Tyler Sparr

There’s really not much to set this one apart from other entries in the series. If you’re really looking at reviews of book 13 to decide whether to continue on, probably best to just drop it. A decent entry, but really minimal forward plot movement.

The audio quality and immersion in this is absolutely top notch, but the story itself is so disjointed. My understanding is that’s also how the comics are, but at least that has visual cues to help you follow things. I still really enjoyed it and if more come out, I’ll give them a listen, but not sure I’d actively recommend it to anyone who wasn’t already interested.

Overall, I can’t say this book is anything more than fine. Much like the author’s other book, Sword of Kaigen, this one is severely overhyped. The pacing is poor, the stakes aren’t real, the plot’s relatively predictable, and the ending isn’t all that satisfying. Certainly not something I regret reading, but not one I’d actively recommend.

I enjoyed this a lot more than I expected to! It took a little bit for me to get into the swing of things and understand the landscape, but once I did, I was hooked! Every little revelation will have you constantly turning the pages to figure out just what’s going on.

This book was just so lovely. All of the characters are charming, the setting is delightful, and the plot whisks you along on a magical, little journey. A+ work.

This was overall a fun book, but I think this is one of those rare cases where the movie is actually better than the book. For some reason, all of the various events felt even more ridiculous on paper than on screen. There's definitely better thrillers out there, but I don't regret the read. Probably not going to seek out anything further from the author.

Well this one really went off the rails. Without getting into spoiler territory, vampires seem to be acquiring powers to fit every situation like they’re Superman. It feels like there’s simultaneously no stakes at all while they’re doing their best to build tension. Quite a disconnect. Still an interesting story that I’m curious to hear how it ends though I’d prefer to just read it.

Pretty solid entry in the series, but felt like it drug on a little too long. Just a lot of repetition along the same themes.

Aside than being far too long, still a solid entry in the series. Definitely one that I’ll see through to the end.

Another solid entrance in this series. I appreciate that unlike many writers in this genre, there aren’t too many extended side quests. Everything just keeps moving forward.

I enjoyed this more than I thought I would. It reminded me a lot of Guillermo Del Toro and Chuck Hogan’s The Strain trilogy in a very good way. The audio was very well done and the story was very engaging. What I just kept coming back to though was the thought “I wish this were just a book”. You’re not going to get the same descriptions and insight from an audio drama as you’d get from the written word. Overall, still pretty good and I’ll listen to the next one when there’s no new podcast episodes.

If you like The Gentleman Bastards, I highly recommend you pick this book up! It's got heists, it's got swordplay, it's got banter. What's not to like? At times this read more like a thriller than a fantasy book in all the best ways. I don't remember the last time I looked down and saw I'd accidentally read for hours without noticing it. Was completely sucked in! While there's always a chance the rest of this series will be a letdown, this is such a strong start that I'm ready for the ride!

9 books in and I’m still enjoying this series. Numbers go up and monsters go down. It’s all in the title - dude just wants to hunt monsters. Not his fault people won’t just let him focus on it.

Quick callout, this is not really a story, but rather presented as if an episode of a podcast set within the Boys universe. It goes by quick, gives a little bit of insight into The Deep's story, and is well-narrated. There's nothing groundbreaking going on, but if you're a fan of The Boys, this is a fun listen.

It's not often that the 7th book in a series is the best one yet, but here we are! There was just so much going on in this one that it was hard to put down! If you want a fun, magic school story that just keeps getting wilder and wilder, I highly recommend picking this one up.

This was a solid entry in the series, but really nothing special overall. Seems like every series likes to do a challenge dungeon arc and I’m just glad this one didn’t drag on for too terribly long. Looking forward to seeing some outside progress now!

I think this is the best entry in the series so far! There’s still so much to learn about the world, but we’re starting to get those peeks behind the screen. There’s plenty of action happening and the character interactions all feel very natural. Plus everyone loves a good tourney arc. I wish I already had book 4 available!

Another excellent entry in the series. It’s great to finally see some storylines come to a satisfying conclusion though of course we get plenty more starting up. Can’t wait to see where this one goes!

Overall, pretty enjoyable, but not my favorite of Gaiman’s work. I just never really felt like I connected with or cared about the characters.

While this isn't the best book I've ever read, I think the world and the concepts behind it have a ton of promise! The world is very Roman-coded if not just outright Rome with the names changed, but it's done in a way that doesn't make it feel too limiting. There's also a lot of Eragon vibes to the journey which I enjoyed. If you're going into this book with a critical mind, maybe don't? Because overall there's a lot of fun to be had if you can just let yourself be swept along by the story. Looking forward to the next book in the series.

This series is falling into the trap many of these LitRPG series fall into where the things the hero needs to do turns into a checklist and whole books are just spent checking the boxes. Or the hero spends hundreds of pages on long tangents that aren’t central to the plot at all. It has lost a lot of its shine for me, but there’s enough there of what drew me to it to keep me reading them.

I feel like I still have no clue what’s ultimately going on in this series, but the picture is starting to become clearer. Like a lot of middle books, there’s a ton of moving pieces here that need to be pulled together, but it seems like there’s a consistent plan for that to happen. I really hope this trilogy sticks the landing!

I had heard good things from a couple different people about this book so I expected to enjoy it, but even still I was pleasantly surprised. The first book in a new series always has to do a lot of heavy lifting to get things going and that can make them slow, but Faebound doesn’t suffer from that at all. You’re immediately dropped into the world and taken along on their adventure. The characters are complex, the magic system is unique, and you’re given just enough information about the world to keep you intrigued without being beaten over the head by exposition. Definitely looking forward to seeing where the story goes!

Wow, what a ride! I thought this series had a lot of potential after book 1, and Scott Reintgen really delivered here! The first book I think set readers up for disappointment and suffered from being labeled as “dark academia” while being compared to the Scholomance series when it really wasn’t that at all. Now that we’re fully away from the school setting, the rest of the world that’s been created here can really shine. It remains to be seen whether the series will stick the landing, but I’m really looking forward to seeing how the trilogy concludes!

I’ve yet to be disappointed by anything Mark Lawrence puts out and this is no exception. At times the pace was a little slow and it took a bit for everything to really get rolling, but when the action started, it really didn’t let up. Feels like a book that’ll really benefit from a re-read to pick up on any foreshadowing that was missed too. I am so intrigued by this world and this story and truly I have no concept of where it’s going to go from here, but I’m ready for the ride.