Bjorn the Beautiful has returned from exile to revenge himself on those he considers the source of his troubles. He does not come alone, instead he brings Franks and Angles along with a Christian priest. He begins his revenge by attacking a wedding party, but this volume is only the opening of a saga of conflict between old and new beliefs. Now, I need to get hold of volumes 2-4 to finish the story!

Thank you so much to NetGalley for this copy.
I am late to review this book,

This graphic novel had beautiful illustrations, it’s a good start to this series and even though I gave it 3 stars I will still continue on.
Living in Norway makes stories about vikings and norse mythology easy to follow along to. I liked that aspect of the story. There is some graphic scenes in here.
This is like 60 pages long, and reads quickly. This first volume took me a little time to get into, however, once I did I definitely want to know what happens.

I loved the artwork but something just felt missing in the story which is a shame and this had everything I should have loved.... But it was just lacking for me

This is the first graphic novel in a series about Vikings long ago, and their exploits and battles. Its adult elements likely would not be appropriate for children. The artwork is excellent and the story is emerging. Recommended

This was a decent graphic novel with an interesting plot. With vikings, action, love and kidnapping you'd think you wouldn't need more. Unfortunately, you do.

I liked the art style - it was very different from what I usually read - and I enjoyed the roughness of the settings and the authentic atmosphere of the viking era. However, the story was a bit repetitive and it lacked... something. While there were good elements here and there, it felt a bit flat and I wanted more depth and maybe even some more superstition and fantastic elements.

An interesting read.

The theft of a Christian relic begins a struggle between different factions of Scandinavian warriors in the 8th century, where personal ambitions and revenge set a period of time where violence was a daily affair.

It reminds me of those old Viking movies that were once seen on TV. Raids, violence, some mentions of religion clash.

Björn is an exiled warrior who arrives with a mixed contingent taking advantage of a wedding to take revenge. The bride, Lina, stand out, is not intimidated and fight back. This is just the introduction of the journey during Jul (winter time). There is a glossary for some words and context.

Nice adventure and cool classic comic drawing.

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Un comic de clásica aventura de vikingos en el 798 , durante la boda de Harald y Lina, Bjorn el Hermoso asalta la fiesta con un conglomerado de guerreros francos y sajones en venganza por su exilio por incumplir las leyes de la comunidad. Se lleva a los sobrevivientes como esclavos en una marcha invernal, aun con destino desconocido. Con ellos va un sacerdote cristiano y aunque les amonesta por su excesiva crueldad van supuestamente por orden de algun reino cristiano buscando recuperar una reliquia perdida.

Entretenido, aunque este es el primer tomo y esto recien comienza.

This is the first graphic novel in a series about Vikings long ago, and their exploits and battles. Its adult elements likely would not be appropriate for children. The artwork is excellent and the story is emerging. Recommended.

**Disclaimer: I was given an e-ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.**

Total "Banner Saga" vibes. "Hammerfall" isn't normally a comic I would pick up to read. The art style is pleasing, but the story was very boring. Lina and Bjorn seemed to be the most developed and interesting characters.

A very enjoyable historical graphic novel, well written and beautifully drawn artwork, hope to buy the others in this series.

** I WAS GIVEN THIS BOOK FOR MY READING PLEASURE **
Copy received through Netgalley

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While the Serpent Sleeps (Hammerfall #1) by Sylvain Runberg
★★★☆☆
66 Pages
Content Warning: threats of rape, ransacking, blood/violence/gore, sex scenes/nudity

I have a lot of mixed feelings about this one for the simple fact that it was so short, but there was a heck of a lot of story told in those few pages.

To start with, I had a real problem with the formatting, because the creators chose a historically-fitting font, which at times was really hard on the eyes. In paperback, or on a laptop, it would probably be big enough to not be a problem. But on a tablet, some of the text on the cream background were really hard to make out, and there were about 3 pages at the end where the text was actually a little blurry. I'm not sure if that was just my copy, like a glitch, or if that was a problem with the combination of text and colour background. Either way, it made it hard to read.

I'm a big fan of anything Viking-related, and I know their reputation, so I was prepared for the immediate thrust into action, the violence, even the threats of rape towards the women captors. However, it was refreshing to see that none of that appeared on page. Sure, there were a few sex scenes and some nudity, which means it's stuck in a certain age bracket, but they weren't excessive and were wholly consensual.

I'll admit, it wasn't quite what I was expecting. Probably because we didn't get very far into the story. At the end of these 66 pages, we have the storyteller – the POV – as a captive, about to arrive and be bargained off to another clan/people. However, the blurb implies that Harald is the one who is patient and biding his time, yet he's quite impetuous in this volume. Not really the patient sort. Its his brother that keeps him calm and compliant, while Harald would go blazing in for revenge. So, because of that, I'm really not sure where the story is going or how long it's going to take to get there.

At the moment, I haven't been inspired to seek out the next volume and read it. With the difficult font, the jumpy flashbacks and back-stories, I'm really not sure that I'm prepared to pick up the next volume. We'll see.

It's been a while since I've read a comic/graphic novel and I wanted to find one that would fit my interests as well as my artistic preferences. Hammerfall is a great story about strong populations at war with one another. There is a lot of personal history and pain between them. This story appeared to be just a portion of a much longer story and I cannot wait to read more sections.

