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Noobtown #4
Dungeons and Noobs
Badgelor has been patient, or at least as patient as a homicidal badger can be. With the celebration of Grebthar Day, it's finally time to go get Charles! Nothing is going to stop Jim and his companions, not even the signs of the Dark Overlord's return. This adventure could be Windfall's greatest yet, or it could be its absolute downfall.
334 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 31, 2020
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296 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 170 reviews
August 2, 2020
What The Hell?
I like these books. They’re silly fun with serious moments that keep them from being entirely satirical. This one was going along well, lots of good reveals, good building climax scene, and then...
1) The main ending makes no sense and resolves nothing.
2) The epilogue ends on a mid-scene cliffhanger, which is an automatic one-star from me no matter how good the rest of the book is.
In the words of the main character, get used to disappointment.
I like these books. They’re silly fun with serious moments that keep them from being entirely satirical. This one was going along well, lots of good reveals, good building climax scene, and then...
1) The main ending makes no sense and resolves nothing.
2) The epilogue ends on a mid-scene cliffhanger, which is an automatic one-star from me no matter how good the rest of the book is.
In the words of the main character, get used to disappointment.
August 12, 2020
So this review is a bit odd.
I like this story, I like the world with all its absurdity. I am so tired of the main character. His stupidity, his refusal to act, his moronic actions without thought to consequence. By book four I expect growth and development with this character and he has gotten worse. He does not learn and makes the same mistakes over and over. At the end I was rooting for the Dark Overlord to end him and stop his pathetic reactions. That is all he will do, react. When you are rooting for the big baddy then the book has failed, hence the one star rating.
I like this story, I like the world with all its absurdity. I am so tired of the main character. His stupidity, his refusal to act, his moronic actions without thought to consequence. By book four I expect growth and development with this character and he has gotten worse. He does not learn and makes the same mistakes over and over. At the end I was rooting for the Dark Overlord to end him and stop his pathetic reactions. That is all he will do, react. When you are rooting for the big baddy then the book has failed, hence the one star rating.
November 15, 2020
Painful slow - poor ending
Development of story line is slow, slow, slow. There is some of the expected good humor, but the story line takes a right turn from being a light and fun novel to super depressing and serious. The whole tone change was not a pleasant or interesting surprise.
Development of story line is slow, slow, slow. There is some of the expected good humor, but the story line takes a right turn from being a light and fun novel to super depressing and serious. The whole tone change was not a pleasant or interesting surprise.
January 25, 2021
Rating 3.0 stars
I am torn. I liked the progression of the MC. I wasn't thinking about his wife and complaining as much in this one which is a huge plus in my book. There wasn't much town building and progression though. A large majority of this book was in the dungeon and that apparently is not this author's strength. Somehow Jim went from being way OP to not being that good at anything in this one. Jim is like the 3 stooges all rolled up into one. On the Holiday, he needs to sneak into peoples houses and leave presents. He pretty much disables all the traps but setting them off and hurting himself. The same thing happens when he is in the dungeon. Here is an example of his dungeon run: "Jim slides down on the oiled water and lights himself on fire. He jumps to get away from the water and hits his head on the ceiling, landing back in the oil and causing more damage from the fire. He breaths in the hot air and scorches his lungs. He jumps again and impales himself on a stalactite." This goes on for a while. The battles take way too long and the shocking revelation in the end wasn't that surprising. Though there is one thing that I will be pissed about if it isn't fixed in the next book.
I am torn. I liked the progression of the MC. I wasn't thinking about his wife and complaining as much in this one which is a huge plus in my book. There wasn't much town building and progression though. A large majority of this book was in the dungeon and that apparently is not this author's strength. Somehow Jim went from being way OP to not being that good at anything in this one. Jim is like the 3 stooges all rolled up into one. On the Holiday, he needs to sneak into peoples houses and leave presents. He pretty much disables all the traps but setting them off and hurting himself. The same thing happens when he is in the dungeon. Here is an example of his dungeon run: "Jim slides down on the oiled water and lights himself on fire. He jumps to get away from the water and hits his head on the ceiling, landing back in the oil and causing more damage from the fire. He breaths in the hot air and scorches his lungs. He jumps again and impales himself on a stalactite." This goes on for a while. The battles take way too long and the shocking revelation in the end wasn't that surprising. Though there is one thing that I will be pissed about if it isn't fixed in the next book.
August 10, 2020
Dissapointing - major pacing issues
So far I've really like this series, but this book left a lot to be desired. The majority of the book was completely irrelevant. The main character just runs around town talking to people. He doesn't really do anything useful. He doesn't solve any problems. He's just hanging out and preparing for a holiday parade. All the action and plot progression happened in the last 15%. The last 10% was very good. But that doesn't make up for the majority of the book being basically about nothing. I really, want to keep reading this series. I hope the author course corrects.
So far I've really like this series, but this book left a lot to be desired. The majority of the book was completely irrelevant. The main character just runs around town talking to people. He doesn't really do anything useful. He doesn't solve any problems. He's just hanging out and preparing for a holiday parade. All the action and plot progression happened in the last 15%. The last 10% was very good. But that doesn't make up for the majority of the book being basically about nothing. I really, want to keep reading this series. I hope the author course corrects.
June 28, 2021
Notes:
Action packed ending. That was fun.
