Wasteland Warlords 3: A Post-Apocalyptic LitRPG Adventure

Wasteland Warlords #3

by James A. Hunter, Eden Hudson

“If you’re not ready to lay it all on the line out here, you won’t make it a week. The wasteland’ll chew you up and spit you out.”Clay Jaeger finally has the chance to become the spellslinger he always wanted to be—the one his family needs him to be to survive the dangers of the wasteland. A teacup pig claiming to be a cursed Great Blue Wyrm has offered them a quest to take out a Dungeon Lord with the exact power set Clay’s been looking for. There’s just one problem. The Dungeon Lord can steal the souls of his enemies and summon them to fight his battles for him. Clay is more than willing to lay down his life to protect his family, but is he willing to risk his eternal soul on a gamble that might not pay off? Time to roll the dice and find out…

Genres: Litrpg, Fantasy, Audiobook, Fiction, Novella, Humor, Comedy

141 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 2, 2024

About the author

James Hunter is a full-time ink slinger, a member of SFWA, and the bestselling author of Vigil Bound, Rogue Dungeon, Shadowcroft Academy, Bibliomancer (The Completionist Chronicles Expanded Universe), and the litRPG epic Viridian Gate Online! In addition to writing, James also runs Shadow Alley Press, an industry leader that specializes in publishing LitRPG, Fantasy, and selection Science Fiction.

James is a former Marine Corps Sergeant, combat veteran, and pirate hunter (seriously). He’s also a member of The Royal Order of the Shellback—’cause that’s totally a real thing. And a spaceship captain, can’t forget that. Okay … the last one probably isn’t true. When not writing or spending time with family, James occasionally finds time to eat and sleep.

Find out more about James Hunter at www.ShadowAlleyPress.com

Reviews

[Lana]

Oh wow, I am so onto this fun series that I read this book in one sitting, the characters and their banter are hilarious, but the adventure and the quests are getting more difficult. Bacon Bits the pig who had joined the Jaeger squad wanted to get her dungeon back, and gave a quest to the rest of the team. This quest might be what Clay needed since he was the only one still not an incant, and he felt like the weakest link in the squad. Apart from that if he managed to take down the lizardman who stole souls through voodoo spells he could become the spellslinger the team needed. So they dove right into the next quest, however after one failed attack they knew they had to seek some help. So they went in search of Diebolt, the frogman who gave Clay a set of three labours he had to undertake, and with each successful one he would grant him a boon. Once these were tackled the squad felt more prepared to face the lizardman and save poor Bacon Bits who had been captured by him. I love that the strongest person in the squad is Alex, a woman who had in real life been dying of cancer, but that Clay still wants to protect her. The pace of the book is really fast and full of action, there is never a dull moment but as Clay becomes an incant all hell is let loose on the family and the Sooq who were harbouring them. Onward to episode 4!

[Oscar]

An, in my opinion, somewhat less strong entry in the series than books 1 and 2. It wasn’t bad, per se, but it definitely needed more pages than it was given to work through all the plot elements.

Approximately 140 pages for a failed Dungeon attempt, Bacon Bits’ soul-enslavement, a detour to LA for a trio of Hercules-like labors that end in a local gang-war, and then another Dungeon attempt to save Bacon Bits from soul-enslavement and defeat Voodoo Daddy, isn’t a lot. The labors and the whole LA sequence especially felt a bit too bare-bones.

That said, it was still entertaining, and in the end the payoff did meet the expectations set at the start, so it’s not the worst. Plus, it did facilitate the hook for book 4 quite neatly.

3 stars out of 5.

[Ian]

Always mentioning now that I start reviews at 3 stars.

On another scale this would be more then 3, but less then 4. It's a fun little romp, albeit, like the rest of the series, just a short novella. I enjoyed it, but for some reason I don't love it.

It actually has some set-backs for the heroes before they circle around and actually plan out a better way. I think the writing is fine and the plot works. It sets up the next book nicely.

This is better then the other book I just finished that I also rated at 3, I could really use another scale or a secondary way of talking about these things. Eh, why am I still typing.

