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Blade's Rest #2
A Home Called Blade’s Rest: A Low-stakes Town Building Litrpg - Library Edition
Hello, friend. Welcome back to Blade’s Rest!
Battles, quests, the end of the world – it can all be so draining sometimes. Why not escape into a story where fighting isn’t the only way to level up?
Come to a place where you’ll get a mug of tasty beer and a bowl of hearty winter stew to warm your belly. Relax in a tavern on a cozy winter evening with the gentle flames of a hearth flickering nearby.
Does that sound like what you need right now? If so, you came to the right place.
Josh and his fellow builders are expanding Blade’s Rest with the dream of achieving ‘town’ status one day. This means there’s a lot of work to do, problems to solve, ales to savor, and pies to enjoy.
But as Josh discovers, the bigger your settlement, the bigger your headaches. Luckily, he’s got two best friends who’ll always help him, and a community of folks ready to lend a hand.
With a never-give-up attitude and a lot of hard work, he knows he can make Blade’s Rest a thriving place. So why not put down your sword, pick up a crafting hammer, and join him in making Blade’s Rest a haven for weary adventurers?
This is book 2 in the relaxing town-building LitRPG series, Blade’s Rest, by Tom Watts, the author of ‘Small-Town Crafter.’ The first book is called, ‘Welcome to Blade’s Rest.’
Battles, quests, the end of the world – it can all be so draining sometimes. Why not escape into a story where fighting isn’t the only way to level up?
Come to a place where you’ll get a mug of tasty beer and a bowl of hearty winter stew to warm your belly. Relax in a tavern on a cozy winter evening with the gentle flames of a hearth flickering nearby.
Does that sound like what you need right now? If so, you came to the right place.
Josh and his fellow builders are expanding Blade’s Rest with the dream of achieving ‘town’ status one day. This means there’s a lot of work to do, problems to solve, ales to savor, and pies to enjoy.
But as Josh discovers, the bigger your settlement, the bigger your headaches. Luckily, he’s got two best friends who’ll always help him, and a community of folks ready to lend a hand.
With a never-give-up attitude and a lot of hard work, he knows he can make Blade’s Rest a thriving place. So why not put down your sword, pick up a crafting hammer, and join him in making Blade’s Rest a haven for weary adventurers?
This is book 2 in the relaxing town-building LitRPG series, Blade’s Rest, by Tom Watts, the author of ‘Small-Town Crafter.’ The first book is called, ‘Welcome to Blade’s Rest.’
- GenresFantasy
Audio CD
First published July 24, 2023
290 people are currently reading
19 people want to read
About the author
Tom Watts
14 books38 followersHey! Tom Watts here. If you're reading this then you've either read one of my books or you’re thinking about doing it, and I want to say thanks either way.
I write low-stakes fantasy books that offer people a little of that important thing we call escapism, and I might have what you’re looking for.
Do you want to become a master craftsperson and live in a small, sunny village full of taverns and cafes? Then I have the story for you! Try my book, ‘Small-Town Crafter: the Artificer’s Apprentice.’
Or maybe you want to build a whole town from scratch right on top of untouched land, together with a couple of good friends. If that sounds good, then I’ve got something you’ll enjoy! Check out, ‘Welcome to Blade’s Rest.’
So, those are a couple of my books. As for me, well, I live in a little village with my wife and three dogs. When I’m not writing then I’m reading, and when I’m not doing that I’ve usually got a small schnauzer trying to get my attention.
Thanks for stopping by my author page. Make sure you press ‘follow’ so that you can be the first to find out when I release a new book.
Finally, If you try one of my books, then I'd like to wish you happy reading. Hope you enjoy visiting one of my fictional towns for a while.
Nice to meet you,
Tom.
I write low-stakes fantasy books that offer people a little of that important thing we call escapism, and I might have what you’re looking for.
Do you want to become a master craftsperson and live in a small, sunny village full of taverns and cafes? Then I have the story for you! Try my book, ‘Small-Town Crafter: the Artificer’s Apprentice.’
Or maybe you want to build a whole town from scratch right on top of untouched land, together with a couple of good friends. If that sounds good, then I’ve got something you’ll enjoy! Check out, ‘Welcome to Blade’s Rest.’
So, those are a couple of my books. As for me, well, I live in a little village with my wife and three dogs. When I’m not writing then I’m reading, and when I’m not doing that I’ve usually got a small schnauzer trying to get my attention.
Thanks for stopping by my author page. Make sure you press ‘follow’ so that you can be the first to find out when I release a new book.
Finally, If you try one of my books, then I'd like to wish you happy reading. Hope you enjoy visiting one of my fictional towns for a while.
