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Dungeon Explorers #1
Dungeon Explorers
One perfectly ordinary day turned into chaos, but it wasn’t all bad. Sure, I had to fight for my life, but I also rescued the darling damsel Sophia and met the legendary adventurer Stormbreaker. That fateful encounter unlocked a rare and mysterious new [Runesmith]. To top it off, I earned a spot in the Dungeon Divers Guild.
580 pages, ebook
Published December 23, 2024
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews
February 18, 2025
I had to really mull over what kind of rating to give this, if any, and I settled on 2.99/5. Like, it was surprisingly fun but good lord did it need more time in the oven. The biscuit was still doughy in the middle.
One of my biggest problems is an inconsistent style. The font for the system messages changes in the back third of the book. What's up with that? There's also absolutely no sense of time and it makes Sophia seem *CRAZY*. Maybe I'm old but I'm not up for the whole "I met you 8 hours ago and now I love you" thing. John is portrayed as pretty level-headed but then absolutely loses his cool over some lame taunting by the noble boy? One of the quests they go on says at the beginning the whole party is gonna get a cool thing and then by the end the author decides only John gets a cool thing because Gary Stu. I'm not against a power-fantasy main character and I get just as hot over competence porn as the next person, but this is too much into the realm of "this dude is good at everything because reasons". He's not even the chosen one! And what the heck do all these fantasy authors have against shields huh? I totally get that two weapon fighting is cool, but it is horribly impractical and if John is the only frontline fighter then he needs a shield.
Anyway this turned into a rant. It was fine. Probably read the next book when it comes out next month if it isn't too long and hopefully it's better.
One of my biggest problems is an inconsistent style. The font for the system messages changes in the back third of the book. What's up with that? There's also absolutely no sense of time and it makes Sophia seem *CRAZY*. Maybe I'm old but I'm not up for the whole "I met you 8 hours ago and now I love you" thing. John is portrayed as pretty level-headed but then absolutely loses his cool over some lame taunting by the noble boy? One of the quests they go on says at the beginning the whole party is gonna get a cool thing and then by the end the author decides only John gets a cool thing because Gary Stu. I'm not against a power-fantasy main character and I get just as hot over competence porn as the next person, but this is too much into the realm of "this dude is good at everything because reasons". He's not even the chosen one! And what the heck do all these fantasy authors have against shields huh? I totally get that two weapon fighting is cool, but it is horribly impractical and if John is the only frontline fighter then he needs a shield.
Anyway this turned into a rant. It was fine. Probably read the next book when it comes out next month if it isn't too long and hopefully it's better.
May 2, 2025
DNF, couldn’t go passed 54%
I was interested in the story, but I just couldn’t finish this, it was horrendous. The story just kept feeling disjoined and rushed. In the span of a few hours the MCs entire life has changed and he is just kinda meh about it all. He simultaneously can stand up to people yet fold like a house of cards for the women around him.
Sophia is genuinely annoying and insane. She changes moods faster than a bipolar ferret with adhd! Or is it Sofia? Both names used….
The guild was just idiotic. Instructors on power trips and no parents, especially “nobles”, are going to send their kids into that type of bs where they can kill you simply because they feel like it.
Interesting idea, HORRIBLE execution.
I was interested in the story, but I just couldn’t finish this, it was horrendous. The story just kept feeling disjoined and rushed. In the span of a few hours the MCs entire life has changed and he is just kinda meh about it all. He simultaneously can stand up to people yet fold like a house of cards for the women around him.
Sophia is genuinely annoying and insane. She changes moods faster than a bipolar ferret with adhd! Or is it Sofia? Both names used….
The guild was just idiotic. Instructors on power trips and no parents, especially “nobles”, are going to send their kids into that type of bs where they can kill you simply because they feel like it.
Interesting idea, HORRIBLE execution.
January 7, 2025
MC is stupid
I loathe books where the MC is an idiot. This book could ha e been good i got to about 60% and dropped it.
I loathe books where the MC is an idiot. This book could ha e been good i got to about 60% and dropped it.
October 7, 2026
Final Rating: 2.93/5.00
Starting score: 2.50
+0.26 for the opening's effective connection between the relic, John's trade, and his new class
+0.16 for the loyalty and affection established through Max
+0.24 for adaptable runesmith abilities with useful applications beyond John's own attacks
+0.32 for cooperative combat, escalating threats, and effective dungeon horror
+0.15 for the guild setting and the dungeon's wider importance to the world
+0.25 for the later romantic development and character-focused explicit intimacy
+0.13 for Nilea and Raven's distinctive relationship
+0.18 for resolving this volume's immediate conflicts while opening the larger story
-0.23 for John's repeated confusion of responsibility with refusing to back down
-0.21 for the rushed early attachment and repetitive possessiveness
-0.15 for the guild's weakly justified training safeguards and collective punishments
-0.10 for Leo's thin characterisation
-0.20 for repetitive gestures, emotional explanations, and descriptive padding
-0.15 for grammatical errors and inconsistent character details
-0.16 for contradictory system information and incomplete reward accounting
-0.06 for doing too little with John's practical smithing after the opening
Calculated final score: 2.93/5.00
The party adventure carried this audiobook for me. I liked watching a blacksmith become useful in situations that demanded far more than a strong arm, and the dungeon encounters gave his companions jobs that mattered. There is movement, danger, explicit sex, and a developing sense of belonging here. The trouble is that the storytelling keeps making things easier for John emotionally while making them harder physically. He can struggle through a fight, take a serious wound, and need help, yet his impulsiveness repeatedly earns admiration where I wanted a harder conversation about his judgment. The romance improves as the story continues, but its opening rush asks for a level of attachment the characters have barely had time to build. Add repetitive prose and mistakes in details the book itself tells me to follow, and I get an entertaining foundation that needs considerably more care.
