs to navigate getting them successfully home. One of these horses is a majestic, and perhaps a little magical, white one that helps to guide him home.
The story is beautifully written and the pace is metered in a way that we can enjoy Eyvind's wonder but does not stay in any one place too long. We see not only the journey but its impact on Eyvind's life and the whole of Iceland.
Thanks to Netgalley for advanced access to this novella. All opinions above are my own.
--------------------------------
All the Horses of Iceland is exactly the type of myth retellings that I like. Eyvind is a man scarred by a childhood illness, he has lost his hearing in one ear and is unable to father a child. He decides he to try to make his fortune by joining a successful merchant he has crossed paths with in the local market. David is a successful Jewish trader who traverses the Silk Road through central Asia, he is worldly in a way Icelander Eyvind is not. We follow the journey across the sea and the vast continent as they encounter the local peoples, some friendly and some not. Eyvind experiences different cultures, learning all sorts of new tactics and tools to bring back to his people.
Along the way he experiences some ghostly activity and learns about the magic within himself. He acquires horses which he thinks will revolutionize life in Iceland and he needs to navigate getting them successfully home. One of these horses is a majestic, and perhaps a little magical, white one that helps to guide him home.
The story is beautifully written and the pace is metered in a way that we can enjoy Eyvind's wonder but does not stay in any one place too long. We see not only the journey but its impact on Eyvind's life and the whole of Iceland.
Thanks to Netgalley for advanced access to this novella. All opinions above are my own.
April 17, 2025
The writing in this was beautiful but it just didn't pull me in. For such a small book, I struggled to get through it.
September 9, 2025
Edit: re-reading this and it still holds up as being a beautiful novella, one that I wish I could have written lmao. I love Eyvind’s character even more now because I think he is very original. He stubbornly holds on to his pagan beliefs in magic, luck, and ghosts even after encountering Christians, Jews, and Muslims. But he also respects their views and believes that magic and ghosts transcend all religions. He is a very simple man. He believes farming is superior to herding, and holds on to this even after encountering herding cultures. So his core beliefs and values aren’t really changed by his travels, and honestly I find it interesting how stubborn and simple he is as a character.
Very beautifully written. I love both Norse and Khazar culture, so this was a delight to read. I liked how it was framed from the point of view of a Christian scribe, so it sounded like a transcribed saga. Eyvind is a great character too, not romanticized. He seemed to have an attitude that many men at the time would have had regarding women, though I suppose his religious views were unusual. Reading about the interactions between different cultures was awesome.
Very beautifully written. I love both Norse and Khazar culture, so this was a delight to read. I liked how it was framed from the point of view of a Christian scribe, so it sounded like a transcribed saga. Eyvind is a great character too, not romanticized. He seemed to have an attitude that many men at the time would have had regarding women, though I suppose his religious views were unusual. Reading about the interactions between different cultures was awesome.
March 10, 2022
I feel very mediocre about this one. It doesn't have a driving plot and the main character is pretty unlikable. His only motivation seems to be to bring horses to Iceland and get rich. Meanwhile, he accepts gifts of slaves (including a sex slave) without a second thought.
In its favor, there is a somewhat amusing ghost story that wraps up about three quarters through. The horse descriptions are nice. There is some whimsy.
This story would have really benefitted from a map in the beginning. For all I know, the print editions do have this. (I read an e-arc. Thanks, Netgalley!) I was preoccupied the entire time trying to mentally track their journey and feeling very confused about where they actually were. There are real places and races mentioned such as Iceland and Jews, but then there are other places that aren't named and others that have names I don't recognize at all. I don't know if I'm just ignorant or if they were made up.
On the whole, this was an ok time. And that is all.
Sexual violence? Yeah, sex slave. "concubine" Other content warnings? casual slavery
In its favor, there is a somewhat amusing ghost story that wraps up about three quarters through. The horse descriptions are nice. There is some whimsy.
