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Jester
In a realm ruled by idiots, the Fool is their only hope.
You’d think an army of zombie trolls and undead ogres would catch the nobility’s attention. You’d be wrong. The rulers of Halfsock are deeply in denial. Besides, they have taxes to avoid, neighbors to plunder, and relatives to backstab.
With war looming, a goblin latrine slave named Shelly resolves to save Castle Halfsock from itself. He must assume many roles… jester, detective, spy, and political fixer. But his most challenging—especially after a lifetime spent cleaning other people’s toilets—is as a confident goblin worthy of trust, friendship, and maybe even love.
Can the least powerful person in the realm overcome his insecurities to depose rulers, forge alliances, and fend off an undead horde?
A comic tale of politics, friendship, and found family for fans of Nicholas Eames, Terry Pratchett, and J. Zachary Pike.
You’d think an army of zombie trolls and undead ogres would catch the nobility’s attention. You’d be wrong. The rulers of Halfsock are deeply in denial. Besides, they have taxes to avoid, neighbors to plunder, and relatives to backstab.
With war looming, a goblin latrine slave named Shelly resolves to save Castle Halfsock from itself. He must assume many roles… jester, detective, spy, and political fixer. But his most challenging—especially after a lifetime spent cleaning other people’s toilets—is as a confident goblin worthy of trust, friendship, and maybe even love.
Can the least powerful person in the realm overcome his insecurities to depose rulers, forge alliances, and fend off an undead horde?
A comic tale of politics, friendship, and found family for fans of Nicholas Eames, Terry Pratchett, and J. Zachary Pike.
300 pages, Paperback
Published April 14, 2025
About the author
Tim Carter
2 books45 followersTim Carter writes fantasy fiction, video games, and movies. He draws inspiration from a lifelong love of strategy and role-playing games, especially Dungeons and Dragons.
He is best known for writing the console game Sleeping Dogs, writing and producing the Dead Rising series of movies, and producing the digital series Mortal Kombat: Legacy.
He lives with his wife and two dogs in Vancouver, Canada.
He is best known for writing the console game Sleeping Dogs, writing and producing the Dead Rising series of movies, and producing the digital series Mortal Kombat: Legacy.
He lives with his wife and two dogs in Vancouver, Canada.
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July 1, 2026This is one of the 10 finalists in the 11th annual SPFBO contest.
Each year 300 books enter the Self-Published Fantasy Blog-Off and are judged by ten teams.
300 entries becomes ~50 semi-finalists, then 10 finalists, and then one champion!
Each year 300 books enter the Self-Published Fantasy Blog-Off and are judged by ten teams.
300 entries becomes ~50 semi-finalists, then 10 finalists, and then one champion!
May 27, 2025
Loved this! Perfect for fans of Travis Baldree or J. Zachary Pike. Can't' wait to see what Tim writes next. Just kidding, I already know what he's writing next and it's gonna be awesome.
Read his novella Majordomo as well! It's phenomenal!
Read his novella Majordomo as well! It's phenomenal!
December 2, 2025
Fighting depression with one book at a time.
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I love when an author can make the characters and settings feel so real that it seems you could travel there and find everyone going about their lives.
Shelly, an unlikely hero, is our guide into this part of the world. I connected with him right away and wanted to adopt him.
I admired him for persevering despite everything thrown at him.
The battle itself wasn't a fair bit of pages but ot felt bigger and more... More, if that makes sense. I could picture it in all its terrifying glory.
The actual villain doesn't have much air time but her presence and threat fills the pages as we experience everything through Shelly's eyes.
Some characters have more layers and surprises up their sleeves but are also wholly themselves.
I'm excited to see where this author's next but also crossing fingers 🤞 we meet up with everyone from this book and the previous again someday.
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I love when an author can make the characters and settings feel so real that it seems you could travel there and find everyone going about their lives.
Shelly, an unlikely hero, is our guide into this part of the world. I connected with him right away and wanted to adopt him.
I admired him for persevering despite everything thrown at him.
The battle itself wasn't a fair bit of pages but ot felt bigger and more... More, if that makes sense. I could picture it in all its terrifying glory.
The actual villain doesn't have much air time but her presence and threat fills the pages as we experience everything through Shelly's eyes.
Some characters have more layers and surprises up their sleeves but are also wholly themselves.
I'm excited to see where this author's next but also crossing fingers 🤞 we meet up with everyone from this book and the previous again someday.
July 6, 2026
My rating is 4.5
I fully admit that at first I didn't think this was going to be for me. It took a couple of chapters to get the rhythm of Tim's writing and humour but once that happened, we were off to the races.
The characters really shine here and I couldn't help rooting for our main character Shelly, a Goblin latrine slave turned all around world saving hero. He doesn't have life easy and as war against the Skeleton Queen gets closer, he becomes something far more than he was. His voice in this story is full of self doubt, insecurity and thankfully..a "just gotta do it" mindset. We see his struggles though and it just makes you love him. He is supported by a killer (haha) cast of side characters. I love Buckingham and his other friends and the underdog theme is played out well with their help. No one really thinks they can beat the undead hoard shuffling their gross way toward them but miracles do happen!
Shelly is a joy to read about...every time he says "shit" it just made me laugh. SO understated yet you know he's up to his arse in it!
One of my favourite parts to the story is all the planning for war and the strategy twists and turns the group comes up with. The execution is clever and incredible! It's also vividly described and on the repulsive side which I also love!
Review done for SPFBO XI and are my thoughts only. The group's opinions may vary wildly. Tim was kind enough to provide an audio code so I could review so thank you!
I fully admit that at first I didn't think this was going to be for me. It took a couple of chapters to get the rhythm of Tim's writing and humour but once that happened, we were off to the races.
The characters really shine here and I couldn't help rooting for our main character Shelly, a Goblin latrine slave turned all around world saving hero. He doesn't have life easy and as war against the Skeleton Queen gets closer, he becomes something far more than he was. His voice in this story is full of self doubt, insecurity and thankfully..a "just gotta do it" mindset. We see his struggles though and it just makes you love him. He is supported by a killer (haha) cast of side characters. I love Buckingham and his other friends and the underdog theme is played out well with their help. No one really thinks they can beat the undead hoard shuffling their gross way toward them but miracles do happen!
Shelly is a joy to read about...every time he says "shit" it just made me laugh. SO understated yet you know he's up to his arse in it!
One of my favourite parts to the story is all the planning for war and the strategy twists and turns the group comes up with. The execution is clever and incredible! It's also vividly described and on the repulsive side which I also love!
Review done for SPFBO XI and are my thoughts only. The group's opinions may vary wildly. Tim was kind enough to provide an audio code so I could review so thank you!
May 28, 2025
Carter’s Jester is a sharp-tongued, cozy-laden fantasy story covered in muck, ridiculous politics, and heaps upon heaps of the undead. If you are a fan of Baldree, Eames or Pike, this is right up your alley - or latrine.
If I had to liken our protagonist to another fantasy character, I’d say Shelly is Tim Carter’s Tyrion Lannister - constantly underestimated and unwanted (if we are being honest), yet has the brains to befuddle all.
Book comparison - Christopher Buehlman’s The Blacktongue Thief meets Ben Hatke’s Nobody Likes a Goblin.
If I had to liken our protagonist to another fantasy character, I’d say Shelly is Tim Carter’s Tyrion Lannister - constantly underestimated and unwanted (if we are being honest), yet has the brains to befuddle all.
Book comparison - Christopher Buehlman’s The Blacktongue Thief meets Ben Hatke’s Nobody Likes a Goblin.
September 2, 2026
Another finalist in Mark Lawrenec's SPBO , I enjooyed this one as much as Dogged by Michael R Fletcher , fans of Terry Pratchett may enjoy this one, another treat!
January 15, 2026
Also posted on FanFiAddict: https://fanfiaddict.com/review-jester...
After adoring the novella, Majordomo, I was very excited to read Jester!
It has similar underdog and found family vibes, with lesser appreciated characters taking the forefront - in this case, a goblin latrine slave - who are much more than they appear.