The only part that bothered me in reading this was the font used. It hurt my eyes at times and I needed to take breaks just to let my eyes rest. Could be just because of reading this on the computer (pdf) versus a print. Other than that the art is beautiful, the character development is intriguing albeit still laying the foundation of who everyone is and how they're interacting.

The artwork is very good and the story moves at a fast pace. If you like vikings, violence and revenge then this one would be a good series to get into.

A Scandinavia/Norse saga of disgrace, banishment and revenge. A graphic historical fiction based on facts of laws, politics and the honour of men.

Usually I can get it right, really. I pick and start books that I end up liking.
I started optimistic, because I used to love the show 'Vikings' and this brought me back to that.

There's a glossary at the front which is great! A full handy page of explanations for example the naming of people, lands and gods, which I enjoy because of my fascination with Norse mythology.

We're in 8th century Europe, with the svears (swedes (vikings), as they came to be called later) raiding a monastery at the coast of Northumberland (England). This attack was the beginning of a long and gory war between the Angles and the Norsemen.
The story continues in the land of the svears, where young Harald is to be wed to the beautiful Lina at the Jul celeration. Before the wedding could take place, the banished warrior Björn attacks the town with his men, kills Harald's father and takes the others as slaves.

This one was not for me but simply because for some reason the art style as a whole didn't win me. But what I can say is, there's a lot of action scenes, and I liked the use of colors.

Hmmm… A book that might well prove one of the superior Norse/Viking graphic novels, but it might also be too early to say. As it stands it certainly has its moments where it is just shaggy long-haired bloke gutting other shaggy long-haired bloke, but it also promises to relate to a much bigger story, one where Charlemagne's presence, and the Christians in the region, get to make their mark. That, then, is a promise of things to come, although of the four books in the series this is the sole one in English as of yet. Credit to the art direction for having very dynamic 'cinematography'; no credit to the glossary for telling us what a slave and a wedding are. Three and a half stars.

'Hammerfall 1. While the Serpent Sleeps' by Sylvain Runberg with art by Boris Talijancic is a graphic novel about Vikings and Normans and captivity.

Harald has a good life. He is the village leader's son and he is about to get married to Lina. While the festivities are going on, the village is attacked and everyone is either killed or taken captive by Bjorn the Beautiful. Harald watches helplessly as Lina is taken by Bjorn. All he can do now is bide his time and wait for a chance to free them both.

I liked the idea of this graphic novel. The art was good, but confusing. I had a hard time telling the male characters apart. I also wished there had been a little more exposition about the scene at the very beginning. I liked the story, but felt like it could have been a bit stronger.

I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Europe Comics and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.

Hammerfall is the first volume in a tale of 8th-century Viking raids and religious shifts, and contains all the set pieces one expects from such a setting. The book opens with a battle sequence followed by a chase scene, and the action continues with only a few breaks for a wedding night bookended with two short scenes of exposition via dialogue.

The art is wonderful. Both the motion conveyed in the action sequences and the detail in the "wide-angle" panels are equally detailed and well-rendered. There's a panel with several men on horseback at the top of a cliff looking down on a snow-covered valley and another of a carriage falling through ice that are absolutely stunning work.

The translation by Tom Imber avoids a common issue in BD translations and manages to capture the feel of the original without leaning too far into the melodramatic.

An entertaining romp!

The edition I read was an e-ARC via NetGalley.

Thank you to Europe Comics for a digital edition of ‘Hammerfall: 1. While the Serpent Sleeps’ written by Sylvain Runberg with art by Boris Talijancic in exchange for an honest review.

It is set in 8th-century Northern Europe and explores how two cultures and two religions violently clash. Björn the Beautiful had been banished from his Viking community. During his exile he has made new alliances in the Christian court of Charlemagne and now has returned to his homeland to extract vengeance while professing to be on a mission for Christ.

He leads a raiding party to attack his former people during the wedding festivities of Harald and his love, Lina. Many are slaughtered and those spared are enslaved and forced to undertake a long march.

This is the opening for this historical tale set in Scandinavia, which draws on Norse mythology and highlights the beginning of the conflict between the traditional beliefs and the new religion of Christianity. It introduces the characters and setting as ends on a cliffhanger to wet our appetites for the next volume.

I certainly look forward to seeing how the story of Harold, Lina, and antagonist Björn develops and further explore the role of the forest people.

The art work is powerful with quite strong violence depicted in places that is appropriate for the subject. The author has also provided a handy glossary at the beginning of the text.

Disclaimer: ARC via Netgalley

Who doesn’t love a good Viking saga? C’mon, who doesn’t? Yeah, I know. We want less rape, but there is something about the Vikings anyway isn’t there? Hammerfell tells the story of a group of Vikings who, sadly for our hero, suffer a defeat during the time he is to get married.

Part of the problem with this graphic novel, in fact the major problem, is that it is difficult to keep some of the men straight. There is not this problem with the women. And the whole, “we are Christians, we do not rape” idea for the bad guys seems a bit contrived. It’s not that I want to see rape, but it just has the feeling of contrived idea, especially considering what appears to be the back story of the bad guy.

Yet, the women in the book are just as strong as the man. And while our hero’s love, Lina, is, in part, the damsel who gets kidnapped and who he must save. She is not a violet who wants to be saved. She stands on her own. This makes a nice change.

This historical story is punctuated by detailed artwork that often takes up several panels on a page. Recommended graphic novel reading for mature readers.