Kill All Wizards

The Barbaric Ledgers #1

by Jedediah Berry

SWORDS, SORCERY, AND A SPOT OF TEA

Kill All Wizards is a blood-soaked romp through high society—picture Conan the Barbarian caught up in a comedy of manners, and you're almost prepared for this unmissable new series.

We could think of nothing but the barbarian. He had come here, surely, to murder or marry someone, to exact revenge, or to say or do something very scandalous. We could hardly wait to see which it was. We hoped it would be all of them.

The barbarian traveled far to consult the wizards of the empire. Instead of lending their aid, they ensorcelled him, exploited his strength, and stole his sword. They should not have done that.

Now the barbarian plans to kill every wizard who wronged him, even if that means blending in with their vile dressing in finery, taking tea in exclusive clubs, and reserving the best box at the theater.

Oh, he hates it all with the fiery passion of his savage heart—but not as much as he hates these wizards.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Novella

144 pages, Hardcover

Expected publication June 16, 2026

About the author

Jedediah Berry is the author of two novels, The Naming Song (Tor Books, 2024) and The Manual of Detection (Penguin Press), and a story in cards, The Family Arcana. He lives in Western Massachusetts. Together with his partner, writer Emily Houk, he runs Ninepin Press, an independent publisher of fiction, poetry, and games in unusual shapes.

Reviews

[Eric · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was delightfully different in so many weird ways — like a fever dream watched through a kaleidoscope. It's not going to be for everyone, but anyone that enjoys it will appreciate its novelty.

The protagonist, the barbarian Gotchimus, is surprisingly clever and well-spoken, and the trials he suffers throughout this novella are each stranger than the next. Nothing is as expected, and the author paints the narrative so vividly, in fresh, wonderful prose, that it compelled me to pay closer attention than I'd admittedly thought I'd have to pay to a simple barbarian revenge tale. Because this story, as told, is so much more elevated than that.

The one small gripe I have is that it's being marketed as a hyper-violent comedy, but it's really not. It's unique, witty and intricate, and everything in it, as bizarre as it may be when it's happening, all pays off at the end. But I don't think I really laughed while reading it. The cover art, however, gives off a very comedic, juvenile vibe, and the tagline, which I've added below, is almost entirely inaccurate.

Kill All Wizards is a blood-soaked romp through high society—picture Conan the Barbarian caught up in a comedy of manners, and you're almost prepared for this unmissable new series

In fact, the only thing it nailed is that it's unmissable, and it's a mystery how they arrived there from a description that missed the mark so wide. (Note that I'm well aware that authors rarely write their own blurbs, so I'm not faulting the author for this, I'm pointing it out because anyone reading this review should know what they're signing up for, which is something far more interesting, and far more bizarre, than "Conan the Barbarian caught up in a comedy of manners.")

Full disclosure: I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for a review.

[Asher · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's a romp, a fun little novella. There's two things preventing this from having the heft of The Naming Song, which was maybe the best book I read in 2024 (and was the reason I jumped at the chance to read this): first, it's too short to really get deep into any of the emotions it might get to over the course of a novel, and second, there's no real sense of true peril for our main characters. The first of those things comes with the territory of being a novella, though, and the second one doesn't prevent it from being a lot of fun, so I'd still recommend it without hesitation.

Gotch, our barbarian protagonist, keeps having things revealed to him that give the sense of him being a tool moved around by more powerful entities, in much the same way that the gods of Discworld directly play with the fates of Rincewind and the rest. This means that he doesn't have as much agency as he might; I couldn't help but feel that whatever he did would be part of some larger plan of mage or god, and that therefore there was no real chance of his death or failure. The flipside of this is that it allows us to pay more attention to the world around him, which is certainly very cool, and to more or less relax. It means it's not a stressful read, and there's enough cool ideas and magical baubles everywhere to keep things moving apace and keep the reader having fun.

[Jamie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Maybe I'm just being too picky here, but I feel like a book whose blurb calls it “a blood-soaked romp” and “a comedy of manners” should actually be funny? This was a decent read and it had its entertaining bits, but there was very little romping and pretty much zero comedy. And honestly, there was also much less wizard killing than I would have expected considering the title … I think the final count was three dead wizards? Maybe four? Certainly not all the wizards, at any rate.

Anyway, I dunno, this book is fine for what it is, but it definitely is not what I was expecting. I wanted romping and humor and wizard killing, and instead I got a rather serious tale about a barbarian with PTSD. And just for the record, I would never knowingly choose a book about a traumatized barbarian if it weren't funny because I don't do serious high fantasy.

But, I mean, if this is your usual sort of read, it's entirely possible that you'll enjoy this one more than I did. There's magic and wizards and battling and romance and a mystery of sorts, and there's even a pretty surprising twist near the end. It's not funny, though. Don't expect funny. Or maybe I just have a lame sense of humor and this book is hilarious, who knows?

So, yeah. This was fine, but I almost certainly won't be reading the next book in the series.

3.2 stars, rounded down.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Tordotcom for providing me with an advance copy of this book to review. Its expected publication date is June 16, 2026.

[Laurel Simon · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 to 3 stars. I received this novella this morning and was able to finish it quite quickly. The cover is very bright and colorful. Berry’s Kill All Wizards is a fun read and i liked the idea of two friends swapping stories back and forth but found I couldn’t really get it lost in it to soak up details like I usually like when reading. I felt like was still missing something. And felt even more confused when furniture started moving. I felt like I was finally able to get into the story just when it was ending. Also I think I counted that only four wizards in the whole length of the novel. Perhaps I could have enjoyed it more if the story was longer and began a bit differently.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me the chance to read this novella early.

[me _ librarian · Rating 3 out of 5]

this is between a two and three star read (please can we get 1/2 stars?). it attempts a lot that it can’t quite accomplish. it’s a comedy of errors but where are the jokes? in trying to sound mannered the speech comes off of like a stilted attempt - a connecticut barbarian in mansfield park. it feels like a treatment for a novel that good be good.

savage review aside, i’d add it to the teen collection at the library; it would have its readers.

exciting to get my hands on arc through tor publishing group and netgalley ✌️

[Heidi · Rating 3 out of 5]

It’s cute, it’s a quick read and I did enjoy it. But it isn’t funny like the blurbs suggest it will be and the writing style is a little odd and florid. If there’s a book two I’d read it but I probably wouldn’t hunt it out. I’m glad I got to read an ARC.

[Karyn Silverman · Rating 4 out of 5]

So weird. The strangest barbarian and their partnership I’ve come across yet, and I feel like I’ve read a lot of them over the years. Whimsical, in a murderous way, and unexpected and very enjoyable.

[LordTBR · Rating 5 out of 5]

The crème de la crème of novellas, Kill All Wizards mixes sarky humor, succulent prose, and resplendent action to tell one of the best stories I’ve ever laid eyes on

[Bradley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Damn near perfect. Read like I was playing the best one-shot of all time. Loved loved loved it and I can’t wait to see what other adventures we get with Gotchimus and crew.