Written around AD 1200 by an unnamed Icelandic author the Orkneyinga Saga is an intriguing fusion of myth legend & history. The only medieval chronicle to have Orkney as the central place of action it tells of an era when the islands were still part of the Viking world beginning with their conquest by the kings of Norway in the ninth century. The saga describes the subsequent history of the Earldom of Orkney & the adventures of great Norsemen such as Sigurd the Powerful St Magnus the Martyr & Hrolf the conqueror of Normandy. Savagely powerful & poetic this is a fascinating depiction of an age of brutal battles murder sorcery & bitter family feuds.