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All the Skills #4

All the Skills 4

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Using a new Legendary treasure-seeking card, Arthur and Brixaby travel to an unknown kingdom in search of a way to defeat the scourglings.

They arrive in a land both familiar and strange. A continent where there have been no dragons for generations. One where human civilization now exists in shrinking cities which are increasingly squeezed in by dead lands. Here, the bold and desperate risk it all for the promise of cards.

Arthur, Brixaby, and their newly reunited retinue will need every trick they can pull from their decks. In the core of the city rests the dark heart of an ancient scourgling eruption. And it’s reawakening.

This once-in-a-decade opportunity offers new powers, secrets to the origins of scourglings, and high-level cards for the taking… for those brave enough to delve deep, and survive.

It may also be the key for Arthur to complete his Master card set.

Audible Audio

First published August 20, 2024

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Honour Rae

7 books423 followers

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5 stars
2,325 (64%)
4 stars
973 (26%)
3 stars
252 (6%)
2 stars
53 (1%)
1 star
9 (<1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 164 reviews
Profile Image for Gareth Otton.
Author 5 books127 followers
August 23, 2024
As a standalone story, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. As a continuation of this series, though, this was a little more troubling. The problem is that the last book did a lot of damage to this series, and rather than try to fix any of that damage, this story continues as though it never happened and even creates some more damage of its own. It created a confusing experience where I enjoyed what I was reading, but was simultaneously not sure about whether I wanted to keep going with this series at the same time.

One way this is a definite improvement over the last book is that Arthur is once again growing as a character. He spends his time trying to master his skills to once more turn his cards to his advantage. This is always where this series has shone, and it was no different here. He makes several significant breakthroughs in this book, once more meaningfully moving the story forward and, therefore, making this story feel like it is progressing again.

The supporting cast continues to be an issue, though, with the characters still feeling flat compared to previous versions of themselves. Also, many characters are still not even thought about despite their importance to the earlier books in this series. Some of these characters provide a core part of Arthur's motivations, and casting them aside is detrimental to the story.

Speaking of those motivations, I am no longer clear about what's driving this series. It used to be about Arthur making the best life for himself as he could out of a bad situation. We had a clear direction he was travelling within the hives and his place in the kingdom's war. That got scrambled up in the last book, and while I could probably do with reading that book again to familiarise myself with where this series is trying to head now, I don't want to do that, considering my distaste for that book. Whatever motivations he has don't get further explored in this book other than his desire to get stronger.

Add to that chaos a completely new story angle, which feels like a retcon of the world-building already done in this story, and I'm a bit lost about what story this series is trying to tell anymore.

All this added up to a confusing experience. I enjoyed what I read while I was reading it so much that I read the whole book in a single sitting. It's similar in terms of enjoyment to the first two books in this series, which makes me want to rate it top marks. On the other hand, the overarching story is in a state of chaos that this story stirs up even more rather than trying to bring any order to the series. As a result, I am left having enjoyed this book enough that I wanted to rate it 5 stars, but I am still not sure about my future with this series.

For that reason, I'll settle on 4-stars for this book. I will read the next book to see where this series goes next. Hopefully, it can bring another quality story that will help settle this series once more.
50 reviews
August 24, 2024
Lovely continuation of the thrilling story with more and more exploration of what is happening in the background and some insights into the worlds history.

Few things that bothered me leading to a 3 star (some spoilers ahead!!)
- spelling and missing words, I'm not sure if this only because is read it on release and it will be fixed later but there several scattered about.
- "It was earth along", this is a real personal dislike of mine and unfair to punish the rating for it. But, I've seen in done a few times before and every time it spoilt the flavour of the world for me. I hope we don't do more flashbacks or time travel but I really don't care it used to be our earth and it generally pulls down otherwise fantastic world building!
- the secondary characters felt shallow and left behind throughout this story. What few major inputs they ever had was usually to just add to MC thoughts or decisions. Now we have 2 new secondary characters what little time is spent on them will be even more stretched thin. Very worried for the next book because of this
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Johnny.
2,152 reviews76 followers
August 25, 2024
Book four

While the story is very good, (Even though it has dragons) the author doesn't always have the best grasp on grammar.
Most of the mistakes I found weren't misspelled words, but completely wrong words.
I'm not sure how editing missed them.
I would have enjoyed it if they had managed to get even more loot, but I'm a loots hog.
Mistakes will be posted on Goodreads.
Book five has started on Royalroad.

