Krampus: The Yule Lord

I am not an ardent reader of this genre, but I find the story fa

I am not an ardent reader of this genre, but I find the story fascinating. It is well-crafted on an interesting premise. Great opening chapter and well-observed characterization. The story is smooth and very descriptive. Brings to mind the Ngoko's Folly story. Great creativity.

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Review From My Urban Fantasies

Originally published on my blog, My Urban Fantasies.
(myurbanfantasies.blogspot)

Brom's art is simply amazing, although a little creepy. Krampus: The Yule Lord is a dark but surprisingly uplifting story. Bram has this amazing gift for showing the dark parts of humanity while still managing to give you a sense of hope. Krampus and Santa are rich and complex characters. I could not help falling in love with Krampus, he's definitely my favorite character. Krampus is endearing one moment and very naughty the next. I also loved the fact that Brom mixed the story of Krampus with Norse mythology.

Yule is the rebirth of seasons and the true spirit of Mother Earth. Without Yuletide the earth cannot heal herself. If mankind stops believing, if the spirit of Yule fades, Mother Earth will wither and die. The power of mankind's belief, their love and devotion, is what heals the land. But mankind eventually had new gods, the old ways were being forgotten. Krampus the Yule Lord's shrines were being abandoned. By the early 1300s a new tradition named Christmas had begun. More and more people began celebrating Christmas, Yule and Winter Solstice were being forgotten. Krampus decided that he would remind them, rewarding children that remembered him with a gift from Loki's sack and punishing those who did not.

Santa Clause is really Baldr, the son of Odin. Baldr was Odin's most beloved son and was virtually indestructible. The only thing that could harm Baldr was mistletoe. Loki, Krampus' grandfather, saw Baldr for the treacherous person he was. Loki tricked Hoor, Baldr's blind brother, into killing Baldr. Baldr was then imprisoned in Hel, where Krampus' mother ruled. There was a prophecy that Baldr would be reborn on earth after earth was cleansed of darkness by an all-consuming fire. Baldr was to be reborn a god of light and peace, a just god, to watch over the world of men. The fire never came and sometime between the 1300 and 1400s Krampus found Baldr stumbling around in the woods. Krampus pitied Baldr and brought Baldr back to his house. Krampus offered Baldr brotherhood and a place a his side, but Baldr had decided to embrace Saint Nicholas. Baldr told Krampus that the old ways were dead and the ancient's time on earth had passed. Baldr imprisoned Krampus and tries to learn the magic of Loki's sack. Baldr had betrayed his heritage, Krampus and the ancient ones.

Baldr's obsession with Saint Nicholas grew. He started dressing like Saint Nicholas, growing his hair and beard long. Baldr started visiting homes on Christmas day, pretending he was Saint Nicholas, and handing out presents. In the 1400s Baldr started parading Krampus around in a cart pulled by goats. Krampus sat on a throne of rotting vegetables. Baldr preached Christian virtues and called Krampus nothing more than a wicked imp, an evil buffoon. Year after year this would continue unless Krampus revealed the secret of Loki's sack.

That stopped in the early 1500s. Krampus thought Baldr had forgotten him until Baldr showed up in front of his cell door. Baldr introduced himself as Father Christmas and told Krampus he was no longer needed. Baldr had unlocked the secret of Loki's sack using blood magic, the very thing he preached against. Baldr claimed that it was time for Krampus to be utterly forgotten and flew them across the ocean to America and chained Krampus in a cave were no one would ever find him.

That's were Krampus sat for 500 years, in a cave in Boone County,

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

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Brilliant story line.  Interesting take on who Santa Clause real

Brilliant story line.  Interesting take on who Santa Clause really is!  If you like a different kind of urban fantasy, you'll love this.

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Love this book

So amazing

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Not a Christmas Book for Children or even Young Adults This is an adult read

I just finished Krampus today. It is an interesting read with a modern mash-up of Nordic Yule mythology mixed with Christian themes set in a economically depressed Appalachia full of crime, violence, grisly death, some debachery, and alot of human character soul searching as compared to Krampus action. When Krampus, Balder, and other Nordic characters and beasts are on stage then things are interesting,When the interminable perils and miseries of the main character Jesse are at play I became bored with yet another tale of modern angst, torture, and redemption. There is a good short story in this novella. The ending provides opportunity for sequel and the follow up post story chapter on the real Krampus mythology was intersting. I was familair with Krampus,Belsnikels, Nordic, Germanic and Santa Claus legends and myths before reading the book, but I think this chapter would be useful to the unfamiliar reader.

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Krampus

Do you know that krampus is from Germany? He is santas elf and if the kid is bad he'll even whip the kid with a long branch or take them away with the basket on his back. That is how they celebrate St Nicholas Day and then the have Christmas just celebrating the birth of jesus

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Excellent book

A very well written, modern take on Krampus and his story. Anyone with an interest in mythology and adventure will enjoy the masterful and engaging tale Brom has created.

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Beatifully Done but not for younger readers

This was my first book by Brom, and it will not be my last. This book was amazing, it pushed all the boundaries. Originally when I saw this book on the shelf with its large title, I pulled it off the shelf to see the original art on the cover. The cover jumps out at you, then you read the jacket and you are in. Brom has a startling way of revealing the darkness that lies within us all. His characters are fleshed out in disturbing ways and often have good intentions but terrible actions. Brom’s writing is fast paced intriguing, he has a knack for getting you involved. The physical book is 350 pages followed by an interesting afterword, in which Brom explains how he came to the legend of the Yule Lord. It takes place in the present but is packed with mythology and folk lore. The writing is beautiful and the characters are well developed. I should tell you that you will be on the side of Krampus by the time you finish, no matter what camp you are in to begin with. It will have you rethinking your ideas of who Santa Claus is. I suspect that some will be offended by the representation of god as a capricious female, even though I found the description highly amusing. The illustrations are an added bonus to this unique holiday tale. I highly recommend this book to adults and older teens. The violence is not appropriate for younger kids. And now, I'm off to fill some shoes with candies for the Yule Lord.

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H

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Absolutely wonderful! I was expecting this to be a bit more ligh

Absolutely wonderful! I was expecting this to be a bit more light hearted, however I was thrilled by Brom's careful attention to the mythology he sourced. I've always loved the Krampus mythos and it is a rare treat to read a novel so wonderfully written about my favorite yule creature.

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Great read

A good twist on the christmas/Santa myths. Twisted.

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I absolutely loved this book. The author has a unique storytelli

I absolutely loved this book. The author has a unique storytelling technique that kept me interested from the first time I read the dust jacket all the way to the very end. His interweaving of different cultural winter traditions and history is entertaining and thought-provoking.

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Great story that actually raises many questions about mankind as

Great story that actually raises many questions about mankind as well as just being a great read. I felt more for the characters than I thought I would, especially the Lovable Krampus.   Definitely recommend it!

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