This small but potent volume, told with a wry sense of dark humor paints a vivid picture of a turbulent 9th century Scotland. Set on a holy isle near the coast, a community of monks is alarmed to see the red sails of a Viking raiding ship approaching. In a fervor of piety and religious elation they prepare themselves for martyrdom, sure to be their fate, soon. One young monk, though, is not ready for transportation to heaven and hides in a place where it is sure no one will look and survives the massacre along with the wife of the local blacksmith, a woman much abused who is far from grief-stricken to watch her brute of a husband summarily murdered. Another unexpected survivor of the raid is an aging Viking, wounded but not mortally, mistakenly buried by his crew, thinking him to be dead. This mismatched trio finds a way to make a surprisingly pleasant life in the wake of the tragedy and seems to be on the way to actual happiness, something none of them looked for.

Besides being a look at the kind of life people might have lived on an island off the Scottish coast in A.D. 825, this is a study of how ordinary people find ways to survive, sometimes even finding gentle humor in the vicissitudes of life. Despite his status as a raider, a rapist and plunderer, Grimur is ready to surrender his life of violence and become a farmer, carpenter and lover. Brother Martin, at first appalled by his cowardice and unwillingness to accept martyrdom with his fellows finds himself, by default, Abbot of the burned and shattered monastery. Una, beekeeper and mead-maker is pleased to be free of her brute of a husband and to find love, of a sort, with the time-worn warrior.

Written with a light touch that flows pleasantly, even the occasionally bloody occurrences in the tale, the descriptions of religious routine and custom, and the ever-present sense the characters have of never being in full control, this is a delightful read. Glimpses of earthy humor, sometimes vulgar, add amusement to the mix. The reader comes to appreciate the varied strengths of each of these disparate souls and to yearn for their peace and happiness. The minute details of daily life in the time and place are a satisfying sauce added to the meat of a good tale, told well.