7/10
Profile Image for Russell Gray.
654 reviews128 followers
October 15, 2024
While I've been pretty high on this series up to this point, I am starting to feel that unmotivated feeling I often get around Book 4 of a series. There are a few reasons for this, but I think the biggest reason is that this felt like a side quest rather than a solid continuation of the story I'm waiting for.

Relevant things happened, the world-building expanded, new characters joined the group, and old characters got a few goodies. This book felt like it lacked the urgency of the previous ones and seemed like more of a rest stop on the road to the next major story event.

Unfortunately, a few other things rubbed me the wrong way. These are primarily personal pet peeves, such as a general dislike of dream sequence/mental illusion shenanigans. Still, I think most people would agree that nothing was really at stake in this volume. Nobody was in danger, and any "negative" effect suffered by a character was fleeting and made obsolete with a new ridiculous improvement.

It's just harder and harder to tolerate the lack of stakes in a story where everyone is arguably facing life-and-death battles dozens of times. More people need to die and get maimed in lasting ways to keep the story honest and maintain tension.

I can't really complain much about the other big thing that bothered me in this book since it falls under spoiler territory, so I'll just say that I couldn't have cared less about the direction the world-building took this volume.

I am having trouble picturing a satisfying endgame for this series, and I wouldn't be surprised if Book 5 ends up being my stopping point. Despite what probably seems like a negative review, the book was fairly good in the grand scheme of things and most people will probably enjoy it as much as earlier entries.
Profile Image for Rudhrein.
140 reviews
August 22, 2024
It was a fun continuation to the series , better than the previous book.

It’s probably a me thing but I don’t think I’m as invested in this series anymore hmmm. Will maybe continue reading this series tho.

Profile Image for Mark.
40 reviews
August 27, 2024
TL;DR: “All the Skills 4” struggles with immersion, poor word choice, and underdeveloped side characters. The plot twist revealing the Earth setting is poorly handled, leading to continuity issues. Characters are one-dimensional, and repetitive actions like wincing and snorting make the story feel shallow. Overall, a disappointing read for LitRPG fans.

"All the Skills 4" falls flat in nearly every aspect that makes a LitRPG engaging. The moment the main character encounters New Houston and the so-called "Texan way," the immersion shatters completely. Any suspension of disbelief evaporates, and what follows is a muddled transition that ultimately reveals the setting is Earth. Unfortunately, the author fails to execute this twist in a satisfying way, leaving the narrative riddled with continuity holes.

One glaring issue is the main character's sudden immersion into real-life culture. The use of a "language card" and a few hours of English learning to explain away these gaps feels like a cheap shortcut, and it doesn't hold up under scrutiny. The logic is flimsy, and it undermines any attempt to take the story seriously.

The writing itself is problematic, with word choices that are not only incorrect but also awkward. This goes beyond simple homophone errors; it feels as if the wrong words are being used entirely, leading to confusion and frustration. The side characters suffer from a severe lack of development, to the point where they are entirely forgettable. I couldn't form a mental image of any of them because there is nothing distinctive or memorable about their personalities or appearances.

To top it off, the number of times characters wince and snort is excessive to the point of being absurd. It seems these are the only reactions the characters are capable of, which only further highlights the lack of depth in their portrayals.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Christopher.
149 reviews4 followers
August 24, 2024
While we learn this is a post scourge Earth, we still have no idea where either the scourge or dragons originated. Is the author implying that there are dragons in the far distant past and their corpses started all this? If so, where did the origin dragons come from? I feel we are adding more story arcs than are being resolved.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Vinicius Melo.
84 reviews1 follower
August 25, 2024
Why does every setting now has to be earth after something terrible happens?
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for John.
168 reviews6 followers
September 3, 2024
Much improved over the last volume

Arthur, Brixaby, and (eventually) company arrive in New Houston. They have to learn the language, Texan, but quickly get to work earning.

