Fantasy Buddy Reads discussion

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The Perfect Run
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Vagabond Treehouse ~ [Fall 2025: World of Chains #1-3 (Wayward Bard) | The Perfect Run 1-3 (alternating)]

Broccoli Bunch is the best... everything she's doing should basically get her killed, but works out in the end... it's kind of like Inspector Gadget... lucking into success, as people watch in bafflement...
It's great fun, tho...
If she ever manages to befriend the system box thing that pops up sometime, she'll take over the world :D
It's great fun, tho...
If she ever manages to befriend the system box thing that pops up sometime, she'll take over the world :D

Narilka, I find the political plots in Dungeon Crawler Carl the most interesting part of the series! And, of course, Damn it, Donut!:)))
Choko wrote: "Cinnamon Bun #1 ... Ch. 13... Nirkadze, you are right about the Alice in Wonderland stuff - very unexpected in the middle of a Dungeon!
Narilka, I find the political plots in Dungeon Crawler Carl..."
Very World of Warcraft, (view spoiler)
Narilka, I find the political plots in Dungeon Crawler Carl..."
Very World of Warcraft, (view spoiler)

The frogs are French??? A bit too on the nose, no?:)))

The frogs are French??? A bit too on the nose, no?:)))"
LOL How did I miss that?
@Iain--I miss playing WoW....

For sure... the way the System taunts her with murder and genocide XP also reminds me of TWI with Ryoka (and Erin... basically any time the System tries to give something one of the Earthers don't like, and denies) and DCC with Carl, a bit...

It was definitely a defining moment... I don't think she does anything similar again, from anything I've read in the first 2 books...


Loved the dude with the skeletons! And the Good Boy!:))) Also, I could totally picture the way the Harpy girl puffed up, and I couldn't stop laughing too:)

He was a Very Good Boy, wasn't he? Earned all the scritches!!
I also cracked up at the puffed up part... a great bit of visual humor.
The more I think about it, the more I'm tempted to read Morningwood...
I don't think it's as dirty as the double entendres suggest... it's actually about a sentient Mimic... anyone that plays RPGs knows that's a monster pretending to be a treasure chest... so I doubt there's any harem-stuff involved... even tho the series name is Everybody Loves Large Chests...
Then again... some of the reviews aren't promising...
Alternate cover:
Mimic is named Boxxy...
I don't think it's as dirty as the double entendres suggest... it's actually about a sentient Mimic... anyone that plays RPGs knows that's a monster pretending to be a treasure chest... so I doubt there's any harem-stuff involved... even tho the series name is Everybody Loves Large Chests...
Then again... some of the reviews aren't promising...
Alternate cover:

Mimic is named Boxxy...
Before going off and starting new LitRPGs, I finished the Daily Grind one... almost done with Daily Grind 3... squeezed it in this afternoon after Ancillary Sword & Animorphs...
Next one comes out in May... the expanded worldbuilding has been interesting... (view spoiler)
Next one comes out in May... the expanded worldbuilding has been interesting... (view spoiler)
I feel like Daily Grind is going to go on for a long time... what started as a small team, is slowly growing into a large organization... all the people they saved in book 2 joined, and now they're hiring ex-military chefs...
Made it a little further, and no wonder Men in Black government agents show up in the next book, based on what I've heard online... (view spoiler)
laughed pretty hard at that whole scene...
laughed pretty hard at that whole scene...
Daily Grind 3 felt like it ended on a bit of a cliffhanger... the main trio went into the school dungeon, and got some loot that basically sounds like unlocking professions in MMORPGs... the MC got Basketball 0/100, and the group tank got Communication 0/100...
The book kinda ended 40 minutes early on me... there was a sample chapter of Kitty Cat Kill Sat, at the end...
The book kinda ended 40 minutes early on me... there was a sample chapter of Kitty Cat Kill Sat, at the end...

