What do you think?
Rate this book
Viking Trading Lands #1
Oath Undo Me
Historical Fiction (Viking) female protagonist.
Astrid is free, widowed after two years in an unwanted marriage. She wants to reclaim her life and become the warrior she always wanted to be, just like her father. Horrified by her best friend’s unwelcomed proposal, she flees everything she has ever known for a chance at life across the Baltic Sea, assuming a new identity in a land unknown.
Aldeigjuborg, in the land of the Rus', is far different to her native homeland. With the support of her new mentor, she is given the opportunity to create a life within the walls of a town she would have previously dreamed of raiding. Being a Viking is more than adventure and travel. Riches can be found in trade, through the learning of new languages and cultures.
Soon, Astrid realises everything has a price, and a promise made can have unintended consequences.
Oath Undo Me is book one in the Viking Trading Lands series, inspired by archaeological evidence.
Astrid is free, widowed after two years in an unwanted marriage. She wants to reclaim her life and become the warrior she always wanted to be, just like her father. Horrified by her best friend’s unwelcomed proposal, she flees everything she has ever known for a chance at life across the Baltic Sea, assuming a new identity in a land unknown.
Aldeigjuborg, in the land of the Rus', is far different to her native homeland. With the support of her new mentor, she is given the opportunity to create a life within the walls of a town she would have previously dreamed of raiding. Being a Viking is more than adventure and travel. Riches can be found in trade, through the learning of new languages and cultures.
Soon, Astrid realises everything has a price, and a promise made can have unintended consequences.
Oath Undo Me is book one in the Viking Trading Lands series, inspired by archaeological evidence.
- GenresFiction
285 pages, Paperback
First published August 31, 2022
2 people are currently reading
32 people want to read
About the author
Megan Formanek
4 books17 followersMegan was raised on the stormy Illawarra coast where thunder often raged. One may be forgiven for believing the ‘old gods’ had favoured Australia with the wild hunt on those dark nights.
At university she majored in history, sparking her obsession with the so-called 'dark ages' and a desire to discover their long forgotten secrets. After graduation she travelled extensively and lived, first in South Korea, and later in Italy and the UK. It was during the dark, and seemingly endless nights of the South Korean winters that she finally allowed her characters to wreak havoc on the page.
Megan's interest in the Vikings is rooted in archaeological finds surfacing in 2015 and later, showing that they were far more than the 'smash-and-grab' opportunists that they have long been portrayed as. It was the desire to learn more about the world in which these 7th century (and onwards) Scandinavian's lived and the lives they lead that began to weave into Megan's imagination.
Her current works, the Viking Trading Lands series, brings to life the little known exploits of the Vikings who went East and created a new stronghold. Individuals that were not only hungry for adventure but also ready to challenge the notion of what a Viking could be.
When she is not writing she is drinking copious amounts of excellent coffee, reading history books and cooking meals from historical texts. You will find her exploring libraries and museums, and in front of her sewing machine constructing vintage inspired clothing.
www.meganformanek.com
At university she majored in history, sparking her obsession with the so-called 'dark ages' and a desire to discover their long forgotten secrets. After graduation she travelled extensively and lived, first in South Korea, and later in Italy and the UK. It was during the dark, and seemingly endless nights of the South Korean winters that she finally allowed her characters to wreak havoc on the page.
Megan's interest in the Vikings is rooted in archaeological finds surfacing in 2015 and later, showing that they were far more than the 'smash-and-grab' opportunists that they have long been portrayed as. It was the desire to learn more about the world in which these 7th century (and onwards) Scandinavian's lived and the lives they lead that began to weave into Megan's imagination.
Her current works, the Viking Trading Lands series, brings to life the little known exploits of the Vikings who went East and created a new stronghold. Individuals that were not only hungry for adventure but also ready to challenge the notion of what a Viking could be.
When she is not writing she is drinking copious amounts of excellent coffee, reading history books and cooking meals from historical texts. You will find her exploring libraries and museums, and in front of her sewing machine constructing vintage inspired clothing.
www.meganformanek.com
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
July 29, 2022
I was a little hesitant to read this viking book, but I really liked it and at the end was a glimpse of the next book. So I have an inkling of what's coming. But we don't quite know who coming is it going to be Sven or Kjarr, or someone we don't know about. But the new book will have Helga and Mikel being married with Signe and Kjarr being left with Freyja (Neflaug's daughter). Megan makes an interesting story that's to be recommended to anybody that has an interest in vikings.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 31, 2022
I loved the use of the Norse mythology, it was what I wanted from this type of book. The characters were interesting and I wanted more in this world. The Viking Trading Lands series has a strong start.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
August 31, 2022
I received an ARC for an honest review...
