The first in a rich historical trilogy that draws on legend, by the author of NORWEGIAN WOOD and THE SIXTEEN TREES OF THE SOMME.

Norway, 1880. In the secluded village of Butangen at the end of the valley, headstrong Astrid dreams of a life beyond marriage, hard work and children. And then Pastor Kai Schweigaard comes into her life, taking over the 700-year-old stave church with its carvings of pagan deities. The two church bells were forged by her forefather in the sixteenth century, in memory of conjoined sisters Halfrid and Gunhild Hekne, and are said to have supernatural powers. But now the pastor wants to tear it down, to replace it with a modern, larger church. Though Astrid is drawn to him, this may be a provocation too far.

Talented architecture student Gerhard Schonauer arrives from Dresden to oversee the removal of the church and its reconstruction in the German city. Everything about elegant Schonauer is so different, so cosmopolitan. Astrid must make a choice: for her homeland and the pastor, or for a daunting and uncertain future in Germany.

Then the bells begin to toll…

Translated from the Norwegian by Deborah Dawkin

Love, suspense, nature and superstition are woven together in this powerful novel. Set in spectacular surroundings where anything can happen it will give the reader a taste of something deeply and genuinely Norwegian. – author of THE HISTORY OF BEES

Lyrical, melancholy and with beautifully drawn characters, this pitches old beliefs against new ways with a haunting delicacy that rings true. – Daily Mail

Mytting shows how landscape and climate can define a character . . . He delivers village wisdom . . . and jagged realism. It is a fireside read with splinters. – Financial Times

Mytting’s cleverly crafted story heads inexorably to a moving conclusion – Sunday Times

An exquisitely atmospheric novel about the struggle to cherish the beauty that is right in front of us; be it a blue-dark night, the bear-colored wood of a decaying stave church, or a love that is blooming through a late-thawing snow. The Bell in the Lake does what fiction promises: to steal you away to another world and ask you, if unfairly, to leave a little of your heart behind.

Lars Mytting’s historical novel is captivating and engaging . . . With his powerful narrative style, intertwined story and detailed knowledge of carpentry, fishing and stave churches, there is reason to believe that this time he will again reach many many readers. – Dagbladet

Magnificent historical novel – Adresseavisen