Ugh I know.. My heart breaks for Cinnamon Bun souls like hers though.. She just wants to be friends with everyone and have people like her, but I know a lot of people can't take that and would find her annoying... Love how she wears down her new Harpy friend though :D

I don't think it's as dirty as the double entendres suggest... it's actually about a sentient Mimic... anyone..."
Where do you even find those books ? Hahahaha

The book took its premise a lot less seriously than I expected; Andrea's inner monologues had me crying of laughter.
Virginie wrote: "Finished Andrea Vernon and the Corporation for UltraHuman Protection per Iain's recommendation. That was super funny :)
The book took its premise a lot less seriously than I expect..."
Yea... if you want seriousness (ish), there's plenty of other options in that wheelhouse:
Hench (sequel incoming: Right Hand)
Forging Hephaestus
Starter Villain
Corpies
Honestly... most of those aren't very serious, either... I guess I have a type... and so do the authors...
The book took its premise a lot less seriously than I expect..."
Yea... if you want seriousness (ish), there's plenty of other options in that wheelhouse:
Hench (sequel incoming: Right Hand)
Forging Hephaestus
Starter Villain
Corpies
Honestly... most of those aren't very serious, either... I guess I have a type... and so do the authors...
Virginie wrote: "Timelord Iain wrote: "The more I think about it, the more I'm tempted to read Morningwood...
I don't think it's as dirty as the double entendres suggest... it's actually about a se..."
Honestly, once you start reading enough LitRPGs and Royal Road web serials turned audiobooks, they kind of end up in your recommendation feed... also, they tend to go on sale on Audible... there's always a dozen LitRPGs in every sale these days, to tempt me...
Here's another one, that's more questionable: Super Sales on Super Heroes -- evil corporate superworld -- MC has weak power to strengthen objects he owns... gets delivered a slave on accident, realizes his power works on slaves, and is able to improve them and give them increased powers... starts a new underworld business and gets rich... from the sounds of it, he doesn't take advantage of the situation, but it's still pretty questionable... I think the "slaves" run everything and just benefit from his powers?... people feel super conflicted in the reviews...
#1 review: 2 stars: "So, I'm pretty sure I'm going to hell for enjoying this book. My feminist heart wants to condemn everything about it. But damn it, it's actually really good in spite of everything."
I don't think it's as dirty as the double entendres suggest... it's actually about a se..."
Honestly, once you start reading enough LitRPGs and Royal Road web serials turned audiobooks, they kind of end up in your recommendation feed... also, they tend to go on sale on Audible... there's always a dozen LitRPGs in every sale these days, to tempt me...
Here's another one, that's more questionable: Super Sales on Super Heroes -- evil corporate superworld -- MC has weak power to strengthen objects he owns... gets delivered a slave on accident, realizes his power works on slaves, and is able to improve them and give them increased powers... starts a new underworld business and gets rich... from the sounds of it, he doesn't take advantage of the situation, but it's still pretty questionable... I think the "slaves" run everything and just benefit from his powers?... people feel super conflicted in the reviews...
#1 review: 2 stars: "So, I'm pretty sure I'm going to hell for enjoying this book. My feminist heart wants to condemn everything about it. But damn it, it's actually really good in spite of everything."
Personally, I tend to trend towards cozier LitRPGs... people that just want to live a simple life and end up in a fantasy world of RPG mechanics...
Wandering Inn
Beware of Chicken
Strongest Florist (webcomic / asian novel I think?)
Amelia The Level Zero Hero -- human gets stuck in hell dimension for a decade or 3, then transported to a new fantasy world to be their hero... declines... world does everything to try and force her... continues to decline... world finds new solution... Amelia still has to do combat stuff occasionally (super OP), but mostly gets to run a tavern after awhile (from the 2 books I read)...
It's a shame so many have bad reviews... there's one I want to try about a scholar/scientist: A Small Town in Southern Illvaria... #2 comes out in September... web serial turned audiobooks...
Wandering Inn
Beware of Chicken
Strongest Florist (webcomic / asian novel I think?)
Amelia The Level Zero Hero -- human gets stuck in hell dimension for a decade or 3, then transported to a new fantasy world to be their hero... declines... world does everything to try and force her... continues to decline... world finds new solution... Amelia still has to do combat stuff occasionally (super OP), but mostly gets to run a tavern after awhile (from the 2 books I read)...
It's a shame so many have bad reviews... there's one I want to try about a scholar/scientist: A Small Town in Southern Illvaria... #2 comes out in September... web serial turned audiobooks...
All this is just reminding me I want ML Wang to hurry up and make an audiobook of Blood Over Bright Haven -- dark academia from The Sword of Kaigen author... mention in Sword of Kaigen thread...
Choko wrote: "I am adding all of those! And feel so lucky to have you as a buddy:)))"
We can read Cinnamon Bun 2, and/or Morningwood when you feel like... the rest is more nebulous / future stuff, I think :D
We can read Cinnamon Bun 2, and/or Morningwood when you feel like... the rest is more nebulous / future stuff, I think :D