Unfortunately, the kingdom he serves is full of infighting and political backstabbing, and is woefully unprepared to deal with the imminent arrival of a undead army led by the Skeleton Queen.
What started as a slave discovering a bit more to a murder grows into something quite impressive, when he rises in station and importance (but never really gets over his fear of big people) has he desperately attempts to get the kingdom prepared, while hoping no one realises that’s what he’s doing.
I always love stories where lowly, unappreciated characters get to shine, and this delivers that by the bucketload. We have a fugitive mage who is also more than what he seems, a human woman trying to plot and scheme past the misogyny of the kingdom, and plenty of others who are looked down and trod upon who want to improve their lot in life.
There are many descriptions of sewers, battles, and visceral description that may or may not make you squirm, but it’s all delivered with razor sharp wit.
This is a fantastically entertaining story about adjusting expectations, confronting stereotypes, and rooting for the lesser known, less conventional characters. Loved it!
Also, the audiobook was wonderfully narrated!
After adoring the novella, Majordomo, I was very excited to read Jester!
It has similar underdog and found family vibes, with lesser appreciated characters taking the forefront - in this case, a goblin latrine slave - who are much more than they appear.
Unfortunately, the kingdom he serves is full of infighting and political backstabbing, and is woefully unprepared to deal with the imminent arrival of a undead army led by the Skeleton Queen.
What started as a slave discovering a bit more to a murder grows into something quite impressive, when he rises in station and importance (but never really gets over his fear of big people) has he desperately attempts to get the kingdom prepared, while hoping no one realises that’s what he’s doing.
I always love stories where lowly, unappreciated characters get to shine, and this delivers that by the bucketload. We have a fugitive mage who is also more than what he seems, a human woman trying to plot and scheme past the misogyny of the kingdom, and plenty of others who are looked down and trod upon who want to improve their lot in life.
There are many descriptions of sewers, battles, and visceral description that may or may not make you squirm, but it’s all delivered with razor sharp wit.
This is a fantastically entertaining story about adjusting expectations, confronting stereotypes, and rooting for the lesser known, less conventional characters. Loved it!
Also, the audiobook was wonderfully narrated!
June 28, 2026
3.5/5
Jester is a funny, dark fantasy romp with a very strong voice. Shelly, a goblin slave working as a latrine cleaner in a castle, is a great protagonist, mostly because he's about as far from the usual fantasy hero as you can get. He's scared, self-deprecating and aware of his own limitations. But he's also clever and observant. It turns out that knowing the castle, its people and its plumbing better than anyone else can be surprisingly useful.
I particularly enjoyed the first part of the book, when the murder mystery and political intrigue are the main focus. There's something genuinely fun about watching Shelly notice things that everyone else ignores simply because nobody pays much attention to the goblin cleaning their toilets. The story has some clever twists here, and the first-person narration gives it a lot of personality.
And yes, it's funny. Very funny. Sometimes too funny. That's probably my biggest problem with Jester. The book is almost constantly punching out jokes, profanity, grotesque humor and sarcastic observations. A lot of it works, and I definitely laughed, but after a while I started getting tired of it. There are some darker and more emotional moments that could have landed harder if the book had occasionally just let them breathe.
I also thought the book became less interesting once it moved away from the murder mystery and political intrigue and towards the bigger spoiler spoiler storyline. It's still entertaining, but the strange combination of goblin slave, murder investigation and castle politics was much more distinctive to me than the more conventional fantasy stuff.
Still, I had a good time with it. Shelly is a character worth following, the voice is memorable, and there's plenty of genuinely funny stuff here. I just wish the book had occasionally taken its foot off the accelerator.
A fun and very readable fantasy romp with a great protagonist and a distinctive voice. Just a little too relentlessly funny for me.
Jester is a funny, dark fantasy romp with a very strong voice. Shelly, a goblin slave working as a latrine cleaner in a castle, is a great protagonist, mostly because he's about as far from the usual fantasy hero as you can get. He's scared, self-deprecating and aware of his own limitations. But he's also clever and observant. It turns out that knowing the castle, its people and its plumbing better than anyone else can be surprisingly useful.
I particularly enjoyed the first part of the book, when the murder mystery and political intrigue are the main focus. There's something genuinely fun about watching Shelly notice things that everyone else ignores simply because nobody pays much attention to the goblin cleaning their toilets. The story has some clever twists here, and the first-person narration gives it a lot of personality.
And yes, it's funny. Very funny. Sometimes too funny. That's probably my biggest problem with Jester. The book is almost constantly punching out jokes, profanity, grotesque humor and sarcastic observations. A lot of it works, and I definitely laughed, but after a while I started getting tired of it. There are some darker and more emotional moments that could have landed harder if the book had occasionally just let them breathe.
I also thought the book became less interesting once it moved away from the murder mystery and political intrigue and towards the bigger spoiler spoiler storyline. It's still entertaining, but the strange combination of goblin slave, murder investigation and castle politics was much more distinctive to me than the more conventional fantasy stuff.
Still, I had a good time with it. Shelly is a character worth following, the voice is memorable, and there's plenty of genuinely funny stuff here. I just wish the book had occasionally taken its foot off the accelerator.
A fun and very readable fantasy romp with a great protagonist and a distinctive voice. Just a little too relentlessly funny for me.
December 9, 2025
There’s not a lot that I have to say about Jester by Tim Carter, but don’t let that deter you. I adored this book. It’s such a weird mix of cozy and epic fantasy.
I loved getting all the epic fantasy feels without the wider world to keep up with. It has diverse races, big political conflicts, and interesting world building, but the whole story was contained to one character the whole time, most of it even within the same small location. And the humor scattered throughout the story gave it a more relaxed and cozy feel as well.
Sometimes cozy books do make me feel a little bored when they meander too much, but the high stakes of this story kept me hooked the entire way through. I really enjoyed Majordomo before this one, but for some reason I was still a little bit hesitant to accept a review copy of this. I won’t make that mistake again. If Tim Carter writes it, believe me, I will read it.
I loved getting all the epic fantasy feels without the wider world to keep up with. It has diverse races, big political conflicts, and interesting world building, but the whole story was contained to one character the whole time, most of it even within the same small location. And the humor scattered throughout the story gave it a more relaxed and cozy feel as well.
Sometimes cozy books do make me feel a little bored when they meander too much, but the high stakes of this story kept me hooked the entire way through. I really enjoyed Majordomo before this one, but for some reason I was still a little bit hesitant to accept a review copy of this. I won’t make that mistake again. If Tim Carter writes it, believe me, I will read it.
March 20, 2025
Thanks to the Author. I received a copy of this book in excahnge for an honest review
This book has some amazing trigger warnings. They were just so fun to read! And they set the tone for the whole book. I loved them! (And the book!). But I think that, still, some trigger warnings are needed because, if the last book I reviewed was full of nice people and gave me back some faith in humanity, this one… well, this one come in like a wracking ball (and now I am stuck with Miley Cirus song in my head).
It is full of despicable characters (well, not the main one, and not the other protagonists, we have some good people, too! Even if the MC is trying to save the whole realm from itself and from an army of undead mostly because he doesn’t want to end up eaten by some undead, but hey! Fear is a great motivator, and he is genuinely trying to do some good, so… he is good!) who are too arrogant and too greedy for their own good.
But still, Shelly is trying his best to save them all.
That said, this book has it all. It has great characters. Shelly is an amazing MC, and he is a goblin and a slave. He is the last of the lasts, because this book is also about the ones who aren’t the biggest dog around, the ones who are, indeed, the last. But everyone has the power to bring change; sometimes the change is big, sometimes not, but trying to be better is always a great motivator (as is the fear of being eaten by zombies). And I really liked that our MC is a goblin! And we have some other interesting characters, too. I think my favorite character was Buckingham; he is another good person, and he is fun to have around. And Betticia is an interesting character too!
