The troll circle

"Trollringen is at once a historical saga, murder mystery, and domestic tragedy. Sigurd Hoel's last novel is set in the early nineteenth century, following Norway's independence from Denmark and during the country's struggle to escape Danish domination. It was inspired by his discovery in childhood of an executioner's block used in the beheading of a murderer in 1833. From that image grew the story of a utopian, a young farmer named Havard Viland, whose struggle in his time against religious bigotry, mindless conformity, and political and intellectual stagnation has implications for whatever…