On October 1, Norwegian author Lars Mytting joins us for a virtual book launch event on The Bell in the Lake, an engrossing epic novel and #1 bestseller in Norway about a young woman with a mystical fate, available in English translation from The Overlook Press beginning September 29.

For as long as people can remember, the stave church’s bells have rung over the isolated village of Butangen, Norway: cast in memory of conjoined twins, the bells are said to ring on their own in times of danger. When in 1879, young pastor Kai Schweigaard moves to the village, young Astrid Hekne  sees a way into a much yearned-for modern life on the arm of the new pastor, who needs a tie to the community to cull favor for his plan for the old stave church, with its pagan deity effigies and supernatural bells. But when the pastor makes a deal that brings an outsider — a sophisticated German architect — into their world, the village and Astrid are caught between past and future, as dark forces come into play.

Lars Mytting, bestselling author of Norwegian Wood, brings his deep knowledge of history, carpentry, fishing, and stave churches to this compelling historical novel, an international bestseller sold in 12 countries. With its broad-canvas narrative about the intersection of religion, superstition, and duty, The Bell in the Lake  is an irresistible story of ancient times and modern challenges.

Please send audience questions ahead of the discussion to info@amscan.org. Select questions will be chosen for a Q&A following the conversation. Registration is required; please sign up at the link above.

Books will be available in a new translation from Norwegian from Deborah Dawkin beginning on September 29 from The Overlook Press; visit the website to learn how to purchase the book.

“Mytting has created something beautiful, a perfect evocation of a place and a culture, a melding of old Norse tradition with the encroaching modern world…every element of the setting and those who inhabit it is crafted with consummate skill. This first in a trilogy will have readers eagerly awaiting the next by this accomplished author.”—Booklist

“Evocative…a beautiful example of modern Norwegian folklore”—The Guardian

Lars Mytting, Norway’s bestselling novelist, is the author of Norwegian Wood. His books, which have sold more than 1 million copies in 19 languages, have won the Norwegian Booksellers’ Prize and have been shortlisted for the prestigious International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award, among others.

The Bell in the Lake has been sold in 12 countries and was a #1 bestseller in Norway.