Knut Hamsun won the Nobel Prize for literature in 1920. Victoria is his intense psychological portrayal of love’s predicament in a class-bound society. In this novel, Knut takes you through a lyrical excursion into unconsummated love, love that is described memorably as Blood and Blossoms. 

Set in a coastal village of late nineteenth-century Norway, Victoria follows two lovers whose yearnings are as powerful as the circumstances that conspire to thwart their romance. Johannes, a miller’s son turned poet, finds inspiration for his writing in his passionate devotion to Victoria, a daughter of the impoverished lord of the manor, who feels constrained by family loyalty to accept the wealthy young man of her father’s choice. Separated by class barriers and social pressure, the fated duo hurt and enthrall each other by turns as they move toward an emotional doom that neither will recognize until it is too late.