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Shrubley, the Monster Adventurer #1
Shrubley, the Monster Adventurer: A LitRPG Adventure
Born an outcast weakling monster. Destined to be an S-Grade hero.
As a monster, Shrubley is forbidden from joining the Adventurers Guild. In a world where essence artists Rank Up in power and most monsters are feral beasts, Shrubley is among the weakest of creatures and is treated as an outcast that is worth less than dirt.
With Curiosity essence bound to his spirit, Shrubley might be weak, but he's intelligent and determined. Against all the odds, he discovers a loophole from the Druid that gave him life, but there's a deadly catch.
For a chance of ever being accepted as a true adventurer, he must challenge an otherworldly realm threatening to consume everything. A realm rife with dangers and opportunities in equal measure.
With a band of fellow low-tier monsters, a tiny slime, an undead skeleton mage, and a koblin, Shrubley sets off to prove that monsters can be heroes too. Even if he must die trying.
Perfect for fans of Final Fantasy and Dungeons and Dragons and readers of epic progression fantasy, LitRPG, Beastborne Chronicles, He Who Fights with Monsters and Cradle.
Join Shrubley's perilous journey with his band of misfit monsters as he slowly evolves in power from a weak, hunted creature to a high rank adventurer who wields a sword and shield with healing druid essences!
What to Weak to monstrously strong, a diverse cast of monsters with unique monster-race powers, a deep class and color-based magic system, silly puns, and of course a hefty dose of optimism.
As a monster, Shrubley is forbidden from joining the Adventurers Guild. In a world where essence artists Rank Up in power and most monsters are feral beasts, Shrubley is among the weakest of creatures and is treated as an outcast that is worth less than dirt.
With Curiosity essence bound to his spirit, Shrubley might be weak, but he's intelligent and determined. Against all the odds, he discovers a loophole from the Druid that gave him life, but there's a deadly catch.
For a chance of ever being accepted as a true adventurer, he must challenge an otherworldly realm threatening to consume everything. A realm rife with dangers and opportunities in equal measure.
With a band of fellow low-tier monsters, a tiny slime, an undead skeleton mage, and a koblin, Shrubley sets off to prove that monsters can be heroes too. Even if he must die trying.
Perfect for fans of Final Fantasy and Dungeons and Dragons and readers of epic progression fantasy, LitRPG, Beastborne Chronicles, He Who Fights with Monsters and Cradle.
Join Shrubley's perilous journey with his band of misfit monsters as he slowly evolves in power from a weak, hunted creature to a high rank adventurer who wields a sword and shield with healing druid essences!
What to Weak to monstrously strong, a diverse cast of monsters with unique monster-race powers, a deep class and color-based magic system, silly puns, and of course a hefty dose of optimism.
588 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 17, 2024
272 people are currently reading
298 people want to read
About the author
James T. Callum
20 books226 followersMy name is James T. Callum and I’m not going to talk to you in the third person or make it seem like I’ve got some publisher or editor who has a bio on me.
I'm always available to talk, connect with readers, fellow authors, and lovable book nerds:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/JamesTCallum
Website: https://www.jamestcallum.com
Twitter: @JamesTCallum
This is just me, talking to you, the reader. I’m no different than you, I love reading and gaming just the same as everybody else.
In fact, I’ve loved reading for as long as I could remember. From the very first fantasy book I read, The Wizard of Earthsea, I was hooked.
For just as long I’ve also been an avid gamer and DND player (as well as other tabletop RPGs). Chrono Trigger, Final Fantasy, Illusion of Gaia, and on through the years as stories and graphics became better and better.
You’ll be able to find hints of inspiration from all sorts of RPGs and video games in my works. From the Final Fantasy series to Warcraft, Age of Empires to Anno, and games like Dark Souls and Bloodborne. Because who doesn’t love a little cosmic horror thrown in for fun?
These games (and countless others) have inspired me ever since I was a kid, and they continue to serve as my muse now that I’m much older.
Writing has always been my greatest aspiration and with your help, I hope to make it a full-time job. At the time of this writing, I still work a day job like most people. It is only thanks to Patreon that I was able to dedicate some of my spare time to writing.
So, if you’d like to provide direct support and help me achieve my goal of writing full-time (so I can write even more stories for you awesome people!) you can hop on over to my Patreon page where you’ll find tons of content.
Patrons get access to advanced chapters of upcoming books, special discord roles and discussion channels, early releases of books before anyone else, maps, cover reveals, voting, and a lot more.
And if you spot a typo or error, shoot me an email at: typos@jamestcallum.com, and I will get it fixed and re-uploaded ASAP. I aim to provide the best possible reading experience and as soon as I find an error I fix it. Once it’s fixed and updated, your reading device should update automatically with the improved version.
I'm always available to talk, connect with readers, fellow authors, and lovable book nerds:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/JamesTCallum
Website: https://www.jamestcallum.com
Twitter: @JamesTCallum
This is just me, talking to you, the reader. I’m no different than you, I love reading and gaming just the same as everybody else.
In fact, I’ve loved reading for as long as I could remember. From the very first fantasy book I read, The Wizard of Earthsea, I was hooked.
For just as long I’ve also been an avid gamer and DND player (as well as other tabletop RPGs). Chrono Trigger, Final Fantasy, Illusion of Gaia, and on through the years as stories and graphics became better and better.
You’ll be able to find hints of inspiration from all sorts of RPGs and video games in my works. From the Final Fantasy series to Warcraft, Age of Empires to Anno, and games like Dark Souls and Bloodborne. Because who doesn’t love a little cosmic horror thrown in for fun?
These games (and countless others) have inspired me ever since I was a kid, and they continue to serve as my muse now that I’m much older.
Writing has always been my greatest aspiration and with your help, I hope to make it a full-time job. At the time of this writing, I still work a day job like most people. It is only thanks to Patreon that I was able to dedicate some of my spare time to writing.
So, if you’d like to provide direct support and help me achieve my goal of writing full-time (so I can write even more stories for you awesome people!) you can hop on over to my Patreon page where you’ll find tons of content.
