Valkyries... Mysterious creatures of Scandinavian culture. Viking myths about them try to elevate the tragedy of war - to make pain and suffering heroic. The intertwining of the realities of the earthly and the afterlife, ancient legends, the fortitude of beautiful warriors and their personal stories for centuries have forced scientists to think about who the Valkyries were and did they really exist? Based on the latest historical, archaeological evidence and ancient fascinating texts, The author attempts to reconcile the legends of monstrous mothers and terrifying warrior maidens with the everyday lives of these women, showing them in childhood, adolescence, adulthood and on the verge of death. Joanna Katrin Fridriksdottir studied at the universities of Reykjavik and Brighton before receiving a PhD in medieval literature at Oxford University in 2010. Then she completed a research internship at Harvard University.