Charlie had all the luck. Unfortunately, it wasn’t the good kind.
Sucked through a wormhole, Charlie woke in a galaxy ruled not by technology, but by magic. A galaxy of spell-casting Aliens, Space Vampires, gladiators, and Dragons. For the spaceman from Earth, it was enough to make his head spin. And his luck was only getting worse.
Welcome to the Charlieverse.
Contains Books 1-3 of the Dragon Mage series: 1. Bad Luck Charlie 2. Space Pirate Charlie 3. Dragon King Charlie
Scott Baron is an American author with a penchant for oddball stories with O. Henry-esque twists.
Born in Hollywood, Baron credits growing up in Los Angeles with skewing his humor towards the offbeat and absurd. He studied abroad in Italy during his college years, returning to Los Angeles to work in the film industry as an on-set medic. In addition to writing shorts and novels, Baron is also a screenwriter of both feature and television scripts.
A delightful blend of Fantasy, Science Fiction and Time Travel
And yes...even a Dragon. Very often when I read a boxed set that is over 1000 pages long, I'll get tired of the story way before I'm done reading. Not so with this series. I like the blend of genres. I like the characters. And I am enjoying the plot.
I am, in fact, looking forward to the next boxed set. This story is far from ended, and although the set didn't end with a cliffhanger, I am eager to continue this series. I really enjoyed the World (and galaxy) building. The writing flowed smoothly and the characters are appealing.
Magical, mythical creatures through time and space
Reading book 1, I totally enjoyed the science mixed with magic. Charlie reached to the changes as one would hope. A totally different galaxy where magic ruled, the most powerful magic users were the leaders. Then in book 2, Charlie met his friend "dragon" with whom he blood bonds. What a fun read. Finally book 3, Charlie and friends return to earth, but not "his" earth/time, becomes a feudal knight/king. What a story, building up Charlie for a new crash again. Finally, Charlie and friends travel through time forward, too far, into the future of his original times. I wonder what the next set of books bring to Charlie and his friends.
Charlie is a cracker of a character, but he is one of THE most unluckiest people in the universe. It all begins with a crash on an unknown planet. Could this be the worst thing to happen to Charlie? Not a chance.
The reader can really get to grips with Charlie's character and personality. He's a good-hearted soul and always thinks of others (despite all that happens to him), but the consequences of his actions are not always what he hopes for. The follow-on books, Space Pirate Charlie and Dragon King Charlie (in this box set), are even more enjoyable than book one. If you're actively thinking of doing some housework, do it before you start reading or you'll never get it done. Trust me, I know from experience.
I was completely engrossed in this storyline, so much so that when the author's TwistyTwists™ happened, I didn't see them coming. I don't want to say too much and spoil things for a new reader, so I'll just say that this box set (and this series) is fantastic reading, well-structured and well thought-out plots, with intelligent, full and believable characters. The more you get to know the people, the more emotive it gets, IMHO. A heady mix of all possible magic genres and full of action. I adore this series.
4.5 overall. The MC's obstinate refusal to accept that he has been transported somewhere that magic is the basis of everything became tiresome pretty quickly and persisted long after a rational person would have accepted the evidence of their own experiences. He's also prone to leaving enemies alive, and more than once someone needs to finish them in order to save Charlie. What has your so-called "pacifism" gained in that case?
Despite this, it held my attention reasonably well, although it getting more than 4 is likely a bit of Stockholm Syndrome after having invested so much time in it. It's not a 5, but it's better than some things I've given 4s to, so here we are. Anyway, there are several more books, so I'll see what those are like. Minor spoilers follow.
Note to the author: the frequent assertion by Charlie that they are "thousands of years" in the past are incompatible with the level of development and the political system he described. Plate and mail armour, as well as the castle indicate something c. 1300AD.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Intriguing and well executed space fantasy series (audiobook version)
I had my eye on Bad Luck Charlie for a while but was not sure completely sold on the concept but when I was given a collection of the first three books how could I resist? Three books in one with each of them developing in ways I did not predict and kept me interested and engaged throughout. The universe and cultures created were interesting and really enjoyed the characters and Charlies development from a reluctant engineer on a space ship to what he has and still becoming. Looking forward to listening to more.
The Dragon Mage Series has a new fan and will add the remaining stories to my rotation of ongoing series’.
I was given a free copy of the Audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review which has not been influenced by the party that provided it.
It’s been a very long time since I’ve been caught up in a storyline as much as I felt while reading these three novels. So many fascinating and incredibly unique… Everything!
I experienced the whole gamut of emotions. It’s almost painful to take this break and write a decent review between collections!
I’m on to download books 4-6. Then it will be all the subsequent novels, plus the companion series. A lot of fantastical reading lies ahead, and I invite you to join me in the adventures!
I really enjoyed the story and the critical thinking. Lots of excitement and action. Although I purched the audible books and the narrator makes everyone sound so polite and all the same voice. I am asking Scott Baron to let me do an audition to reread the series. I do many voices. Let's talk and make a deal! I will do the first book for free because I enjoyed it that much.
After crashing the first interstellar vessel, our hero rises from slavery to piracy to freedom fighter to king. An amazing piece of fiction that will keep you entertained for hours. On par with some of the best sci-fi fantasy writers of the generation.
Not bad. This starts out one genre and eventually changes several times. The movement is pretty quick between scenarios. The characters are pretty likable. The story is a little predictable, a little drawn out sometimes, but the writing for the most part is pretty decent. Fun to read, would I read any of the next books.... maybe, but probably not, but I may look up synopses.
I started out expecting to dislike the books, but found myself enjoying the mix of characters, especially the fact that a lot of them have appeared in other authors works. Shades of Douglas Adams, Terry goodkind, star wars et al. So all in all a good read and I look forward to the next 3 books.
What a fascinating Tale! Characters to love, characters hate, situations you wouldn't foresee, humor from out of the blue, really a page-turner. I had not expected time travel. Both forward and back. This was great Escapist reading. Just fun, no heavy messages.
These books (3) are just the tonic needed to refresh a tired mind. I loved the fact that the author didn't take himself too serious. The characters are real, the drama is full bodied, and the premise covers a tremendous reality. Great job of story telling
Absolutely fabulous, Scott Baron has done it again, and I’m so pleased that there is still a lot more to come. Well worth reading, you won’t regret it!
Never did I know where this series was going, but I was pleasantly surprised at every turn. The blending of magic and science was fun, and the characters felt like they grew as we went.
A well written amazingly beautiful work of wonderful escape to a world of Fantastic fantasy. My, I never put this book down, one and a half day in wonderland. Thank You 😊 Unbelievable .
This is a departure for me I normally read either space or magic story's, this series moulded both together the storyline was easy to follow and didn't stretch credibly too far (well no further than any other sci fi) well written didn't drag and went at a good pace.
A great start to a promising series! Charlie and his comrades(various "alien" species) rattle through Time and Space from predicament to predicament with various outcomes. It's all great fun! Oh, did I mention the dragon? How 'bout the "vampire"?
Really really enjoyed reading these three books and look forward to continuing on to the next in this series. I highly recommend that you read them as well.
Multiple plot twists, but consistent and continued character development which was essential for a continously changing story line. Throughly enjoyable.