Postcard from Gotland

Madeline Eschedar is the author of two crime novels. Matakana’s first installment in her series, Blood on Vines, will be published in February 2021. His second and most recent book in the series, Rings on Water, was published in his June 2023 release.

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Photo Essay by a Matakana Crime Writer Growing Up on a Strange Rock Abandoned by a Baltic God

I was born and raised on the limestone island of Gotland in the Baltic Sea. It is located 90 kilometers east of mainland Sweden and about 130 kilometers west of the Baltic states of Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania.

Winter can be very dark. In the warmer months, wildflowers blanket the island, and the coastline is dotted with sandy beaches and dramatic stone-clad shores dotted with large, naturally-formed sculptures of rock formations called laucars. To do.

It has vast pine forests and windswept beaches. There are long ship-shaped Viking cemeteries and fortified settlements, and the countryside is dotted with traditional whitewashed stone houses.

The history of Visby’s main town buildings dates back to the 13th century. A massive medieval wall surrounds the city, with narrow cobbled lanes leading to the bustling harbour.

From about 800 to about 1150, Gotland was a Viking trading post. Some of the wealth they have amassed has been unearthed, with over 700 silver hoards and 180,000 of his coins unearthed.

Other Viking remnants are many runestones and pictorial stones. These were mainly held in memory of deceased relatives and were placed where passers-by could see them along the road. The stones depict swirling discs, serpents and horsemen.

Winters on the island are long and can be very cold. I remember walking to school in the dark, finishing at 3:00 and returning home in the dark.

Every winter, my father built our own ice skating rink in our backyard as soon as it got cold. He fenced off the area with wooden planks, watered the ground, and froze it overnight. This process was repeated for about a week until the surface was not only thick enough but smooth. They even built an igloo when the snow conditions were good.

The greatest influence on me in my childhood and adolescence was my maternal grandmother, the wonderful Mol Mol. One of our favorite activities was visiting the Klintehamns Library, the village library, a stone building dating from 1780. Pass through the original wooden doors with large ornate metal hinges and ascend to the second floor over wide worn stone slabs to smooth flat floors. And a slightly curved wooden floor. Almost every room has a tiled fireplace.

Our family went through a big and unexpected change in middle age. And now I live in the wine country of Matakana, the setting for the crime novel series.

In the latest film, Rings on Water, local police officer Bill Granger returns, this time working with South Auckland Constable Nico Sopoaga. A young woman is found dead on the beach. What appears to be a simple incident of unfortunate death quickly turns into a complex web of small-town secrets and vengeful desires. As Bill pursues an ingenious killer, he finds himself immersed in the dark and dangerous world of drug trafficking and a hardened motorcycle gang wreaking havoc.

I remain an islander at heart. Living by the beach reminds me of my childhood in Gotland. What I love most is salt and fresh air through my nose, regardless of the weather.

ring on water Madeleine Eskedahl (Matheson Bay Press, $36.99) is available in bookstores nationwide.