The book was good, but I found the 'barren' lives of the characters depressing.
Few creatures can thrive on these 'barren' mountaintops.
an artist who is going through a 'barren' period
(..) the th and th Century... were dedicated to a pagan god of war, Odin. Cramped by the confines of their barren, icebound northlands... they exploited their skill as shipbuilders... to spread a reign of terror... then unequaled in violence and brutality... (..)1958 The Vikings