Scan barcode
A review by sarahdm
Kings of the Wyld by Nicholas Eames
adventurous
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
This is such a weird little book. I feel like I am very much not its demographic. This whole thing smells like beef jerky, tobacco, and Budlight. Dean Winchester and Eddie Munson got together, wrote a D&D campaign, and this is the result. Its such a love letter to rock music and the fantasy genre, there are characters with names like Neil the Young and Tiamax. The whole time it was giving "this is definitely just some guys D&D campaign" but where I feel a lot of books in this category are boring, this one honestly delighted.
I like all of these characters. They are all unique and they really are just oozing bromance. The main cast's friendship is really awesome to explore, and its giving sports anime levels of endearment. We are super spoiled with not one but THREE overly protective father figures which is a trope I am a huge sucker for. "I would literally destroy the world to save my little girl." Chef Kiss. But I think the gay old man wizard with fantasy trench foot that is Arcandius Moog really steals the show. I think the only complaint I have is that there aren't really any interesting female characters. There is Larkspur and Lady Jain but they aren't what I would consider main characters and definitely are not written with the same care as the other main five. I did state before that this book is kind of giving off "a fantasy lover's man's man adventure" so I'm not really surprised by the lack of strong female characters.
The writing and themes are a lot more in-depth then what I was expecting. The music motifs and descriptive prose are amazing and just fun to read. The book is at its core a comedy, but that doesn't stop it from having serious insightful scenes about death, fatherhood, friendship, morality, identity. In this pile of "haha funny fart butt dick" jokes, there really is something heart felt in these pages.
I think this is a super hard recommend. Can't see anyone liking this unless you love campy fantasy D&D stuff. If I wasn't already a huge fan of D&D and I didn't enjoy the loving father trope, I feel like I would be giving this book a solid 2.5-3. Solid divorced dadcore.
I like all of these characters. They are all unique and they really are just oozing bromance. The main cast's friendship is really awesome to explore, and its giving sports anime levels of endearment. We are super spoiled with not one but THREE overly protective father figures which is a trope I am a huge sucker for. "I would literally destroy the world to save my little girl." Chef Kiss. But I think the gay old man wizard with fantasy trench foot that is Arcandius Moog really steals the show. I think the only complaint I have is that there aren't really any interesting female characters. There is Larkspur and Lady Jain but they aren't what I would consider main characters and definitely are not written with the same care as the other main five. I did state before that this book is kind of giving off "a fantasy lover's man's man adventure" so I'm not really surprised by the lack of strong female characters.
The writing and themes are a lot more in-depth then what I was expecting. The music motifs and descriptive prose are amazing and just fun to read. The book is at its core a comedy, but that doesn't stop it from having serious insightful scenes about death, fatherhood, friendship, morality, identity. In this pile of "haha funny fart butt dick" jokes, there really is something heart felt in these pages.
I think this is a super hard recommend. Can't see anyone liking this unless you love campy fantasy D&D stuff. If I wasn't already a huge fan of D&D and I didn't enjoy the loving father trope, I feel like I would be giving this book a solid 2.5-3. Solid divorced dadcore.