Troll Mill: Amazon.ca: Katherine Langrish: Books

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Product Description

From School Library Journal

Grade 5-8–Three years after the events of Troll Fell (HarperCollins, 2004), orphan Peer Ulfsson is living happily with his new family but is haunted by the memory of his two cruel uncles. Although they are now serving the trolls in the troll kingdom, Peer feels he has not seen the last of them. When their mill starts running again, seemingly of its own accord, Peer is alarmed, but determined never again to let anyone terrorize him. Even without the haunted mill, life is complicated–Kersten, the wife of his good friend Bjorn, has run off into the sea, leaving behind her baby with webbed fingers, and Peer suspects that she was a seal-maiden. Also, Peers feelings for his friend Hilde have developed from brotherly affection to something more. The narrative is tightly woven and more intense than that of its predecessor, and despite the presence of selkies, household fairies, and uncanny babies, the drama is centered around human struggles. In the tradition of Scandinavian myth and folklore, the conclusion is poignant and true, with enough open-endedness for another sequel.–Farida S. Dowler, Mercer Island Library, WA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Booklist

*Starred Review* Gr. 5-8. Strands of selkie legend frame Langrish's second book^B about likable orphan Peer and his corner of early Norse civilization, where the realities of sea, farm, and hearth come wrapped in shadowy tendrils of folklore. When a local woman disappears into the sea, Hilde's family (with whom Peer now lives) adopts her half-selkie baby, an act that incenses their volatile nonhuman neighbors. The upheaval intensifies the unrest plaguing Peer, now 15, who aches with unrequited emotions for his foster-sister. Finding new purpose in a plan to refurbish his treacherous uncles' abandoned mill, Peer haplessly stirs up further trouble, bringing his valiant, memorable surrogate family into yet another confrontation with the troll kingdom--and forcing Peer to face his savage uncles anew. Readers will want to start with Troll Fell (2004) to fully appreciate Langrish's elaboration on her characters' internal and external circumstances, though even newcomers will respond to the taut plotting and potent language; the rotating mill wheel "rumble[s] like some monstrous stomach," a ghastly beast slithers to the ground with a "squashy flump." The icing on the cake is an irresistible cover: lush, fanciful, and creepy in equal measure, it captures the best qualities of Langrish's evocative world. Jennifer Mattson
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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4.0 out of 5 stars Grind your bones, Mar 4 2007

By	E. A Solinas "ea_solinas" (MD USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 10 REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Troll Mill (Hardcover)

Katherine Langrish returns to the world of trolls and Nordic legends in "Troll Mill," the sequel to her excellent debut. And if anything, Langrish does an even better job -- plenty of action laced with humour, solid writing, and some romantic tension between the leads.

Peer is shocked when a fisherman's wife (who's rumored to be a seal-woman) dumps her newborn in his arms and leaps into the sea. Not sure what to do, he brings the baby to Hilde's family, but even as the fishermen hunt for the missing woman, Peer and Hilde realize that nasty creatures are after baby Ran -- including the lubbers and evil Granny Green Teeth.

While this is going on, Peer decides to clean out and repair the old mill, in the hopes that he can impress Hilde with it. But they soon discover that Peer's evil uncle Baldur (now a troll) has been using the mill to grind bones for bread. And even worse, two babies have been stolen from Hilde's house -- Hilde's baby brother, and seal-baby Ran.

Usually sequels are less interesting than the book before them. But Langrish actually makes "Troll Mill" better than "Troll Fell" -- it's more polished, better paced, and her writing has matured with the characters. In short, this book is everything a good fantasy story should be.

The plot unfolds very gradually, and Langrish's writing is solid and descriptive. There's even a bit of horror -- the lubbers and ghastly Granny -- romantic sparring, and some tragedy. There's even a bit of moral indecision when Peer tries to understand how an otherwise good man could kidnap the seal woman.

But Langrish doesn't forget the humor, such as a precocious troll baby tormenting the twins with gross songs and stories, or Gudrun giving the troll princess some parenting tips. Those little moments keep an otherwise grim plot from getting too heavy and/or dull.

We also get to know Hilde's family a little better, especially her mother. But Peer is still the hero, and he's struggling to overcome his abusive childhood, even as he tries to impress the girl of his dreams. Hilde is a bit more stubborn, since she obviously doesn't realize how much Peer means to her.

"Troll Mill" takes all the good things about Katherine Langrish's debut, and makes them even better. A charming, chilling sequel.

Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)

4.0 out of 5 stars Grind your bones, Feb 24 2007

By	E. A Solinas "ea_solinas" (MD USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 10 REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Troll Mill (Paperback)

Katherine Langrish returns to the world of trolls and Nordic legends in "Troll Mill," the sequel to her excellent debut. And if anything, Langrish does an even better job -- plenty of action laced with humour, solid writing, and some romantic tension between the leads.

Peer is shocked when a fisherman's wife (who's rumored to be a seal-woman) dumps her newborn in his arms and leaps into the sea. Not sure what to do, he brings the baby to Hilde's family, but even as the fishermen hunt for the missing woman, Peer and Hilde realize that nasty creatures are after baby Ran -- including the lubbers and evil Granny Green Teeth.

While this is going on, Peer decides to clean out and repair the old mill, in the hopes that he can impress Hilde with it. But they soon discover that Peer's evil uncle Baldur (now a troll) has been using the mill to grind bones for bread. And even worse, two babies have been stolen from Hilde's house -- Hilde's baby brother, and seal-baby Ran.

Usually sequels are less interesting than the book before them. But Langrish actually makes "Troll Mill" better than "Troll Fell" -- it's more polished, better paced, and her writing has matured with the characters. In short, this book is everything a good fantasy story should be.

The plot unfolds very gradually, and Langrish's writing is solid and descriptive. There's even a bit of horror -- the lubbers and ghastly Granny -- romantic sparring, and some tragedy. There's even a bit of moral indecision when Peer tries to understand how an otherwise good man could kidnap the seal woman.

But Langrish doesn't forget the humor, such as a precocious troll baby tormenting the twins with gross songs and stories, or Gudrun giving the troll princess some parenting tips. Those little moments keep an otherwise grim plot from getting too heavy and/or dull.

We also get to know Hilde's family a little better, especially her mother. But Peer is still the hero, and he's struggling to overcome his abusive childhood, even as he tries to impress the girl of his dreams. Hilde is a bit more stubborn, since she obviously doesn't realize how much Peer means to her.

"Troll Mill" takes all the good things about Katherine Langrish's debut, and makes them even better. A charming, chilling sequel.

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Troll Mill (Library Binding)