This story would have really benefitted from a map in the beginning. For all I know, the print editions do have this. (I read an e-arc. Thanks, Netgalley!) I was preoccupied the entire time trying to mentally track their journey and feeling very confused about where they actually were. There are real places and races mentioned such as Iceland and Jews, but then there are other places that aren't named and others that have names I don't recognize at all. I don't know if I'm just ignorant or if they were made up.
On the whole, this was an ok time. And that is all.
Sexual violence? Yeah, sex slave. "concubine" Other content warnings? casual slavery
January 22, 2023
A short novel set in the 9th century about a guy who journeys from Iceland to Central Asia to buy horses. Reminded me a little bit of the novellas in Nghi Vo's SINGING HILLS CYCLE and of THE PHYSICIAN by Noah Gordon. I enjoyed it, but might have loved it if it had been stranger or more lyrical. It doesn't make any sense to compare it to ALL THE PRETTY HORSES or OUT STEALING HORSES just because they all have the word 'horses' in the title, but I can't help it, and I liked both of those more. I appreciated the portrayal of magic and religion as real, practical, and negotiable, and I liked this image of language as a river:
That was the way it was with languages, Eyvind had observed once he left home and realized how many there were: some he could see into and some he could not. Listening to them was like looking down into a stream. Sometimes the water was muddy and sometimes clear.
That was the way it was with languages, Eyvind had observed once he left home and realized how many there were: some he could see into and some he could not. Listening to them was like looking down into a stream. Sometimes the water was muddy and sometimes clear.
May 31, 2022
This short novel is about a the magic of horses and the magic of travel and learning about new cultures. There is a nice ghost story at the heart of it as well.
Read
December 9, 2024DNF @ 19%. Just not keeping my interest.
November 20, 2023
4 stars ✨
This book was randomly pulled off the library shelf when I realized that I had shelved this as a TBR a few months ago. And because 80% of the time I go into books blin, I must say that All The Horses of Iceland wasn’t anything like I expected.
I’m beginning to realize that I greatly enjoy reading historical fiction of the Ancient Near East and bonus points when it’s written in a travelogue format. And for that alone, this book got the rating it did because of that.
This book was randomly pulled off the library shelf when I realized that I had shelved this as a TBR a few months ago. And because 80% of the time I go into books blin, I must say that All The Horses of Iceland wasn’t anything like I expected.
I’m beginning to realize that I greatly enjoy reading historical fiction of the Ancient Near East and bonus points when it’s written in a travelogue format. And for that alone, this book got the rating it did because of that.
Read
December 10, 2022i enjoyed this immensely on my morning walks. i think if i'd read it instead of listening to the audio (which has an incredible narrator--half the time i thought i was listening to stellan skarsgard) i would have bounced off hard; its something that is made for an orator. the story itself just tells the tale of a nordic man, aven, and his acquisition of a herd of horses from the land of the khan and back to iceland. its strengths are simple but impressive: the voice of the priest narrating aven's tale and aven himself are layered and interwoven very nicely, and the characters we get are nicely drawn and engaging. and its both of their straightforward voices that i think make its other strength possible: the layering of different religions and cultures, each presented through aven who has, until the start of the story, met no one outside christians and pagans, are presented as neither exotic nor alien. his travel companions david and benjamin are both jews, and we meet khazars, mongols, muslims, and so on. some engage aven's intellectual curiosity, others his bewilderment, but the othering ive come to expect from stories like this is wholly absent. aside from that, the story is interesting and engaging, and felt more like an ethnography that i enjoyed very much. much to think about and chew on.
January 5, 2023
I seriously recommend listening to this as an audiobook. It fits the material so much better--like this is just meant to be a story told by your enthusiastic viking buddy while you're all sitting around the hearth at night.
May 6, 2023
Very nice! I found this really readable. I enjoyed the sparseness of the setting prose, which nonetheless managed to convey a story rich with detail. Gently magical.
January 22, 2022
I received an advance copy of this book via NetGalley.
Tor.com has a well-established reputation for their quality SFF novellas. All the Horses of Iceland is an interesting work with excellent writing, yet didn't meet my expectations. Protagonist Eyvind is an Icelandic man exploring the medieval world. In the company of merchants, he explores deep into Asia and finds extraordinary horses--and a powerful ghost.