Nice to meet you,
Tom.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
March 15, 2024
Quite a step down from book one imo.
spoilers
The plot had be a fair bit confused. Like the 3 players have literally been hired by the game company to build a settlement, it's sole purpose to encourage other players to build settlements themselves. And so, what, to help this process along, and aid in encouraging players to build, they instill new code that makes it virtually impossible to build a settlement unless you are stubborn as a mule? Hey, i get throwing some obstacles in the way, you don't want to make things too easy. But this settlement, on top of all the other shit that was thrown in their way, was reduced to fucking rubble and debris, and they had to rebuild from scratch, and they would have failed completely at it if they hadn't had lame ass help from a shitload of npcs. Just stupid. And to top it all off, Josh and co are getting shit halfway through the book for being way behind in the development of the town, so much so that their boss is getting reamed out for it. So hey yeah, it makes even more sense to hinge development on a curmudgeonly old evaluator and a damn storm dead set on destroying everything.
That was my biggest complaint, but i've also grown to detest the MC as well. He's a prick who always has to do his own thing. Sure he acknowledges this fault but it doesn't make me dislike him any less. Right from the start of the story "hey Josh, let's go! I want to make sure we hit the airport on time." "Nah, just one more game of pacman, sit in the car and wait." "Hey Josh we really need to hit that airport." "I really want to show you guys my home town, let's go there first." "Hey Josh.." "no." "Hey Josh..." "nah." Like the whole book. Who the fuck put that dude in charge really.
And damn, Hercule is a fucking dick too. He was hired for a job and now he's being all pissy and spiteful cause he's not allowed to buy into the business? I'm sorry, but was 'option to buy' listed in his job perks? Fuck that guy too.
Low stakes town building my ass.
spoilers
The plot had be a fair bit confused. Like the 3 players have literally been hired by the game company to build a settlement, it's sole purpose to encourage other players to build settlements themselves. And so, what, to help this process along, and aid in encouraging players to build, they instill new code that makes it virtually impossible to build a settlement unless you are stubborn as a mule? Hey, i get throwing some obstacles in the way, you don't want to make things too easy. But this settlement, on top of all the other shit that was thrown in their way, was reduced to fucking rubble and debris, and they had to rebuild from scratch, and they would have failed completely at it if they hadn't had lame ass help from a shitload of npcs. Just stupid. And to top it all off, Josh and co are getting shit halfway through the book for being way behind in the development of the town, so much so that their boss is getting reamed out for it. So hey yeah, it makes even more sense to hinge development on a curmudgeonly old evaluator and a damn storm dead set on destroying everything.
That was my biggest complaint, but i've also grown to detest the MC as well. He's a prick who always has to do his own thing. Sure he acknowledges this fault but it doesn't make me dislike him any less. Right from the start of the story "hey Josh, let's go! I want to make sure we hit the airport on time." "Nah, just one more game of pacman, sit in the car and wait." "Hey Josh we really need to hit that airport." "I really want to show you guys my home town, let's go there first." "Hey Josh.." "no." "Hey Josh..." "nah." Like the whole book. Who the fuck put that dude in charge really.
And damn, Hercule is a fucking dick too. He was hired for a job and now he's being all pissy and spiteful cause he's not allowed to buy into the business? I'm sorry, but was 'option to buy' listed in his job perks? Fuck that guy too.
Low stakes town building my ass.
July 25, 2023
Terrible balance that ruins the concept.
This has a slow burn, it mixes well with a slice of life feeling. Once the new event started meant to spice up the building, everything feel apart. The game mechanics combined with the passive characters and pointless manager ruined the story. The underlying concept for this book was solid, the storyline was ridiculous and pointless.
This has a slow burn, it mixes well with a slice of life feeling. Once the new event started meant to spice up the building, everything feel apart. The game mechanics combined with the passive characters and pointless manager ruined the story. The underlying concept for this book was solid, the storyline was ridiculous and pointless.
January 4, 2024
Definitely a measure less cozy than book 1. While there isn't danger, the stress the characters are under is a full notch higher. Overall it works; it's still the right side of cozy. But there were moments when it wasn't strictly what I was going for in reading this series.
Still, enjoyable vibe. I really like the world he's created. It's a nice retreat.
My major gripe is in the polish. I know game lit tends to be self-published, but if Watts got himself an editor, it would go a long way. The errors here are not major ones (no crazy plot structural issues and so forth), but he's not catching them himself.
