Saga literature is full of gripping tales of love. Why, then, has so little been written about the Vikings' love life in recent times? And has this helped shape the stereotypical image of the brutal and warlike Viking that has been dominant in popular culture? Could it even be that the Vikings were motivated by love as much as honor, wealth, power and adventurousness?
Author Dag-Rune Linnerud takes a deep dive into the sagas, runic inscriptions, archaeological finds and bard squares and shows the Vikings' rich emotional life – from touching memorial poems to deceased children and stories about kings who put national security in jeopardy in order to marry their chosen one, to the runes etched into a wooden stick found under Bryggen in Bergen: "Love conquers all, let us therefore surrender to love."
In the Norse religion, there were separate gods and goddesses who ruled over areas such as love, marriage and fertility. By exploring religion and society both before and after the Christianization of Norway, readers get a new and expanded picture of the Viking.