Ooooh, Corpies is good! I think we read it together during our Super Powered BR (that, was once again, spurred by Soo). That's the series that started my superpower reading streak actually :)
I'm planning on reading Forging Hephaestus someday because Drew Hayes, added the other two to my TBR.
Although I like "serious" superheroes reads where social issues in a super-powered society are examined.... I'm a fan of funny, not-so-serious books as well, especially when I do audio; the humour translate better than in the written format imo. I'm having a easier time doing "light" books in audio as well. I struggle to listen to epic fantasy or hard SF; I keep zoning out and having to rewind. I wonder if language has something to do with it (even though I've been reading almost exclusively in english since I was 16....)
I limit my hard SF and epic fantasy for the same reasons... they're more work...
On the other end of the spectrum from funny superhero stories, there's darker fare...
Zombie Apocalypse: Ex-Heroes by Peter Clines
Superheroes vs Eldritch Horrors, with a dash of body horror: (I don't have a name or link for this one, it's currently a Patreon web serial from Thundamoo, author of Vigor Mortis: Volume 1, Bioshifter: Volume 1, and Hive Minds Give Good Hugs, but I want to read it when it comes to audio)...
EDIT: Speaking of Thundamoo, I just saw that BioShifter 3 came out as an ebook last week, so it should be on audio pre-order sooner than later... something to look forward to when we read 1-2 in the fall (Emily, Nirkatze, Choko)... also, I just saw her Amazon biography for the first time:
"Natalie Maher is a mostly organic life-form from 25° N latitude, 71° W longitude. She enjoys swimming, writing, devouring the souls of the innocent, and tabletop role-playing games. She requests that you continue to consume her supplied entertainment to prepare your minds for the Great Arrival. "
Those coordinates point to the Bermuda Triangle... and that biography sounds alot like Virginie ;)
On the other end of the spectrum from funny superhero stories, there's darker fare...
Zombie Apocalypse: Ex-Heroes by Peter Clines
Superheroes vs Eldritch Horrors, with a dash of body horror: (I don't have a name or link for this one, it's currently a Patreon web serial from Thundamoo, author of Vigor Mortis: Volume 1, Bioshifter: Volume 1, and Hive Minds Give Good Hugs, but I want to read it when it comes to audio)...
EDIT: Speaking of Thundamoo, I just saw that BioShifter 3 came out as an ebook last week, so it should be on audio pre-order sooner than later... something to look forward to when we read 1-2 in the fall (Emily, Nirkatze, Choko)... also, I just saw her Amazon biography for the first time:
"Natalie Maher is a mostly organic life-form from 25° N latitude, 71° W longitude. She enjoys swimming, writing, devouring the souls of the innocent, and tabletop role-playing games. She requests that you continue to consume her supplied entertainment to prepare your minds for the Great Arrival. "
Those coordinates point to the Bermuda Triangle... and that biography sounds alot like Virginie ;)

Wandering Inn
Beware of Chicken
Strongest Floris..."
I watch a lot of anime and read of lot of mangas/manwhas/manhuas (respectively japanese, korean and chinese), and they have a lot of cozy stories nowadays. I didn't pay attention to books at all during the past 4 years, and I'm really surprised by all those cozy LitRPG books that came out recently. I guess I should have expected it since those manwhas/anime mostly came from light novels, and "asian" and western trends seem to blend nowadays.