Patrons get access to advanced chapters of upcoming books, special discord roles and discussion channels, early releases of books before anyone else, maps, cover reveals, voting, and a lot more.
And if you spot a typo or error, shoot me an email at: typos@jamestcallum.com, and I will get it fixed and re-uploaded ASAP. I aim to provide the best possible reading experience and as soon as I find an error I fix it. Once it’s fixed and updated, your reading device should update automatically with the improved version.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 105 reviews
September 8, 2024
This was a pretty fun adventure featuring a sapient shrub as hero who is determined to break new ground for Awakened (i.e. free-willed) monsters in terms of being an Adventurer. Which is a bit ridiculous, but pretty funny as he gathers like-minded friends and charms his way into Adventurer circles. While Shrubley himself is painfully naïve, the narrative voice is third-person omniscient, making this an overt shot at humor. Which it mostly hits. I was entertained, at any rate.
The biggest drawback of the story is that there is a severe tone shift along the way where Shrubley and his friends fall into a dark world and a grim apocalypse nearing completion and that shift was a little overwhelming. And it doesn't help that we get a training montage in the midst of relentless pursuit. And yes, that's every bit as awkward as it seems it would be. And don't get me started on squandering .
This tone shift made the humor harder to sustain. And to be fair, the author doesn't buck it enough to be jarring. Which was definitely a danger. Still, I feel like I was thrust into a grimmer story than I had been promised with that start and that feeling never really went away.
I'm going to give this 3½ stars, but round to four. Not for the humor, which wasn't bad, but for the scrappy Shrubley himself who really does have a huge heart and boundless determination to do the right thing.
A note about Chaste: Do I really need to say this is chaste? He's a shrub. And his companions are a skeleton and a slime. There's no steam. Nor any hint of steam. Obviously. This is completely chaste. As you'd expect.
The biggest drawback of the story is that there is a severe tone shift along the way where Shrubley and his friends fall into a dark world and a grim apocalypse nearing completion and that shift was a little overwhelming. And it doesn't help that we get a training montage in the midst of relentless pursuit. And yes, that's every bit as awkward as it seems it would be. And don't get me started on squandering .
This tone shift made the humor harder to sustain. And to be fair, the author doesn't buck it enough to be jarring. Which was definitely a danger. Still, I feel like I was thrust into a grimmer story than I had been promised with that start and that feeling never really went away.
I'm going to give this 3½ stars, but round to four. Not for the humor, which wasn't bad, but for the scrappy Shrubley himself who really does have a huge heart and boundless determination to do the right thing.
A note about Chaste: Do I really need to say this is chaste? He's a shrub. And his companions are a skeleton and a slime. There's no steam. Nor any hint of steam. Obviously. This is completely chaste. As you'd expect.
November 14, 2024
YA adventure about a little shrub monster who befriends a dumb little skeleton and they go on a wild adventure to become heroes and save the town. It's technically quite good and Shrubley is an interesting protagonist. His game class would probably be something like a nature cleric, and he becomes the first monster adventurer after gaining sentience from an old druid before his death. The little bush is the most innocent of Pollyannas, about as perfect nice as a character can get; a bubbly, relentlessly positive, and sweet mound of foliage with glowing eyes. But he meets a lot of monsters and soldiers and bad guys who are inexhaustively confused. It's a long adventure and he fights and levels up. He is joined by a skeleton, a slime, and others and they meet a seven-foot-tall vampire lady who adds a little sauciness to the light adventure. The LitRPG mechanics are a little simplistic, but the way he levels up is interesting. But, unfortunately, the story is sort of bland and disjointed. The characters have interesting powers but the battles don't have a lot of depth and the scenes feel disconnected, I wanted to have a better feel for their abilities. Do want to read the sequel to get more progression from the little monster hero, but in leaf terms, I'd hope it would be a little more "leaf pile" and not a "mass of leaves that needs raking".
September 4, 2024
Almost too cute (except where it gets grim)
LitRPG / Young adult / Unlikely Hero / Discworld fan service.
This book ends quite well but it started even better. This is a cute little story about a cute little guy who wants to be a hero. I enjoyed the hell out of it.
I could have done with less examination of mortality, especially that those we love will die and leave us (does this book need that?) and the threat of EVERYONE dying to create tension. (The author laid it on a little too thick, I'm taking a star for that) Sheesh, I read this stuff to distract from stress and anxiety, not to watch the plucky comic relief get slaughtered.
What I did like was nearly everything else. The up-beat, optimistic, can do attitude of the hero is exactly what I was hoping for when I saw the cover. The puns were bearable and once or twice enjoyable. Naw... those bad jokes were pretty good.
A pleasant bonus was all the Discworld references and Terry Pratchett inspired jokes. If this book had a nickle for every Discworld joke, it could buy itself a medium cup of coffee, ...but probably not a large.
LitRPG / Young adult / Unlikely Hero / Discworld fan service.
This book ends quite well but it started even better. This is a cute little story about a cute little guy who wants to be a hero. I enjoyed the hell out of it.
I could have done with less examination of mortality, especially that those we love will die and leave us (does this book need that?) and the threat of EVERYONE dying to create tension. (The author laid it on a little too thick, I'm taking a star for that) Sheesh, I read this stuff to distract from stress and anxiety, not to watch the plucky comic relief get slaughtered.
What I did like was nearly everything else. The up-beat, optimistic, can do attitude of the hero is exactly what I was hoping for when I saw the cover. The puns were bearable and once or twice enjoyable. Naw... those bad jokes were pretty good.
A pleasant bonus was all the Discworld references and Terry Pratchett inspired jokes. If this book had a nickle for every Discworld joke, it could buy itself a medium cup of coffee, ...but probably not a large.
March 19, 2024
5 I Have The Heart Of A Hero Stars
Shrubley, The Monster Adventurer is the first in the LitRPG Adventure series by K. H. Somner, and James T. Callum.
I absolutely adore Shrubley, and I've come to hold a special place for Cal, Slyrox, and Smudge in my heart as well. This band of heroes is surprising, not only because of their designation as monsters indeed. I truly am excited and waiting with bated breath to continue this series.