Reading the synopsis for this I went in with such high hopes...It was good, it was well written, but I just felt like it could have been so much more. Astrid is a strong female character and she does what she has to do to get where she wants to be. This title releases on 8-31-2022 and if you are a fan of strong females and vikings this is your read.
Reading the synopsis for this I went in with such high hopes...It was good, it was well written, but I just felt like it could have been so much more. Astrid is a strong female character and she does what she has to do to get where she wants to be. This title releases on 8-31-2022 and if you are a fan of strong females and vikings this is your read.
August 8, 2022
(I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.)
The primary reason I (figuratively) picked this book up was because it was a viking story, which I personally feel rarely gets any good coverage on their culture or lives, instead always portrayed for their short excursions of violence and raiding.
With that in mind, I was not disappointed to find that raiding was hardly mentioned, and was not prevalent in the story, at all! It clearly showed that it was entirely possible to be a viking without raiding monasteries every other week, which I enjoyed. I think the world and culture that was crafted around this story was done well.
In regards to the protagonist, I must admit I was a little disappointed. At first it was very hard to pin down her age, leaving me at a loss to try imagining this character. Was she 30? 40? How old was she before she was married? I later found out that she was quite young --placed around the 18-21 age mark (I'm still not sure)-- which left me completely thrown, leaving me to mentally try reviewing and editing the majority of the story I had already read. Suddenly her inexperience and hesitancy made sense! She was, after all, just a teenager trying to find her way in the world!
The conflict implied by the title and blurb indicated Astrid would be put in dire straits to keep her word/ oath, but throughout the story we see her fail to keep most promises ever made, and with almost no consequences. Only at the end of the story does she decide to keep one, and then it directly impacts her life.
I also feel the character of Neflaug really could have been expanded on, as our first glimpse of her were tales of a wily and successful businesswoman, but we instead get a moody/borderline bipolar lady who is struggling with her business, and not as invested with her economic independence as we have been led to believe. She willingly dumps her business on Astrid, and then tries to sabotage everything she has built. That confused me a bit.
I did, however, really enjoy the character of Kjarr, and his friendship with Astrid was sweet and dependable. I do look forward to seeing more of him in the coming books!
The punctuation has little input on the quality of the story, itself, but I most certainly found it difficult to read. Brushing up on your punctuation and grammar skills will easily rectify this, or even enlisting the skills of a proofreader to double-check your manuscript before printing will easily fix this.
All in all, the story has a few weak points that could easily be bolstered, but was generally a good piece of fiction, and was worth reading.
Cheers,
Grace
The primary reason I (figuratively) picked this book up was because it was a viking story, which I personally feel rarely gets any good coverage on their culture or lives, instead always portrayed for their short excursions of violence and raiding.
With that in mind, I was not disappointed to find that raiding was hardly mentioned, and was not prevalent in the story, at all! It clearly showed that it was entirely possible to be a viking without raiding monasteries every other week, which I enjoyed. I think the world and culture that was crafted around this story was done well.
In regards to the protagonist, I must admit I was a little disappointed. At first it was very hard to pin down her age, leaving me at a loss to try imagining this character. Was she 30? 40? How old was she before she was married? I later found out that she was quite young --placed around the 18-21 age mark (I'm still not sure)-- which left me completely thrown, leaving me to mentally try reviewing and editing the majority of the story I had already read. Suddenly her inexperience and hesitancy made sense! She was, after all, just a teenager trying to find her way in the world!
The conflict implied by the title and blurb indicated Astrid would be put in dire straits to keep her word/ oath, but throughout the story we see her fail to keep most promises ever made, and with almost no consequences. Only at the end of the story does she decide to keep one, and then it directly impacts her life.
I also feel the character of Neflaug really could have been expanded on, as our first glimpse of her were tales of a wily and successful businesswoman, but we instead get a moody/borderline bipolar lady who is struggling with her business, and not as invested with her economic independence as we have been led to believe. She willingly dumps her business on Astrid, and then tries to sabotage everything she has built. That confused me a bit.
I did, however, really enjoy the character of Kjarr, and his friendship with Astrid was sweet and dependable. I do look forward to seeing more of him in the coming books!
