RATING: *****

This is a fascinating book. Inspired by the Viking Sagas and Skaldic verse, John Ingham has produced a compelling tale in the style and rhythms of the great Anglo-Saxon poem Beowulf – a tale of heroic deeds, treachery, sibling rivalry, shape shifting and magic with the added element of the world of the indigenous inhabitants of North America where much of the action takes place. It is a fine tale well told, as enjoyable today as it would have been to our Viking and Anglo-Saxon forebears in their mead-halls. ROB DOUGLAS

RATING *****

I am always reluctant to give a five-star review because few things in life, not least literary, are perfect, and to believe otherwise suggests one’s bar is set too low. However, this work is peerless in ambition, epic in scale, and exquisite in delivery. The real hero here is not one of those introduced to us in the prose but whose name appears on the front cover. John Ingham has delivered a mystical saga written in a style and timbre that would have been familiar to Viking warriors huddled together for warmth in their longhouses a millennium and more ago, yet it is also accessible and thrilling, and engrossing today. PHIL G

RATING *****

A unique epic that Snorri Sturluson would be proud of. A continental-scale tale, as gritty and harsh as the bitter storm winds of the northern seas. This ancient-style poetic edda was crafted for a modern audience with a love of Viking history and mythology. Award-winning journalist John Ingham has researched his book to give depth and intrigue to this Norse story. Using the Viking poetic style of verse, he has given this work a genuine saga feel. This strengthens the portrayal of a cast of war-hardened and brutish yet humorous Viking heroes and villains. Anyone with a passing knowledge of Norse mythological writing will understand the effort that has gone into this book. A great story and a fascinating approach, leading to a fantastic historical fantasy. Well done! MAX

RATING *****

John has come up with a truly epic tale of which any Norse skald would be proud. Although he is under slightly less pressure to hold the reader's attention than his narrator, he does it brilliantly. I found this book hard to put down and finished it in a few days. John hardly wastes a sentence, swiftly moving the reader on to the next dramatic episode while preparing us for the inevitable shocking climax.

He nonetheless still finds time to sketch out the motives of the characters and their group dynamic and describe evocatively the ever-changing natural surroundings the band moves through. John convincingly captures the coarse, brutal and frequently sadistic culture of the Norse warriors and the Native American enemies and allies they come across on their journey of revenge. He also brings out the mystic aspects of their relationship with the natural world around them and their common fate as human beings and takes us off into the occasional flight of witchcraft and fantasy as if in relief from the relentless slaughter. All in all a thoroughly entertaining and gripping read which would make a great movie. TONY

RATING *****

What a story ! A genuinely epic tale that draws you straight in from the very first words. John Ingham’s highly original approach to story telling using poetic verse makes for an exciting and absorbing read. He manages to put you right into the presence of Snorri as he recites the action packed journey across the Atlantic into the untouched interior of America. The dangers and perils encountered by Asgeir on his mission really comes alive through the rich language Ingham uses – conjuring up vivid images and a story that is compulsive reading.

A fast paced plot with twists at every turn, kept me hooked and makes me impatient for the next adventure. Very strongly recommended - a five star read. PIERS CLARK

RATING *****

This is an epic tale of torture and triumphs that had me gripped from the dedication page right up until the end. It's a page-turner that teleports readers to the centre of Viking battles. The fast-paced saga is a gripping tale with adventure after adventure. It has all the elements of a compelling story - the bloody battles, lust and rivalry. No doubt a hit fit for the big screen. John ingham writes with humour, frankness and flair, always choosing the right words for the right moment. It's a blockbuster. It's unputdownable. It's a five stars from me. STEPH SPYRO

RATING *****

This gripping saga sweeps the reader from European waters across the Atlantic to North America and back again in the company of our hero Asgeir and his followers on the trail of the villainous Grim. Ingham’s skilful use of skaldic verse brings the tale gloriously to life, and you can practically taste the sea spray and feel the excitement of the chase through strange new lands.
It’s got staggering acts of courage, gallons of ale and mead, belly laughs, witches, hallucinogens, trans-sexuals and politically-incorrect bears. Definitely recommended for all who like a ripping adventure story, especially fans of Bernard Cornwell’s Last Kingdom books. AGV

RATING ****

Being from Iceland and having grown up reading the sagas I thoroughly enjoyed Mr Ingham's book. He puts his research and knowledge of the Viking era to good use.
Snorri the skald is obviously a reference to Egill Skalla-Grímsson (904-995). Egill saved his head by composing and reciting Höfuðlausn (Head Ransom) to Eiríkur blöðöxi (Eirik Bloodaxe) who had sentenced the warrior to death in England.
Egill was a truly versatile man given that he was an excellent poet and renowned berserker. He composed his first poem at the tender age of three and claimed his first victim four years later when a boy he was playing with didn't fully respect the rules of the game.
I am also reminded of a great Viking movie, When the Raven Flies (1984) by Icelandic director Hrafn Gunnlaugsson, who also wrote the script; an outstanding tale of honour and blood-thirst and a true classic within the genre.
Mr. Ingham's Blood-Eagle Saga is written in such a vivid way that the "scenes" easily come to the reader's mind.
I found the Blood-Eagle Saga highly original and wonderfully written. The author's command of the language is admirable. The saga is also funny, exciting, bizarre - a true Viking extravaganza!
In short, a highly enjoyable read. ASGEIR SVERRISSON

RATING: *****

This is an extraordinary tale that deserves a wide readership. Viking blood and carnage stain most pages. The author hurls verbal cluster bombs that burst, sending a cascade of words pouring through the text. The blank verse, in the style of a traditional Nordic saga, has the effect of imparting an incessant, drum-like rhythm to stir the blood of even the most anaemic of readers.
At the heart of the story is Asgeir and his warlord Grim. But Asgeir is a true warrior. He has one aim – to become a hero, a warlord fit to enter Valhalla.
When Grim steals his longboat, loaded with gold, Asgeir gives chase across the North Sea to Iceland, then westwards to the new world. His partner, the Irish slave girl Mary, uses her mystic powers to follow Grim across the Atlantic. They embark in a land of tribal war as bloodthirsty as anything the Vikings themselves could dream up; where Asgeir and his men must survive ordeal after ordeal.
Throughout the saga, mixed in with the suspense and spirit of adventure, is a steady flow of graveyard humour, relieved by an equal measure of common humanity, to stamp John Ingham as a writer of great talent. I can’t wait for a sequel. JONZAC

RATING: *****

A true Skald!

John Ingham has woven a true 'Skald-spell' which carries the reader headlong into the visceral and brutal world of the Vikings from the very first lines. Written in alliterative verse, Ingham sustains a taut, pacy narrative across nearly 400 pages.

Elements I particularly enjoyed were the bawdy humour, a compelling mix of supernatural occurrences and gritty reality in the narrative arc and the sense that these lines were written by an expert deeply and passionately immersed in the language and lives of these extraordinary people.

Striking also were lines of lyrical beauty and musicality which for me alluded to the spirituality and power of nature as a force in Viking times, for example: "to the boy each tree told its tale. / Each tree sang its life song" or "Paradise reaches beyond / its own secret perfection.'

Notable too is Ingham's writing about birds - earthy and precise and beautiful:
'Knots of little waders twisted,
Piping their calls over salt marshes
While summer's swallows sped south.'

Blood-Eagle saga is a tour-de-force and would make a smashing film. Dive in.. and enjoy. BABYOWL