[Andy Murphy]

Wasteland Warlords 3

Clay and his family have their next target in their sights. The voodoo shaman that cursed Bacon Bits. Hopefully they will be a quick take down. What could go wrong?

This series is fast moving and funny. There have been quite a few laugh out loud moments. The book was rather short at just over 3 hours long, but all six of the books are included with the Audible subscription. Well worth the listen. Travis Baldree does an amazing job with the narration.

Content warning: language

[Tom Petersen]

Pretty bad

I had a hard time finishing this one.
While I get that this series is a combination of serious and humor, the humor was over the top, and frequently not funny.
The thing that really bothered me was the fights: the first time they fight the big bad the plan was to hit hard with everything they had... And the guy whose super power is 'Mech' doesn't use it. In the second fight the big bad was more than twice as powerful. For...reasons (?) I guess. Never explained, just happened.
Too much for me. I'm out of this series. Tom out

[Grumpy]

The inconsistencies are definitely starting to show now, with stats not matching the narrative and time frames getting even more out of whack. It still has some good bits amongst the annoying name-dropping pop-culture references, but with each book continuity frays a little bit more, requiring more suspension of disbelief.

It's also falling more and more into the LitRPG trap of overpowering the main characters far too easily, and just happening to always give them exactly what they want. Most of it doesn't feel earned, just given.

[Cricketon]

I have said it before with the previous books, but the way this story keeps introducing new characters that I keep getting attached to has been astounding. This story gets much heavier with the pop culture references and jokes, but they are fashioned in a way that they don't get old and are consistently making me laugh. The humor of everything has maintained gold quality as the story evolves. Plus, the few somber moments that you get to sit down with are truly moving and provide good breaks to the comedy and reminding you that this is in-fact a post apocalyptic setting.

[Timothy Frandsen]

This is the first book I have read in this series. It was provided free from Shadow Alley Press.
Now that I have been introduced to this series I will be reading other books in this series and by these authors.
It is funny with great characters and catchy dialogue. With the quick pace and entertaining story it can be a quick read.
It isn’t common so when there is a strong female character I hope it is a good read. This book doesn’t disappoint.

[MimiAmi]

Great LitRPG!

Wasteland Warlords is awesome, clean (but brutal) entertainment with plenty of action and surprises! I love the post-apocalyptic trials and tribulations that the main characters have to fight through. The protagonist group has grown since book 1 and I like each and every one of them. Wow, is it a multi-faceted team! I hope you enjoy the series as much as I do. Now, I have to go get book 4.

Read via Kindle Unlimited

[Kevin McClelland]

A fantastic read!

Just like the last two, this book just cruised by. It was fast paced and action packed! This one fleshed out the world our friends are living in, and I felt like I understood what was going on a lot more really early in the book. I still have to go with Lumberjack Joe and Chonk as my favorites, but I think this is a great cast of characters as a whole. I will be going on to the next one right away!

[Adam Roberts]

woohoo! Clay is finally an Incant!

Title says it all! Clay finally gets his Incant powers and they’re super fitting! Can’t wait for the next book and the meeting between the crew and the Warlord of the West! Does he still go by Pwnr I wonder? Love these books! Normally I wouldn’t pick them up cause of how short they are, but I make an exception for them!

[Jeremy Wilson]

Pretty expected progression of the story and character development piece here, but the method and journey this short novella takes us on with our family dynamic and the depth that the author has added to the items and skills truly set this work apart from others in the genre. Definitely a must read, and as short as it is I was able to finish it in a single afternoon.

[Perla Gisselle]

Jaeger Gang Does it Again!

This litRPG is only getting better with each release. The stories are fun yet engaging, the plot is pretty damn ironclad, and the characters suck you in. Even the villains. Looking forward to book 4 at the end of the month!

[Robert & Kristen Giegling]

They just keep getting better

Seriously I can't recommend this book series enough. Action, humor, great characters, and pop culture references. I am completely addicted. Perfect fun reads!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Danny Moody]

I feel like there was a lot of exposition, world building and character development in the first 2 books. In this book, I felt like there was more of a push in the plot development. I am enjoying the story and the characters over all.