Then, we have the plot. Full of intrigues and politics. But we also have action and some more slow moments, in which to appreciate the wit or the misfortunes of our improbable hero. And the feeling! It makes you feel and think, too, but it is not constantly in your face about a point or another (aside from Shelly being the last of the last, because really… poor Shelly!). It is a really compelling book; I had fun reading it (the humor here is pretty neat, too!), and I was never bored. The plot carried me along, and I reached the end earlier than I expected. I wanted more! I loved these characters (the good ones, I mean), I was invested in the story, and, to be really concise about it, I devoured it. It has everything I wanted and more.
And what’s even sweeter is that this is the author who wrote Majordomo. I loved that novella, and I had expectations for this book. Lots of them. And I was so happy to find them satisfied! I loved it, and if you want to read something original, with some original characters, a dash of humor and an intriguing plot, well… try this one out!
This book has some amazing trigger warnings. They were just so fun to read! And they set the tone for the whole book. I loved them! (And the book!). But I think that, still, some trigger warnings are needed because, if the last book I reviewed was full of nice people and gave me back some faith in humanity, this one… well, this one come in like a wracking ball (and now I am stuck with Miley Cirus song in my head).
It is full of despicable characters (well, not the main one, and not the other protagonists, we have some good people, too! Even if the MC is trying to save the whole realm from itself and from an army of undead mostly because he doesn’t want to end up eaten by some undead, but hey! Fear is a great motivator, and he is genuinely trying to do some good, so… he is good!) who are too arrogant and too greedy for their own good.
But still, Shelly is trying his best to save them all.
That said, this book has it all. It has great characters. Shelly is an amazing MC, and he is a goblin and a slave. He is the last of the lasts, because this book is also about the ones who aren’t the biggest dog around, the ones who are, indeed, the last. But everyone has the power to bring change; sometimes the change is big, sometimes not, but trying to be better is always a great motivator (as is the fear of being eaten by zombies). And I really liked that our MC is a goblin! And we have some other interesting characters, too. I think my favorite character was Buckingham; he is another good person, and he is fun to have around. And Betticia is an interesting character too!
Then, we have the plot. Full of intrigues and politics. But we also have action and some more slow moments, in which to appreciate the wit or the misfortunes of our improbable hero. And the feeling! It makes you feel and think, too, but it is not constantly in your face about a point or another (aside from Shelly being the last of the last, because really… poor Shelly!). It is a really compelling book; I had fun reading it (the humor here is pretty neat, too!), and I was never bored. The plot carried me along, and I reached the end earlier than I expected. I wanted more! I loved these characters (the good ones, I mean), I was invested in the story, and, to be really concise about it, I devoured it. It has everything I wanted and more.
And what’s even sweeter is that this is the author who wrote Majordomo. I loved that novella, and I had expectations for this book. Lots of them. And I was so happy to find them satisfied! I loved it, and if you want to read something original, with some original characters, a dash of humor and an intriguing plot, well… try this one out!
May 29, 2025
Man, Tim Carter doesn’t miss. Full review to come, but this was an absolute blast! Go read it!
September 4, 2026
4.5
Well- I can EASILY see why this is a finalist in SPFBOXI.
This book was fun, funny, interesting and full of odd bits of insight.
We follow a Goblin Latrine Slave in Castle Halfsock, where the people are pretty racist against anything not human, and those in power are greedy for more but also pretty dumb. When the Castle Wizard is murdered, Shelly our Goblin Slave begins not only to investigate the crime but also places his thumb on the scales of fate. As he continues to get in deep, he gets promoted to the position of Jester as he manuevers the political machinations of the kingdom as an undead horde approaches.
Themes of friendship, and equality shine through the witty and otherwise funny story.
Thank you Tim Carter.
Well- I can EASILY see why this is a finalist in SPFBOXI.
This book was fun, funny, interesting and full of odd bits of insight.
We follow a Goblin Latrine Slave in Castle Halfsock, where the people are pretty racist against anything not human, and those in power are greedy for more but also pretty dumb. When the Castle Wizard is murdered, Shelly our Goblin Slave begins not only to investigate the crime but also places his thumb on the scales of fate. As he continues to get in deep, he gets promoted to the position of Jester as he manuevers the political machinations of the kingdom as an undead horde approaches.
Themes of friendship, and equality shine through the witty and otherwise funny story.
Thank you Tim Carter.
March 18, 2025
The undead rise. Thousands shuffling at the whim of the Skeleton Queen. Death is on the march.
In an unprepared kingdom a lowly goblin latrine slave may be their only hope.
Definitely a 💩situation but a cast of heartwarming characters rise to meet it! Absurdity, surprises & great humour await! Such fun!
Wasn’t sure how I’d do with this one as I normally like things dark, grim and miserable (is this normal? lol).
It was however a breath of fresh air.
A cozy fantasy laced with sharp witted humour. One with twists, turns and frankly plenty of 💩.
A chuckling good time.
Much thanks to the author for supplying this ARC.
In an unprepared kingdom a lowly goblin latrine slave may be their only hope.
Definitely a 💩situation but a cast of heartwarming characters rise to meet it! Absurdity, surprises & great humour await! Such fun!
Wasn’t sure how I’d do with this one as I normally like things dark, grim and miserable (is this normal? lol).
It was however a breath of fresh air.
A cozy fantasy laced with sharp witted humour. One with twists, turns and frankly plenty of 💩.
A chuckling good time.
Much thanks to the author for supplying this ARC.
May 24, 2026
UPDATE: Top Pick for Team Before We Go Blog//
Advanced to the next level (So well deserved! I hope others love it as much as our team did!)
Quick Review:
If you would have told me a shit-cleaning goblin slave character would rise to the top of the 1st round book stack, I would have been like, “Ew, David”.
This is why I love SPFBO – it gets unexpected gems like this on our radar.
Tim Carter gives me Sebastian de Castell and Katherine Addison vibes. Yes, please give us fantastical political intrigue with equal notes of intensity, tenderness and humor. It’s a hard combo to achieve. Keep your eyes on Tim Carter, I sense he’s just getting started.
——
Quick Pitch
Started from the bottom, now we're here. For our MMC, a goblin slave named Shelly, the bottom is literally the cauldron where the dirty diapers are washed by him.
And here is a political intrigue situation where Shelly’s castle is under threat- and he steps in for survival aaaaaaand because the rulers of the castle don’t seem focused on or even bothered by impending doom. Eeks!
Put the poop rag down, a different level ish is going down. Shelly agrees to wear hats he never expected to. Does this mean he’s off of diaper cauldron duty? 🤞👀
Overall Thoughts
Oh, 💩 – this is good. >>> insert rim shot <<<
Honestly, some people are natural storytellers and Carter is most assuredly in this category. I was hooked by the end of chapter one.
I listened to the audiobook and found the narration extremely smooth.
I really love Shelly’s internal dialogue, it’s such a delight to root for him even when the percentages of success feel low.
This is Cater’s sophomore debut, but this is so solid, I’m now adding his freshman debut - a novella titled Majordomo, to my TBR.
Advanced to the next level (So well deserved! I hope others love it as much as our team did!)
Quick Review:
If you would have told me a shit-cleaning goblin slave character would rise to the top of the 1st round book stack, I would have been like, “Ew, David”.
This is why I love SPFBO – it gets unexpected gems like this on our radar.
Tim Carter gives me Sebastian de Castell and Katherine Addison vibes. Yes, please give us fantastical political intrigue with equal notes of intensity, tenderness and humor. It’s a hard combo to achieve. Keep your eyes on Tim Carter, I sense he’s just getting started.
——
Quick Pitch
Started from the bottom, now we're here. For our MMC, a goblin slave named Shelly, the bottom is literally the cauldron where the dirty diapers are washed by him.
And here is a political intrigue situation where Shelly’s castle is under threat- and he steps in for survival aaaaaaand because the rulers of the castle don’t seem focused on or even bothered by impending doom. Eeks!
