The Way of Wyrd: The Book of a Sorcerer's Apprentice

Wyrd is an old Saxon word for 'destiny', and this book is about Saxon beliefs and culture, told as the story of a shaman's life.

Kind of a weird story (heh, pun intended) but its basis in history and ancient beliefs makes it fascinating. I love the unique perspective on fate and causality. You almost get the sense that the wyrd is ancient druidic chaos theory. Interesting read.

This rather odd and slightly pointless novel, ostensibly historical fiction, feels much more like fantasy with a mild tinge of horror. The author Brian Bates is claimed to be "leading the movement to recover ancient Anglo-Saxon tribal wisdom and to bring it to the forefront of 21st century

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inspiration". He apparently teaches an award-winning course in Shamanic consciousness at the University of Sussex. He has also written a non-fiction work on magic and mystery in the dark ages, so I am not sure what this novel adds to that. It is no doubt an interesting facet of the Anglo Saxon worldview, but presented in this all-encompassing form in a novel with only two characters, it does, as I say, feel like fantasy and vaguely annoying, though Bates is an atmospheric writer. Slightly to my surprise, the leading character did not reject his Christianity and embrace paganism at the end of the book, but seemed happy to live by a fusion of the two. 3/5

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The Way of Wyrd is Bates attempt to turn an eye on what life would have been like for someone approaching an Anglo-Saxon community before the conversion to Christianity. Brand is a monk who has been charged to perform a mission to convert a Heathen kingdom to monotheism. Upon landing on the shores,

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Brand has an unusual experience, and then meets the unpredictable shaman Wulf who becomes his guide. Through the journey our monk learns the ways of this man on the outside of the community who is neck deep in his path. Brand holds to his faith, scoffing at the tales Wulf tells him, but as their travels continue events transpire to show Brand that perhaps there is more in heaven and earth than what monastery life has taught him. A major spiritual crisis tests his faith and may even take his life.

For the story itself I give around 4.5 stars, but for the writing of it I would give 3 stars. Bates is a good technical writer, but felt he did not capture the narrative as a fiction writer would have. Still, I highly recommend this title to anyone interested in a peek into northern cosmology.

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