One area Watts struggles is character development. His characters are not fully consistent, sometimes taking actions that do not line up with past behavior. They seem to change in ways to advance the plot -- not all the time, but in a couple spots. Josh in particular can be frustrating, at times taking direct coaching extremely well, and others making terrible decision literally a chapter after he's been somewhat reformed in the specific way the decisions are terrible. It's almost as if Watts has re-ordered the chapters without going back and doing a consistency edit.
The writing style...not great, but in minor ways that are editable. It reads a little too much like a first draft at times, which is middle-of-the-road in game lit / litRPG self-publishing. More repetition of phrases and words that you'd like (two sentences in a row using "yet", using variations of "warming heart" over and over in the last chapter, etc.).
Still, enjoyable vibe. I really like the world he's created. It's a nice retreat.
My major gripe is in the polish. I know game lit tends to be self-published, but if Watts got himself an editor, it would go a long way. The errors here are not major ones (no crazy plot structural issues and so forth), but he's not catching them himself.
One area Watts struggles is character development. His characters are not fully consistent, sometimes taking actions that do not line up with past behavior. They seem to change in ways to advance the plot -- not all the time, but in a couple spots. Josh in particular can be frustrating, at times taking direct coaching extremely well, and others making terrible decision literally a chapter after he's been somewhat reformed in the specific way the decisions are terrible. It's almost as if Watts has re-ordered the chapters without going back and doing a consistency edit.
The writing style...not great, but in minor ways that are editable. It reads a little too much like a first draft at times, which is middle-of-the-road in game lit / litRPG self-publishing. More repetition of phrases and words that you'd like (two sentences in a row using "yet", using variations of "warming heart" over and over in the last chapter, etc.).
October 4, 2023
A Nesting World
We usually encounter our fantasy worlds in books. LOTR, GOT, Narnia, and so on.
Blade's Rest is a world, in a book, in a game, in another world. We could probably find a way to make this even more meta, but it would be difficult.
I find myself...sad, that Josh's friends in Blade's Rest are not real, that Blade's Rest is not real.
But then Josh, Hilly and Linc, they're not real either, are they? Heck, am I even real? Or just someone's dream?
-----
This was a fun book to read. I like the series and look forward to book three and, hopefully, book four. Sometimes Josh gets petty and childish, that seems out of character and bugs me. And the resolution of things with the Duke didn't quite seem to work, but oh well.
I enjoyed Josh's retrospective, in the last chapter, as he strolled around the village, taking pride in what they had done.
And, in a way, that made me sad. Because, as Hilly says, it's only a game.
Maybe Josh needs to spend more time in the real world, and get something real done. Laugh, I know that I do!
Read every day and read for fun!
We usually encounter our fantasy worlds in books. LOTR, GOT, Narnia, and so on.
Blade's Rest is a world, in a book, in a game, in another world. We could probably find a way to make this even more meta, but it would be difficult.
I find myself...sad, that Josh's friends in Blade's Rest are not real, that Blade's Rest is not real.
But then Josh, Hilly and Linc, they're not real either, are they? Heck, am I even real? Or just someone's dream?
-----
This was a fun book to read. I like the series and look forward to book three and, hopefully, book four. Sometimes Josh gets petty and childish, that seems out of character and bugs me. And the resolution of things with the Duke didn't quite seem to work, but oh well.
I enjoyed Josh's retrospective, in the last chapter, as he strolled around the village, taking pride in what they had done.
And, in a way, that made me sad. Because, as Hilly says, it's only a game.
Maybe Josh needs to spend more time in the real world, and get something real done. Laugh, I know that I do!
Read every day and read for fun!
January 5, 2024
4.25/5
Please keep in mind this one is quite different from the second book which might hinder your enjoyment of the story depending on what aspects you liked in the first book.
This is not a 5 stars solely because of few scenes that seemed to not have been edited properly (such as the last confrontation of the book). These scenes seemed like the initial draft followed by the final draft, just stitched together like that.
Other than that, I loved it. The writing is hilarious in the most low key way with lines such as:
1. 'Linc looked a little unsure. I knew this because he said, “I’m a little unsure.'
2. 'Hercule could convince a burglary victim that they owed the robber ten dollars for their travel costs, and I found myself seeing his point.'
3. '“Look. It’s not that bad,” said Linc, putting his hand on my shoulder. Just then, a tumbleweed cartwheeled straight by us, whisked quickly down the street by the breeze. “Linc, a literal tumbleweed just went past.” “Yeah. Sorry. That was mine. I’ve been collecting them for a potion.” ' (personal favorite)
shit's too funny
Please keep in mind this one is quite different from the second book which might hinder your enjoyment of the story depending on what aspects you liked in the first book.