The far-reaching consequences of whether they succeeded in defeating the evil they encountered. I had not expected such a grand fate, especially presenting so early in their Adventures. But fantastical surprises kept becoming known at every turn.
How will this small village, with such a new and different outlook on monster and human camaraderie fare, fare against the prejudices of the wider world? Will this become a hub of change expanding from the countryside? I'm excited to find out.
Shrubley, The Monster Adventurer is the first in the LitRPG Adventure series by K. H. Somner, and James T. Callum.
I absolutely adore Shrubley, and I've come to hold a special place for Cal, Slyrox, and Smudge in my heart as well. This band of heroes is surprising, not only because of their designation as monsters indeed. I truly am excited and waiting with bated breath to continue this series.
The far-reaching consequences of whether they succeeded in defeating the evil they encountered. I had not expected such a grand fate, especially presenting so early in their Adventures. But fantastical surprises kept becoming known at every turn.
How will this small village, with such a new and different outlook on monster and human camaraderie fare, fare against the prejudices of the wider world? Will this become a hub of change expanding from the countryside? I'm excited to find out.
September 29, 2024
Gods bless the authors🥹!!! This books reads like a warm, loving hug from the kindest of souls.
I absolutely love the innocent, brave and absolutely adorable main character. He reminds me of Samwise Gamegee from the Lord of the rings and there can be no higher praise.
This is a book I’ll probably come back to whenever I need a pick me up. May be all have a heart like Shrubley !
I absolutely love the innocent, brave and absolutely adorable main character. He reminds me of Samwise Gamegee from the Lord of the rings and there can be no higher praise.
This is a book I’ll probably come back to whenever I need a pick me up. May be all have a heart like Shrubley !
July 30, 2024
DNF at 71%.
It started promising, with an endearing protagonist and interesting lore, but the writing style faltered. It was showing not telling, felt like it was written for a child and often featured downright bad syntax and grammar. There was also far too much use of similes, which also, annoyingly, made comparisons with real-world things. Poor editing was also prevalent, with Shrubley interchangeably referred to as "him" and "it." The key concepts of "Essences", "Ranks" and "Abilities" were not explained very well, either. Characterisation also ultimately fell flat.
I didn't like the direction of the plot with the mirror world and the serpentii, and, by the 50-70% mark, I found myself simply not particularly caring about the story or the characters.
Reviewer's note: I do sort of feel bad for marking it as read, but since I read more than 400 pages of a 620 page book, I've decided to add it as read.
It started promising, with an endearing protagonist and interesting lore, but the writing style faltered. It was showing not telling, felt like it was written for a child and often featured downright bad syntax and grammar. There was also far too much use of similes, which also, annoyingly, made comparisons with real-world things. Poor editing was also prevalent, with Shrubley interchangeably referred to as "him" and "it." The key concepts of "Essences", "Ranks" and "Abilities" were not explained very well, either. Characterisation also ultimately fell flat.
I didn't like the direction of the plot with the mirror world and the serpentii, and, by the 50-70% mark, I found myself simply not particularly caring about the story or the characters.
Reviewer's note: I do sort of feel bad for marking it as read, but since I read more than 400 pages of a 620 page book, I've decided to add it as read.
March 8, 2024
Book one
This is a book about heroes. Not your everyday hero either.
One shrub dares to do what no monster has done before, become an adventurer and then a hero.
Along the way he will find friends, shatter preconceived notions, turn the world upside down, and become the hero that he always dreamed of.
This was a good story that might just make your eyes leak. The only problem for me was the editing. To many mistakes were missed. That brings a five star book down to three for me.
Mistakes I have found will be listed on Goodreads.
The first book was done on Royalroad so I suspect that you might find book two will come out there as well.
6/10 I'd like better editing.
This is a book about heroes. Not your everyday hero either.
One shrub dares to do what no monster has done before, become an adventurer and then a hero.
Along the way he will find friends, shatter preconceived notions, turn the world upside down, and become the hero that he always dreamed of.
This was a good story that might just make your eyes leak. The only problem for me was the editing. To many mistakes were missed. That brings a five star book down to three for me.
Mistakes I have found will be listed on Goodreads.
The first book was done on Royalroad so I suspect that you might find book two will come out there as well.
6/10 I'd like better editing.
May 17, 2024
Adorable, but fierce!
There's rarely a character that felt as genuinely as innocent, and helpful, as Shrubley the soul Shrub.
The tale was well written, going off the rails in the best ways, keeping me guessing and wanting more!
There's rarely a character that felt as genuinely as innocent, and helpful, as Shrubley the soul Shrub.
The tale was well written, going off the rails in the best ways, keeping me guessing and wanting more!
April 15, 2025
This was a great listen.
A nice story about a virtuous bush who befriends a skeleton a sludge and a vampire.
Well worth the read or listen.
On to book 2
A nice story about a virtuous bush who befriends a skeleton a sludge and a vampire.
Well worth the read or listen.
On to book 2
May 23, 2024
This was a riot
Just AWESOMENESS. Strangest plotline I've read in awhile and it was a joy to read. In my opinion the essence framework is a little wonky but it carries the story well.
Just AWESOMENESS. Strangest plotline I've read in awhile and it was a joy to read. In my opinion the essence framework is a little wonky but it carries the story well.
September 2, 2024
It's not bad, it's just boring. The book started as a cozy humorous tale, which I enjoyed very much. The problem is that the tone shifted at the mirror world, and simply became boring. There a lot of emphasis on the magic progression system. So much so that every character ends up giving a lecture on it. It still manages to feel random, convoluted, confusing and pretty much uninteresting. I really struggled to keep my attention on the pages.
October 12, 2025
Do you read your plants a bed time story at night? Have you pondered if eating a salad is just as morally wrong as eating a burger? Can you tell the difference been a topiary and a flower? The Shrubley the Monster Adventurer may be your next read!
