Book cover of The Bell in the Lake

Book description

The engrossing epic novel a #1 bestseller in Norway of a young woman whose fate plays out against her village s mystical church bells

As long as people could remember, the stave church s bells had rung over the isolated village of Butangen, Norway. Cast in memory of conjoined twins,…

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Why read it?

1 author picked The Bell in the Lake as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

The Bell in the Lake is a fascinating historical novel that takes place in a Norwegian mountain village.

Central to the tale is an ancient stave church and the role it plays in village life over the years. This is a fascinating glimpse into Norway’s past, and contains an unexpected mystical twist that delightfully brings the past to life. The eventual fate of the church is a powerful testament to the folly of blindly bulldozing our way to modernization.

Lars Mytting’s characters are engaging and multi-faceted, and he’s written an emotionally powerful, well-crafted novel that is sprawling in its ambition,…

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Book cover of December on 5C4

December on 5C4 by Adam Strassberg,

Magical realism meets the magic of Christmas in this mix of Jewish, New Testament, and Santa stories–all reenacted in an urban psychiatric hospital!

On locked ward 5C4, Josh, a patient with many similarities to Jesus, is hospitalized concurrently with Nick, a patient with many similarities to Santa. The two argue…

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