Aina Basso

During the 1600s a total of 80 "witches" were condemned to death by burning at the stake in Finnmark. In this novel we meet two young girls who end up on different sides in this dramatic part of Norwegian history. The novel has two parallel narrators, the well-to-do Dorothe from Copenhagen and the poor Elen, daughter of a "wise woman" in Finnmark. At 16 years old Dorothe was married off to a much older man and went with him to Vardø where Dorothe's and Elen's lives cross dramatically.

The novel is based on reliable history. Basso has used quotes from the original black books and court proceedings from the 1600s. At the same time it is an intense story of two different girls entering the adult world. The story is tightly composed and the language has a sure touch for style and imagery, where no word is superfluous. The realistic story is broken by dreams and warnings. With the help of a number of foreshadows, Basso leads us to understand which way it will go for Elen and her mother. We get closer to the fire, step by step, as we read we understand that there is no way to avoid it, we must go completely "into the fire".     

The book was nominated for the Brage Prize and the Ministry of Culture's literary prize in 2012.

Aina Basso (born 1979) is a history graduate and has written three historical novels.