Monsters are meant to be killed, not be adventurers. That’s common knowledge that civilized races know. But this knowledge is upturned when Shrubley, an Awakened soul shrub and one of the weakest kind of monsters, shows up in a small backwater town to join the Adventurers society. Soon he will be thrust in a quest that starts seemingly inconsequential, but ends up having massive repercussions for society and the world.
The thing to know about this book at first blush is that it’s part of a larger, shared world of stories written by this author team. That’s something that I wasn’t initially aware of, but honestly after having read this and seeing that I want to read the other books as well. You don’t need to have read the other books to enjoy this, but you will see hints of these other stories in this book. Nothing that will derail your enjoyment of this or those, but they’re there.
Shrubley, the Monster Adventurer is at its core a very cozy LITRPG with a lot of heart and warmth. While it still has some big stakes, and very intense moments, you will really be unable to miss the whimsy and warmth that spreads across the pages. And it’s largely due to the titular character, Shrubley. He’s so genuine and pure a character that even in the darkest of moments, his mere existence acts as a kind of light. As such, if you’re finding that you need something with stakes but isn’t too dark then you may be interested in this story.
The world building in the book is really one of my favorites. The world that’s created here (especially after you discover it’s a shared universe line of stories) is intriguing. The magic system reflected in this story is interesting and reminds me a bit of He Who Fights With Monsters. The book does a great job explaining it and giving some good examples of growth and combinations that exist within the system to keep fans of LITRPG with well-developed systems happy.
Before going into my deeper thoughts of the story, I did want to acknowledge some things I wish were a bit more tightened up. I do feel some of the prose was particularly weak and probably could have been edited in one more round, but it wasn’t anything too bad. I also wish that the final sets of battles were more fleshed out. There was a bit of a handwave that happens at the end that doesn’t detract from my enjoyment either, but I would have rather it been written out more in-depth.
With all that said, the thing that really sticks out in the book is the message that not everyone is who they appear to be. This is particularly striking when you consider that the outward appearance differs from the inner one is a core concept in the story. Throughout the novel we see characters who are outwardly monsters, literally they’re monsters. This causes people to distrust them, want to harm them and so on because they believe they are something to be killed or reviled. The truth being that they’re more than monsters is largely lost on these people, and the fact that they’re truly heroes is the big reveal on the civilized races at the end of the story. The inverse is true with the enemies featured in the story as well. Outwardly they look normal but secretly they’re true monsters on the inside. The message is a bit heavy handed perhaps, but it’s still relatively effective.
This hidden nature of who we are combines well with the idea that anyone can be a hero. You don’t need to look a certain way, come from a certain background, have a certain skill set or ability or anything like that to do good and inspire others. Anyone can be a hero and I really enjoyed the idea.
Altogether, this book surprised me. It was really well-done and when the last chapter ended, I found myself wanting at least one more. I wasn’t quite ready to end the book! I can’t wait to check out book 2 and the other works by this author team!
Monsters are meant to be killed, not be adventurers. That’s common knowledge that civilized races know. But this knowledge is upturned when Shrubley, an Awakened soul shrub and one of the weakest kind of monsters, shows up in a small backwater town to join the Adventurers society. Soon he will be thrust in a quest that starts seemingly inconsequential, but ends up having massive repercussions for society and the world.
The thing to know about this book at first blush is that it’s part of a larger, shared world of stories written by this author team. That’s something that I wasn’t initially aware of, but honestly after having read this and seeing that I want to read the other books as well. You don’t need to have read the other books to enjoy this, but you will see hints of these other stories in this book. Nothing that will derail your enjoyment of this or those, but they’re there.
Shrubley, the Monster Adventurer is at its core a very cozy LITRPG with a lot of heart and warmth. While it still has some big stakes, and very intense moments, you will really be unable to miss the whimsy and warmth that spreads across the pages. And it’s largely due to the titular character, Shrubley. He’s so genuine and pure a character that even in the darkest of moments, his mere existence acts as a kind of light. As such, if you’re finding that you need something with stakes but isn’t too dark then you may be interested in this story.
The world building in the book is really one of my favorites. The world that’s created here (especially after you discover it’s a shared universe line of stories) is intriguing. The magic system reflected in this story is interesting and reminds me a bit of He Who Fights With Monsters. The book does a great job explaining it and giving some good examples of growth and combinations that exist within the system to keep fans of LITRPG with well-developed systems happy.
Before going into my deeper thoughts of the story, I did want to acknowledge some things I wish were a bit more tightened up. I do feel some of the prose was particularly weak and probably could have been edited in one more round, but it wasn’t anything too bad. I also wish that the final sets of battles were more fleshed out. There was a bit of a handwave that happens at the end that doesn’t detract from my enjoyment either, but I would have rather it been written out more in-depth.
With all that said, the thing that really sticks out in the book is the message that not everyone is who they appear to be. This is particularly striking when you consider that the outward appearance differs from the inner one is a core concept in the story. Throughout the novel we see characters who are outwardly monsters, literally they’re monsters. This causes people to distrust them, want to harm them and so on because they believe they are something to be killed or reviled. The truth being that they’re more than monsters is largely lost on these people, and the fact that they’re truly heroes is the big reveal on the civilized races at the end of the story. The inverse is true with the enemies featured in the story as well. Outwardly they look normal but secretly they’re true monsters on the inside. The message is a bit heavy handed perhaps, but it’s still relatively effective.
This hidden nature of who we are combines well with the idea that anyone can be a hero. You don’t need to look a certain way, come from a certain background, have a certain skill set or ability or anything like that to do good and inspire others. Anyone can be a hero and I really enjoyed the idea.
Altogether, this book surprised me. It was really well-done and when the last chapter ended, I found myself wanting at least one more. I wasn’t quite ready to end the book! I can’t wait to check out book 2 and the other works by this author team!
May 14, 2025
Series Info/Source: This is the 1st book in the Shrubley, the Monster Adventurer series. I borrowed this on audiobook from Audible.
Thoughts: My husband and I were listening to this together on road trips. We ended up stopping it about 60% of the way through. There isn't anything really awful about this book; it is just really boring and predictable. It seems like it is written for younger children and not adults. The world-building is non-existant, the characters are very simple and predictable, the story and language is also very simple. I didn't really find it that funny either.