Put the poop rag down, a different level ish is going down. Shelly agrees to wear hats he never expected to. Does this mean he’s off of diaper cauldron duty? 🤞👀
Overall Thoughts
Oh, 💩 – this is good. >>> insert rim shot <<<
Honestly, some people are natural storytellers and Carter is most assuredly in this category. I was hooked by the end of chapter one.
I listened to the audiobook and found the narration extremely smooth.
I really love Shelly’s internal dialogue, it’s such a delight to root for him even when the percentages of success feel low.
This is Cater’s sophomore debut, but this is so solid, I’m now adding his freshman debut - a novella titled Majordomo, to my TBR.
March 14, 2025
I had such a good time with this novel! There’s such shenanigans amidst the dark deeds.
“the Halfsock family enjoyed a rich tradition of killing and maiming one another in the pursuit of power.”
“I refuse to die at the hands of someone else’s stupidity.”
“Yes, why bother when your own will do the job.”
I am really enjoying all Tim Carter has written!
“the Halfsock family enjoyed a rich tradition of killing and maiming one another in the pursuit of power.”
“I refuse to die at the hands of someone else’s stupidity.”
“Yes, why bother when your own will do the job.”
I am really enjoying all Tim Carter has written!
April 6, 2025
Jester tells the story of a hero’s journey from lowly latrine slave to, well… hero. I love an underdog, and Sheliac of the Gorod, the main character and narrator, can definitely be considered such. I found myself immediately connecting with his character and sympathising with his lot in life. Captured as a child and brought to the castle of Halfsoc as part of a chain gang, Shelly the goblin does not have much of a future and is well aware of the fact:
“The bards love phrases like “Take charge of your destiny.” When you’re four feet tall and a slave, you might as well plan a trip to the moon”
Cleaning out the castle’s diaper cauldron daily and having to enter the sewers to remove blockages does not give him time to exercise his brain or develop his talent for wartime strategy.
“Here lay my actual day’s work: a stinking, fetid antidote to daydreams.”
As the lowliest member of the castle’s population, he also suffers more than his fair share of violence at the hands of the higher-ups. However, this story is proof that a valuable gem can float to the top of even the worst stinking cesspool, given the ability to recognise opportunity and the brains to make the most of it.
There are rumours that the Skeleton Queen is about to bring her hordes of undead zombies to take over the castle, and the incompetent leaders are poorly equipped to meet her in battle. Luckily, Shelly is able to see a glimmer of hope should the current leadership be removed, and his acumen is recognised by a kindred spirit in the form of Betticia Flowers, the wily mistress of the new Duke. Given her proximity to the Duke, this new relationship is advantageous to Shelly and sees him elevated from latrine slave to jester, complete with a new outfit and accommodation in a broom closet. He is the first to admit that he is not very funny, but Betticia has to give him some form of employment to keep him close. She wants his help in planning how best to manipulate the Duke into winning an impossible war.
Before long, another lifeline appears at the castle gates in the form of fugitive mage Buckingham, who immediately recognises Shelly’s strength of character and worth as an ally, and between the three of them, they set about ensuring the leadership of the castle does not commit the population to certain death.
In a setting where bigotry and misogyny rule, the friendships in this novel are particularly heartwarming and key to the success of the martial campaign. Shelly is falling for a female goblin slave but is not immune to human Betticia’s beauty and wiles. The bromance between Shelly and the half-vampire Buckingham takes Shelly by surprise to the extent that he is unaware just how much the attractive mage needs him and feels ashamed when Betticia points it out to him.
“Buckingham stumbled upon me, treated me decently, then saved my life. Far as I could tell, he had no ulterior motive. It struck me then that I had been blind to his needs and vulnerabilities. He needed a home. He needed friends. For a nomadic half-vampire, friendship might well have been his most valued currency. He had chosen me, and the feeling was mutual.”
The characterisation in this novel is superb. The side characters are all thoroughly believable and fully fleshed out. A handsome mage who is vulnerable and in need of friendship from a goblin slave? Unexpected. A wily mistress influencing a misogynistic castle by pulling strings in the bedchamber? Also a pleasant surprise if not completely original. Some of the background characters are more stereotypical, but necessarily so since they do not receive much page time. We know what to expect from an inquisitor and a bigoted councillor, and that is what we get.
The descriptive passages in this novel are an onslaught to the senses. The smells of the sewers, the fetid bog Shelly has to crawl through and the stench of the zombies are palpable. Meanwhile, the arrival of the Skeleton Queen and her horde of thousands of undead soldiers, trolls and giants is described cinematically as they draw nearer in waves of putrifying flesh. I was able to visualise every flesh-rotting detail, thanks to Tim Carter’s excellent writing.
I was lucky enough to be offered an advanced review copy of Jester by the author, having enjoyed his novella Majordomo, which just happens to be the winning novella in the SFINCS2 novella contest. Congratulations Tim! My review is honest, and my opinions are my own.
“The bards love phrases like “Take charge of your destiny.” When you’re four feet tall and a slave, you might as well plan a trip to the moon”
Cleaning out the castle’s diaper cauldron daily and having to enter the sewers to remove blockages does not give him time to exercise his brain or develop his talent for wartime strategy.
“Here lay my actual day’s work: a stinking, fetid antidote to daydreams.”
As the lowliest member of the castle’s population, he also suffers more than his fair share of violence at the hands of the higher-ups. However, this story is proof that a valuable gem can float to the top of even the worst stinking cesspool, given the ability to recognise opportunity and the brains to make the most of it.
There are rumours that the Skeleton Queen is about to bring her hordes of undead zombies to take over the castle, and the incompetent leaders are poorly equipped to meet her in battle. Luckily, Shelly is able to see a glimmer of hope should the current leadership be removed, and his acumen is recognised by a kindred spirit in the form of Betticia Flowers, the wily mistress of the new Duke. Given her proximity to the Duke, this new relationship is advantageous to Shelly and sees him elevated from latrine slave to jester, complete with a new outfit and accommodation in a broom closet. He is the first to admit that he is not very funny, but Betticia has to give him some form of employment to keep him close. She wants his help in planning how best to manipulate the Duke into winning an impossible war.
Before long, another lifeline appears at the castle gates in the form of fugitive mage Buckingham, who immediately recognises Shelly’s strength of character and worth as an ally, and between the three of them, they set about ensuring the leadership of the castle does not commit the population to certain death.
In a setting where bigotry and misogyny rule, the friendships in this novel are particularly heartwarming and key to the success of the martial campaign. Shelly is falling for a female goblin slave but is not immune to human Betticia’s beauty and wiles. The bromance between Shelly and the half-vampire Buckingham takes Shelly by surprise to the extent that he is unaware just how much the attractive mage needs him and feels ashamed when Betticia points it out to him.
“Buckingham stumbled upon me, treated me decently, then saved my life. Far as I could tell, he had no ulterior motive. It struck me then that I had been blind to his needs and vulnerabilities. He needed a home. He needed friends. For a nomadic half-vampire, friendship might well have been his most valued currency. He had chosen me, and the feeling was mutual.”
The characterisation in this novel is superb. The side characters are all thoroughly believable and fully fleshed out. A handsome mage who is vulnerable and in need of friendship from a goblin slave? Unexpected. A wily mistress influencing a misogynistic castle by pulling strings in the bedchamber? Also a pleasant surprise if not completely original. Some of the background characters are more stereotypical, but necessarily so since they do not receive much page time. We know what to expect from an inquisitor and a bigoted councillor, and that is what we get.
The descriptive passages in this novel are an onslaught to the senses. The smells of the sewers, the fetid bog Shelly has to crawl through and the stench of the zombies are palpable. Meanwhile, the arrival of the Skeleton Queen and her horde of thousands of undead soldiers, trolls and giants is described cinematically as they draw nearer in waves of putrifying flesh. I was able to visualise every flesh-rotting detail, thanks to Tim Carter’s excellent writing.
I was lucky enough to be offered an advanced review copy of Jester by the author, having enjoyed his novella Majordomo, which just happens to be the winning novella in the SFINCS2 novella contest. Congratulations Tim! My review is honest, and my opinions are my own.
