Dave Adams

Voluminous and Intriguing

Reviewed: 11-14-24

For Gen-Xers like me that played RPGs at their birth and since, this is a wonderful walk down memory lane. For those interested purely in the history and professional business relationships in the industry (as and after it became one) the detail is rich. The only downside is that, though the narrator is wonderful, and audio reading of dates and facts can get occasionally pedantic. That, however, does not impermissibly detract from the work. Enjoy!

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Still stands up after 25 years

Reviewed: 07-08-24

Paul Kidd does a great job of capturing the nostalgia of these old D&D modules, while weaving a backstory that makes sense as well as creating memorable characters. I had read the book twice since publishing, and now enjoyed the audiobook. Very well performed and spoken. I'm looking forward to the next audiobooks in the series. A must for old gamers!

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Good Nerd Fare - Enjoyable As Well

Reviewed: 10-23-23

As nerd growing up in the 70s and 80s, a must! The story drags a bit in the middle, but does pick up pace again as it nears part three. Will Wheaton's performance is adequate, but he's no voice actor. Overall: page-turner for any of us Gen-Xers that lived the gaming nerd lifestyle through the early days of gaming, including both computer and TTRPGs. The novel is better, and more detailed, than the movie. It also focuses on the dystopian nature of Wade's life and world, and the many morals and warnings in the story are well worth digesting.

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Performance rocked / Writing notsomuch

Reviewed: 02-19-23

Mirroring others: the characters were wooden, the nostalgia for old gamers like me was enjoyable, but overall a poor offering. The writing was pedantic, repetitive, and juvenile, and by the last third of the story I was begging for it to be over. By far the weakest novel in this series. Only the voice acting kept me interested.

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Good message, narration soulless

Reviewed: 09-17-22

This book does a great job of messaging important concepts about money, but the narration is so flat, and at times so exactingly staccato, that it distracts from the points being made. I felt like I was being lectured by my third grade teacher, not being helped by the author.

I took a lot from the book that will help me continue to navigate away from some of the more damaging aspects of living in a capitalist society, while at the same time I came to appreciate what proper application of wealth can do to heal ourselves and our world. Some of the best lessons came from the author's lived experiences and interactions with world stage level figures, and her own family. I'd recommend this book for anyone that wants to have a little more peace in their heart over money, and how they can use it well.

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Enormous help for you or others processing trauma

Reviewed: 07-22-22

This book should probably be considered the seminal work on modern approaches to identifying and processing personal trauma. As a survivor of childhood trauma who then went on to become a First Responder I recommend this book to anyone needing to understand the root causes and multiple options for dealing with trauma of all stripes.

I wish I'd known these things 40 years ago. If you are a survivor and want to be a thriver, and also possibly help others, read this book.

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After 8 hours, had to turn it off

Reviewed: 06-07-22

The literary trope of a person being transported into a game world is not a new one (TRON, "The Sword and the Chain"), but this book takes it to a level of minutia that becomes tedious at times as the main characters' stats are read over and again whenever he does something significant, or the encyclopedic description of the geography and sociology of the various areas of the game world is talked about ad infinitum. It was like reading my way through an MMORPG, one pop-up screen at a time. Perhaps that is the point of this genre in modern days, but it gets really old when character development is more about statistics than personality.

More troubling than that for me was the suspension of disbelief I was assumed to take when this person (Jason, a mid-20's transplant from modern Australia) navigated his way through this high magic, high Middle Ages-like world. Somehow as he continued to face mortal dangers and be beaten almost to death several times, he maintained his snarky comments and attitudes not just with his opponents, but with the background characters (NPCs) with whom he interacted. He also displayed no reasonable fear, or deference to being the stranger in a strange land, even though he was made well aware of his mortality and insignificance. There was no "when in Rome" about Jason. By the time I quit listening, I wanted to (metaphorically, or perhaps "in game") see Jason humbled, and start acting like a normal person would under the circumstances: reasonable caution, due caution, and with deference to the locals. He didn't need to become mousey, but...

The writing was plodding as the author wanted to describe everything in minute detail, and he never really got a good overarching story going. There were allusions to political issues that might be intriguing, but there was not a lot of reason for the reader to care, or conjecture how Jason (who was more interested in "leveling up" rather than figuring out how he was going to have any higher goal in life) might solve these issues.

It may be that in print this novel goes faster. Be that as it may, I would rather have seen smart-mouth Jason swallowed whole by a big monster than keep listening to his pedantic and snide musings.

Kudos to the reader's performance. He did well with different voices, tone, and inflection.

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Still wisdom to be had

Reviewed: 05-27-22

Enjoyed this when it first came out 30 years ago. Some of the verbiage is a bit dated (we don't hear the word "housewife" much anymore) but the short lessons in each chapter stand the test of time. If you're looking for a devotional book that has quick chapters and encourages you to have a genuine relationship with God and people, this is a good choice. Max Lucado does a wonderful job of being engaging and germane.

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Dated, and not in a good way.

Reviewed: 04-29-22

I've been going through the old Harper's series from the late 80's/early 90's, and this is one of the series that doesn't hold up well. The characters are two-dimensional, and it was difficult to care or connect with any of them, specifically the protagonist, Ruha, who has more depth in previous works. It felt like I was watching a poorly-paced serial TV show that was checking all of the boxes of what fantasy fiction should be, but missing the mark on being good writing. Sadly, many FR-specific works play out this way. By the end of the book I was just waiting for it to end. I guess putting authors on deadlines has disadvantages.

Also, though the narrator did a GREAT job of narrating, the racist trope of asian-based broken English the Shou characters spoke was troubling. It harkened back to the "Kung Fu Theater" of the 60's and 70's, and was an unpleasant distraction. I wouldn't recommend this book except for the most die-hard FR fans who are mining it for lore.

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Over a decade old and more pertinent than ever

Reviewed: 12-28-21

I read this book back when it first came out: 2011. Ten years has done nothing to diminish the message; if anything, it becomes more urgent for today.

The authors do an immense job of pointing out, without being preachy, how the Church has missed the mark of Jesus' teachings in many ways, and has therefore taken the core of the Gospel away from people. The book discusses not just where we have fallen down a bit, but offers real, "on the daily" advice about how we can redirect ourselves and our efforts towards being Christ's ambassadors in our world.

Though heavy and convicting at times, the book offers hope to all of us in language we can all understand.

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