The opening does a good job of giving John something worth leaving behind. Max has trained him, trusted him, and helped make a life possible for him. When Sophia brings a corrupted family weapon into the shop, the resulting trouble grows directly out of the work John knows. That gives the discovery of his unusual class a satisfying point of entry. More importantly, he insists that Max's shop and livelihood be taken care of before he accepts the opportunity to leave. That matters to me. Loyalty becomes a practical obligation: repair the damage, arrange help, and make sure the person who supported you can continue. Max's affection also feels comfortable enough to survive teasing and a proper goodbye. His pride in John gives the departure warmth without needing a tragedy to force the young man onto the road. From my den in HowlStrom, that is the part of John's character I recognise most readily. You make sure the old wolf is looked after before you chase your own horizon. Those early decisions establish a decent man more effectively than his later declarations about honour.
The runesmith concept has real appeal. John can alter the possibilities of somebody else's magic, which gives his class a reason to exist within a party. An ice attack can become a different tactical tool; another ally's fire can become the answer to a problem ordinary attacks cannot contain. The connection between understanding a person, accessing their magic, and changing what that magic can do gives relationships a mechanical consequence. The smaller group also makes it easy to understand who provides ranged damage, close combat, healing, or an opening for somebody else. My disappointment concerns the smithing itself. John's years at the forge provide strength, habits, memories, and a useful starting identity, but practical crafting largely disappears once he becomes an adventurer. Relics arrive as rewards while he develops mainly as a fighter and magical enhancer. I wanted more occasions when his knowledge of making and repairing things changed the solution to a problem. The class has room for that, and this first volume leaves much of it unused.
The combat is at its strongest when the group has to create opportunities for one another. Healing keeps somebody in the fight, a distraction changes a monster's target, and controlling movement makes a dangerous enemy vulnerable. John takes damage and depends on people who can do things he cannot. That gives the action more substance than a procession of enemies waiting to demonstrate his superiority. The Nether corruption also supplies the book's most effective atmosphere. Watching familiar dungeon creatures behave with terrified desperation tells me something has gone badly wrong before the full threat is revealed. That change in behaviour does more for the tension than another description of enormous muscles or sharp teeth. Later encounters add pursuit, confinement, swarms, and problems that require the party to change its approach. The first proper dungeon expedition arrives around the middle of the story, but there has already been road combat and dangerous training. Its best fights give the party's preparation a purpose and make survival feel like something they achieve together.
I also like the idea that dungeon exploration supports an entire society. Discoveries affect medicine, wealth, technology, and political power. Sophia's family circumstances make the value of healing resources concrete, while the guild's headquarters suggests a history older than the institution occupying it. The magical space behind an ordinary-looking entrance creates a pleasant sense of discovery, and the guild feels like somewhere people eat, train, work, and build lives between expeditions. The human claim over dungeon access, alongside other peoples entering and contesting it, leaves room for conflicts beyond clearing another floor. Most of that larger world is still outlined through lessons and explanations. I am interested in what those foundations could support, particularly the tension between an independent guild and powerful families. The book gives that tension enough presence to influence events. It has yet to make every part of the institution equally convincing.
John's leadership is where my approval starts getting its claws caught. Protecting a companion from an immediate attack is easy to understand. Repeatedly treating withdrawal or caution as cowardice is much harder to respect. Raven can be irritating, but some of the bird's questions deserve answers, especially when the danger has exceeded what the party expected. John often answers with certainty about keeping everyone safe, even when he has very little information to support that certainty. The duel makes the problem sharper because he knows defeat would cost his companions their place at the guild too. He receives a clear warning about the unequal stakes, then allows his anger and desire to humiliate Leo to drive the decision. His friends support him, and the story does give him injuries and future complications. What I miss is sustained accountability for placing their futures inside his personal confrontation. An Alpha's pride is a poor reason to gamble with the pack's home. I wanted his protective instincts to grow into better judgment, with caution becoming part of his strength.
The guild makes that weakness harder to ignore. Stormbreaker's combat exercise strips away important advantages, permits serious injuries, and relies on the recruits' healers helping one another afterward. Her explanation is clear: they need to learn what danger feels like and trust people outside their own party. I understand the lesson. I remain unconvinced by the safeguards as they are presented, particularly when a badly wounded recruit initially meets hesitation from the people expected to help. The story moves very quickly from that situation to reassurance that the exercise was justified. Mahogany's enjoyment of hurting students adds another layer of institutional cruelty, while the collective exile attached to a personal duel risks throwing away useful recruits over one quarrel. These policies could support a much sharper examination of the guild's priorities. Here, they mostly intensify individual confrontations. Stormbreaker becomes more convincing when her losses, concern, practical preparations, and relief show through. Those moments give her authority an emotional basis. They do not resolve the weaknesses in the institution's decisions.
