Review: All The Horses Of Iceland by Sarah Tolmie

Rating: 8/10

Blurb:

Everyone knows of the horses of Iceland, wild, and small, and free, but few have heard their story. Sarah Tolmie’s All the Horses of Iceland weaves their mystical origin into a saga for the modern age. Filled with the magic and darkened whispers of a people on the cusp of major cultural change, All the Horses of Iceland tells the tale of a Norse trader, his travels through Central Asia, and the ghostly magic that followed him home to the land of fire, stone, and ice. His search for riches will take him from Helmgard, through Khazaria, to the steppes of Mongolia, where he will barter for horses and return with much, much more.

Review:

All The Horses of Iceland was an unusual little book. Although it did not grasp me from the start, it definitely showed its true potential later on. It is a Historical Fantasy, a genre I have never explored before. It was quite interesting and beautiful and It turned out that I enjoyed it very much.

All The Horses of Iceland introduces the reader to a man named Eyvind. Eyvind is a unique character, one that holds secrets even he did not know he had. We follow him through his travels and stumble across interesting magic and ghosts. Eyvind also learns about different cultures and religions which I found to be quite interesting since I am not familiar with that time. The author even throws in a little bit of humor, at least that is my take on the particular scenes I had stumbled upon. The horses play a strong role in the story especially the white mare you see on the cover. I really enjoyed the Strange magic more than anything. It has a folk lore feel to it which makes it super interesting and it’s definitely what pulled me more into the story.

The prose is very beautiful and the story is enlightening. It was a great pallet cleanser in between reads. I recommend All The Horses Of Iceland if you’re looking for a light fantasy. It is a short novella with a whole lot of story to tell.

I want to thank Tordotcom and Netgalley for providing me with an E-ARC in exchange for an honest review.