This is not a 5 stars solely because of few scenes that seemed to not have been edited properly (such as the last confrontation of the book). These scenes seemed like the initial draft followed by the final draft, just stitched together like that.
Other than that, I loved it. The writing is hilarious in the most low key way with lines such as:
1. 'Linc looked a little unsure. I knew this because he said, “I’m a little unsure.'
2. 'Hercule could convince a burglary victim that they owed the robber ten dollars for their travel costs, and I found myself seeing his point.'
3. '“Look. It’s not that bad,” said Linc, putting his hand on my shoulder. Just then, a tumbleweed cartwheeled straight by us, whisked quickly down the street by the breeze. “Linc, a literal tumbleweed just went past.” “Yeah. Sorry. That was mine. I’ve been collecting them for a potion.” ' (personal favorite)
shit's too funny
August 5, 2023
So different, felt like I had to stop
I was looking forward to book 2 but it just...didn't feel like the low stakes vibe that book 1 had. Sure the ending of book 1 was a bit "dramatic" but the key part is that it was at the end, not like book 2 where it's just the main problem.
Honestly I had a lot of trouble getting through this. I wasn't even half way through the book did I think about dropping it but powered through. It got a bit? Maybe slightly better but still just doesn't have the same charm anymore.
I was looking forward to book 2 but it just...didn't feel like the low stakes vibe that book 1 had. Sure the ending of book 1 was a bit "dramatic" but the key part is that it was at the end, not like book 2 where it's just the main problem.
Honestly I had a lot of trouble getting through this. I wasn't even half way through the book did I think about dropping it but powered through. It got a bit? Maybe slightly better but still just doesn't have the same charm anymore.
August 8, 2025
A Home Called Blade’s Rest
Josh and his friends are making good progress on Blade’s Rest. They are pushing to get their village up to town status. The problem is that the new mechanics are making it harder and harder to get to each new level closer to town. They will need to push through these challenges for each step.
This is cozy take on a VRMMO town building litrpg made sure to add conflict in this book. While the conflict does add to the story, it did tend to take away from the cozy atmosphere that I enjoyed in book 1. The main character makes things harder for himself and that adds to the struggle. Having said that, I did enjoy the tge story and am looking forward to book 3. Hopefully, it goes back to the cozy theme. Ryan Burke did a great job with the narration!
Content warning: language
Josh and his friends are making good progress on Blade’s Rest. They are pushing to get their village up to town status. The problem is that the new mechanics are making it harder and harder to get to each new level closer to town. They will need to push through these challenges for each step.
This is cozy take on a VRMMO town building litrpg made sure to add conflict in this book. While the conflict does add to the story, it did tend to take away from the cozy atmosphere that I enjoyed in book 1. The main character makes things harder for himself and that adds to the struggle. Having said that, I did enjoy the tge story and am looking forward to book 3. Hopefully, it goes back to the cozy theme. Ryan Burke did a great job with the narration!
Content warning: language
September 6, 2025
I am fully aware that this is not a series one should expect combat. But the resolution of this book's main conflict-- some Duke wanting to claim the town and surrounding area for his own-- was extremely weak, and bordering on the contrived. What a waste of time. If I could get the author's attention, I'd basically tell Mr Watts, don't start plots you're not willing to fully commit to.
August 14, 2024
Not as good of a sequel as I was hoping. I enjoyed the town building, but the drama involving the Duke with the rival settlement wasn't that interesting to me. Not a bad book by any means, but just didn't click with me this time around
August 14, 2023
What happened?
This book is basically an unreadable hodge podge of thoughts crammed onto a page. Couldn't finish. Regret the pre-order on this one. Definitely one to avoid.
This book is basically an unreadable hodge podge of thoughts crammed onto a page. Couldn't finish. Regret the pre-order on this one. Definitely one to avoid.
August 19, 2023
good
I enjoyed this one it has a good plot and characters while not a lot happens. Looking forward to seeing more.
I enjoyed this one it has a good plot and characters while not a lot happens. Looking forward to seeing more.
May 23, 2024
Still very low-stakes, but decent fun. They did just stop mentioning Josh's dog and having to exit the game for safety reasons. Ah well. 👍🏽
Read
September 1, 2024DNF @ 21%
Almost DNF'D book 1 but decided to stick with it, but this one just pissed me off. I don't like the MC. There was literally nothing about him I liked.
Almost DNF'D book 1 but decided to stick with it, but this one just pissed me off. I don't like the MC. There was literally nothing about him I liked.
February 18, 2025
The story did get a bit more interesting, but the main character stayed incredibly boring (and for some reason bigoted against NPCs), so I won't continue with this series.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews