A Flame in the North

Solveig, a seer and wielder of elemental magic, ends her apprenticeship with a feat of pure will on the same day her brother kills a visiting lord. The victim’s kin demand a weregild, or hostage. They take Solveig and Arneoir, her shieldmaiden, back north. In this land, where they keep the old ways, long-lived, pointy-eared Elders mingle with mortals, and the Enemy’s prison has begun to fail. Though Saskia Maarleveld narrates in an American accent at slight odds with Saintcrow’s (Cormorant Run) prose and Norse-derived setting, her enunciation and pacing thoroughly engage. In a crowd of named characters, Arneoir and other southern speakers get Scandinavian accents, while northern wolf warriors sound more Scottish, and Elders speak with received pronunciation. With this array of accents, listeners may struggle to differentiate minor players or grow attached to any beyond the distinctly voiced core cast.