Foremost, the book has a staunchly literary vibe. It is very slow to get going, and I always felt distanced from Eyvind. The premise of the book is set-up right away: we are reading a tale of events that have happened. Therefore, there's no real sense of urgency as the plot gradually unfolds. The description of the novella had me quite excited. I am HERE for historical fantasies about horses! However, the horses--and the principal horse--played a much smaller role than expected. Really, they don't feature in the novella much at all until about halfway through.
What I found the book excelled in was creating a particular mood. The author obviously put immense research into this work, and the way the diverse characters interact is fascinating. The book feels incredibly grounded in its unique setting.
In all, it's an intriguing read, even if it didn't fully connect for me.
Tor.com has a well-established reputation for their quality SFF novellas. All the Horses of Iceland is an interesting work with excellent writing, yet didn't meet my expectations. Protagonist Eyvind is an Icelandic man exploring the medieval world. In the company of merchants, he explores deep into Asia and finds extraordinary horses--and a powerful ghost.
Foremost, the book has a staunchly literary vibe. It is very slow to get going, and I always felt distanced from Eyvind. The premise of the book is set-up right away: we are reading a tale of events that have happened. Therefore, there's no real sense of urgency as the plot gradually unfolds. The description of the novella had me quite excited. I am HERE for historical fantasies about horses! However, the horses--and the principal horse--played a much smaller role than expected. Really, they don't feature in the novella much at all until about halfway through.
What I found the book excelled in was creating a particular mood. The author obviously put immense research into this work, and the way the diverse characters interact is fascinating. The book feels incredibly grounded in its unique setting.
In all, it's an intriguing read, even if it didn't fully connect for me.
February 6, 2025
what. the fuck. was that. 4.5
January 19, 2025
This small novel was a perfect sized read! The picturesque writing and storyline make it read as a story from the past blending fact and fiction into a delightful reimagining of how the horses of Iceland journeyed to Iceland.
November 8, 2022
Idk, it was alright.
July 21, 2024
Felt like a fairytale, really enjoyed it!!
Definitely gonna have to hunt down my own hardcopy for a re-read at some point
Definitely gonna have to hunt down my own hardcopy for a re-read at some point
November 27, 2023
All the Horses of Iceland Gallop in My Heart
I came into this novella knowing that I would love it. Those who are familiar with me know my obsession with Scandinavian history, mythology and literature.
What I did not expect however was how flawless it would be. I am usually wary of short novellas such as this one because it only allows the author a mere hundred pages or so to capture my attention.
But Sarah Tolmie did not do only that, but I was completely and utterly captivated, captured and imprisoned by these pages, swallowing them whole in a single day.
I felt myself walking with the these characters, reliving the moments, the tension, the magic. How wonderful was it to be transported into a world I have often read so much about. To be enamored of every single detail, so magically brought to life.
Having read the book accompanied by the Audible track made the journey all the more real and exciting. I can only thank Sarah Tolmie for bringing us along with her on this journey full of magic, history and information. I thank her also for her gargantuan effort in her research.
Powerful. Inspiring. Magical.
I came into this novella knowing that I would love it. Those who are familiar with me know my obsession with Scandinavian history, mythology and literature.
What I did not expect however was how flawless it would be. I am usually wary of short novellas such as this one because it only allows the author a mere hundred pages or so to capture my attention.
But Sarah Tolmie did not do only that, but I was completely and utterly captivated, captured and imprisoned by these pages, swallowing them whole in a single day.
I felt myself walking with the these characters, reliving the moments, the tension, the magic. How wonderful was it to be transported into a world I have often read so much about. To be enamored of every single detail, so magically brought to life.
Having read the book accompanied by the Audible track made the journey all the more real and exciting. I can only thank Sarah Tolmie for bringing us along with her on this journey full of magic, history and information. I thank her also for her gargantuan effort in her research.
Powerful. Inspiring. Magical.
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