Scan barcode
jonathanpalfrey's review against another edition
3.0
I vaguely remember seeing this book in shops decades ago, but it's taken me until now to buy and try it. It's an amiable light American comic fantasy, quite short, not much to it, but the dialogue and situations are entertaining enough to keep you occupied for a shortish journey, if you like this kind of thing.
I'm satisfied to have read it at last, but I probably won't bother with the sequels. I don't go in for heavy fiction, but this is so light that it feels more like a snack than a meal.
The author had ability in his way (I couldn't do it), but perhaps not the kind of ability to produce something more substantial.
I'm satisfied to have read it at last, but I probably won't bother with the sequels. I don't go in for heavy fiction, but this is so light that it feels more like a snack than a meal.
The author had ability in his way (I couldn't do it), but perhaps not the kind of ability to produce something more substantial.
dyerra's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
liketheday's review against another edition
3.0
The writing style and the plot of this book reminded me of a slightly less absurd Terry Pratchett novel, which is excellent except that I'd rather gotten used to the absurdity and this book seemed practically straightforward in some places. Asprin also focuses his satire more on the fantasy novel and less on, say, everything in the world, so I felt like I was missing a few things since I've never been a big classic fantasy reader.
read more...
read more...
cozydreamsstudio's review against another edition
5.0
This is such a classic. I first read these books in high school and it’s a series I come back to time and time again. A fantasy adventure with lots of comedy!
Skeeve is an apprentice magician whose master dies on him. Luckily he is taken along with the demon Aahz his master summoned as his last act. They travel together throughout the dimensions encountering many different characters and picking up magical items as they go. They somehow always manage to escape tricky situations in the nick of time with either Skeeve’s limited spell work, or by Aahz talking circles around their enemies.
Skeeve is an apprentice magician whose master dies on him. Luckily he is taken along with the demon Aahz his master summoned as his last act. They travel together throughout the dimensions encountering many different characters and picking up magical items as they go. They somehow always manage to escape tricky situations in the nick of time with either Skeeve’s limited spell work, or by Aahz talking circles around their enemies.
kynan's review against another edition
4.0
A rather tongue-in-cheek treatment of the fantasy genre, following the apprenticeship of Skeeve and his associates through assorted adventures.
I'd liken this book (and I'm assuming the rest of the series) to the Dexter books. This was a light, fun read, although the Myth book is rather more overtly humourous with a predilection for sarcasm and a lot of the puns edge into breaking the fourth wall. There is also some rather time-specific humour sprinkled around that is showing its age (i.e. the references to MC Hammer). I particularly enjoyed the jocular quotes that set the mood for each chapter.
Overall I enjoyed this story and I'll be checking in on book two of the series (Myth Conceptions) at some stage.
The audio version I listened to was produced by Audible Frontiers and narrated by Noah Michael Levine. For some reason I found the voices he used for the imps a little distracting but apart from that I think he did a good job. There were no audio embellishments to distract from the narration.
I'd liken this book (and I'm assuming the rest of the series) to the Dexter books. This was a light, fun read, although the Myth book is rather more overtly humourous with a predilection for sarcasm and a lot of the puns edge into breaking the fourth wall. There is also some rather time-specific humour sprinkled around that is showing its age (i.e. the references to MC Hammer). I particularly enjoyed the jocular quotes that set the mood for each chapter.
Overall I enjoyed this story and I'll be checking in on book two of the series (Myth Conceptions) at some stage.
The audio version I listened to was produced by Audible Frontiers and narrated by Noah Michael Levine. For some reason I found the voices he used for the imps a little distracting but apart from that I think he did a good job. There were no audio embellishments to distract from the narration.
hidekisohma's review against another edition
4.0
So i had NO expectations going into this book. all i knew was that it was short, fantasy, and had a neat cover.
Did i like it? Yeah. yeah i did.
It's kind of a typical "Defeat the evil guy who killed my mentor" story, but it does it VERY tongue in cheek and a lot more humor than anything. The naive MC is dialed up to 11 but it works as it's ALMOST a parody of fantasy novels.
The story reads insanely fast and there's hardly any description. I will tell you this now, if you're a fan of purple prose or lengthy descriptions like Robert Jordan you will NOT like this book. It assumes you can just create a world in your head with a line like "there was a row of brightly lit tents" that's basically all you get. The thing is, i LOVE little description. I have a very vivid imagination so i can create a world basically from just dialogue and a few choice descriptive words. So for me, it was a breath of fresh air. But for others, i can see this not being their cup of tea.
The demon, Aahz, does a lot of double talk and flim-flamming in this story and that's probably the only thing about it i didn't like. i'm not really a fan of smooth talking salesman characters and Aahz has his moments of that.
Without giving too much away, the finale was...very unexpected. it was one of those situations where there's like 20 pages in the book and they're nowhere NEAR wrapping it up so you're like "how in the world are they gonna do this?" and to my surprise they managed to do it. it wasn't the most SATISFYING ending ever, but like James Cromwell said "That'll do pig, that'll do."
All in all, it was very energetic, light hearted and fun. I feel more fantasy novels need to take a page from this and be more fun. So many are dark, depressing, or bogged down with descriptive lore that it loses its goal. to have the reader have fun. This book managed to accomplish that in a relatively fast pace. I absolutely will be reading the 2nd book in the series. 4 out of 5.
Did i like it? Yeah. yeah i did.
It's kind of a typical "Defeat the evil guy who killed my mentor" story, but it does it VERY tongue in cheek and a lot more humor than anything. The naive MC is dialed up to 11 but it works as it's ALMOST a parody of fantasy novels.
The story reads insanely fast and there's hardly any description. I will tell you this now, if you're a fan of purple prose or lengthy descriptions like Robert Jordan you will NOT like this book. It assumes you can just create a world in your head with a line like "there was a row of brightly lit tents" that's basically all you get. The thing is, i LOVE little description. I have a very vivid imagination so i can create a world basically from just dialogue and a few choice descriptive words. So for me, it was a breath of fresh air. But for others, i can see this not being their cup of tea.
The demon, Aahz, does a lot of double talk and flim-flamming in this story and that's probably the only thing about it i didn't like. i'm not really a fan of smooth talking salesman characters and Aahz has his moments of that.
Without giving too much away, the finale was...very unexpected. it was one of those situations where there's like 20 pages in the book and they're nowhere NEAR wrapping it up so you're like "how in the world are they gonna do this?" and to my surprise they managed to do it. it wasn't the most SATISFYING ending ever, but like James Cromwell said "That'll do pig, that'll do."
All in all, it was very energetic, light hearted and fun. I feel more fantasy novels need to take a page from this and be more fun. So many are dark, depressing, or bogged down with descriptive lore that it loses its goal. to have the reader have fun. This book managed to accomplish that in a relatively fast pace. I absolutely will be reading the 2nd book in the series. 4 out of 5.
ergative's review against another edition
3.0
Perfectly adequate for an audiobook to listen to while cooking. Definitely I can see why I liked these so much when I was 12. Now that I'm older, they're a little more obvious, but there's some cute culture clash.
shane_tiernan's review against another edition
4.0
Read this many years ago and loved it along with a bunch of other books in the series. It's hilarious and original.
olityr's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-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? It's complicated
3.0
Very silly