There don't appear to be any dragons around, but the city-state houses a Dark Heart, which is soon to open for The Reshuffling. Fortunately, Arthur's retinue arrives and he adds 2 new members: (former Prince) Marion and (also former Princess) Soledad.

Spoilers below...


Dark Heart is a trap. The 7 Scourge Gods infected the various Dark Hearts to make the challenges harder and harder, designed to tempt people into striving for a bigger and bigger prize and ultimately fail, since anyone who does in there leaves the cards to the Dark Heart.
Arthur's team wins the game by cheating, which is Arthur's preferred way to fight.
Along the way he picks up 2 Origin dragons, a Red for Soledad and a Silver for Marion. The latter has great healing powers that they will be using on Marion's father to try and heal his mental issues.
Horatio and Asha (Marion's new dragon) get an unspecified card each.
Cressida gets Cuddle Kittens.
Arthur gets Master of Cards (3rd in his set), and a trio of card repair/knowledge cards. He also increases the size of his heart deck. He also hits level 50 in a few skills and gets his Cooking Class to Tier 3.
Brixaby gets Void Portal.

The end of the book sees everyone just practicing with their new toys, with a plan to leave soon. The next card in Brixaby's set is apparently in Blood Moon Hive.
The 5 Mythic Dragons helped Arthur et al defeat the Dark Heart and the cost was twofold: they must return to Wolf Moon Hive to lead it and send Marion to heal his father.

I enjoyed this volume and getting some history of the world. I'm glad I kept reading and am going to go preorder the next one.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Dave.
49 reviews
November 9, 2024
This book was even better than the last one. Cool new location, awesomely creative challenges with a unique way of gaining skills and cards. Looking forward to book 5!
27 reviews
October 10, 2024
Amazing book. Love the story and build up. Each retinue character gets a good build up and the card mind games are amazing. Defintly my fav of the set and excited for 5. Love the story building happening
Profile Image for Kat.
554 reviews2 followers
March 21, 2025
At this point, .I feel that this series has really hit its stride. I like the MC, and I am pleased to see his developing team. Thankfully, I have only a few days to wait for book 5 to be released.
Profile Image for Helene Gedeon.
32 reviews
July 27, 2025
Brixaby is actually the cutest and funniest little thing I can’t take it
Profile Image for Nima.
39 reviews
October 15, 2024
A big step up from the disappointing third instalment. With this book, the story got back on track.

I disliked the side characters, however. They felt rather flat (especially Horatio, in my opinion), mainly in their interactions with the retinue.

Looking forward to book 5!!
Profile Image for Thorsten.
294 reviews3 followers
September 1, 2024
This book improves on the previous one but still falls well short of the first two. I get the sense that the author had a well-considered plan for the first story arc, but these last two books feel more haphazard and improvised.

It continues to be frustrating to follow the adventures of the Master of Incompetence. There are no two ways about it: Arthur is an idiot. Four books and still hitting things with a shovel. Still has a single offensive skill that is so ineffective that it only seems to exist to make the point that the shovel is maybe not a bad idea. They carry around a thousand tons of crap in their storage space, not including a dragon saddle. He even has a ladder that he pulls out at one point, but laments how he needs to buy some rope to tie himself to the dragon better. He doesn't have goggles, observes how dumb he is for not having remembered them, returns to town only to again complain on the next adventure that he should really get some goggles.

The other big issue is that the supporting characters are all forgettable in this book, even the previously interesting and great characters like Marion. I was delighted to see him again and bitterly disappointed at the nothing burger he turned out to be. Same with the new girl, whose potentially interesting backstory was hinted at and then promptly forgotten about. She just went from foundling to retinue member in the blink of an eye; the whole thing just felt like an incredibly artificial way to quickly build up and flush out the retinue.