Leo is an effective person to want out of the way, but a limited antagonist to spend this much time with. His entitlement, abuse of status, resentment, and determination to hurt people all point in the same direction. The history behind Mel's hostility gives the conflict a personal reason to matter. Leo himself remains predictable, repeatedly confirming that he is exactly as unpleasant as he first appears. The duel can still generate tension through his abilities and the consequences of losing, but there is little uncertainty about the man underneath them. I wanted the pressure from his family and position to produce a more interesting opponent, or at least a less repetitive sequence of sneering provocations. His cruelty works as fuel for the confrontation. It rarely develops into much beyond that.
Sophia's early attachment is the relationship problem that most needs time it does not receive. The attraction starts immediately, then jealousy and expectations of exclusivity follow almost on its heels. Her demand to be consulted before somebody joins their party is reasonable. The possessive reactions surrounding it are repeated so often that they begin to crowd out her other qualities. Another woman looks at John, Sophia reacts, and the narration tells me again how intimidating or jealous she is. Calling the attachment love at first sight does not supply the missing knowledge of one another. The early intimate scene following danger also turns reconciliation into a physical demonstration before the disagreement has been explored very far. For me, that makes the relationship feel hurried and emotionally uneven. Sophia has more to offer than guarding access to John, and the opening leans too heavily on that single behaviour before letting her become a fuller companion.
The later development earns genuine credit. Sophia organises practical help for the party, contributes in combat, and shows concern for Mel that exists beyond rivalry over John. Her family history and her own perspective give her fear of loss a context. During the date, John pays attention to what she enjoys, and their conversation reaches beyond attraction into the life each wants to build. I find those ordinary acts of attention much more convincing than declarations about how perfect somebody is. Sophia's changing relationship with Mel also receives groundwork through shared danger, growing respect, and direct conversations. There is still an uncomfortable pressure in her belief that refusing to share could mean being replaced. That fear gives her agreement a less secure foundation than I would like. Even so, the book does let her recognise her possessiveness and begin making different choices.
Mel's later intimacy works better for me because it includes trust she has reasons to find difficult. Her account of betrayal gives the encounter a personal context, and her choices matter. Earlier, her own perspective also acknowledges the frustration of having somebody else intervene in a fight she wanted to win herself. That is a useful complication for a character who could easily have become another grateful rescue. The sexual content is explicit, with physical description and sustained encounters, rather than fading away once attraction becomes action. Sexualised observations and teasing occur much more often than complete sex scenes; the full encounters are occasional, with an early scene and further development later. I want desire, detail, affection, and character to work together, and the later scenes come closer to that through anticipation, attention, vulnerability, and tenderness afterward. Some of the intimate dialogue still falls into familiar praise and breathless responses, but Sophia's confidence and Mel's uncertainty give their encounters different emotional textures.
Nilea and Raven gave me a different kind of interest. The contrast between her guarded expression and the bird's endless commentary is funny, especially when Raven's courageous self-description collapses under the next sign of danger. The joke repeats more than it needs to, but the bird keeps helping when help is required. I respect that more than the bragging. Nilea's perspective also reveals that the quiet exterior conceals far more than indifference, and the connection between the two becomes more interesting than their initial explanation suggests. Lina, meanwhile, has useful abilities and enough pride to make cooperation awkward, even as her attitude begins to shift. I appreciate that these women contribute to survival before their romantic possibilities are fully settled. What limits the character work is how often their thoughts eventually return to John's exceptional appeal. I want the pack to have lives, ambitions, and tensions that continue to matter when he leaves the room.
The prose repeatedly slows material that already has enough meaning. A look reveals tension, then the narration explains the tension, interprets the look, and tells me what that interpretation means for the relationship. Smiles, raised eyebrows, tightening jaws, unreadable expressions, and feelings described as an unnamed something recur across very different scenes. Familiar women also receive fresh descriptions of their attractiveness when the story could simply continue the interaction. The sentence "She smiled as she scanned the place, a smile on her face" is a compact example of redundant wording, but the larger problem is the habit of explaining an emotional beat after it has already landed. Those repeated habits give passages a manufactured, AI-like cadence to my ears. The characters begin to sound as though their reactions are being annotated. Meals, walks through corridors, and repeated reassurance then take longer than the new information warrants. My ears have caught the feeling. Let the scene move. I enjoy time spent living alongside a party; I need that time to deepen the experience instead of circling the same observation.
There are also specific editing problems. "No matter how they clothes were" contains an incorrect pronoun, and "I thought about not give" uses the wrong verb form. These are broken constructions, and examples occur well apart in the story. Character details also slip: Mel is introduced with green eyes and later described with blue eyes, while the established group suddenly includes the name Melina in a scene where Lina is present. That last mistake is particularly distracting because an unfamiliar name briefly appears inside an already established cast. The issue is care over the language and the people the story expects me to follow. These errors weaken confidence in the finished storytelling, especially alongside the repeated descriptions that should have made those same details easy to keep consistent.
The system has its own accounting problems. The early kill notification identifies a level-two Spectral Spider, while John's explanation of the resulting progress calls the spider level five. War Cry initially grants ten Strength and five Speed, but its benefits are subsequently described as ten points of mana and five Speed. These are concrete pieces of information changing without an explanation. Later, a quest explicitly promises a magical relic for each party member, yet the reward scene identifies John's relic and has the others agree that he should keep it. The promised individual relics for the others are left unaccounted for. I do need the rewards and rules the story deliberately introduces to remain dependable. The flexible magic is one of the attractions here, which makes careless handling of its stated details more frustrating. Mystery about the origin of a power invites curiosity. A stat changing its name makes me question the bookkeeping.