Right? Who needs algorithms to recommend books when we've got an Iain!
There's been a strong trend since Legends & Lattes came out... and cozy fiction has been on the rise in alot of mediums, since Covid...

Yeah, they take a lot of mental power to process. The only exception I make is anything narrated by Tim Gerard Reynolds. I don't care if it's a convoluted, super epic fantasy spanning millenias and a thousands locations with a scary amount of POV characters, I'M LISTENING TO IT.
I'm going to start my Cosmere re-read soon so that should take over my eye-reading for a while anyway haha.
EDIT: Re:Thundamoo: That bio is amazing! I approve :D
All my talk lately, is making me not want to wait to start an Honor Harrington re-read, so I think I'm gonna re-read book one, even if I don't have time for everything right now... probably still do a big BR re-read in the future... it's a big series... some googling and I found this 27 book mega-list in publication order (had to look up new releases from 2020-2024 myself, and tack on at end):
(view spoiler)
I think that's everything... I heard there were some Honor Harrington prequels, but it sounds like those are included in the Worlds of Honor anthologies?... like Ms. Midshipwoman Harrington... that's a Nirkatze question, I guess...
It might be 30 books, but it's not as sprawling as I imagined when I compared it to Kurtherian Gambit in my head... alot of the stuff I think I was including are unrelated SF releases by David Weber...
Weber DOES do alot of collaborations, tho... with Timothy Zahn and others...
(view spoiler)
I think that's everything... I heard there were some Honor Harrington prequels, but it sounds like those are included in the Worlds of Honor anthologies?... like Ms. Midshipwoman Harrington... that's a Nirkatze question, I guess...
It might be 30 books, but it's not as sprawling as I imagined when I compared it to Kurtherian Gambit in my head... alot of the stuff I think I was including are unrelated SF releases by David Weber...
Weber DOES do alot of collaborations, tho... with Timothy Zahn and others...

Choko wrote: "I have never read it, and I have all the books. Also, I have had it on my TBR since I got on GR over 10 years ago... We need to figure out a way to schedule a BR for it..."
We can schedule a last minute BR of Honor Harrington #1 for today/tomorrow if you want, and figure out future books later, to give you a taste...
I dunno what my plans are right now... all I know is I keep finding excuses to deviate from my BR schedule :)
I really am loading it up on my ipod right now to start... but I know how book I/we/everyone already is...
We can schedule a last minute BR of Honor Harrington #1 for today/tomorrow if you want, and figure out future books later, to give you a taste...
I dunno what my plans are right now... all I know is I keep finding excuses to deviate from my BR schedule :)
I really am loading it up on my ipod right now to start... but I know how book I/we/everyone already is...
Nirkatze and I were talking about a possible full-series Buddy Read next year, once some of the SF BRs we're starting in April wind down...
I'll put in a request for a thread then... I've started my re-read... I remember some details and not others...
Request submitted... gonna talk here for now, until the thread is created...
The first book really hits the military SF beats, jumping in right from when Honor assumes command of her ship... plus treecats...
The first book really hits the military SF beats, jumping in right from when Honor assumes command of her ship... plus treecats...

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Authors mentioned in this topic
Nathan Lowell (other topics)Nathan Lowell (other topics)
Nina Bangs (other topics)
"I do not need to carry around a big staff to validate my masculinity."
Her approach to making friends reminds me a lot of when I was in China--people would just come up to me and be like "you must speak English! Will you be my friend, so I can practice my English!"--only not quite as mercenary.