[Daniel Read Good]

The story isn’t great but it’s fun. Kinda how like when you find Drop Dead Fred is streaming on Netflix or Prime and can’t help but watch it. That’s how these books are. Short, fun, but I kinda feel dumber afterwards….

[Bill Philibin]

(3.5 Stars)

I'm getting used to the format, and the narration by Travis Baldree really brings the characters to life. The story is decent, and the "grand plan" seems to be coming together. I will complete this series.

[Michael Lynn]

More of the same. Solid straight up popcorn litrpg. Slightly OP at times with a little plot armor here and there but still rock solid bread and butter litrpg. New characters, baddies, and settings keep it interesting and a fun but light romp.

[Joe]

they just keep getting better!

What a fun romp through the wasteland! Action packed page turner that was extremely hard to put down.

I can’t wait to get started on the next and see what these folks get in and out of.

[Kyle Elliott]

An excellent installment in the series. This one puts Clay on the path to becoming an incant like the others in his family and a mission to rescue bacon bits. As with the previous installments in the series, there's lots of humorous moments. I plan to make it through this entire series.

[John]

Great series!

So much fun. Super creative and funny. Great characters, and more of them with every book. Can't wait for the next one!

[Andrew]

This series continues to be fast paced and fun without sacrificing character!

[Chris]

This continues to be an amazing series. So much fun and it doesn’t take itself too seriously which I love!

[Kevin]

4.5 short and sweet and free to listen to on audible

[Veronik Durocher]

Good

Read all the series from book 1 to 6 and it stays true to itself all along. So, if you liked book 1, you'll like the complete series.

[Garrett Shaw]

Solid adventure. Storyline is solid at this point and look forward to the next.

[William Newbury]

Another fun quick story

Clay ascends! I really liked the quickshooter and associated powers and stuff. EVery book is interesting but sometimes so short and to the point.

[Erika]

Continues to be an enjoyable, quick read

[Mikeal Gallaway]

The third book in the Wasteland Warlords saga brings the trilogy to a thunderous, exhaust-choked conclusion. James Hunter manages to maintain the 4-star consistency that has defined this series, successfully threading the needle between a personal revenge story and a grand-scale war for the future of the wastes. This installment feels like the moment where the "warlord" aspect of the title truly comes to fruition, moving beyond small-team tactics into the brutal reality of commanding a revolution.

The narrative momentum in this volume is perhaps the strongest of the three. Hunter doesn't waste time on filler; the story moves with the speed of a nitro-boosted interceptor, jumping from one high-stakes engagement to the next. The expansion of the lore regarding the world before the collapse is handled with just enough restraint to keep the mystery alive while providing enough answers to satisfy long-term readers. It’s here that you can really see the blueprints for Hunter’s later success—his ability to manage a "home base" or a faction's growth while keeping the front-line action visceral and immediate is on full display.

What stands out most in this finale is the maturity of the protagonist’s arc. The moral gray areas that were introduced in book two are explored to their breaking point here. The cost of leadership is high, and the "hero" is forced to become just as ruthless as the villains he’s fighting to ensure his people’s survival. This grim, uncompromising look at post-apocalyptic leadership gives the book a weight that elevates it above standard pulp fiction. It’s a darker, more serious tone than the "Discount Dan" era, reminding us that Hunter can do "bleak and meaningful" just as well as he does "snarky and chaotic."

The reason this sticks at a solid four stars rather than a five is that the ending, while explosive and satisfying, feels a bit compressed. After the slow-burn buildup of the first two books, the final resolution of the central conflict arrives with such a rush that I found myself wanting a few more chapters to see the dust settle on the new status quo. However, as a capstone to a trilogy that helped define Hunter’s early career, it is an absolute win. It’s a gritty, high-octane farewell to the wasteland that leaves the reader fully satisfied with the journey.

[Art]

The brain cady rollercoaster picks up speed!