The ending gives this volume an actual payoff. Its immediate challenges reach conclusions, earlier training matters, and the final confrontation requires John to apply something he has learned. The aftermath allows his companions to support him, and his injuries have a visible consequence beyond the fight itself. The larger danger remains open, with the closing setup connecting future trouble to threads already introduced. That is enough resolution to make the first volume feel like a completed stage of the adventure. My final judgment stays at 2.93 because the cooperative action, useful magic, and later warmth have to carry hurried attachment, uneven responsibility, and writing that repeatedly needs tightening. Back in HowlStrom, the part I would keep closest is the promise established with Max: care means taking responsibility for the people who trust you. I want John to carry that lesson into every dangerous decision. The pack is worth following. I want its leader to watch where he puts his paws.
Starting score: 2.50
+0.26 for the opening's effective connection between the relic, John's trade, and his new class
+0.16 for the loyalty and affection established through Max
+0.24 for adaptable runesmith abilities with useful applications beyond John's own attacks
+0.32 for cooperative combat, escalating threats, and effective dungeon horror
+0.15 for the guild setting and the dungeon's wider importance to the world
+0.25 for the later romantic development and character-focused explicit intimacy
+0.13 for Nilea and Raven's distinctive relationship
+0.18 for resolving this volume's immediate conflicts while opening the larger story
-0.23 for John's repeated confusion of responsibility with refusing to back down
-0.21 for the rushed early attachment and repetitive possessiveness
-0.15 for the guild's weakly justified training safeguards and collective punishments
-0.10 for Leo's thin characterisation
-0.20 for repetitive gestures, emotional explanations, and descriptive padding
-0.15 for grammatical errors and inconsistent character details
-0.16 for contradictory system information and incomplete reward accounting
-0.06 for doing too little with John's practical smithing after the opening
Calculated final score: 2.93/5.00
The party adventure carried this audiobook for me. I liked watching a blacksmith become useful in situations that demanded far more than a strong arm, and the dungeon encounters gave his companions jobs that mattered. There is movement, danger, explicit sex, and a developing sense of belonging here. The trouble is that the storytelling keeps making things easier for John emotionally while making them harder physically. He can struggle through a fight, take a serious wound, and need help, yet his impulsiveness repeatedly earns admiration where I wanted a harder conversation about his judgment. The romance improves as the story continues, but its opening rush asks for a level of attachment the characters have barely had time to build. Add repetitive prose and mistakes in details the book itself tells me to follow, and I get an entertaining foundation that needs considerably more care.
The opening does a good job of giving John something worth leaving behind. Max has trained him, trusted him, and helped make a life possible for him. When Sophia brings a corrupted family weapon into the shop, the resulting trouble grows directly out of the work John knows. That gives the discovery of his unusual class a satisfying point of entry. More importantly, he insists that Max's shop and livelihood be taken care of before he accepts the opportunity to leave. That matters to me. Loyalty becomes a practical obligation: repair the damage, arrange help, and make sure the person who supported you can continue. Max's affection also feels comfortable enough to survive teasing and a proper goodbye. His pride in John gives the departure warmth without needing a tragedy to force the young man onto the road. From my den in HowlStrom, that is the part of John's character I recognise most readily. You make sure the old wolf is looked after before you chase your own horizon. Those early decisions establish a decent man more effectively than his later declarations about honour.
The runesmith concept has real appeal. John can alter the possibilities of somebody else's magic, which gives his class a reason to exist within a party. An ice attack can become a different tactical tool; another ally's fire can become the answer to a problem ordinary attacks cannot contain. The connection between understanding a person, accessing their magic, and changing what that magic can do gives relationships a mechanical consequence. The smaller group also makes it easy to understand who provides ranged damage, close combat, healing, or an opening for somebody else. My disappointment concerns the smithing itself. John's years at the forge provide strength, habits, memories, and a useful starting identity, but practical crafting largely disappears once he becomes an adventurer. Relics arrive as rewards while he develops mainly as a fighter and magical enhancer. I wanted more occasions when his knowledge of making and repairing things changed the solution to a problem. The class has room for that, and this first volume leaves much of it unused.
The combat is at its strongest when the group has to create opportunities for one another. Healing keeps somebody in the fight, a distraction changes a monster's target, and controlling movement makes a dangerous enemy vulnerable. John takes damage and depends on people who can do things he cannot. That gives the action more substance than a procession of enemies waiting to demonstrate his superiority. The Nether corruption also supplies the book's most effective atmosphere. Watching familiar dungeon creatures behave with terrified desperation tells me something has gone badly wrong before the full threat is revealed. That change in behaviour does more for the tension than another description of enormous muscles or sharp teeth. Later encounters add pursuit, confinement, swarms, and problems that require the party to change its approach. The first proper dungeon expedition arrives around the middle of the story, but there has already been road combat and dangerous training. Its best fights give the party's preparation a purpose and make survival feel like something they achieve together.