This book follows Shrubley, a monster that decides to join the adventurers guild. He ends up collecting a misfit collection of fellow low level adventurer monsters to challenge a threat that could consume everything.
This book is cute, and that is about all there is to it. If you have kids that you want to introduce to LitRPG this is a simple and cute way to do that. Kids will probably think a lot of things in here are funny, like the Proper naming of things with a simple name and the simple mis-understandings between friends. There are some cute life lessons in here and a message about being who you want to be and sticking to the tough road. You will notice I use cute a lot....yep, this is cute.
However, if you are an adult that likes action packed LitRPG (or are coming to this series after catching up on Dungeon Crawler Carl) this may not be for you. Shrubley and his fellow monsters are very simple and stereotypical characters. Yes, they are monsters trying to be heroes, which does cause some issues for them. However, if you picture a typical hero as a plant....that is pretty much Shrubley. He is exactly what you expect a monster trying to "do good" to be.
The world building is pretty light on this, I would say almost non-exisitant. We never understand why the heroes and monsters of this world have HUDs and are leveling like this, it really isn't explained. The plot on this is very light as well. Everything is highly predictable and very linear. You stick with Shrubley and friends the whole time, there aren't any surprises.
The main reason we stopped reading this book is the main reason I stop reading a lot of audiobooks, sheer boredom. Sheer boredom is bad while you are on road trips and the book you are listening to is making you sleepy.
The narration done by Baldree is well done; this is a decent audiobook to listen to if you like audiobooks. I would definitely recommend if you have younger kids and want a family read. Older kids, pre-teen and maybe even slightly younger depending on their exposure to fantasy and RPGs, will find this simplistic.
My Summary (3/5): Overall this is cute, simple, and generally non-offensive. I think it is better suited to younger kids who have had some exposure to RPGs. Pre-teens and older will find the characters, world-building, and plot overly simplistic. I don't really understand the high ratings on this one unless it's from people looking for family reads. This was just dull and fairly unoriginal.
Thoughts: My husband and I were listening to this together on road trips. We ended up stopping it about 60% of the way through. There isn't anything really awful about this book; it is just really boring and predictable. It seems like it is written for younger children and not adults. The world-building is non-existant, the characters are very simple and predictable, the story and language is also very simple. I didn't really find it that funny either.
This book follows Shrubley, a monster that decides to join the adventurers guild. He ends up collecting a misfit collection of fellow low level adventurer monsters to challenge a threat that could consume everything.
This book is cute, and that is about all there is to it. If you have kids that you want to introduce to LitRPG this is a simple and cute way to do that. Kids will probably think a lot of things in here are funny, like the Proper naming of things with a simple name and the simple mis-understandings between friends. There are some cute life lessons in here and a message about being who you want to be and sticking to the tough road. You will notice I use cute a lot....yep, this is cute.
However, if you are an adult that likes action packed LitRPG (or are coming to this series after catching up on Dungeon Crawler Carl) this may not be for you. Shrubley and his fellow monsters are very simple and stereotypical characters. Yes, they are monsters trying to be heroes, which does cause some issues for them. However, if you picture a typical hero as a plant....that is pretty much Shrubley. He is exactly what you expect a monster trying to "do good" to be.
The world building is pretty light on this, I would say almost non-exisitant. We never understand why the heroes and monsters of this world have HUDs and are leveling like this, it really isn't explained. The plot on this is very light as well. Everything is highly predictable and very linear. You stick with Shrubley and friends the whole time, there aren't any surprises.
The main reason we stopped reading this book is the main reason I stop reading a lot of audiobooks, sheer boredom. Sheer boredom is bad while you are on road trips and the book you are listening to is making you sleepy.
The narration done by Baldree is well done; this is a decent audiobook to listen to if you like audiobooks. I would definitely recommend if you have younger kids and want a family read. Older kids, pre-teen and maybe even slightly younger depending on their exposure to fantasy and RPGs, will find this simplistic.
My Summary (3/5): Overall this is cute, simple, and generally non-offensive. I think it is better suited to younger kids who have had some exposure to RPGs. Pre-teens and older will find the characters, world-building, and plot overly simplistic. I don't really understand the high ratings on this one unless it's from people looking for family reads. This was just dull and fairly unoriginal.
October 28, 2024
What an adorable action-packed litRPG. I know that sounds like an oxymoron, but it's really true when your Hero is an Awakened Monster shrub like Shrubley. Shrubley has a Heroes Heart and is naïve enough to think that everyone will accept that, and take him in with open arms! Even the guild hall. And actually they kinda sorta do by giving him a temporary membership and his first quest. So what does Shrubley do? Well not only does he do the quest, and of course he starts building up a team of other Awakened Monsters. And Cal Cee'm a skeleton is the first followed quickly by Slyrox and Smudge... Shrubley is soooooooo warm-hearted that you can't help but love ❤ him, plus simply with his generosity, and goodness he can convince a wicked witch that she not so bad, and he'll even make a vampyr cold dead heart to start caring for Shrubley and his team!!!
So for goodness sake go grab this audiobook because the whole family's gonna wanna listen! It's one of my top favorites too!!!
Here's some quotes that amused me:
"The old man with wild hair and more creases in his face than a year-old-apple was waving at him."
"There wasn’t much use in rereading a book when there were countless others out there to explore.
“How is it you muchly make tongue-flaps with no tongue?”
"She surged to her large floppy feet, bounced once, and then with a fist like an overdue tax bill, hit the first brute..."
"There were some cultures who had a hundred words for snow or sand, but oppas had a thousand little ways of snickering."
"...her voice as sweet as a diabetic coma."
So for goodness sake go grab this audiobook because the whole family's gonna wanna listen! It's one of my top favorites too!!!
Here's some quotes that amused me:
"The old man with wild hair and more creases in his face than a year-old-apple was waving at him."
"There wasn’t much use in rereading a book when there were countless others out there to explore.
“How is it you muchly make tongue-flaps with no tongue?”