April 14, 2025
In a realm run by idiots, their only hope is the Fool!
We have all read stories about the reluctant hero, facing peril and overwhelming odds.
But what we havent seen, is a slaved goblin helping to face down a vast army of zombie trolls. Until now.
This is a humorous, cosy, D&D , fantasy, mash up. Its very hard to draw parallels to anything else out there.
The author has created an entirely unique story with a blend of mischief, emotional impact and a wonderfully crafted band of characters.
My favourite parts of the story were Shelly (our reluctant and nervous hero) growing in confidence, finding his voice and making friends. The plucky underdog really pulled on my heart strings.
I also found quite a few "punch the air" moments and I will forever be rooting for my friend Shelly
I do wish the story was a little longer. I wanted to spend more time with the cast and the ending did feel like it wrapped very quickly.
I can see this story reaching a wide audience and it would work for people who love Travis Baldree and his novels Legends and Lattes / Bookshops and Bonedust
We have all read stories about the reluctant hero, facing peril and overwhelming odds.
But what we havent seen, is a slaved goblin helping to face down a vast army of zombie trolls. Until now.
This is a humorous, cosy, D&D , fantasy, mash up. Its very hard to draw parallels to anything else out there.
The author has created an entirely unique story with a blend of mischief, emotional impact and a wonderfully crafted band of characters.
My favourite parts of the story were Shelly (our reluctant and nervous hero) growing in confidence, finding his voice and making friends. The plucky underdog really pulled on my heart strings.
I also found quite a few "punch the air" moments and I will forever be rooting for my friend Shelly
I do wish the story was a little longer. I wanted to spend more time with the cast and the ending did feel like it wrapped very quickly.
I can see this story reaching a wide audience and it would work for people who love Travis Baldree and his novels Legends and Lattes / Bookshops and Bonedust
July 26, 2025
A politically savvy fantasy novel with a goblin protagonist? You spoil us, Tim Carter.
Hot off the release and success of novella Majordomo, Carter switches his focus from the lowly kobold to the lowly goblin latrine slave. Yes, our main character could hardly have a more unpleasant lot in life. So, when the undead Skeleton Queen threatens the land with a horde of zombies, things actually look like getting worse.
For main protagonist Shelly, it's sink or swim. Thus we delve into a court of intrigue. Political moves are played out with Shelly often the pawn. It leads to a novel that is fiendishly cunning in spades as Shelly's friendships and political gains come to a head.
As the Skeleton Queen descends upon the kingdom by the end of the novel I was fully bought in to Shelly's plight. A final act of gritted teeth and fist pumps in equal measure rounded everything off nicely.
It's a different read for sure but it was an enjoyable one, and definitely worth checking out. Thanks Tim.
Hot off the release and success of novella Majordomo, Carter switches his focus from the lowly kobold to the lowly goblin latrine slave. Yes, our main character could hardly have a more unpleasant lot in life. So, when the undead Skeleton Queen threatens the land with a horde of zombies, things actually look like getting worse.
For main protagonist Shelly, it's sink or swim. Thus we delve into a court of intrigue. Political moves are played out with Shelly often the pawn. It leads to a novel that is fiendishly cunning in spades as Shelly's friendships and political gains come to a head.
As the Skeleton Queen descends upon the kingdom by the end of the novel I was fully bought in to Shelly's plight. A final act of gritted teeth and fist pumps in equal measure rounded everything off nicely.
It's a different read for sure but it was an enjoyable one, and definitely worth checking out. Thanks Tim.
March 13, 2025
Jester is an absolute gem of a story.
If you ever wanted to look up ‘unlikely and reluctant hero of a story’ in a dictionary (or wiki, I guess), there should be a picture of Jester’s main character Shelly right next to it. Shelly is a goblin slave in Castle Halfsock and mostly works the latrine, cleans out chamberpots or has other fun jobs like this. In other words: He isn’t at the bottom of the social ladder, he is so far away from said ladder he can’t even see it. But when an army of zombies and other undead creatures threatens the only home, he knows and nobody seems to believe in this threat, he steps up, armed only with lots of wit and ingenuity.
Author Tim Carter published his first novella Majordomo last year. I didn’t know what to expect then, but I had a blast. It was different, it was tons of fun and it had even more heart. On top of that, it is brilliantly written. So, of course I was eagerly anticipating a full-length novel – and Tim Carter truly delivers. All the humor, the heart, the heartache, the wonderful characters, Tim’s clever lines,… everything that made Majordomo an instant favorite can also be found in Jester. Just more. And even better. Main character Shelly was an instant like from the very first page. Yes, he is portrayed as the definition of an underdog, but it is done convincingly. I rooted for him from the very beginning, but out of sympathy, not out of pity. The other characters are also well-written, but Shelly definitely stands out.
At its heart, Jester is a story about home or rather about the people who turn a place into a home. It’s also about finding one’s purpose and overcoming obstacles even when faced with horrific odds.
A lot of it could be considered cozy fantasy with lots of humour, but there are enough action moments in there, that the term ‘cozy-stabby fantasy’ is a great fit. I truly cannot recommend Jester enough. And Tim Carter is a very gifted writer which makes it even more of a must-read.
If you ever wanted to look up ‘unlikely and reluctant hero of a story’ in a dictionary (or wiki, I guess), there should be a picture of Jester’s main character Shelly right next to it. Shelly is a goblin slave in Castle Halfsock and mostly works the latrine, cleans out chamberpots or has other fun jobs like this. In other words: He isn’t at the bottom of the social ladder, he is so far away from said ladder he can’t even see it. But when an army of zombies and other undead creatures threatens the only home, he knows and nobody seems to believe in this threat, he steps up, armed only with lots of wit and ingenuity.
Author Tim Carter published his first novella Majordomo last year. I didn’t know what to expect then, but I had a blast. It was different, it was tons of fun and it had even more heart. On top of that, it is brilliantly written. So, of course I was eagerly anticipating a full-length novel – and Tim Carter truly delivers. All the humor, the heart, the heartache, the wonderful characters, Tim’s clever lines,… everything that made Majordomo an instant favorite can also be found in Jester. Just more. And even better. Main character Shelly was an instant like from the very first page. Yes, he is portrayed as the definition of an underdog, but it is done convincingly. I rooted for him from the very beginning, but out of sympathy, not out of pity. The other characters are also well-written, but Shelly definitely stands out.
At its heart, Jester is a story about home or rather about the people who turn a place into a home. It’s also about finding one’s purpose and overcoming obstacles even when faced with horrific odds.
A lot of it could be considered cozy fantasy with lots of humour, but there are enough action moments in there, that the term ‘cozy-stabby fantasy’ is a great fit. I truly cannot recommend Jester enough. And Tim Carter is a very gifted writer which makes it even more of a must-read.
March 19, 2025
This book was a lot of fun. Shelly, the main character, was a creative guy who could definitely take a beating and keep on going. While he was a goblin, he didn’t feel particularly…goblin-y to me? A very fun character to follow around though.
I liked the light political intrigue and the nation ruled by incompetence with one smart person (a woman!) behind the scenes trying to make things better.
I did not particular enjoy the excessive amount of poop and descriptions of sewage, but I guess when the main character is a « latrine slave » it kind of comes with the territory.
Good cast of villains, good action, nice friendships that developed throughout the novel. The romance felt a little forced, but it didn’t bother me much as it was a minor plot point.
Much stronger prose than I usually associate with self published novels; I was really able to just focus on the story rather than the prose. And I do love a story where the underdog gets to save the day.
Overall, I wholeheartedly recommend! (As long as you don’t mind some 💩)
Thanks to the author for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review!
I liked the light political intrigue and the nation ruled by incompetence with one smart person (a woman!) behind the scenes trying to make things better.
I did not particular enjoy the excessive amount of poop and descriptions of sewage, but I guess when the main character is a « latrine slave » it kind of comes with the territory.
Good cast of villains, good action, nice friendships that developed throughout the novel. The romance felt a little forced, but it didn’t bother me much as it was a minor plot point.