The punctuation has little input on the quality of the story, itself, but I most certainly found it difficult to read. Brushing up on your punctuation and grammar skills will easily rectify this, or even enlisting the skills of a proofreader to double-check your manuscript before printing will easily fix this.
All in all, the story has a few weak points that could easily be bolstered, but was generally a good piece of fiction, and was worth reading.
Cheers,
Grace
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 12, 2022
3.5
I was very excited to find another Viking fiction book. There is so much to the Viking culture and it was great to read about the trading aspects of the Viking age. However, there were quite a few historical inaccuracies. It can be hard to research the Viking age since they did not write down things like other time periods and it was such a long time ago, things can get lost in translation.The story itself was pretty good for the most part. I did find it to go dry at times but always picked back up. I felt that the characters were all very well written and developed. Astrid really grew into a new person, as she, in a way, was a new person.
I overall really enjoyed this book. I am looking forward to the next book in the series to see where the story takes Astrid.
There are a lot of grammatical mistakes and spelling errors. I think this definitely needs to be read through by an editor, if not done already, before the publication date. There were also a few times that the story didn’t make sense or there was a story error.
Thank you to BookSirens and Megan Formanek for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.
I was very excited to find another Viking fiction book. There is so much to the Viking culture and it was great to read about the trading aspects of the Viking age. However, there were quite a few historical inaccuracies. It can be hard to research the Viking age since they did not write down things like other time periods and it was such a long time ago, things can get lost in translation.The story itself was pretty good for the most part. I did find it to go dry at times but always picked back up. I felt that the characters were all very well written and developed. Astrid really grew into a new person, as she, in a way, was a new person.
I overall really enjoyed this book. I am looking forward to the next book in the series to see where the story takes Astrid.
There are a lot of grammatical mistakes and spelling errors. I think this definitely needs to be read through by an editor, if not done already, before the publication date. There were also a few times that the story didn’t make sense or there was a story error.
Thank you to BookSirens and Megan Formanek for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.
August 24, 2022
I received an advance copy of this book in return for an honest review.
*This review is without fear or favour*
Looking at the synopsis, this ticked all the boxes for a potential fantastic book: Female main character, historical background, viking times and adventure. This is the reason I requested to become ARC reader for this book.
What I liked about this book: the description of the landscapes, the towns and the general people's lives and cultures. It was enough detail to create the picture without overfilling with detail.
What I disliked: the main character and her interactions with other secondary characters. She was so self centred and obssed with not to get married that it was hard to relate. It felt like the author wanted to make her main character so independent and brave that actually felt the opposite extreme. A main character so full of herself and insecure. It became a point where I lost interest about what happened to her and it was hard to pick the book to carry on as it all felt very shallow.
Overall, I think it is a good start for a series, I just wish the main character was a bit more interesting and had that kind of resilient bravery . Also, I would have categorised this book as Young Adult within the Historical Fiction frame.
*This review is without fear or favour*
Looking at the synopsis, this ticked all the boxes for a potential fantastic book: Female main character, historical background, viking times and adventure. This is the reason I requested to become ARC reader for this book.
What I liked about this book: the description of the landscapes, the towns and the general people's lives and cultures. It was enough detail to create the picture without overfilling with detail.
What I disliked: the main character and her interactions with other secondary characters. She was so self centred and obssed with not to get married that it was hard to relate. It felt like the author wanted to make her main character so independent and brave that actually felt the opposite extreme. A main character so full of herself and insecure. It became a point where I lost interest about what happened to her and it was hard to pick the book to carry on as it all felt very shallow.
Overall, I think it is a good start for a series, I just wish the main character was a bit more interesting and had that kind of resilient bravery . Also, I would have categorised this book as Young Adult within the Historical Fiction frame.
September 5, 2022
Disappointed🐺🗡⛵
Viking🐺🗡🐎⛵ Era Historical Romance💕 and Adventure.
880 AD
The story chronicles the life of a Viking woman💃💋🗡, forced to marry👰 an old man, A Jarl, at a young age. When he dies she thinks she is free and leaves the area to avoid the man's brother. She returns to her people on foot.
Bad luck and trouble seem to follow her everywhere, but she refuses to marry👰 again for some reason.
I don't know, this book just seemed meandering and boring to me for the most part. I never really understood the reasons why this woman avoided relationships with men., and she certainly didn't do well with making woman friends either.
