“SHIP COMES IN”: AND THE DOORS SWING BACK AND FORWARD, FROM THE PAST INTO THE PRESENT. The next section of the Norse myths story. More domestic fighting–and Loki’s murder trial.

A few points and questions: 1) Yes, I know, I keep saying “Aesir” when I mean Aesir and Vanir. I’m going to fix that in the revised version.

2) I also know the flashbacks-within-flashbacks are hard to follow. Please email me if you have comments about that; it’s something I’ll definitely be fixing in the revised version.

3) I’m now 99% sure I have at least one of the patronymics wrong, so again, I solicit advice on them.

4) Do you hate the fact that I’m assuming a fairly solid knowledge of Norse myths on the part of my readership? I mean, I had scenes in mind that would explain the murder trial, but ultimately decided that my job was reshaping rather than retelling the myths, so there was no need to play out the scenes that you all knew would happen. Did that not work? Do we need to see much more of Balder, or of his traditional role in the mythos? (These are different questions, I know.)

Anyway. That said, you can get the story so far here, and the most recent section here. There are three more sections, I think: the cave; the aftermath; and the Bitter End. Comments and criticism on everything and anything are not merely requested but welcomed.

And you say you didn’t do it–but you know you did, of course…