Title: Die Bernstein Tochter

Author: Claudia Schirdewan

Pages: 356

Dear reader,

I have for you a special treat; a German book I do not believe has been translated in English, but definitely something you would enjoy reading.

The book is broken down into the following chapters:

• Prologue (pg. 5 – 9)
• Chapter 1 – 19 (pg. 10 – 351)
• Epilogue (pg. 352 – 355)

It is based in the year 1235 on the shores of the northern territories of Prussia (somewhere between the eastern shores from Denmark towards modern day Poland / Kaliningrad / Lithuania. Many of the small towns located there are still following their ancestral pagan faiths and are faced against the Teutonic Order knights (Deutscher Orden). They have received permission from a king to spread their Christian faith to the surrounding peoples.

In one of these towns is young Mila with her family (mother Sanja, father, brother and sister). Sanja is the local healer and therefore well-respected in their town. A few kilometers west is a large group of Teutonic Order knights, amongst them newcomer Johan and his mentor Frederick. Johan has recently joined the order since coming from his home in Denmark and wishes to pledge his fealty to do good for the order.

One day, a messenger is found outside one of these towns by two of the Order’s soldiers and they therefore decide to seek revenge on the town located nearby, believing them to be the perpetrators. They attack at dawn. Mila has fled into the woods and is saved by Johan, who rushes her to the beach, away from the attacking site. Mila and her mother decide to head west since the Order is already much better established there and should hopefully not attack the nearby towns. There, they are taken in by a small family (father, daughter Indraja) and they help out by contributing their share to the family. Sanja is teaching her daughter to become a good healer just as herself and one of the natural resources they use are amber stones from the Baltic shores. They take these as gifts from the gods, burn them in the fire and pray that the fumes provide healing properties to the patient.

Mila has one day meets a stranger (Antonius) on the beach, injured badly and decides to help the man in secret, since he is a Christian priest and would not receive help in the village. Her mother would even kill him for what his people had done to their village. He recovers slowly and understands that she wishes to have another life than what her mother has planned for her. He gives her a challenge to use the amber stone and make something out of it, some jewelry, and he would then help her get away and start a new life elsewhere. Days pass and she is progressing well, however, one day her mother finds her out and threatens to marry her off. This is the last straw and Mila locks her mother up in the room, collects provisions and heads for the beach. There, she informs Antonius that they need to leave right away and so they head eastwards.

On their way, they hear someone coming from behind and find that Indraja will be joining them on their journey. They head east and encounter a wagon with two salesmen (father Michael and son Karl) who are headed west to sell some of their wares before the winter comes in. They decide to join them, hoping to avoid their old town and make way for other settlements further west. However, the Order has decided to attack the nearby town and would do so soon. Mila and her troop are in town and are caught off guard when the Order attacks. However, the troop manages to avoid the conflict, thanks to Johan and Frederick leading them to safety.

Afterwards, they (Mila, Johan and Antonius) decide to head for Denmark, where they will be out of reach from the Order, whilst the others (Indraja, Karl, Michael) continue their trek as salesmen.

Summary:

The book is simple to read, with a clear plot and a story that shows some of the tragedy that some of the forefathers of Europe went through with the spread of Christianity on this continent. It shows that people can find love in the most unusual of places and that we should continue living for the future, even when tragedy has struck so close to home.

The book will receive a rating of 3.2 / 5.

Link (German): https://amzn.to/4b9TJwR

Link (English): Not available