Review: Legacy of the Runes by Christina Courtenay

Today, I'm delighted to welcome back the lovely and hugely talented Christina Courtenay. I'm sharing my review of the final book in her massively popular Runes timeslip series, Legacy of the Runes. It's a wonderful series of novels, and I can highly recommend it, starting with the brilliant Echoes of the Runes. You'll find my reviews of the other books right here on the blog.

My thanks to Rachel's Random Resources and Headline for a copy of the novel.

Legacy of the Runes is the last book in the enthralling Runes series of time travel novels based to a large extent around one family's adventures in the present and the past. This final episode features Storm, the son of Mia and Haakon Berger.

Storm is still blaming himself for the disappearance of his sister, Maddie, from Dublin. She was meant to stay at home while he went out, but when he returned, she was gone without a trace. Storm and his parents have a suspicion – Maddie has travelled to the past. Aware of his parents' blame, even though it's unspoken, Storm decides to go after her. Tracing her last sighting, he plans to follow on her trail. But first, he needs an item – one with the particular Old Norse sentence that he must say in order to be catapulted into the distant past.

When he eventually finds the artefact through rather dubious channels, he finds that the spell works, and he arrives in Dyflin under Viking rule. But no one appears to remember Maddie, until he receives a hint from an old crone, who suspects Maddie has travelled by ship to distant Iceland, with a stranger.

Deeply concerned, Storm books himself on a ship north, despite the approaching autumn with its gales and storms. As they pass by the Orkneyjar islands, they are chased by pirates, and shipwrecked ashore a small island. The locals come to their aid in fighting off the pirates, and he finds himself pairing up with a young woman who fights like a man.

With no wood to repair their ship until the spring, Storm and the ship's crew are stuck. Intrigued by Freydis, who was sent to the island by her cold fish of a mother, he befriends her and her only friend, elderly friend, Joalf. And her pet raven, Surtr!

But when Freydis is supposed to marry a powerful man on the islands, Ingolf, whose wives have died under suspicious circumstances, Storm becomes involved in saving her. 

As their feelings for each other grow, will they manage to escape the clutches of the intended? And will Storm ever make it to Iceland? Well, read the book to find out!

Legacy of the Runes is a thrilling adventure featuring 9th century Vikings. You are bound to wonder what could possibly happen next, when Storm is stranded, but Ms Courtenay weaves a clever web of unexpected circumstances that has you turning the pages fast. 

As one adventure chases another, you are rooting for Freydis in particular, as the unfair situation she finds herself in tugs at the heart strings. Why does her mother, in Norway, send her away from her own home? Is her step-father really such an ogre? And how can she escape the grasp of the sinister Ingolf?

Freydis is a clever, feisty female, raised by her father to fight, and imbued with a strong sense of independence. But at her mother's cousin Assur's home, she must learn to be a proper female. Hating those chores, but acquiescing, has her quietly planning her future. But Assur's choice of a husband for her, out of his debt to Ingolf, finally gets her moving, with Storm's and Joalf's help. She's a really likeable character, and easy to root for, though her insecurities about Storm – so different to her outspoken self – are at times a little annoying.

Storm, on the other hand, I found too superficial. He comes into his own during his journey, but there's a remaining sense of unreliability about him that he can't seem to shake off. But we mustn't forget that both Storm and Freydis are still very young, and the sudden responsibility they have to face (he in particular) is certainly challenging, especially from a 21st century point of view. Yet I still think his character needed more development.

The adventures they share are intriguing, and the fast pace keeps you reading. However, I found the ending quite rushed. The reason for Storm's journey – finding his sister, Maddie – plays just a tiny part near the end, and it left me wondering if there should have been more about Iceland, and Norway.

There were also a couple of loose ends in the plot I'd have liked to have seen wrapped up neatly. The fate of some characters seems to be open. However, I won't give away any spoilers, except: what happened to poor Surtr? I really liked the bird. (Addendum: Ms Courtenay has since written a special epilogue about Surtr. Find it on her website HERE!)

Equally, the epilogue is meant to bring everyone together, years later, with all their children – but, somehow, it didn't fit in with the rest of the novel. The sudden focus on the offspring was a bit strange, as this is the last book in the series. They won't feature again. To me, the epilogue felt like ticking a box, rather than giving the reader a final chance to enjoy a gathering with the family. It was telling us about them – where they lived, how many children they had, what they did – not actually 'being' with them.

Still, Legacy of the Runes is a riveting romantic adventure about two young people from different times who are thrown together in a maelstrom of events outside their control. Both cope well with the situations thrown at them, and the clever plot twists keep you turning those pages.

I'm sad to see the end of this utterly unique and compelling series of novels, but I thoroughly enjoyed reading each book, and I can highly recommend them all.

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Blurb:

A bond that even time cannot break

Storm Berger has never forgiven himself for his younger sister Madison’s disappearance. Suspecting she’s travelled back to the ninth century in the footsteps of other family members, Storm can only make sure she’s safe by going after her.

Raised unconventionally as her father’s only child, Freydis has never been content to simply accept her fate. So, when she’s promised in marriage to a tyrant, she’s determined to find a way out of the arrangement. Help comes in the form of a mysterious and attractive stranger stranded on her island’s shores: Storm.

The only way Freydis can truly be free is for Storm to marry her himself. But that would mean entwining lives that, until now, have been separated by centuries. . .

 

Buy Links:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Legacy-Runes-spellbinding-conclusion-adored/dp/1472293258/

https://www.amazon.com/Legacy-Runes-spellbinding-conclusion-adored/dp/1472293258/

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About the Author:

Christina Courtenay

Christina Courtenay writes historical romance, time slip/dual time and time travel stories, and lives in Herefordshire (near the Welsh border) in the UK. Although born in England, she has a Swedish mother and was brought up in Sweden – hence her abiding interest in the Vikings.

 

 

Christina is a Vice President and former Chair and of the UK’s Romantic Novelists’ Association and has won several awards, including the RoNA for Best Historical Romantic Novel twice with Highland Storms (2012) and The Gilded Fan (2014) and the RNA Fantasy Romantic Novel of the year 2021 with Echoes of the Runes. 

LEGACY OF THE RUNES (time travel historical romance published by Headline Review 15th August 2024) is her latest novel. Christina is a keen amateur genealogist and loves history and archaeology (the armchair variety).

 

Connect with Christina:

Website:  http://www.christinacourtenay.com

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/christinacourtenayauthor?fref=ts

Twitter/X:  https://twitter.com/PiaCCourtenay

Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/ChristinaCourtenayAuthor/

Bluesky:  https://christinacourtenay@bsky.social