Much stronger prose than I usually associate with self published novels; I was really able to just focus on the story rather than the prose. And I do love a story where the underdog gets to save the day.
Overall, I wholeheartedly recommend! (As long as you don’t mind some 💩)
Thanks to the author for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review!
February 27, 2025
Courage is a stupid concept
August 16, 2026
Jester by Tim Carter is a blast of an underdog story. Shelly starts out as a latrine slave, about as low as you can get in Castle Halfsock. In the trenches so to speak, if the trenches were made of sewage, shovel in hand and dignity nowhere in sight. And yet he's the one who somehow ends up carrying the realms fate on his shoulders, without ever really meaning to.
That's what makes him work so well. He isn't chasing glory. He just keeps getting pulled deeper into things, and every time he could step back, he plants his feet instead, usually while still covered in something unmentionable.
There's a lot packed in around that core idea without it ever feeling crowded. A murder mystery opens the story, because apparently Shelly's life wasn't complicated enough already, but it's never the point of the book, just one more thing life throws at him while he's busy trying to save himself and maybe everyone else.
He picks up new friends, I clouding a vampire he's deeply suspicious of at first, fair enough, and watching that suspicion melt into real trust is one of the quieter pleasures of the book. There's a budding romance too, but it stays understated, never taking over the story, which suited me fine.
The friendships that build around him are the real heart of the book. Shelly is background noise to everyone in his world, but he's front and center for us the whole time, and that gap is where the story gets its charm. His scenes with the other slaves add real weight without ever dragging the humor down. One moment that stuck with me is another slave asking him not to risk himself, since what he's doing is genuinely dangerous. It's a small beat, but it grounds the whole story in something real, right before the plot goes and asks even more of him anyway.
Comedy is a tricky thing to pull off since humor hits everyone differently, but this one landed for me, especially once it found its footing. The first third felt a little thin, like it hadn't quite settled into itself yet. Once I started trusting the story to unfold at its own pace, it clicked, and from there it just kept getting better.
Shelly spends his days up to his elbows in the castle's worst jobs, so of course he's the one who ends up neck deep in cleaning up its biggest mess too.
That's what makes him work so well. He isn't chasing glory. He just keeps getting pulled deeper into things, and every time he could step back, he plants his feet instead, usually while still covered in something unmentionable.
There's a lot packed in around that core idea without it ever feeling crowded. A murder mystery opens the story, because apparently Shelly's life wasn't complicated enough already, but it's never the point of the book, just one more thing life throws at him while he's busy trying to save himself and maybe everyone else.
He picks up new friends, I clouding a vampire he's deeply suspicious of at first, fair enough, and watching that suspicion melt into real trust is one of the quieter pleasures of the book. There's a budding romance too, but it stays understated, never taking over the story, which suited me fine.
The friendships that build around him are the real heart of the book. Shelly is background noise to everyone in his world, but he's front and center for us the whole time, and that gap is where the story gets its charm. His scenes with the other slaves add real weight without ever dragging the humor down. One moment that stuck with me is another slave asking him not to risk himself, since what he's doing is genuinely dangerous. It's a small beat, but it grounds the whole story in something real, right before the plot goes and asks even more of him anyway.
Comedy is a tricky thing to pull off since humor hits everyone differently, but this one landed for me, especially once it found its footing. The first third felt a little thin, like it hadn't quite settled into itself yet. Once I started trusting the story to unfold at its own pace, it clicked, and from there it just kept getting better.
Shelly spends his days up to his elbows in the castle's worst jobs, so of course he's the one who ends up neck deep in cleaning up its biggest mess too.
June 26, 2026
Team BWGB’s SPFBOXI Finalist! 🎉
I really loved this book. As soon as I finished it, I immediately ordered a physical copy for my shelf. Shelly is such a great character and I found his drive to do the right thing in less than perfect circumstances (to put it mildly) really welcome!
I really loved this book. As soon as I finished it, I immediately ordered a physical copy for my shelf. Shelly is such a great character and I found his drive to do the right thing in less than perfect circumstances (to put it mildly) really welcome!
April 7, 2025
Jester is an absolutely fantastic read. Set in a Dungeons and Dragons universe, the main character is a goblin slave to who dreams of being able to use his quick wit and sharp mind to improve his life. When he gets the chance, he discovers that being actually involved in the story is more dangerous than he ever imagined.
The writing is really quick and smart, the characters are ones you root for from the first page, and the political machinations are twisty and interesting and fun. I DEVOURED this book and couldn't wait to share it with other fantasy lovers in my life. Another stellar read that's quickly making Carter one of my go-to authors.
The writing is really quick and smart, the characters are ones you root for from the first page, and the political machinations are twisty and interesting and fun. I DEVOURED this book and couldn't wait to share it with other fantasy lovers in my life. Another stellar read that's quickly making Carter one of my go-to authors.
April 8, 2026
I loved Majordomo and was looking forward to finally read Jester but found it...lacking. I almost DNFed it at 10% but my desire to find out why it wasn't meshing pushed me on. (Nevermind, DNFed at 40%.)
Was it the flat characters that all sounded the same? The icky sexism in order to white knight the protag? The fact that events seem to just happen because they need to? The way Shelly has to tell us everything in plain language instead of the story showing us? The constant use of, "They didn't."?
This is NOT a bad book. But it is a mid book that I found myself not caring about.
I think Tim Carter has a lot of potential and I'm ever impressed that he's published two books in his 40s (I couldn't do that). Majordomo's depiction of a relationship between a koblod and a dementia addled necromancer made me cry. But this book felt so much like every other modern self-published "cozy" fantasy penned by a guy.
Was it the flat characters that all sounded the same? The icky sexism in order to white knight the protag? The fact that events seem to just happen because they need to? The way Shelly has to tell us everything in plain language instead of the story showing us? The constant use of, "They didn't."?
This is NOT a bad book. But it is a mid book that I found myself not caring about.
I think Tim Carter has a lot of potential and I'm ever impressed that he's published two books in his 40s (I couldn't do that). Majordomo's depiction of a relationship between a koblod and a dementia addled necromancer made me cry. But this book felt so much like every other modern self-published "cozy" fantasy penned by a guy.
May 3, 2025
Note: Includes commentary also on Majordomo
Author Tim Carter recently won the second instalment of the SFINCS novella competition with his book Majordomo, featuring a crippled kobold overseeing the demesne of The Dark Lord. As part of one of the teams judging the competition, I can confirm both that Majordomo is a masterpiece, and that there arte definitely parallels to Jester - even if they're entirely its own separate stories. You do not need to have read Majordomo to enjoy Jester, or the other way around.
The point I'm building up to is that it will be difficult to review Jester without comparing it to Majordomo, so I won't pretend to try. I'll try not to go overboard with it, though. The two books are, after all, unrelated to each other - they may not even play out in the same setting; there's no overlap other than the prevalence of fantasy races and magical monsters, so it's impossible to say for sure.
The other big thing the books have in common is the status of the main character. In Majordomo, Jack is a crippled kobold. In Jester, Shelly is a goblin slave tasked with keeping the latrines clean. Both of them sit on the muddy ground beneath the lowest rung on the ladder of social standing.
Here's where the two stories begin to differ. Jack, from Majordomo, has an important and clearly defined role in his own circles outside of the public eye. He has pride, knowledge, and authority. Shelly, on the other hand, has nothing. When the story begins, he's just about to to get his first taste of taking pride in achieving something. Jack is what Shelly might be in another ten or twenty years - if he survives that long, of course.
After all, he is a goblin.
He's just a slave, tasked with cleaning up shit. What can he do, really?
A grave threat looms over Halfsock, where Shelly slaves (I initially wrote it's where he lives, but I'm not sure you can really call it living in his case), and every attempt by the humans in charge to deal with said threat is thwarted by greed, prejudice, in-fighting, laziness, or just plain old stupidity.
Fortunately, Shelly is still quite clever, or at least clever enough not to be blinded by prejudice. He knows what he is, and he knows no one will listen to him if he tries to warn them, much less tell them what to do. Instead, much of the story is about trying to manipulate people who are more powerful, but less competent, without them noticing.