I also like the idea that dungeon exploration supports an entire society. Discoveries affect medicine, wealth, technology, and political power. Sophia's family circumstances make the value of healing resources concrete, while the guild's headquarters suggests a history older than the institution occupying it. The magical space behind an ordinary-looking entrance creates a pleasant sense of discovery, and the guild feels like somewhere people eat, train, work, and build lives between expeditions. The human claim over dungeon access, alongside other peoples entering and contesting it, leaves room for conflicts beyond clearing another floor. Most of that larger world is still outlined through lessons and explanations. I am interested in what those foundations could support, particularly the tension between an independent guild and powerful families. The book gives that tension enough presence to influence events. It has yet to make every part of the institution equally convincing.
John's leadership is where my approval starts getting its claws caught. Protecting a companion from an immediate attack is easy to understand. Repeatedly treating withdrawal or caution as cowardice is much harder to respect. Raven can be irritating, but some of the bird's questions deserve answers, especially when the danger has exceeded what the party expected. John often answers with certainty about keeping everyone safe, even when he has very little information to support that certainty. The duel makes the problem sharper because he knows defeat would cost his companions their place at the guild too. He receives a clear warning about the unequal stakes, then allows his anger and desire to humiliate Leo to drive the decision. His friends support him, and the story does give him injuries and future complications. What I miss is sustained accountability for placing their futures inside his personal confrontation. An Alpha's pride is a poor reason to gamble with the pack's home. I wanted his protective instincts to grow into better judgment, with caution becoming part of his strength.
The guild makes that weakness harder to ignore. Stormbreaker's combat exercise strips away important advantages, permits serious injuries, and relies on the recruits' healers helping one another afterward. Her explanation is clear: they need to learn what danger feels like and trust people outside their own party. I understand the lesson. I remain unconvinced by the safeguards as they are presented, particularly when a badly wounded recruit initially meets hesitation from the people expected to help. The story moves very quickly from that situation to reassurance that the exercise was justified. Mahogany's enjoyment of hurting students adds another layer of institutional cruelty, while the collective exile attached to a personal duel risks throwing away useful recruits over one quarrel. These policies could support a much sharper examination of the guild's priorities. Here, they mostly intensify individual confrontations. Stormbreaker becomes more convincing when her losses, concern, practical preparations, and relief show through. Those moments give her authority an emotional basis. They do not resolve the weaknesses in the institution's decisions.
Leo is an effective person to want out of the way, but a limited antagonist to spend this much time with. His entitlement, abuse of status, resentment, and determination to hurt people all point in the same direction. The history behind Mel's hostility gives the conflict a personal reason to matter. Leo himself remains predictable, repeatedly confirming that he is exactly as unpleasant as he first appears. The duel can still generate tension through his abilities and the consequences of losing, but there is little uncertainty about the man underneath them. I wanted the pressure from his family and position to produce a more interesting opponent, or at least a less repetitive sequence of sneering provocations. His cruelty works as fuel for the confrontation. It rarely develops into much beyond that.
Sophia's early attachment is the relationship problem that most needs time it does not receive. The attraction starts immediately, then jealousy and expectations of exclusivity follow almost on its heels. Her demand to be consulted before somebody joins their party is reasonable. The possessive reactions surrounding it are repeated so often that they begin to crowd out her other qualities. Another woman looks at John, Sophia reacts, and the narration tells me again how intimidating or jealous she is. Calling the attachment love at first sight does not supply the missing knowledge of one another. The early intimate scene following danger also turns reconciliation into a physical demonstration before the disagreement has been explored very far. For me, that makes the relationship feel hurried and emotionally uneven. Sophia has more to offer than guarding access to John, and the opening leans too heavily on that single behaviour before letting her become a fuller companion.
The later development earns genuine credit. Sophia organises practical help for the party, contributes in combat, and shows concern for Mel that exists beyond rivalry over John. Her family history and her own perspective give her fear of loss a context. During the date, John pays attention to what she enjoys, and their conversation reaches beyond attraction into the life each wants to build. I find those ordinary acts of attention much more convincing than declarations about how perfect somebody is. Sophia's changing relationship with Mel also receives groundwork through shared danger, growing respect, and direct conversations. There is still an uncomfortable pressure in her belief that refusing to share could mean being replaced. That fear gives her agreement a less secure foundation than I would like. Even so, the book does let her recognise her possessiveness and begin making different choices.
Mel's later intimacy works better for me because it includes trust she has reasons to find difficult. Her account of betrayal gives the encounter a personal context, and her choices matter. Earlier, her own perspective also acknowledges the frustration of having somebody else intervene in a fight she wanted to win herself. That is a useful complication for a character who could easily have become another grateful rescue. The sexual content is explicit, with physical description and sustained encounters, rather than fading away once attraction becomes action. Sexualised observations and teasing occur much more often than complete sex scenes; the full encounters are occasional, with an early scene and further development later. I want desire, detail, affection, and character to work together, and the later scenes come closer to that through anticipation, attention, vulnerability, and tenderness afterward. Some of the intimate dialogue still falls into familiar praise and breathless responses, but Sophia's confidence and Mel's uncertainty give their encounters different emotional textures.
