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Reviewed by Grant Leishman for Readers' Favorite
Harald’s Gold: A DNA Love Story by Jack Dancer is a spectacularly clever and funny tale of Viking gold, sex trafficking, Scottish mysticism, and ancient lore. Tucker Blue has signed up for a two-week tour of Scotland where he's hoping to meet his soulmate, as arranged through a DNA match, along with many other couples on the all-expenses-paid tour. When Tucker arrives in Scotland, he is stunned and overwhelmed by the gorgeous and vivacious Dr. Billie Skye who he has been matched with. The group discovers from their tour guide that, as part of the excitement of meeting and hopefully falling in love with their DNA-matched partner, they can also participate in an unofficial hunt for the legendary golden nugget of Viking Harald Hardrada. It was brought to Scotland in 1066 and supposedly left there after Harald was killed during their botched invasion of England. The nugget was said to be so large that it required sixteen men just to carry it. Visions of great wealth surge through the participants and thoughts of finding their soulmate may well take a back seat. Throw in a cadre of kidnapped Nigerian schoolgirls, dreams of Scottish independence, a mad doctor seeking to harvest and grow organs, numerous vendettas, and a good selection of ghosts, ghouls, and faeries, and you have all the makings of a hilarious and exciting adventure. You see, almost everyone on this adventure is not who they appear to be.
Harald’s Gold is a broad, sweeping epic with so many twisted and fascinating characters and sub-plots that readers will be left gasping for air at times but will not put this book down as it is completely addictive. Author Jack Dancer has created a treasure trove of ridiculous and stereotypical characters and yet has managed to infuse them with believability. I particularly appreciated the many story arcs that beautifully dovetailed into each other. Perhaps the most interesting of these characters was Billie Skye and her supposedly deceased twin brother William, now appearing in the narrative as Fiona. I particularly appreciated Fiona's transformation, not just physically but mentally, morally, and even spiritually, as she transitioned and shed the ruthless-killer persona of her past. I did appreciate the joy Fiona felt as she tricked Tucker into believing she was Billie. Some of the best scenes occur when the fables and mysticism of the Gaelic side of Scottish culture merge with these modern-day adventurers. Of particular pleasure was the arc where several of the tour party went beneath the streets of Edinburgh to cross between the living and the dead and encountered the most beautifully drawn and horrific scenes of debauchery and carnage imaginable. The writer’s imagination and creativity shone through this arc wonderfully. I liked the summary at the end where the author traced the journey of the amazing gold nugget from 1066 until it was lost to recorded history. That gave the entire narrative the feeling of believability. Primarily this story is funny and farcical and yet the many layered undertones of history, relationships, and ancient lore give it some real gravitas which just serves to deepen and broaden the enjoyment to be had from this book. I haven’t enjoyed a book as much as I did this one for a long, long time and I highly recommend it.