Two Reviews of Too Wyrd - This is a good one!

From : AlteredInstinct.com

Too Wyrd, by Sarah Buhrman

Some books just get you. They just catch you right - and Sarah Buhrman's first book in her Runestones saga does that with me. 

It's the story of single mother Nicola - who discovers her sister is mixed up with a cult and sets out with her best friend Joseph to try to rescue her. The kicker? Nicola's also a heathen witch. And it turns out this cult actually could bring about the apocalypse. 

Plunging headlong into a world of urban fantasy, with Norse gods and the possible coming of Ragnarok, this is a great ride of a tale. It kinda slows up a little bit in the first third, but then rushes onward towards... maybe... the end of the world? 

Nicola is a great character, brittle with the authorities investigating the supernatural shenanigans but passionate in her friendships, and a reluctant heroine, drawing on her own strength even with the cost that using magic imposes upon her. 

If you're a fan of urban fantasy, this is squarely in the genre - with a great female lead character, and a swirl of magic and mythology. Honestly, I enjoyed this more than Jim Butcher's Dresden series - definitely a world worth discovering. 

AI Rating: 5/5

- Leo McBride

You can also find a video review by Diane Morrisson HERE!

Book Review by The New Podler blog

I got a new review in!

This one is particularly in-depth. What do you think?

The New Podler Review of Books: Too Wyrd by Sarah Buhrman

Nicola's Interview on The Protagonist Speaks

Nicola got her own interview - talk about meta!

My thanks to author and blogger, Assaph Mehr, for hosting these interviews on his blog, The Protagonist Speaks.

Nicola Crandall (of Too Wyrd by Sarah Buhrman)

Dear readers, tonight with me is a simple woman, living a quiet life – a single mother, a herbalist, and a heathen witch. When she discovered her step-sister disappeared after joining a cult, she went after her – and was not quite prepared for what she found out.

She is here to tell us of her adventures, and all the things she found out becoming an accidental hero. 

Writing Dark

Image by David Ho

I've been struggling with my writing this month. I have a great outline. I have plenty of time. When I sit down to write, the words come easily.

So why do I struggle?

The piece that I'm working on - Fluffy Bunny, book 2 of the Runespells series - is really dark. There's physical abuse, mental abuse, psychological torture... And the character arc is all about overcoming what's in her own head, first and foremost.

I love my main character, Nicola. She's a great character.

So, I sent her to be brainwashed by a cult and killed her.

Yeah, she was brought back, but she experienced death. And her self-identity has been under fire. Her pro-active nature has been suppressed. Her love and loyalty has been co-opted.

I've been struggling to write because my characters are going through such a hard time, I can barely hold myself together in the face of their hopelessness and anxiety.

It isn't often that people really talk about the psychological effects of writing from a personal, in-the-moment perspective. I'm sure that my natural empathy for characters (mine or others') isn't helping my plight. In a way, I'm losing myself right alongside Nicola.

The thing is, I write what I experience, even if the experience in only in my own head. So, to write this psychological suspense, I have to make myself experience it. I have to create the situation in my head and figure out the emotions and the details of how that works.

It's draining me, little by little. But I think it will be worth it.

Character Backgrounds

How I see Joseph Andress

I love knowing so much about characters, and I know my own characters the best! But, sometimes, I don't know what I know about the characters until A) someone asks me, or B) I push myself to write some background.

I did some character backgrounds during the Too Wyrd Book Release party on Facebook. It was a lot of fun, and I got to bring out some details that had been rattling around in my head - useless to the plot of the book, but fascinating, otherwise.

One of the characters who came out with something... surprising was that of Joseph. I had known that he wasn't really looking for someone to love, but I never really considered why until I was writing this character background.

The details are wrong for Hound Dog,
but the feel of this image is perfect.

Other character backgrounds that were wonderfully insightful were those of Hound Dog and Detective Ames.

It's always quite satisfying when writing something about a character, even something so simple and quick, can make the author cry.

That's right, I was crying.

Apparently, it made others tear up a bit, too.

Check out the character backgrounds and much more on my website, authorgoddess.com

Duel to the Death: the Hunter of Voramis vs Mercy (a bit of fun)!

I, Sarah Buhrman, challenge you, Andy Peloquin, to a duel to the death! But it is not we who will fight, but our characters…

In the yellow corner, we have Mercy the Valkyrie!

Tale of the Tape:

• Carries a bowie knife that transforms into a sword
• Master of virtually all fighting styles, having been on earth for hundreds of years doing Odin’s bidding.
• She is a god-creature, an extension of Odin, she has no soul and cannot be killed–she is simply absorbed and re-manifested through Odin.
• Mercy is protective, determined and compassionate – for a Valkyrie. Mercy is a manifestation of Odin’s empathy for humanity.

In the black corner, weighing in at 180 pounds, standing a cool 6 feet tall, the Hunter of Voramis!

Tale of the Tape:

• Superhuman reflexes, strength, speed–think Captain America, but stronger
• Thousands of years of weapons training
• Body has accelerated healing factor–can survive a sword to the heart (can be killed by drowning, iron weapons, beheading, and suffocation)
• Cannot be killed by anything but iron
• Accursed dagger that heals him when he kills
• No magical abilities whatsoever
• No hesitation to kill if he perceives opponent as a threat/obstacle to his desires–classic anti-hero

Two enter the ring, only one can leave alive!

How would Mercy kill the Hunter? Valkyrie weapons are made of cold-iron, as that is a primary weakness of the Jotun, the ice and fire giants, enemies of the Aesir and of Odin. Mercy recently finished helping Nicola begin her quest, leading her sister-Valkyrie in battle against not-so-good-ol’-Bob and his demons, given to him by Jehovah (at least, they are pretty sure it’s Jehovah). She has experience with demon-kind and with monstrous creatures, and she will simply fight until the enemy is defeated. That’s what the Valkyrie do.

To kill Mercy: The Hunter would try to overwhelm her with his inhuman speed, strength, and skill. All he has to do is pierce her skin with Soulhunger, and the dagger will consume her soul. Not even someone with considerable magical abilities can survive Soulhunger’s bite–it was created to kill demons.

Who would win?

Faced with the almighty power of Odin’s messenger, one who wields the cold-iron (the Hunter’s weakness) of the Aesir, the Hunter would grit his teeth and fight until his last breath. With no soul for Soulhunger to consume, he would have no way to heal himself from the iron’s poison.

Winner: Mercy. Not even the Hunter can withstand the power of the gods.

Find out more about the legendary assassin of Voramis who would dare challenge a Valkyrie to the death!

Want to find out more about the legendary assassin of Voramis who would dare challenge a Valkyrie to the death? Click here to read about him…

Who do YOU think would win? Did we get the match-up right? Leave a comment below and let me know.

Find out more about Mercy, the Valkyrie warrior, in Too Wyrd.

Get Ready, Get Set, And...

It's almost here. It's right around the corner. It's so close, you can almost touch it. You might even say, you could...





PRE-ORDER TOO WYRD!

That's right. We have achieved the pre-order stage!

Are you excited? I'm excited.

So, go check out my new web site, The AuthorGoddess, to find lovely links, including this one, to the pre-order page of the initiates. (Don't forget to leave a review when you read it!)

Too Wyrd Cover Reveal Coming!

I've gotten the cover image for Too Wyrd. Who's excited?

I'll be doing a cover reveal event, so stay tuned! Meanwhile, here's a hint:

Too Wyrd Book Trailer