Review: She Wulf by Sheryl Steines

Posted on September 10, 2012 by Charlotte Henley Babb

She Wulf by Sheryl Steines

What’s it like to live in the wizarding world as an adult, not spending all your time chasing after a boy wonder? Sheryl Steines has the answers.Her magic users cast spells the way we send texts,  a jinx here for a bit of fun, a spell there to heal a wound or repair clothing.  Of course there is crime and the Wizard Guard must deal with it without letting the mundanes realize what’s going on, along with a handy liasion from the FBI, who follows his own don’t ask/don’t tell policy.  When a regenerating demon terrorizes a suburban neighborhood, there’s more to be cleaned up than one neurolizer can handle.

Steines’s second novel, She Wulf, brings us from the present to the 1300s complete with vikings, witches, and regenerating demons. Wizard Guard Annie Pearce must remember in the present the magic that she used 700 years before her birth, not only to rid that world of un-killable demons, but her own. Then she has to find the magic components to the spell to get her back home to the love of her life.   Who can she trust, since clearly, no one is telling her all of the truth.

There are four ways a time travel novel can work:

  • Nothing you do changes the future–you didn’t do it then, so you can’t do it now. You can only observe, invisible and untouchable.
  • Anything you do changes the future, no matter how minor, possibly making the future unrecognizable
  • You can make minor changes, but over time, the main stream remains the same
  • Whatever you do in your present, is what you did in the past
She Wulf takes the last two approaches, and Annie is often reminded that she’s already done this, foretold by a prophecy which lead the witches to bring her back in time to do what the prophecy says she did. This prophecy is so old that it’s reduced to a fairy tale or nursery rhyme, but that is all Annie has to go on to get back to her modern life. Why Annie is called a “She Wulf” is never explained, except that it’s the name the vikings give her. No one is telling Annie what she needs to know to do what she needs to do, not even the witches who brought her back in time to do it.
I thought the communication between the time periods was interesting, and I like the characters, but I found this story a bit slow. Because of the way the story is told, back and forth between the here-now and the there-then,  the suspense does not build up about whether Annie can do what needs to be done.  Annie’s confusion becomes my confusion as the reader.  I’d like to have seen more culture-shock about how the people in the 1300s lived, even with the universal translator amulet they use to understand each other.
The magic is handled well, however, showing some research and some practical knowledge. Grab a copy of this during the book tour for a good evening’s read.  Let me know what you think.
Thanks to Novel Publicity Blog Tour for providing a review copy of  She Wulf by Sheryl Steines.

Two Bucks for Two Books!

As part of this special promotional extravaganza sponsored by Novel Publicity, the price of the She Wulf eBook edition is just 99 cents this week–and so is the price of its companion, The Day of First Sun. What’s more, by purchasing either of these fantastic books at an incredibly low price, you can enter to win many awesome prizes. The prizes include a Kindle Fire, $550 in Amazon gift cards, and 5 autographed copies of the book.

All the info you need to win one of these amazing prizes is RIGHT HERE. Remember, winning is as easy as clicking a button or leaving a blog comment–easy to enter; easy to win!

To win the prizes:

  1. Purchase your copy of She Wulf for just 99 cents
  2. Purchase your copy of Day of First Sun for just 99 cents
  3. Enter the Rafflecopter contest on Novel Publicity
  4. Visit today’s featured social media event

About She Wulf: Annie is sent through an ancient time portal with only a prophecy to guide her; she struggles with a new destiny as she tries to figure out a way to destroy an un-killable demon and return home. Get it on Amazon.

About The Day of First Sun: A vampire, a rogue wizard and an army of soulless zombies are par for the course for Annie Pearce and Bobby “Cham” Chamsky of the Wizard’s Guard. But when the non-magical princess, Amelie of Amborix, is murdered by magical means, a deeper plot unfolds. Get it on Amazon.

About the author: Behind the wheel of her ’66 Mustang Convertible, Sheryl is a constant surprise, using her sense of humor and relatable style make her books something everyone can enjoy. Visit Sheryl on her website, Twitter, Facebook, or GoodReads.

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7 Responses to Review: She Wulf by Sheryl Steines

  1. Conda V. Douglas says:
    September 10, 2012 at 2:53 pm

    Oh, this sounds like some wonderful reading and a fab contest!

    • Charlotte Henley Babb says:
      September 10, 2012 at 7:16 pm

      It has some very clever use of magic and good characters. Even the vampires and demons are interesting and different from the usual gang of bloodsuckers. Grab it while it’s 99c.

  2. sherylsteines says:
    September 10, 2012 at 8:00 pm

    Charlotte, thanks so much for the awesome review and for taking the time to include my Whirlwind Tour on your blog. It’s the best way to get the book out there and I really appreciate your time and review. Thanks again.

  3. Pingback: Sheryl Steines Interview: Author of She Wulf - Charlotte Henley Babb

  4. Emlyn Chand (@emlynchand) says:
    September 11, 2012 at 9:33 am

    Great review! I love your analysis of the modes of time travel and am so glad you enjoyed She Wulf. Thanks for joining us on this tour 😀