I'll continue the series, but I'm not optimistic that my opinion of it will improve.
Profile Image for Kevin.
1,710 reviews29 followers
December 24, 2024
I had this book for a while. I just got turned off from reading it when the thought of enduring that damn annoying pink dragon, or the protag's annoying dragon passed through my mind every time I saw this book.

I just want this over and done with. If the protag doesn't think outside the box, or things are more annoying than before (this includes romance) I'm dropping the series.

Me hesitating to read this should have told myself everything I needed to know (that I'm not really interested anymore).

It's funny. The last book I read had a fantasy America that was trying to take over the world, and puts their flags on everything. This book takes place (so far) in fantasy Texas, and it's funny seeing the red tape and taxes.

Sad. The book was going well, then halfway through, that pink dragon showed up.

I'm surprised I actually enjoyed this. When I saw that pink show up, I really thought things were going down the toilet. While she was still annoying anytime she showed her face, it didn't ruin the book.

I don't know if the author read reviews or what, but the book progressed nicely, and I will pick up the sequel. Hopefully it isn't book three levels of stink.

3/5 Stars
Profile Image for Steve Naylor.
2,423 reviews127 followers
August 30, 2024
Rating 4.0 stars

I liked this book. Much better than the 3rd book in the series. Not sure how everything fits together though. In the first book, it was all about Arthur getting stronger, staying alive and finding cards. In the second book it was all about gaining a dragon. The third book was all about politics. Most of the things I liked in the first 2 books kind of went away in the third book. Then this book happened, and I found my enjoyment again. The goal in this book was pretty simple and that is what the author focused on. By itself it was good, but after book 3, I am wondering where the series is going. Arthur, his dragon and his friends go to another land to find more powerful cards and get stronger. While there they also learn a little bit more about the history of scourgeling's and dragons.
Profile Image for Gary.
662 reviews6 followers
January 5, 2025
I am SO JEALOUS! I want to live Arthur's life. I am a peace loving guy, but I would be willing to take on a few monsters of my own, if I could have his card stack and his dragon.

Of course, Arthur continues to expand his card set in this novel. While his friends fill out their battle magic stacks, Arthur continues along a utility line. This continues to gives Arthur (and Honour Rae) the ability to be flexibly creative in how they approach problems/quest/battles. And there are plenty of those in this book. That is part of what made the dungeon run here so engaging. While there was plenty of physical shenanigans to enjoy, there were also some mental challenges to tackle which kept the reader coming back for more.

The final stages of the Dark Heart are very revealing to the ongoing plot line, as well as giving hints to the future plot line.
Profile Image for Bradley.
Author 9 books4,831 followers
November 17, 2024
So far, I'm loving every new direction this series takes. The complicated nature of the card system, the whole idea of creating creative three-of-a-kind sets, getting bonuses through self-knowledge, leveling up your skillsets, etc, gives me a blast right to my own heart-deck and I not only shuffle my cards, I'm loving every hand I'm dealt.

Of course, the whole leveling nature goes hand-in-hand with the dragons, and truly, I simply can't get enough of either.

Some LitRPGs are better than others, and some, like this one, is some of the very, very best.



Fun facts: this one is in a crazy, truly nuts society full of Dark Heart scourgeling-harvesting magical Texans. They're very into magical capitalism, for good or greater ill.

What a wild ride. A truly crazy dungeon delve.



Personal note:
If anyone reading my reviews might be interested in reading my own SF, I'm going to be open to DM requests. I think it's about time I get some eyes on them.

Arctunn.com
Profile Image for David U..
149 reviews5 followers
December 2, 2024
More like a 3.7/5 but rounded up to 4 because I still enjoyed the story in the end. This is one of the very few ‘card magic’ books that I’ve read and so far it’s been an interesting journey.

About 60% into the book I found myself quite frustrated with the MC and his choices. I understand that it’s mainly the author’s plot line, but seriously! we are 4 books in and the mc is still weak; relying mainly on gimmicks and luck to win. The redeeming feature came with the dungeon rewards towards the end, and I’m actually intrigued with how the MC will use the master-of-cards and repair-card function. HOPEFULLY, he’ll make the logical choice and get some sort of combat card.

