Vikings Had Divas, Too

What’s the difference between a Viking and a medieval knight.

The answer:  Not much.

Really.

Readers who are avid fans of medieval romances often decline to try Viking ones, largely because they have a distorted view of Vikings as vicious rapers and pillagers.  But that is just a distorted representation perpetuated by the biased monk historians of that time period.

Both Viking and Saxon men of a certain class were committed to fighting for their leaders, whether they be kings or high-chieftains.  These were primitive times, and there was violence on both sides.  Both Viking and Saxon men had other responsibilities to families, servants and cotters.  Many of them worked the land or earned funds as traders.  Their clothing and battle gear, not to mention their language, were often similar.

But here’s the neat thing about Vikings.  Their women were given more independence than other females of that time. Although they had little  choice in a husband (marriages were arranged for gain or military alliance), they could own their own land.  Everything they brought to a marriage was theirs, including the dowry.  And if they wanted to divorce their husbands, all they had to do was announce before witnesses, “I divorce you.”

Even better, the Vikings…men and women alike…had a great sense of humor.  Their sagas were evidence of their ability to laugh at themselves.

My new book, THE VIKING TAKES A KNIGHT, is a perfect example of this, especially since the heroine of this book is the Viking, an independent Norsewoman with her own wealth and occupation, while the hero is a Saxon knight.

If you would like to know more about THE VIKING TAKES A KNIGHT, or my other books, to get free novellas or genealogy charts, check out my website at www.sandrahill.net.

And, as always, I wish you smiles in your reading.