I am so excited to share that my first novel, The Voyage of Freydis, has been on the Canadian bestseller list for two weeks this October.
The Voyage of Freydisa is a work of historical fiction that is a revisionist retelling of the life of Freydis Eiriksdottir, the first and only woman to sail across the North Atlantic on a Viking expedition bound for North America in 1000 AD.
I will provide a bit of a content warning for domestic violence and miscarriage which is highlighted in this fictional retelling of the Vinland sagas where Freydis is portrayed as a nepharious character. I changed things around and slashed the wicked reputation that has ghosted Freydis through the centuries by painting her as an innocent who was bound and determined to escape her husband’s abusive fists by sailing away from Greenland on a Viking expedition.
While the first part of the novel has been described as a grim read, the second half speaks to the need for social support to survive hardship and suffering. When Freydis finds friendship with peoples from a now extinct Beothuk tribe, she finds love and understanding, friendship and hope.
I truly believe that this historical work of fiction links the past to the present. My belief is that abuse trauma is timeless and that we need to break the silence and allow victims of domestic violence to speak their truths during this time of reckoning in our trauma focused culture. The novel also speaks to the meeting of two cultures, highlighting the interactions of the Vikings with the First Nations peoples.
The Canadian trade paperback is on sale in numerous bookstores, including Monro Books, Indigo Chapters, Shoppers Drug Mart, Walmart, Coles, Costco and smaller bookstores.