Nilea and Raven gave me a different kind of interest. The contrast between her guarded expression and the bird's endless commentary is funny, especially when Raven's courageous self-description collapses under the next sign of danger. The joke repeats more than it needs to, but the bird keeps helping when help is required. I respect that more than the bragging. Nilea's perspective also reveals that the quiet exterior conceals far more than indifference, and the connection between the two becomes more interesting than their initial explanation suggests. Lina, meanwhile, has useful abilities and enough pride to make cooperation awkward, even as her attitude begins to shift. I appreciate that these women contribute to survival before their romantic possibilities are fully settled. What limits the character work is how often their thoughts eventually return to John's exceptional appeal. I want the pack to have lives, ambitions, and tensions that continue to matter when he leaves the room.
The prose repeatedly slows material that already has enough meaning. A look reveals tension, then the narration explains the tension, interprets the look, and tells me what that interpretation means for the relationship. Smiles, raised eyebrows, tightening jaws, unreadable expressions, and feelings described as an unnamed something recur across very different scenes. Familiar women also receive fresh descriptions of their attractiveness when the story could simply continue the interaction. The sentence "She smiled as she scanned the place, a smile on her face" is a compact example of redundant wording, but the larger problem is the habit of explaining an emotional beat after it has already landed. Those repeated habits give passages a manufactured, AI-like cadence to my ears. The characters begin to sound as though their reactions are being annotated. Meals, walks through corridors, and repeated reassurance then take longer than the new information warrants. My ears have caught the feeling. Let the scene move. I enjoy time spent living alongside a party; I need that time to deepen the experience instead of circling the same observation.
There are also specific editing problems. "No matter how they clothes were" contains an incorrect pronoun, and "I thought about not give" uses the wrong verb form. These are broken constructions, and examples occur well apart in the story. Character details also slip: Mel is introduced with green eyes and later described with blue eyes, while the established group suddenly includes the name Melina in a scene where Lina is present. That last mistake is particularly distracting because an unfamiliar name briefly appears inside an already established cast. The issue is care over the language and the people the story expects me to follow. These errors weaken confidence in the finished storytelling, especially alongside the repeated descriptions that should have made those same details easy to keep consistent.
The system has its own accounting problems. The early kill notification identifies a level-two Spectral Spider, while John's explanation of the resulting progress calls the spider level five. War Cry initially grants ten Strength and five Speed, but its benefits are subsequently described as ten points of mana and five Speed. These are concrete pieces of information changing without an explanation. Later, a quest explicitly promises a magical relic for each party member, yet the reward scene identifies John's relic and has the others agree that he should keep it. The promised individual relics for the others are left unaccounted for. I do need the rewards and rules the story deliberately introduces to remain dependable. The flexible magic is one of the attractions here, which makes careless handling of its stated details more frustrating. Mystery about the origin of a power invites curiosity. A stat changing its name makes me question the bookkeeping.
The ending gives this volume an actual payoff. Its immediate challenges reach conclusions, earlier training matters, and the final confrontation requires John to apply something he has learned. The aftermath allows his companions to support him, and his injuries have a visible consequence beyond the fight itself. The larger danger remains open, with the closing setup connecting future trouble to threads already introduced. That is enough resolution to make the first volume feel like a completed stage of the adventure. My final judgment stays at 2.93 because the cooperative action, useful magic, and later warmth have to carry hurried attachment, uneven responsibility, and writing that repeatedly needs tightening. Back in HowlStrom, the part I would keep closest is the promise established with Max: care means taking responsibility for the people who trust you. I want John to carry that lesson into every dangerous decision. The pack is worth following. I want its leader to watch where he puts his paws.
December 24, 2024
It was fine but just fine.
This wasn't a bad book, just not that good of one. All the romance felt very rushed and forced. The story is very cookie cutter. Again, it's not bad, and I'll probably continue the series because it does have the potential to get really good. It's just not there yet for me.
This wasn't a bad book, just not that good of one. All the romance felt very rushed and forced. The story is very cookie cutter. Again, it's not bad, and I'll probably continue the series because it does have the potential to get really good. It's just not there yet for me.
April 22, 2025
I enjoyed this book. The characters are likeable, unique and they compliment each other very well. The rogue seems to woefully under utilized though. The author seems to borrow a lot of ideas from different book series that I have read, but being a Runesmith is a new twist. This book relies a lot on Fate being a behind the scenes player in arranging things. I get it, it helps move the story along faster.
The book starts out with John being a blacksmith. He's spent the last 10 years of his life being an apprentice to a blacksmith and is one of the best and will take over once his trainer retires. A lady, Sophia who happens to be a weak Ice Mage comes into his shop to remove a taint from a family heirloom, a war ax. Nobody else has been able to remove it. Because he is such a good blacksmith he discovers that the ax is possessed by a Nether spider creature. The Nether is a malevolent force that has been corrupting the Dungeon. The Dungeon has brought prosperity to race of man since it was discovered. In fighting the Nether creature John is blessed to become the first Runesmith in present existence. Stormbreaker, the nations newest Dungeon diving protege, happens to be part of the parade outside the blacksmith shop realizes his potential and recruits him to join the Dungeon Guild. John insists that Sophia join as well. Along the way a female rogue name Mel, is caught doing a terrible job trying to warn them of an upcoming ambush by Bandits that she used to run with. John insists in having her join his party and get admitted to the guild as well.
There is much here and the author does a good job, not great, of tying it together and moving the story along. The dungeon Guild headquarters feels like if you were to put Hogwarts (Harry Potter) inside the Tardis (Doctor Who), which is entirely possible. I don't like the fact that John, after spending a decade being a blacksmith, seems to never want to raise a hammer in a forge again. I imagine that he could create some very decent armor and shields.
