M. E. Javits
From Stockholm
to the page.
A life spanning education, international experience, and a deep interest in the history of Scandinavia.
Margaretha Espersson Javits was born in Stockholm, Sweden. After attending Teachers College in Stockholm, she moved to the United States, earning a doctorate in Psychology and Higher Education at Columbia University in New York.
She worked as an Assistant Dean in Columbia's School of General Studies before moving into the advertising world. She later accompanied her U.S. ambassador husband to Europe for eight years and subsequently returned to the United States.
The Folkungs channels her interest in medieval Scandinavian history into a novel that explores both the public events and the intimate human forces behind them.
“History gives the landmarks.
Fiction makes the journey.”
The dates are recorded. The conversations are imagined.
In her note on historical fiction, Javits compares the writing process to traveling between known historical events. Public records can establish births, treaties, marriages, and wars, but much of what happened between those milestones remains open to interpretation.
She cites historical scholarship and The Erik Chronicle among the works that informed her research, while openly acknowledging that medieval sources can carry their own biases.
That blend of inquiry and imagination is the foundation of the book.
Read the original author's note ↗A novelist's responsibility
Javits distinguishes the historical record from the creative freedom required to write a novel. The aim is a compelling narrative grounded in a recognizable past—not a replacement for historical scholarship.
A story worth exploring.
Enter the medieval Scandinavian world that inspired the author.
The novel follows the competing claims, loyalties, and emotional lives of a powerful royal family across an era of uncertainty.
About the novel ↗One kingdom. Three brothers.
Countless loyalties.
Discover the sweeping historical novel inspired by medieval Sweden's royal past.