Reviews with content warning for War - The Frugal Wizard's Handbook For Surviving Medieval England

This book is kind of a disappointment.

I love the world building. I love how it's a medieval fantasy setting with a futuristic lense on top of it. It leads to a very unique setting that the characters explore.

I love the protagonist in this book especially when he is by himself and it is only his internal monologue. The other characters were weaker and just not as fleshed out as he was. I would have preferred if the main character had spent more time with it only being him because those pages flew by while the other pages of him interacting with the others were more of a slog.

I didn't like John's romance with Sefawynn I feel it was kind of a forced romance that only happened because they were two main characters of the opposite sex. I have noticed this trope happens in most Sanderson books and I find it annoying but it's not a deal breaker in his writing or anything.

The death fake outs in this book are so obvious that I did not register them as deaths. I just couldn't believe that the book tried to fake Ealstan's death twice.

The best parts of this book were the FAQs that were sprinkled throughout they were really funny and explained world building that would have been out of place in the main story. When the story felt like a slog I would read it for the next FAQ almost like it was a reward.

This is a book that has a lot of potential but I feel that it did not fully meet my expectations. If this got a sequel I would read it but I would not recommend this book over so many other great Sanderson books.

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nicoleh3's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted relaxing medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

The writing style was obnoxious, but apparently not obnoxious enough for me to quit. The one redeeming factor of the book was the main character’s development arc at the end.

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victoriastarkid's review against another edition

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adventurous hopeful medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

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jbt1234's review against another edition

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adventurous funny inspiring mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

While I found the first couple of chapters shaky, I quickly realized that that was just the point! Confused and without memories, our main character goes on a wonderfully paced journey of adventure and self-discovery. The final climax is so tense and exciting, it was amazing to see it top the adventure that got us there.

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rehtaehwashere's review against another edition

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adventurous funny hopeful medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

What I liked: I liked the play on Norse mythology with the magic in the alternate universe he ends up in. I like that both the
cop he's friends with and the gang he was actually in
are full of trash people which is very realistic. I liked that in the end he got to
stay with Sefawynn without hurting the wights
. Really concerned about what that alternate universe's Loki is doing
with his laptop though that's sus as hell and very in character for him
. I liked the version of Vikings in this book, too, and that the magic of this world was in being able to read, but it was done in a way that wasn't childish cringe/tacky but in a way that actually worked really really well
What I disliked: It was misleading in the title in that it sounded like fantasy-fiction which is what he TYPICALLY WRITES and was actually science fiction. That
it started off convincing us
the main character is a cop in a sci-fi novel which almost made me DNF it
Overall thoughts: A really cool book with an interesting take on alternate universes and that supposedly magic isn't real in any of them
and yet he found the one real fantasy world
. The cross over between sci-fi and fantasy that happened in this book.
That it WASN'T the cop book it felt like it was in the beginning and that the romance in the book wasn't the whole point of the book but it was a nice side plot.
That the whole book was the main character redefining who he is to himself and eventually figures out who he wants to be and
helps save this alternate reality and build a home there where he felt wanted and appreciated.
Finding himself and making a home
Recommend to a friend? Y but would depend on the friend

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brogancha's review against another edition

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adventurous funny hopeful lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

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navyredrose's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful lighthearted reflective tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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amphibianwitch's review against another edition

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adventurous dark funny tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No

2.25

Ha sido un poco decepcionante, pero me cuesta desgranar por qué. Por un lado, creo que había demasiada información: el worbu de cifi, el worbu religioso, el worbu del medievo, el pasado del protagonista... demasiadas cosas que explicarle al lector en lugar de desarrollar la historia y a los personajes.

Pero es que por otro lado tampoco creo que la historia y los personajes fueran tan interesantes. El grupo está compuesto del protagonista inútil pero que al final triunfa, la chica que está para ser el interés amoroso y el tipo grande, fuerte y estoico. Cada vez que aparecía un personaje más interesante (como Thokk o Yazad), tenía un peso poco relevante en la trama. (view spoiler)

En cuanto a la historia, el tema de los vikingos es que no me importaba mucho. Colocar a un grupo de "invasores" como enemigos, pero de los que no sabemos nada, pues no sé, me parece raro en Sanderson. Es un recurso un poco vago. Y en general el final no me ha parecido que diera los frutos que se iban sembrando durante la historia. No sé, si tienes que empezar la última pelea, la que debería tener una gran carga emocional y culminar la evolución del prota, explicando cosas del contexto... a mí ya me has perdido.

Aún así había ideas que molaban en esta historia. La cifi, Logna, la idea de los concursos multidimensionales y las partes humorísiticas (Sir Runian von Internet, ¡yo te Nintendo!). Una de las mejores cosas, y que ha hecho que no me diera pereza avanzar con el libro, ha sido la increíble interpretación de Francesc Belda (que también disfruté muchísimo en Trenza del Mar Esmeralda) y de Belén Roca.

Pero no sé, en general me ha aburrido.

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