The book starts out with John being a blacksmith. He's spent the last 10 years of his life being an apprentice to a blacksmith and is one of the best and will take over once his trainer retires. A lady, Sophia who happens to be a weak Ice Mage comes into his shop to remove a taint from a family heirloom, a war ax. Nobody else has been able to remove it. Because he is such a good blacksmith he discovers that the ax is possessed by a Nether spider creature. The Nether is a malevolent force that has been corrupting the Dungeon. The Dungeon has brought prosperity to race of man since it was discovered. In fighting the Nether creature John is blessed to become the first Runesmith in present existence. Stormbreaker, the nations newest Dungeon diving protege, happens to be part of the parade outside the blacksmith shop realizes his potential and recruits him to join the Dungeon Guild. John insists that Sophia join as well. Along the way a female rogue name Mel, is caught doing a terrible job trying to warn them of an upcoming ambush by Bandits that she used to run with. John insists in having her join his party and get admitted to the guild as well.
There is much here and the author does a good job, not great, of tying it together and moving the story along. The dungeon Guild headquarters feels like if you were to put Hogwarts (Harry Potter) inside the Tardis (Doctor Who), which is entirely possible. I don't like the fact that John, after spending a decade being a blacksmith, seems to never want to raise a hammer in a forge again. I imagine that he could create some very decent armor and shields.
January 13, 2026
This book could have been awesome but the author either has never had a relationship with a women or is still in high school. This whole, I've known you for a day and am now yours and you are mine or else attitude by Sophia is annoying, highly immature, and makes for a difficult read.
This reminds me of Teenage fantasy where the author is writing the story as something he wishes would happen to him where he's overpowered, the only one who can save the day and of course gets everything he wants.
It's a shame because the premise is good as is the main character John. This story would be way better if the author did a rewrite and made it so John's love interests developed normally over time, not in the I just met you and instantly love you, grade school mentality. Plus, if the story must have a possessive, manipulative crazy witch as one of them, at least have the protagonist have the backbone to put her in her place. This is fantasy, I don't know anyone who would fantasize about such a horrible woman.
Highly disappointing, because as I said, the story had a lot of potential.
Oh, and the author definitely should decide whether the character's name is Sophia or Sofia, because both are used.
This reminds me of Teenage fantasy where the author is writing the story as something he wishes would happen to him where he's overpowered, the only one who can save the day and of course gets everything he wants.
It's a shame because the premise is good as is the main character John. This story would be way better if the author did a rewrite and made it so John's love interests developed normally over time, not in the I just met you and instantly love you, grade school mentality. Plus, if the story must have a possessive, manipulative crazy witch as one of them, at least have the protagonist have the backbone to put her in her place. This is fantasy, I don't know anyone who would fantasize about such a horrible woman.
Highly disappointing, because as I said, the story had a lot of potential.
Oh, and the author definitely should decide whether the character's name is Sophia or Sofia, because both are used.
November 6, 2025
Mostly overall good, but good heavens I'm tired of overly-confident MCs. Some humility would be most welcome. That said, this reads like a first-time author trying to find his haremlit wings. I would definitely not give this five stars, but I'll say sure to a four-star. A few grammatical errors, but in this self-publishing day and age, it's frankly becoming the norm. I swear, some authors don't even give their works a second read-through, let alone run it past a qualified proof-reader. Rant mode off (sorry).
SPOILERS:
First LI is first named Sophia, then authors call her Sofia. She's introduced as a shy, good-girl noble, yet two days in gives the MC a bj. As other reviewers have noted, the insta-love and excessive sex scenes detracted from the book; the author is obviously trying too hard to please the vocal majority in the genre that screams for SMUT! SMUT! SMUT!
SPOILERS:
First LI is first named Sophia, then authors call her Sofia. She's introduced as a shy, good-girl noble, yet two days in gives the MC a bj. As other reviewers have noted, the insta-love and excessive sex scenes detracted from the book; the author is obviously trying too hard to please the vocal majority in the genre that screams for SMUT! SMUT! SMUT!
January 15, 2025
Definitely could done without the harem aspects of the story, since they contributed almost nothing to the story, but otherwise, the story was pretty good. Some unique aspects to the story made it enjoyable. There were multiple continuity errors though that really should have been caught during proofreading, but again, ignoring those, the story reads pretty well. I'll probably read the next one, despite the useless harem aspects of the story.
January 23, 2025
Unique, exciting and intriguing
I love a good dungeon diving novel, and it's always interesting to see how things will evolve and develop with each book and world.
And this one doesn't disappoint. Full of adventure, battles, magic and a corruption linking to a millennia old war infecting the dungeon and making it dangerous... What's not to like.
And the characters are fun, complex and make a good fit for the party.
Looking forward to book 2!
I love a good dungeon diving novel, and it's always interesting to see how things will evolve and develop with each book and world.
And this one doesn't disappoint. Full of adventure, battles, magic and a corruption linking to a millennia old war infecting the dungeon and making it dangerous... What's not to like.
And the characters are fun, complex and make a good fit for the party.
Looking forward to book 2!
December 28, 2024
Really Great First Book
The plot is very interesting and the characters are varied and not stereotypical. The progression flows nicely and keeps the story moving in a very good speed. Over all a great story and definitely need the next book as soon possible! But I am patient and can wait until it's here.