There's death and betrayal, schemes and intrigues. Murder most foul.
Also worth noticing is that while the above might seem grim and dark, and while the underlying themes are serious, Jester is a light-hearted and funny story. Unfortunately, much of the humour didn't work for me, but since I enjoyed the humorous aspect of Majordomo, I'm going to assume that it's due to my sense of humour rather than any issue with the story or the writing.
So, how does Jester compare to Majordomo?
In short: I prefer Majordomo.
But, just to be clear, Jester is absolutely worth reading.
What elevates Majordomo to excellence is the relationships between the characters, in particular that between Jack and his master. Majordomo has a warmth that wasn't present in Jester and that I dearly missed. In Majordomo, we encounter older characters that have a long history together, and we catch a glimpse of deep and developed friendships.
In Jester, Shelly is at the beginning of his career. He's starting out from scratch and relationships are created and built within the pages of the story. There's definitely a growth and warmth of character, but it's not quite the same.
What I'll whine about
The beginning. I already mentioned that the comedy aspect of Jester didn't work for me, and I felt like much of the start of the story hinged on using humour to establish Shelly's absolutely miserable position as a latrine slave. This isn't to say that the start of the book is full of poop jokes, but rather that it took quite a while for me to get invested and start caring about what happened.
The latrine slave experience comes up again a few times, and I get that it's a major part of Shelly's backstory, but these are still the weakest scenes in the book. There's a lot of focus on how disgusting and miserable it is, and perhaps my mind detached in self-defence, but the descriptions never really came alive to me.
What I'll gush about
The concept. The idea of having someone who's at the absolute bottom of everything, like Shelly, be the hero is intriguing. It's like the farm boy who becomes the king, but taken to the comedy extreme, kind of. The farm boy gets all kinds of support and benefits that Shelly doesn't get, and where the farm boy eventually steps into the limelight, Shelly keeps having to hide in the shadows.
Also, there's no prophecy. It's all Shelly.
Final Words
Jester is a tale of the hero who can never be The Hero, except to the people who knows what he really did.
Author Tim Carter recently won the second instalment of the SFINCS novella competition with his book Majordomo, featuring a crippled kobold overseeing the demesne of The Dark Lord. As part of one of the teams judging the competition, I can confirm both that Majordomo is a masterpiece, and that there arte definitely parallels to Jester - even if they're entirely its own separate stories. You do not need to have read Majordomo to enjoy Jester, or the other way around.
The point I'm building up to is that it will be difficult to review Jester without comparing it to Majordomo, so I won't pretend to try. I'll try not to go overboard with it, though. The two books are, after all, unrelated to each other - they may not even play out in the same setting; there's no overlap other than the prevalence of fantasy races and magical monsters, so it's impossible to say for sure.
The other big thing the books have in common is the status of the main character. In Majordomo, Jack is a crippled kobold. In Jester, Shelly is a goblin slave tasked with keeping the latrines clean. Both of them sit on the muddy ground beneath the lowest rung on the ladder of social standing.
Here's where the two stories begin to differ. Jack, from Majordomo, has an important and clearly defined role in his own circles outside of the public eye. He has pride, knowledge, and authority. Shelly, on the other hand, has nothing. When the story begins, he's just about to to get his first taste of taking pride in achieving something. Jack is what Shelly might be in another ten or twenty years - if he survives that long, of course.
After all, he is a goblin.
He's just a slave, tasked with cleaning up shit. What can he do, really?
A grave threat looms over Halfsock, where Shelly slaves (I initially wrote it's where he lives, but I'm not sure you can really call it living in his case), and every attempt by the humans in charge to deal with said threat is thwarted by greed, prejudice, in-fighting, laziness, or just plain old stupidity.
Fortunately, Shelly is still quite clever, or at least clever enough not to be blinded by prejudice. He knows what he is, and he knows no one will listen to him if he tries to warn them, much less tell them what to do. Instead, much of the story is about trying to manipulate people who are more powerful, but less competent, without them noticing.
There's death and betrayal, schemes and intrigues. Murder most foul.
Also worth noticing is that while the above might seem grim and dark, and while the underlying themes are serious, Jester is a light-hearted and funny story. Unfortunately, much of the humour didn't work for me, but since I enjoyed the humorous aspect of Majordomo, I'm going to assume that it's due to my sense of humour rather than any issue with the story or the writing.
So, how does Jester compare to Majordomo?
In short: I prefer Majordomo.
But, just to be clear, Jester is absolutely worth reading.
What elevates Majordomo to excellence is the relationships between the characters, in particular that between Jack and his master. Majordomo has a warmth that wasn't present in Jester and that I dearly missed. In Majordomo, we encounter older characters that have a long history together, and we catch a glimpse of deep and developed friendships.
In Jester, Shelly is at the beginning of his career. He's starting out from scratch and relationships are created and built within the pages of the story. There's definitely a growth and warmth of character, but it's not quite the same.
What I'll whine about
The beginning. I already mentioned that the comedy aspect of Jester didn't work for me, and I felt like much of the start of the story hinged on using humour to establish Shelly's absolutely miserable position as a latrine slave. This isn't to say that the start of the book is full of poop jokes, but rather that it took quite a while for me to get invested and start caring about what happened.
The latrine slave experience comes up again a few times, and I get that it's a major part of Shelly's backstory, but these are still the weakest scenes in the book. There's a lot of focus on how disgusting and miserable it is, and perhaps my mind detached in self-defence, but the descriptions never really came alive to me.
What I'll gush about
The concept. The idea of having someone who's at the absolute bottom of everything, like Shelly, be the hero is intriguing. It's like the farm boy who becomes the king, but taken to the comedy extreme, kind of. The farm boy gets all kinds of support and benefits that Shelly doesn't get, and where the farm boy eventually steps into the limelight, Shelly keeps having to hide in the shadows.
Also, there's no prophecy. It's all Shelly.
Final Words
Jester is a tale of the hero who can never be The Hero, except to the people who knows what he really did.
July 6, 2026
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MY ⭐️ RATING: 4.25/5
FORMAT: Kindle Whispersync
I didn’t realize when I started reading Jester that it was a participant in the SPFBO-XI, not only that, but when I finished, I found out that it was actually a FINALIST in the contest. For those that don’t know, SPFBO is the Self-Published Fantasy Blog Off, it is a contest for self-published authors, judged by 10 review groups. 300 novels enter, 1 novel wins.
I was expecting Jester to be a bit funnier than what it was, based on some of the reviews I had read, and the fact that Amazon has its genre under humorous fantasy. I was starting to question things after 15%, but by the 30% mark I realized that the comedy wasn’t my type of funny. With that said, I did find it amusing at times, but the reviews made it seem as if it would be throughout. It says for fans of Nicholas Eames, which I thought had funny stuff in his series, but Eames style is quippy and full of hilarious banter. This to me is closer to Buehlman’s The Blacktongue Thief. I’m a fan of all comedy, but like The Blacktongue Thief, it just didn’t land much for me.
I know that this sounds like a major criticism on this book, but I want to say that while I was let down by what the reviews said, I thought the story and characters still worked very well. If I had gone into this without the idea that this was humorous or comedic, I would’ve loved it more. So I’m not going to dwell on that too much, when I still enjoyed every other aspect about Jester.
I really liked Shelly, aka Shelliac the goblin. It’s not often you get to read a story with a goblin as the main character of the story. He has a type of rags to riches type of story arc, but it’s earned, not given. He’s an underdog type of character that has a lot of growth from the first meeting as a lowly dung chute cleaner to a hero. Carter definitely nailed him. I also really enjoyed the narration by Aubrey Parsons because I feel like he carried Jester with his performance. He really gave Shelly, and all the other characters a lot of personality that kept me immersed into the world.
