Customer Reviews

Helrunar A Manual Of Rune Magick

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Jan Fries has done a brilliant job in creating an effective and pactical system based on the Runes.

However, I should point out one thing for those serious runesters out there. His system of rune magick is a complete system and well researched--though, for rune purists, be warned, his system is presented with a Thelemic bent with frequent references to Liber AL. My point here is that if you are looking for a system that is more authentically Germanic, then check out the work of Edred Thorsson or Freya Aswynn.

For me this integration works, in part because his context is very contemporary (so for you Thelemites who are looking to explore the runes, here's the book for you).

And, for anyone just looking for a great book on magick, this is definately one to check out.

This book is brilliantly written. It is one of the best books I have ever seen on the PRACTICE of any kind of Magick. The book contains none of the fanaticism, unsupported assertions, and fluffy new age drivel so common in this field. Rather, Fries gives a reasoned account of the history of the runes, including references to primary sources so that the reader can do his own research. He also gives detailed practical instructions on magick and trance work, rather than just writing down sequences of movements to go through in order to perform a few "rituals." I cannot recommend this book too highly to those interested in PRACTICING magick, rather than just reading about it.

Jan Fries has brought us a very good book on runes. It covers everything from early history through to the various uses of runes for meditation, chant and trancework, healing and divination, and he does so with a great sense of humour. The result is a thoroughly enjoyable read that comes over as being unique in its approach. The rune meanings are extensive, but the author leaves room for his readers to think for themselves in this regard also. Jan Fries is not only informative, he encourages further experimentation by beginner and scholar alike to arrive at a more personal view.
As it says in the Havamal: Veistu hve freista skal? (Know how to test them?) in the sense that we should see how the runes work for ourselves.
Illustrated throughout with the author's strange and absorbing artwork, this is one of the best rune books of the present day.

This is a wonderful book for modern mages and witches. The book appealed to me because I was searching for a more indeep, no -new-age crap type of book about runes. This is a very refreshing take on the subjects of runes and magic indeed.

It's chaos magic in the sense of ecclectic modern magic, not in the sense of mind-game egotistical magic.

I'd like to read more books like this one, never mind the label.

Jan Fries has obviously done all the research for this book, which contains a wealth of information and practical advice. It is very approachable, and offers instruction for beginners and more advanced students. Fries has a good sense of humor and it comes through in this book. Also, he tries hard not to offer undue influence or overbearing directions. My only quibble would be with the fact that Mandrake of Oxford forgot to send this book to proofreading--it has many tiny errors that could not be caught by spellcheck but would have been caught by a good proofreader. Further evidence of their cost-cutting may be observed in their use of a TrueType font on the cover (rather than a Postscript font), so that the title has little jagged edges all over the letters. It would be nice to have the subject matter taken as seriously by the publishers as it is by the author.

Anything by this author should be on the bookshelf. I like Jan's work myself and recommend him to others.