Review/Interview: Snares and Delusions by HM Holten

Today I'm delighted to welcome author Hanne Holten, author of Snares and Delusions, a book which I read a while ago and is one of those novels which stayed with me long after I'd finished reading it. The book begins in rural nineteenth-century Sweden and reading these earlier chapters is like looking at a painting while an expert points out every detail for you. Hedda is competent, capable, and stifled by society's and her own family's expectations. Relief from the daily grind and her father's plans for her comes from the family of a young man whom she befriends. In Kaspar's company, and in the crowded but loving home of his family, she experiences what it might be like to be part of a family where she might be appreciated.

However, life has other plans for her, and we follow her as she travels to Denmark and we meet characters who surprise and appall in equal measure. This is historical fiction, but not quite as we normally encounter it. To give details of Hedda's life away from her childhood home would be to give too many spoilers but it is a story of challenges, abuse, fear, determination and survival. The book is so unlike any other I've read that I had to talk to Hanne to find out more about her, her writing, and this novel in particular.

AW: Welcome to the blog Hanne!

HH: Thank you, Annie, for inviting me. I’m delighted to answer your questions about Snares and Delusions.

Young Girl, Copenhagen

AW: One of the things I enjoyed most about the book was the stunning Scandinavian backdrop. I'd like to begin by talking about your background. I know you have Scandinavian family connections. How much did this inspire/influence the story? Were any of the characters - however loosely - based on real people?

HH: Yes, I have Scandinavian roots and grew up in Denmark. I lived in England when I decided to write this book and it seemed natural for me to delve into my family history for a subject. More so, because of the mystery that surrounded my great-grandmother. All I knew was that she was born somewhere in the south of Sweden, that she’d lived in Jutland for a while, that she came to Copenhagen around the turn of the century and had a boarding house. Her daughter was born in 1902. I also knew that she was a bit of a shrew and that attracted me too.

With so little knowledge of her background and history, I felt free to use my fantasy. Let me add that writing Snares and Delusions took me a long time. I went through several phases but kept coming back to the material with new ideas. Hedda changed considerably through this process. The final form – of dreams and nightmares – it received when I joined the writers’ group Authonomy.

Young Swedish Fiddler

AW: In my introduction, I mentioned Kaspar and his family. I found that the scenes where they appeared gave an insight into life in that region and at that time, as well as providing a contrast with Hedda's home life. Kaspar himself is an accomplished fiddler and Tom plays the flute. With your musical background, how important was it for you to feature music in the story?

HH: It was important for me to bring in the music as a counterpoint to Hedda’s family and the Dalquists [AW: the rich neighbouring family into whom Hedda must marry]. Also, I felt that I could use my knowledge of music to create some believable characters and get their ‘accomplishments’ right. To that comes the fact that folk music has a high standing in Sweden, and there is a rich tradition for travelling musicians, especially fiddlers.

AW: I think it came across so clearly that they had a sense of purpose and pride in their accomplishment, and contentment with their lives. Speaking of tradition, Hedda is what we might term a ‘free spirit’ but is constrained utterly by societal expectations of her. What came across really strongly in the book was that others constantly attempted to map her path, and her struggles with that. Is her experience typical of women of this era in Scandinavia?

HH: There is no doubt that women were constrained in both the Swedish and Danish society. No woman could own anything, the moment she married. Often a parson’s widow would be forced to marry the minister following her husband's death. There are examples of women, notably Amalie Skram, an author born in Norway, who spent two periods in asylums. The first asylum phase was caused by her husband’s infidelity, and on recovering, she left him and moved to Denmark. The following episode was orchestrated by her second husband. After she was discharged, she left him and continued writing several novels. She takes place as one of the first feminists in Scandinavia.

Amelie Skram

Naturally, these mores and events were also issues that inspired me to write Snares and Delusions.

AW: Yes, I finished the book feeling that Hedda lived in a time of almost-change, where women wanted more than society was prepared to give them. Times were changing, but not fast enough for the likes of Hedda. Thank you so much for talking to me today, Hanne, and sharing some details on the background to the novel.

Readers wishing to find out more about Hanne and her writing can find her:

On her blog: https://holten.co.uk

Her Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/author/hm_holten

On her Goodreads Page: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/17619872.H_M_Holten

And on Twitter: https://twitter.com/HoltenHm