ARC provided by Book📚 Sirens💃
I also got this ebook from Amazon with KU.
Great world🌎 building. i Disliked the self centeredness of the main character.
Viking🐺🗡🐎⛵ Era Historical Romance💕 and Adventure.
880 AD
The story chronicles the life of a Viking woman💃💋🗡, forced to marry👰 an old man, A Jarl, at a young age. When he dies she thinks she is free and leaves the area to avoid the man's brother. She returns to her people on foot.
Bad luck and trouble seem to follow her everywhere, but she refuses to marry👰 again for some reason.
I don't know, this book just seemed meandering and boring to me for the most part. I never really understood the reasons why this woman avoided relationships with men., and she certainly didn't do well with making woman friends either.
ARC provided by Book📚 Sirens💃
I also got this ebook from Amazon with KU.
Great world🌎 building. i Disliked the self centeredness of the main character.
August 3, 2022
I love a strong woman and this book delivered in the form of Astrid. Her mission is to answer to no one but her, and her journey is one full of twists and turns that has her questioning who she thinks she is and what the gods have in store for her. This is a very different and refreshing Viking story that gives the reader a different experience of that era. I love the direction this series is shaping in. I would really liked to have gotten a more visceral understanding of Astrid as her story unfolded. The ending is fabulous, leaving the reader desperate to know what comes next. A marvellous debut.
August 17, 2022
Great read, cover to cover. A strong, relatable female lead overcoming obstacles you often don't see coming. The book also touches on topics with contemporary importance which I thoroughly enjoyed. I fell in love with all the characters and cannot wait until the next book is out. Thank you for an adventurous read!!
August 15, 2022
The strength, guts, and determination for her life if the main female is captivating! I had to keep reading to find out more. The challenges and obstacles she had to overcome. *I was given a copy and am voluntarily giving my honest review.
December 20, 2022
I am extremely impressed with this first book by this author. The story unfolds and leaves no one uniformed about either the main characters or the settings yet it is written in such a way that the reader finds it difficult to put down. I found it equal to, if not better than, Wild Swans, a multi-award winning book by Jung Chang (though the subject matter is different) which was written in the heydays of the Chinese revolution. I can't wait for Megan's next book.
August 28, 2022
Disappointing- that best describes this book. I had hoped this would be the first clean Viking read for me, but alas, it is not. It's clean until 15% in, and slowly goes downhill from there.
Because of the negative content issues varying from sexual innuendos, devil-may-care adultery and prostitution, unbridled bloodlust, to skirting the edges of dark magic and the mention of upcoming pagan human sacrifices, this is not a book I would recommend at all, ever.
The author's writing style was appealing, but the content was completely unacceptable.
Thank you to Booksirens and the publisher for an e-copy of this book. A positive review was not required, and the thoughts above are my own.
Because of the negative content issues varying from sexual innuendos, devil-may-care adultery and prostitution, unbridled bloodlust, to skirting the edges of dark magic and the mention of upcoming pagan human sacrifices, this is not a book I would recommend at all, ever.
The author's writing style was appealing, but the content was completely unacceptable.
Thank you to Booksirens and the publisher for an e-copy of this book. A positive review was not required, and the thoughts above are my own.
September 13, 2022
I chose to read Oath Undo Me because I was anxious to read something which portrayed Vikings as more positive- or at least more complex- than the common picture of them as ruthless, violent raiders. Although there was some of that in this book, most of the book took place within a different culture, one which I wish had been explored more fully. There is some discussion about the differences between Norse and Christian ideologies, the bulk of the book is about the individuals and their relationships. This is not all bad; the characters are well drawn and the story interesting. I appreciated that the female characters, who took the lead in the story, were excellent examples of female strength in all ways - from business acumen to autonomy to physical strength in everything from fighting to going to extremes to save loved ones. I know this is part one of a series and I will look forward to future episodes, hoping there is more cultural information.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
May 7, 2023
880 CE. Astrid travels to her aunt, hoping for a place to stay after being widowed. It was not a love match, and Astrid vows never again to be chained by marriage. Her dream is to raid and adventure like her late father. She reunites with a childhood friend and old flame, Sven, and together they seek admittance into a warband. With no man to vouch for her, Sven proposes marriage and confesses his love to Astrid. Hurt and feeling betrayed, she runs. A chance encounter takes Astrid to the Rus’s lands, where she’s employed by a widowed businesswoman. However, rumors begin to spread about how her boss unfairly treats the farmers who sell to her. Can Astrid find answers in a land where she’s only just learning the language, and with few she can trust? Or will she undo the freedom she’s worked for?