"She surged to her large floppy feet, bounced once, and then with a fist like an overdue tax bill, hit the first brute..."
"There were some cultures who had a hundred words for snow or sand, but oppas had a thousand little ways of snickering."
"...her voice as sweet as a diabetic coma."
March 26, 2025
I'm not really the audience for this book, which is a decidedly middle-grade adventure. But I don't care; it's brilliant.
This is a book I would have loved to read with my son when he was young. It has a quirky hero in Shrubley the Soul Shrub, who has the mentality (if not the class) of a true paladin.
It has a wonderful cast of supporting characters:
* Cal the skeleton, who drinks milk, because milk builds strong bones
* Smudge the Pink Slime, who doesn't have a brain, but has great joy in life
* The Countess, a vampire lord, and her ferret familiar
* Styrox, the coblin adventurer, strong but silent
* The normal members of the adventurer's guild, many of whom are skeptical of monsters as members.
* And a chorus of goblins, peasants, and awakened cows
The world is silly, but in only the best way. Many of the elements wouldn't bear close examination, but the story takes itself seriously and the silly parts absolutely fit into the story. Who would want to closely examine that?
The plot provides opportunities for the protagonist to show his kindness and heroism. Early on, the stakes feel relatively low, but as the story continues, the stakes increase, giving Shrubley the chance to show his mettle and gain glory ... and treasure. And the resolution of the story is appropriately epic.
This book is one of the best books I've read this year and I will absolutely be continuing the series. Highly recommended.
This is a book I would have loved to read with my son when he was young. It has a quirky hero in Shrubley the Soul Shrub, who has the mentality (if not the class) of a true paladin.
It has a wonderful cast of supporting characters:
* Cal the skeleton, who drinks milk, because milk builds strong bones
* Smudge the Pink Slime, who doesn't have a brain, but has great joy in life
* The Countess, a vampire lord, and her ferret familiar
* Styrox, the coblin adventurer, strong but silent
* The normal members of the adventurer's guild, many of whom are skeptical of monsters as members.
* And a chorus of goblins, peasants, and awakened cows
The world is silly, but in only the best way. Many of the elements wouldn't bear close examination, but the story takes itself seriously and the silly parts absolutely fit into the story. Who would want to closely examine that?
The plot provides opportunities for the protagonist to show his kindness and heroism. Early on, the stakes feel relatively low, but as the story continues, the stakes increase, giving Shrubley the chance to show his mettle and gain glory ... and treasure. And the resolution of the story is appropriately epic.
This book is one of the best books I've read this year and I will absolutely be continuing the series. Highly recommended.
February 7, 2026
Loved this book and the humor in it, but I'll lead with that the author(s?) has shared that they have ceased writing on this series after book 2.
Others have stated that the humor is intermittent, which is true. The jokes have some variety but a lot of it is puns. For example, one of the missions goes something like: Stop the boney bunch (a bunch of skeletons) from stealing peoples milk (its for their bones). There's a layer innocence to the jokes that I think works well.
The main reason I wrote this review was because this series has the funniest joke/bit I have every heard and it would be a shame for others to miss out on the series and thus the jokes.
I'm paraphrasing but it goes:
The vampire's and vampire hunter's deepest secret is that the number the number one cause of death for vampires is actually falling trees. Because the branches count as stakes.
This knowledge comes about after a vampire is impaled by the tree he was attempting to use a trebuchet. Also, the count dracula persona is a side affect of the vampire disease in the story, so they all act and talk like that.
This is a small part of the humor of these books but a good example.
TLDR; books are funny and mostly innocent. Worth the read.
Others have stated that the humor is intermittent, which is true. The jokes have some variety but a lot of it is puns. For example, one of the missions goes something like: Stop the boney bunch (a bunch of skeletons) from stealing peoples milk (its for their bones). There's a layer innocence to the jokes that I think works well.
The main reason I wrote this review was because this series has the funniest joke/bit I have every heard and it would be a shame for others to miss out on the series and thus the jokes.
I'm paraphrasing but it goes:
The vampire's and vampire hunter's deepest secret is that the number the number one cause of death for vampires is actually falling trees. Because the branches count as stakes.
This knowledge comes about after a vampire is impaled by the tree he was attempting to use a trebuchet. Also, the count dracula persona is a side affect of the vampire disease in the story, so they all act and talk like that.
This is a small part of the humor of these books but a good example.
TLDR; books are funny and mostly innocent. Worth the read.
September 10, 2024
3.5/5 I have a soft spot for pulpy LitRPG. Particularly where scrappy little monsters are the heroes. Such as Threadbear and Cat Core. This scratch's that itch nicely. Shrubley is a low rank shrub monster that set's off to be a hero. In typical LitRPG fashion Shrubley joins am adventurer's guild and starts questing to level up recruiting friends along the way. The cast is fun including Cal Sium a skeleton mage, Smudge the slime, and Slyrox the Koblin (Goblin) quickly fill out the ranks.
The world building is good but the amount of different world shards (alternate dimensions) and mirror shards (mirrored dimension) are a little much for my personal taste.
Our party spends most of the novel in one such dimension fighting off armies of Serpentii, snake like monsters, who are trying to take over the world of Almora (Main World for this story). The novel itself is humorous and punny without taking itself too seriously. You won't find a ton of depth but it's a fun and humorous adventure LitRPG and if you enjoy them as much as I do you'll likely get a kick out of it.
The world building is good but the amount of different world shards (alternate dimensions) and mirror shards (mirrored dimension) are a little much for my personal taste.
Our party spends most of the novel in one such dimension fighting off armies of Serpentii, snake like monsters, who are trying to take over the world of Almora (Main World for this story). The novel itself is humorous and punny without taking itself too seriously. You won't find a ton of depth but it's a fun and humorous adventure LitRPG and if you enjoy them as much as I do you'll likely get a kick out of it.
