Overview

Tenth-century Iceland. One night in the darkness of winter, two friends set out on an adventure but end up killing a man. A SUNDAY TIMES HISTORICAL NOVEL OF THE YEAR. Tenth-century Iceland. In the midwinter darkness, on the lifeless black soils of a newly settled land, two friends kill a man. Kjaran, an itinerant storyteller, and Gunnar, a once-feared warrior, must make a choice: conceal the deed or confess to it and pay the blood price to the dead man's brothers. For the right reasons, they make the wrong choice. Kjaran and Gunnar's fateful decision will leave them fighting for their lives, fighting to retain their humanity as Iceland's unyielding code of honour ignites a remorseless blood feud that will consume all it touches. 'Smile of the Wolf bares its fangs from the first page. Like a medieval tapestry, the storytelling is rich with imagery. Readers will be lured spellbound into this lyrical and evocative Icelandic saga. It deserves huge success' DAVID GILMAN.

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9781788544115

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Reviews

'An epic story of exile and revenge set in the snows of Iceland' Sheffield Telegraph. 'A thoughtful, literary take on a world that is more often depicted in a boy's adventure way. The focus in Leach's book is not on the fighting, but on the strange, inescapable logic that makes the fighting inevitable' The Times. 'Smile of the Wolf bares its fangs from the first page. Like a medieval tapestry, the storytelling is rich with imagery. Readers will be lured spellbound into this lyrical and evocative Icelandic saga. It deserves huge success' David Gilman.

'Tim Leach is good at ratcheting up the tension' Times, Books of the Year. 'Leach's gift for conjuring up the past is underappreciated' Sunday Times, Books of the Year. 'Through him we understand the pitiless code of honour which drives almost everyone in the story to destruction - we understand, and we care' Historical Novel Society. 'A poetic, absorbing narrative with many of the same qualities as the medieval Icelandic sagas that it echoes and reimagines' Sunday Times. 'An epic story of exile and revenge set in the snows of Iceland' Sheffield Telegraph. 'A thoughtful, literary take on a world that is more often depicted in a boy's adventure way. The focus in Leach's book is not on the fighting, but on the strange, inescapable logic that makes the fighting inevitable' The Times. 'Smile of the Wolf bares its fangs from the first page. Like a medieval tapestry, the storytelling is rich with imagery. Readers will be lured spellbound into this lyrical and evocative Icelandic saga. It deserves huge success' David Gilman.

PRAISE FOR TIM LEACH: 'Always beautifully, lyrically written. Five stars' For Winter Nights, on The Last King of Lydia. 'Beautiful, epic, dramatic' The Bookbag, on The King and the Slave. 'Intriguing ... full of vigour and promise' Literary Review on The Last King of Lydia.

Author Information

Tim Leach is a graduate of the Warwick Writing Programme, where he now teaches as an Assistant Professor. His first novel, The Last King of Lydia, was shortlisted for the Dylan Thomas Prize.

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