Carter blends genres quite nicely. He started with murder mystery and political intrigue, then opened it up into epic fantasy stakes with strong action and a few twists I did not see coming. The mystery mostly served as a launch point for the bigger story of fighting the Skeleton Queen and her undead horde. The final battle was very exciting, but with how much lead-up there was to the Queen, her moment felt a bit anticlimactic. With that said, I loved the way Carter ended the story, it had a very Star Wars: A New Hope-like finale.
I would recommend this to anyone that is a fan of Buehlman, a fan of a certain type of humor, an underdog story, or in for an exciting light read. I definitely want to give his novella Majordomo, winner of the SFINCS-2 (Speculative Fiction Indie Novella Championship) a shot. He’s clearly a good writer with one winner and the other currently a finalist.
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MY ⭐️ RATING: 4.25/5
FORMAT: Kindle Whispersync
I didn’t realize when I started reading Jester that it was a participant in the SPFBO-XI, not only that, but when I finished, I found out that it was actually a FINALIST in the contest. For those that don’t know, SPFBO is the Self-Published Fantasy Blog Off, it is a contest for self-published authors, judged by 10 review groups. 300 novels enter, 1 novel wins.
I was expecting Jester to be a bit funnier than what it was, based on some of the reviews I had read, and the fact that Amazon has its genre under humorous fantasy. I was starting to question things after 15%, but by the 30% mark I realized that the comedy wasn’t my type of funny. With that said, I did find it amusing at times, but the reviews made it seem as if it would be throughout. It says for fans of Nicholas Eames, which I thought had funny stuff in his series, but Eames style is quippy and full of hilarious banter. This to me is closer to Buehlman’s The Blacktongue Thief. I’m a fan of all comedy, but like The Blacktongue Thief, it just didn’t land much for me.
I know that this sounds like a major criticism on this book, but I want to say that while I was let down by what the reviews said, I thought the story and characters still worked very well. If I had gone into this without the idea that this was humorous or comedic, I would’ve loved it more. So I’m not going to dwell on that too much, when I still enjoyed every other aspect about Jester.
I really liked Shelly, aka Shelliac the goblin. It’s not often you get to read a story with a goblin as the main character of the story. He has a type of rags to riches type of story arc, but it’s earned, not given. He’s an underdog type of character that has a lot of growth from the first meeting as a lowly dung chute cleaner to a hero. Carter definitely nailed him. I also really enjoyed the narration by Aubrey Parsons because I feel like he carried Jester with his performance. He really gave Shelly, and all the other characters a lot of personality that kept me immersed into the world.
Carter blends genres quite nicely. He started with murder mystery and political intrigue, then opened it up into epic fantasy stakes with strong action and a few twists I did not see coming. The mystery mostly served as a launch point for the bigger story of fighting the Skeleton Queen and her undead horde. The final battle was very exciting, but with how much lead-up there was to the Queen, her moment felt a bit anticlimactic. With that said, I loved the way Carter ended the story, it had a very Star Wars: A New Hope-like finale.
I would recommend this to anyone that is a fan of Buehlman, a fan of a certain type of humor, an underdog story, or in for an exciting light read. I definitely want to give his novella Majordomo, winner of the SFINCS-2 (Speculative Fiction Indie Novella Championship) a shot. He’s clearly a good writer with one winner and the other currently a finalist.
July 21, 2026
My Rating: 4.5 / 5 Stars
This one was just plain fun. I went in not knowing much and came out grinning, which is about the best thing I can say for a shorter book like this. It's easy to get into, the writing is good, and I liked the main character right away. If you want something you can finish fast and have a good time with, this is it.
A big part of that is Shelly. He's a goblin who was captured as a kid and hauled off to the castle as a slave, and now he's stuck four feet tall at the bottom of everything, treated like he's nothing because of how he looks. But he's the smartest guy in the room every time, and getting to be in his head for the whole book is a lot of fun. He reminded me of Tyrion Lannister, always getting written off by the idiots around him while he's actually the one running the show. What I liked even more is that he's got a good heart under all the sarcasm. He really cares about the few people in his life, and that made me care too.
The setup is simple and it works. Shelly has spent his whole life enslaved in this castle full of morons, cleaning their toilets and worse, and he's had enough. Then word comes that the Skeleton Queen is coming with a horde of zombies and other nasty creatures, and Shelly knows the idiots in charge are going to get everyone killed if he leaves it to them. So he starts pulling strings himself, talking his way into rooms he's got no business being in and turning into a strategist and an unlikely hero along the way.
The rest of the cast is a big part of the fun too. I liked how they all play off each other, and the friendships he builds are easy to root for. The whole book has this cozy, clever thing going on, and it's really funny in a lot of spots. It'll make you laugh one minute and have you pulling for the little guy the next, and it does both without trying too hard.
Aubrey Parsons did a great job here. This was a shorter listen than I'm used to, but the narration kept me going the whole way. The voice for Shelly especially was perfect, that dry, fed-up tone fit him exactly. A good narrator can make or break a book like this, and Parsons made it.
Bottom line, if you want something short, funny, and cozy that you can just sit back and enjoy, I recommend Jester without a second thought. It's an easy win and a nice break between heavier reads. I had a blast with it.
This one was just plain fun. I went in not knowing much and came out grinning, which is about the best thing I can say for a shorter book like this. It's easy to get into, the writing is good, and I liked the main character right away. If you want something you can finish fast and have a good time with, this is it.
A big part of that is Shelly. He's a goblin who was captured as a kid and hauled off to the castle as a slave, and now he's stuck four feet tall at the bottom of everything, treated like he's nothing because of how he looks. But he's the smartest guy in the room every time, and getting to be in his head for the whole book is a lot of fun. He reminded me of Tyrion Lannister, always getting written off by the idiots around him while he's actually the one running the show. What I liked even more is that he's got a good heart under all the sarcasm. He really cares about the few people in his life, and that made me care too.
The setup is simple and it works. Shelly has spent his whole life enslaved in this castle full of morons, cleaning their toilets and worse, and he's had enough. Then word comes that the Skeleton Queen is coming with a horde of zombies and other nasty creatures, and Shelly knows the idiots in charge are going to get everyone killed if he leaves it to them. So he starts pulling strings himself, talking his way into rooms he's got no business being in and turning into a strategist and an unlikely hero along the way.
The rest of the cast is a big part of the fun too. I liked how they all play off each other, and the friendships he builds are easy to root for. The whole book has this cozy, clever thing going on, and it's really funny in a lot of spots. It'll make you laugh one minute and have you pulling for the little guy the next, and it does both without trying too hard.
Aubrey Parsons did a great job here. This was a shorter listen than I'm used to, but the narration kept me going the whole way. The voice for Shelly especially was perfect, that dry, fed-up tone fit him exactly. A good narrator can make or break a book like this, and Parsons made it.
Bottom line, if you want something short, funny, and cozy that you can just sit back and enjoy, I recommend Jester without a second thought. It's an easy win and a nice break between heavier reads. I had a blast with it.
July 30, 2025
After reading the author's first work, a novella called Majordomo, I just knew I wanted to read whatever he came out with next.
Jester is a full length novel that follows the story of a lowly goblin slave who cleans latrines in the castle, and his unexpected rise to being a hero.
Carter's writing style is just so much fun, and despite the murder, the Skeleton Queen and her undead army, and the bashing of heads, this is a surprisingly light book throughout. Some may even call it cozy fantasy. I wouldn't go that far though. Perhaps cozy adjacent.
The best part is that although the story is completely self-contained, there was room left at the end for a possible sequel.
Jester is a full length novel that follows the story of a lowly goblin slave who cleans latrines in the castle, and his unexpected rise to being a hero.
Carter's writing style is just so much fun, and despite the murder, the Skeleton Queen and her undead army, and the bashing of heads, this is a surprisingly light book throughout. Some may even call it cozy fantasy. I wouldn't go that far though. Perhaps cozy adjacent.
The best part is that although the story is completely self-contained, there was room left at the end for a possible sequel.
July 5, 2026
Very nicely written with consistently good humor, characters, pace and story. I have read a number of the 2026 spfbo finalist books and this is my #1.
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