September 15, 2024
A Light in the Dark
With so very many darknesses swirling around in our world, we as humans often tend to accidentally seek out more of the same even as we attempt to escape it in fiction. However, Shrubley relieves all of that. He addresses those darknesses we feel compelled to still read about and brings such a wonderful light to them and anyone who happens to reside in them or be passing through. I love, love, love this MC, his friends, this world, and the authors for telling this story. It restores my soul at a time when I desperately need every bit of healing I can get and there is precious little to be had anywhere. I can't wait for book 2's audiobook to come out so that I may continue the adventure! I always listen and read along. Of course, the excellent narrator is utterly amazing and aids immersion, but that goes without saying for the mighty Travis Baldree. Please keep up the excellent work! Oh, and the covers are fantastic!
With so very many darknesses swirling around in our world, we as humans often tend to accidentally seek out more of the same even as we attempt to escape it in fiction. However, Shrubley relieves all of that. He addresses those darknesses we feel compelled to still read about and brings such a wonderful light to them and anyone who happens to reside in them or be passing through. I love, love, love this MC, his friends, this world, and the authors for telling this story. It restores my soul at a time when I desperately need every bit of healing I can get and there is precious little to be had anywhere. I can't wait for book 2's audiobook to come out so that I may continue the adventure! I always listen and read along. Of course, the excellent narrator is utterly amazing and aids immersion, but that goes without saying for the mighty Travis Baldree. Please keep up the excellent work! Oh, and the covers are fantastic!
January 17, 2025
Shrubley is the cheerful idiot type of main character. The point of view (3rd person) bounces around to a lot of different characters so we experience his innocence as well as the reality of situations. His skeleton companion is a dusty librarian type who is differently innocent, despite being sentient longer. The adventure is built from scenarios and set pieces, but the connections between them are often weak and hard to follow.
The LitRPG system is far too complex, trying to incorporate far too many things. There's letter grade rankings (A, B, S, etc), as well as copper through diamond ranks, and adventurer guild ranks. Adventurers need three essences to gain a class, which requires another thing to activate. They also level up numerically, adding to their numeric stats. Each essence levels up and grant their own skills. Oh yeah, equipment has ranks too.
The humor and characters are great, but it sounds like a miserable game to exist in.
The LitRPG system is far too complex, trying to incorporate far too many things. There's letter grade rankings (A, B, S, etc), as well as copper through diamond ranks, and adventurer guild ranks. Adventurers need three essences to gain a class, which requires another thing to activate. They also level up numerically, adding to their numeric stats. Each essence levels up and grant their own skills. Oh yeah, equipment has ranks too.
The humor and characters are great, but it sounds like a miserable game to exist in.
December 2, 2025
30% - if you like low stakes, cozy fantasy/lit RPG, no spice, found family stories, you may want to check it out.
Also, if you’d liked Caz from The Spellshop, you’ll probably enjoy this.
I’ve really enjoyed this so far, but around the 35% mark it started to get a little boring once they went through the well and entered the mirror realm. Especially once they started training and we’re talking way too much about essences and such.
58% - Stakes have gotten a little higher. Side villain deaths, if violence is a trigger for someone.
63% - I think the book is getting bogged down in describing and obtaining essences, levels, ranks, etc. It’s getting a little monotonous/confusing, and I find my mind wandering.
End note - The story had more violence than I was expecting, if that’s a trigger for you. I like the first 1/3 and probably the last 10%. The entire middle was too much talk about essences, levels, ranks, etc.
January 30, 2025
This is a cute litRPG with a relentlessly positive and optimistic protagonist (who happens to be an ambulatory shrub). Overall, I enjoyed it. It was silly and funny, it had that feel-good quality to it, and it contained a number of subtle and not so subtle Discworld references (which is hard to be upset about). I expect I’ll continue reading the series at some point.
All that said, I’ll pick a nit: this story centered around Shrubley and several other non-human characters. While the author often pointed out ways that these characters’ physiology didn’t fit with whatever colloquialism or metaphor they were using (these things being very human-centric), the thoughts and motivations of the characters felt quite human, overall. It feels like a bit of a lost opportunity not to embrace a more alien viewpoint, rather than the differences being mostly cosmetic.
All that said, I’ll pick a nit: this story centered around Shrubley and several other non-human characters. While the author often pointed out ways that these characters’ physiology didn’t fit with whatever colloquialism or metaphor they were using (these things being very human-centric), the thoughts and motivations of the characters felt quite human, overall. It feels like a bit of a lost opportunity not to embrace a more alien viewpoint, rather than the differences being mostly cosmetic.
April 20, 2025
Shrubley is an adorable, innocent, and very friendly shrub who has been given an invitation to become an adventurer. As it seems he thinks that everyone is nice and all will be friends with him. Which is not the case at all. Since all should be scared of monsters or hunt monsters. Breaking the thinking of the regular system he starts to find like-minded friends to build an adventure team to take on quests and contracts.
As we get to know the group, they end up in the perils of trouble, danger, and loss in a way. They find themselves a teacher to being there training while on a mission to complete their open contract.
A lot of silly humor, misguided knowledge, and run-ins with villains. This is a young adult adventure very tame and easy to follow along with the achievements of each character. Level-ups are also easy to follow a great beginning to the series.
As we get to know the group, they end up in the perils of trouble, danger, and loss in a way. They find themselves a teacher to being there training while on a mission to complete their open contract.
A lot of silly humor, misguided knowledge, and run-ins with villains. This is a young adult adventure very tame and easy to follow along with the achievements of each character. Level-ups are also easy to follow a great beginning to the series.
April 23, 2024
Couldn't stop reading
Great book , different way of starting a good read , told from the perspective of Shrubly the little monster who dreams of being a Hero and finding a family and friends to adventure with , but like some things tend to go, there are people unwilling to look past appearances and instead of trying to understand and give him a chance they start problems, there are a great many cute monsters that Shrubly befriends and join him in doing good , there's alot of action and differences in seeing the world through new eyes and different ways eventually may lead in Heros actions, give it a shot and read a fun book which has alot of good laughs ,twists and turns and maybe even a few Heros might pop up .