As usual it was an amazing narrative performance by Luke Daniels. I’m definitely going straight to royalroad to read the next chapter.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Amber.
705 reviews4 followers
April 8, 2025
The revelation of where this world is really set was a bit twee for my taste, but I enjoyed Arthur's continuing education in the origin of scourgelings, the nature of cards, and the link between dragons and scourgelings. We get hints late in the book that soon Arthur and his retinue will be returning home to Wolf Moon Hive to face the challenges he left behind several books ago. And we got a reminder that he definitely has unfinished business back home with his cousin Penn, who holds one of the other cards in Arthur's set. And Brixaby, an incredibly prideful young dragon, gets a lesson in leadership. Meanwhile, Arthur's latent romance with Cressida is still that - latent.

Not the most wonderful writing or character development you'll ever encounter, but it's a fun read.

3.5, rounded up to 4.
673 reviews4 followers
April 15, 2025
Did this one as an audiobook. Still the same reader which makes me happy.

so the next in the series. a series that i have developed great affection for. I love the LITRPG genre and as a former magic the gathering player this series is the best of both worlds.

The characters are still growing and a new one was added in this book as well as reviving an earlier one. Rae has even upped the game and added in a flashback to the earth that was. I found that to be an interesting twist.

I am not going to ramble on about the events in the book, you can find those out for yourself. If you have been reading the series or want to get into what I feel is a very very good series then you will probably like this one.

so off you go, book one is waiting or this one is waiting for you. either way it is a win for you.
93 reviews5 followers
July 31, 2025
The good:
- inside the dark heart, the story is interesting and pays off for each of the characters. Loved this.
- I was very skeptical about the tie in to the modern day, (free kingdom of texas? really). However, it was executed quite well.


The Bad:
- The repeated injuries of the main character led to some boring sections where you have people talking in a hospital. As much as I love Marion's character, he's not as interesting here.
- The lead up to the dark heart was too long. It felt like they were twiddling their thumbs until the obvious climax

The undecided:
- I can't tell how I feel about the construct of the dark heart, and letting the scourgelings build up. This seems like an obviously dumb thing to do, so I wonder how believable this being a normal practice is. Its kind of like, this can't be the first time something seriously bad has happened.
Profile Image for Andrew.
42 reviews
November 25, 2024
My main gripe with All The Skills 4 is the world’s history—it’s just... bad. Like, a few chapters in, the whole backstory gets tossed in a blender and comes out as this half-baked mess. Maybe it’ll make sense later? But right now, it doesn’t. It’s jarring, it doesn’t fit the vibe of the story, and honestly, it feels like something a 10-year-old cooked up for their first creative writing assignment.

And then there’s the ending. Oh man. This isn’t the first time the author has taken a big, climactic moment and then just... stopped. It’s like, “Cool, big stuff happened—anyway, the end!” I’m not asking for a Tolkien-level epilogue or anything, but give me something. These abrupt finishes scream no editor vibes in the worst way.
276 reviews
August 28, 2025
5 stars. I’m loving this series. This is a series meant for me. I love this new genre that I’ve found and started to listen to! I love these characters and this world. I love getting more lore and getting to see the mythic dragons (gods both evil and good ones). Going through the dungeons and getting to see how each character gets through there challenges is fun. Seeing growth in the characters is cool especially bro by seeing him understand himself and accept that he needs to continue to grow is awesome! Loving the new princess and seeing the old prince both get dragons and see a path start. I’m excited to see the group go back to their original hive and executed to see the king get cured. Ready for the next adventure
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
2 reviews
August 21, 2024
The best book of the series yet.

I have been following Honour Rae for a while now on Royal Road and I love the development of the story's characters and the unfolding plotlines. Arthur while being extremely gifted struggles through the challenges of his journey. He does not have it easy and that makes this book my favorite of the series so far. Arthur confronts past questionable choices and it feels like we are growing right along with him. Also, find the re-imagined Texas and New Orleans whimsical and fun with just the right touch of brutalness. A fun read that is well thought out and engaging. Look forward to where the story goes next.
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