There are some editorial errors in the text, mostly involving punctuation, like missing exclamation points or uncapitalized letters. There’s also a lot of eye-rolling, which wasn’t used as a gesture of exasperation or sarcasm until the 1980s. Besides these concerns, the story of Astrid starting a new life in an unfamiliar land is engaging. Since she uses a false name when accepting the job, she’s constantly under threat of discovery, along with the concerning rumors about her employer, both of which steadily raise the tension in the story. Astrid struggles with trust, particularly as she feels backed into a corner by her best friend. Overall, though, Astrid’s development is charming, and the landscape comes alive vibrantly. I look forward to book two in the Viking Trading Lands series.
Review originally posted via the Historical Novel Society at: https://historicalnovelsociety.org/re...
There are some editorial errors in the text, mostly involving punctuation, like missing exclamation points or uncapitalized letters. There’s also a lot of eye-rolling, which wasn’t used as a gesture of exasperation or sarcasm until the 1980s. Besides these concerns, the story of Astrid starting a new life in an unfamiliar land is engaging. Since she uses a false name when accepting the job, she’s constantly under threat of discovery, along with the concerning rumors about her employer, both of which steadily raise the tension in the story. Astrid struggles with trust, particularly as she feels backed into a corner by her best friend. Overall, though, Astrid’s development is charming, and the landscape comes alive vibrantly. I look forward to book two in the Viking Trading Lands series.
Review originally posted via the Historical Novel Society at: https://historicalnovelsociety.org/re...
December 31, 2024
What a journey through time! It was so nice to follow a strong female lead on her path to independence. I loved the turns this books made, making me want to turn every page quickly. The descriptive writing allowed my imagination to conjur all the characters and scenery vividly in my mind. The writer brings topics of contemporary importance to the forefront and this book would do well for young adults but readers of all ages would find this interesting, especially those with a fondness for Vikings. Highly reccomend and look forward to the books to come!
January 10, 2023
Not my usual genre, so it took me a chapter or 2 to really immerse myself. I fell in love with the main character. Love her strength and sense of adventure. At first I must admit I really wanted the main character to fall in love and marry however, she is so much more than a wife and maybe that is the way I was brought up so trying to put my beliefs aside and see it from a historical point of view really gave me a better understanding of the way it was or could be back then.
February 21, 2023
Loved this rich and engaging novel. Exquisitely written with such detail.. you can see, touch, feel, taste, hear a time long gone. Set in the Viking era yet the characters are so relatable.. I feel I could sit down to dine with them and I would know them and they would know me. I am drawn in to this adventurous tale and I anticipate the saga to come...
November 6, 2023
Set in the Viking era, where the head-strong Astrid is finally free to live her life her way, doesn't come without hardship, consequences and life-changing decisions. The author brings it to life with a clever and intriguing story and a descriptive Viking theme that leaves you wanting to read the next book. Well done!
August 25, 2024
I COULD NOT PUT THIS BOOK DOWN AND NEED THE NEXT ONE!!!
I met the author last weekend at the Townsville medieval festival, I loved her energy and excitement for history.
The book took a sec to get into Asterid’s story but her character growth and story is sooooooo interesting and I can’t wait to read the next book!
I met the author last weekend at the Townsville medieval festival, I loved her energy and excitement for history.
The book took a sec to get into Asterid’s story but her character growth and story is sooooooo interesting and I can’t wait to read the next book!
January 5, 2025
This read took me a good few chapters to get into, but I was surprised at how quickly I HAD to know the whole story -- it was a true page-turner! I thought it was going to be a romance novel, but it ended up being a wonderful story highlighting the strength of women. I enjoyed reading the first chapter of the next book, and can't wait for the release of both.
February 27, 2023
I enjoyed it very much. The tale is cleverly thought through, providing much fascinating insight to Viking life in that time, as a backdrop to the plausible and intriguing adventures of a real woman of the times. Looking forward to the sequel.
October 16, 2023
Wasn’t what I expected
Definitely a different story than I expected but well told. I found myself looking forward to what would happen next and wishing for good things to happen for the main characters.
Definitely a different story than I expected but well told. I found myself looking forward to what would happen next and wishing for good things to happen for the main characters.
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews