The Half-Drowned King is only half the story in Linnea Hartsuyker's three-book series. And while I enjoyed it, I'm not sure I enjoyed it so much that I would press on to the other two books (but reserve the right to change my mind).

Sure, there is plenty to like about Ragnvald's story (after the name dump in the first couple of chapters). He's a hothead like all of his Norwegian family members and allies, slighted by a betrayal orchestrated by his own stepfather. After a failed assassination plot, Regnvald throws in with King Hakon (and then to King Harald). The story itself is solid, though Hartsuyker tends to shy away from the real fighting. The Half-Drowned King tends to stick to plotting, alliances, etc. 

There is nothing wrong with that, except Ragnvald's story is also shared with Svanhild, his sister. When he leaves, Svanhild tries to make the best of it until faced with an arranged marriage. So, she leaves the house where her brother left her and falls into the arms of another one of his brother’s betrayers, Solvi. There is nothing wrong with that, except Svanhild is as fickle as she is fanciful — always pretending to be a victim seeking justice when she's really in it for her own selfish sense of the world. It makes her annoying, especially as she waffles on and on about Solvi. It's annoying, even if plenty of readers said they relate to her. 

In sum, I guess you could say I enjoyed half the book. While it's always fun to read a Viking story — especially one written by a possible descendant — it's not as much fun when all the women are relatively weak (and the men are not all that strong or cunning). Add to all that a lack of myth and magic despite some readers alluding to it. But despite all that, I will say that Hartsuyker is a fine descriptive writer. She does a fine job painting a historic atmosphere while keeping the story moving. Not everybody can do that.