Great book , different way of starting a good read , told from the perspective of Shrubly the little monster who dreams of being a Hero and finding a family and friends to adventure with , but like some things tend to go, there are people unwilling to look past appearances and instead of trying to understand and give him a chance they start problems, there are a great many cute monsters that Shrubly befriends and join him in doing good , there's alot of action and differences in seeing the world through new eyes and different ways eventually may lead in Heros actions, give it a shot and read a fun book which has alot of good laughs ,twists and turns and maybe even a few Heros might pop up .
June 14, 2024
Puns! Puns! More Puns! Puns Almost Every Page!
A great read! Especially if you are an aficionado of that greatest of all arts — Punnery!
Saying that there are puns every other page is a slight exaggeration, but where there are no puns there is instead innuendo — and not subtle innuendo either! The innuendos are as heavy handed as Slyrox's fisting every enemy she can! Ha!
The LitRPG elements of the story are only lightly represented. Which could be a blessing for readers who aren't into the crunchier aspects of RPGs. However, those who are into the number crunching should find enough fodder to satisfy their urge to interpret the system underpinning the characters' development.
A great read! Especially if you are an aficionado of that greatest of all arts — Punnery!
Saying that there are puns every other page is a slight exaggeration, but where there are no puns there is instead innuendo — and not subtle innuendo either! The innuendos are as heavy handed as Slyrox's fisting every enemy she can! Ha!
The LitRPG elements of the story are only lightly represented. Which could be a blessing for readers who aren't into the crunchier aspects of RPGs. However, those who are into the number crunching should find enough fodder to satisfy their urge to interpret the system underpinning the characters' development.
November 19, 2024
Honestly I kind of really liked this? It's very adventure focused and doesn't harp too much on game mechanics or anything. I also love that our cast of characters are all non-humans. The main character is, of course, Shrubley, our little adventuring Hero shrub. He takes other adventurers under his wing: a malnourished skeleton called Cal (Cal Cium if you must know), a slime called Sludge, and a goblin variant from another world.
Together they're just trying to get stronger and help people. Unfortunately they're seen as monsters, not as a people, so it's not as easy as it might look. And then they uncover a dastardly plot! And are sent into another world. It becomes a bit of a calamity, but I honestly thought it was just a lot of fun.
Together they're just trying to get stronger and help people. Unfortunately they're seen as monsters, not as a people, so it's not as easy as it might look. And then they uncover a dastardly plot! And are sent into another world. It becomes a bit of a calamity, but I honestly thought it was just a lot of fun.
April 7, 2025
The first half of this book was a bit hard to get through. I felt like the voice of the novel wasn’t quite established and the author was trying a bit too hard with some tropes (lots of puns, oblivious fish-out-of-water MC, comedic side characters with silly voices, 4th wall breaking allusions) and there were often times other people and places are mentioned as an aside that just took me out of the story and caused me to put the book down for a while before getting back in. I assume these other people/places might be references to other works they’ve written, but it didn’t help me get into this story. All that said, once the main cast is established and the plot unfolds, the story was entertaining and it pulled me along to the end.
August 8, 2024
I’m just starting out in the LitRPG genre and this one is a good blend of action and Cozy Fantasy. I loved the overall message of hope and fighting against the odds.
This is a nice mid stakes adventure where the main conflict feels important but it’s not world ending. The LitRPG elements could be a little heavy but for the most part didn’t get in the way of the characters and the story. I’m looking forward to spending more time with the adverting party.
As with many books that are published on Royal Road there were editing issues (misspelled words, missing words, odd sentence structure) but I enjoyed the story enough to overlook them.
This is a nice mid stakes adventure where the main conflict feels important but it’s not world ending. The LitRPG elements could be a little heavy but for the most part didn’t get in the way of the characters and the story. I’m looking forward to spending more time with the adverting party.
As with many books that are published on Royal Road there were editing issues (misspelled words, missing words, odd sentence structure) but I enjoyed the story enough to overlook them.
August 20, 2025
It only took me so long to finish this because I was listening to it as an audiobook in the car. I don’t drive around all that much and I really don’t like audiobooks that much, but Travis Baldree can do no wrong. He can read me the dictionary every night and I’ll gladly go to sleep to the dulcimer tones of his proper pronunciation.
I’m new to the genre of lit RPG, but really enjoying it. Shrubley captured my heart as only a heroic and benevolent bit of shrubbery could do. Great character development, lots of action, and a strong line of morality combine to make a bloody but cozy adventurous tale.
I’m new to the genre of lit RPG, but really enjoying it. Shrubley captured my heart as only a heroic and benevolent bit of shrubbery could do. Great character development, lots of action, and a strong line of morality combine to make a bloody but cozy adventurous tale.
April 13, 2024
fun traditional hero journey with some bittersweet moments
I have been enjoying the LitTPG genre for a few years. And seeing nontraditional main characters has been part of the fun. There is a book about a main character, Roomba and another book about a tree. Now there is a shrubbery hero with curiosity as his superpower.
There are multiple points of views which provides a rich story. Characters were well-rounded and many monsters are adorable.
I am looking forward to book 2.
I have been enjoying the LitTPG genre for a few years. And seeing nontraditional main characters has been part of the fun. There is a book about a main character, Roomba and another book about a tree. Now there is a shrubbery hero with curiosity as his superpower.
There are multiple points of views which provides a rich story. Characters were well-rounded and many monsters are adorable.
I am looking forward to book 2.
August 5, 2024
Shrubley, the Monster Adventurer was an excellent LitRPG. The characters had a lot of heart. The power system was detailed and inventive. The plot went places I didn't expect but it kept the suspense moving.
Shrubley, Slyrox, Cal and Smudge do the impossible. They are monsters who are Awakened beyond their feral counterparts. And they want to do good. Inspired by the curious and kindhearted shrub monster turned hero. There are some themes about not judging a person by their species, but it never felt heavy handed.
This was a fun and exciting book. Can't wait to read book two.
Shrubley, Slyrox, Cal and Smudge do the impossible. They are monsters who are Awakened beyond their feral counterparts. And they want to do good. Inspired by the curious and kindhearted shrub monster turned hero. There are some themes about not judging a person by their species, but it never felt heavy handed.
This was a fun and exciting book. Can't wait to read book two.
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