The plot is very interesting and the characters are varied and not stereotypical. The progression flows nicely and keeps the story moving in a very good speed. Over all a great story and definitely need the next book as soon possible! But I am patient and can wait until it's here.
January 1, 2025
Decent first
Not to bad. The world is not well flushed out and a bit superficial. The system is simple and not detailed. I found the story engaging with most of the characters unique. What I didn't like is a slightly hot headed MC. Though his heart is in the right place his ego is a bit off-putting. However, I will read the next book to see where this goes.
Not to bad. The world is not well flushed out and a bit superficial. The system is simple and not detailed. I found the story engaging with most of the characters unique. What I didn't like is a slightly hot headed MC. Though his heart is in the right place his ego is a bit off-putting. However, I will read the next book to see where this goes.
February 13, 2025
Decent story and concept. Decent characters both good and bad. Would have given it a higher rating if not for the teenage boy sex fantasies. At least there was only a few and they didn’t take up too much time. The sad thing is that the next book will probably be full of them. Oh well if it is that will end this series for me
September 27, 2025
Schlock
Marcus’s Sloss should change his pseudonym to ‘Marcus Schlock’. The man must be an AI, because he churns out the same low tier, meh, garbage with every book.
This one is no different.
Dude meets a girl? He bangs her.
He’s apparently candy to all women, despite having the personality of a moldy sponge.
Yawn fest, and DNF.
Marcus’s Sloss should change his pseudonym to ‘Marcus Schlock’. The man must be an AI, because he churns out the same low tier, meh, garbage with every book.
This one is no different.
Dude meets a girl? He bangs her.
He’s apparently candy to all women, despite having the personality of a moldy sponge.
Yawn fest, and DNF.
December 30, 2024
good
Good start to a new series. I like the way it’s going and it’s not the same as the other dungeon series I have read. Kind of like stranger things but dungeon style. Good work. Looking forward to the next book.
Good start to a new series. I like the way it’s going and it’s not the same as the other dungeon series I have read. Kind of like stranger things but dungeon style. Good work. Looking forward to the next book.
January 4, 2025
Dungeon Explorers 1
Good read. Good verses Evil. So far we have the outline about where the plot might go. Like the mix of characters of
the team. Look forward to the next in the series.
Good read. Good verses Evil. So far we have the outline about where the plot might go. Like the mix of characters of
the team. Look forward to the next in the series.
January 9, 2025
fun story
Constant excitement and adventure with a likeable main character. Story is continually evolving and holds your attention. Much better than I imagined and ready for the next installment.
Constant excitement and adventure with a likeable main character. Story is continually evolving and holds your attention. Much better than I imagined and ready for the next installment.
January 16, 2025
An excellent beginning!!
I expected a well written and edited fantasy adventure and was not disappointed in the least!!! Wonderful characters that are already developing into an interesting and enjoyable base of the series!!! World building is really good as expected!!!
I expected a well written and edited fantasy adventure and was not disappointed in the least!!! Wonderful characters that are already developing into an interesting and enjoyable base of the series!!! World building is really good as expected!!!
February 16, 2025
Terrific read - tremendous writing
I greatly enjoyed my time with the characters and I look forward to reading Book 2. The authors do a wonderful job of setting up the plot and allowing the characters to develop at a reasonable pace.
I greatly enjoyed my time with the characters and I look forward to reading Book 2. The authors do a wonderful job of setting up the plot and allowing the characters to develop at a reasonable pace.
December 24, 2024
The start of a new and exciting story of friendship, corruption and dungeons.
December 26, 2024
Great start
Good start to the new series wish we were already to book 5 but looking forward to what the author does with it
Good start to the new series wish we were already to book 5 but looking forward to what the author does with it
January 19, 2025
Fun read
Highly interesting characters combined with a good storyline make this a fun read. The epilogue is actually pretty good. And overall only a few typos. Nice job
Highly interesting characters combined with a good storyline make this a fun read. The epilogue is actually pretty good. And overall only a few typos. Nice job
January 19, 2025
What Next?
Well the plot thickens. John and his group are in for some unknown excitement. A very interesting situation is about to unfold!
Well the plot thickens. John and his group are in for some unknown excitement. A very interesting situation is about to unfold!
January 28, 2025
A fun adventure
I enjoyed the interesting characters. They felt rather believable. The world and lore also provides some mystery and I look forward to finding out more.
I enjoyed the interesting characters. They felt rather believable. The world and lore also provides some mystery and I look forward to finding out more.
February 7, 2025
I can’t take another of these I’m afraid. One chapter standard adventure stuff, then the next everyone’s bursting out of their clothes and waving their willies around. It reads like a porn parody. Alice in Underpants.
May 3, 2025
Very good story
It was a fun story that kept me reading and entertained. I look forward to the next one and all the adventures in the dungeon! I hope he beats them all!
It was a fun story that kept me reading and entertained. I look forward to the next one and all the adventures in the dungeon! I hope he beats them all!
June 11, 2025
Shitty story and shitty writing.
August 8, 2025
DNF
Chapter 6
Sexual
Chapter 6
Sexual
April 6, 2026
Oof, couldn't get past the first couple chapters, you can see what kind of book this is, doesn't do much to justify the plot, just wants to be a harem story.
July 15, 2026
DNF at 5%
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