Action packed ending. That was fun.
August 21, 2020
Alert
First, my review: “This was a fun book. I am glad that I read it. You should try it too.”
Over the past year it has become apparent that my reviews are somewhat antagonistic and I apologize to those of you that have taken offense. I think I had hoped to change peoples’ minds about reviewing works of art and that seems to have backfired spectacularly. However, I am still going to be true to myself and write what I believe.
To the author: Thank you for this chance to escape reality and enjoy the world you created! Keep up the good work.
To my fellow reviewers: Messaging me and reviewing my reviews is as productive as trying to shovel water out of the ocean. Stop. I get it. Let’s just all live peacefully.
To potential readers: Art needs to be experienced at an individual level. You are the only one that can determine what you like and don’t like. Don’t let others make that decision for you. You should definitely read the book and completely ignore all of the reviews. You are a much better judge of what you will like than anyone here.
Cheers
First, my review: “This was a fun book. I am glad that I read it. You should try it too.”
Over the past year it has become apparent that my reviews are somewhat antagonistic and I apologize to those of you that have taken offense. I think I had hoped to change peoples’ minds about reviewing works of art and that seems to have backfired spectacularly. However, I am still going to be true to myself and write what I believe.
To the author: Thank you for this chance to escape reality and enjoy the world you created! Keep up the good work.
To my fellow reviewers: Messaging me and reviewing my reviews is as productive as trying to shovel water out of the ocean. Stop. I get it. Let’s just all live peacefully.
To potential readers: Art needs to be experienced at an individual level. You are the only one that can determine what you like and don’t like. Don’t let others make that decision for you. You should definitely read the book and completely ignore all of the reviews. You are a much better judge of what you will like than anyone here.
Cheers
August 23, 2020
Sub-par diversion
Fun twists at the end, but the book has a ton of filler to start. The writers Dad jokes, puns, and D and ball jokes are just a bit to juvenile and forced. Not sure how i feel about the direction of the series. I would like to see loot be a bit more impactful and town building be a bit more present. As "Mayor" he is little more than a figurehead in this book and he lets a lot of people greatly disrespect him, which i have a hard time stomaching.
Fun twists at the end, but the book has a ton of filler to start. The writers Dad jokes, puns, and D and ball jokes are just a bit to juvenile and forced. Not sure how i feel about the direction of the series. I would like to see loot be a bit more impactful and town building be a bit more present. As "Mayor" he is little more than a figurehead in this book and he lets a lot of people greatly disrespect him, which i have a hard time stomaching.
August 24, 2020
Almost got a 5, but...
The ending. I'm not sure what exactly happened there so that loses it a star. Doesn't give it an "automatic 1-star" as it did for one other reviewer, but I was not satisfied with it. I quite liked it up to that point, but something that bothers me more than most other things is adversaries that won't die.
I'll stop there so as to not spoil things, but I'm not sure where the story is going, and not in a good way.
The ending. I'm not sure what exactly happened there so that loses it a star. Doesn't give it an "automatic 1-star" as it did for one other reviewer, but I was not satisfied with it. I quite liked it up to that point, but something that bothers me more than most other things is adversaries that won't die.
I'll stop there so as to not spoil things, but I'm not sure where the story is going, and not in a good way.
May 16, 2023
Not bad for the most part, though the twist was not quite to my liking and the cliffhanger was just plain irritating. I understand the possible benefits of cliffhanger endings for the authors, especially, if the next book is already available. But if it's not, it will just be irritating, like for me right now.
August 24, 2020
Very much a let down.
This book for not work for me pretty much everything I enjoyed about the first three books gets either ignored or broken in this book. The author has managed to make me unlikely to read the next book.
This book for not work for me pretty much everything I enjoyed about the first three books gets either ignored or broken in this book. The author has managed to make me unlikely to read the next book.
August 17, 2025
Books like these got me wondering if it might not be better to just read the wiki or something.
The first half is spent picking on and bullying Jim. The second half tells a decent story in the dungeon. The constant bickering and tomfoolery is exhausting but that finale? Connecting dots we didn't even know existed. By the time we got to the good stuff I was mentally drained and logged off 😴
The first half is spent picking on and bullying Jim. The second half tells a decent story in the dungeon. The constant bickering and tomfoolery is exhausting but that finale? Connecting dots we didn't even know existed. By the time we got to the good stuff I was mentally drained and logged off 😴
April 8, 2021
Suffers from the same issues as it's predecessor in that during the first half of the book, nothing much happens. It's ridiculous, often dumb, and the chapters sometimes feel oddly disconnected from one another.
Once we get into the dungeon though, maybe a little earlier, it's fairly decent.
Once we get into the dungeon though, maybe a little earlier, it's fairly decent.
August 6, 2020
Very limited plot development. Definitely not enough to give a satisfactory feel to the book.
Still an enjoyable read, but it felt like half a book.
Still an enjoyable read, but it felt like half a book.
August 27, 2020
What?
Very engaging and entertaining story as always though I feel its a bit unpolished at times with some points not fully fleshed or just dropped randomly
Very engaging and entertaining story as always though I feel its a bit unpolished at times with some points not fully fleshed or just dropped randomly
September 11, 2025
An unexpected end-game showdown in the middle of the series was great and set up a nice revenge arc for the rest of the series. The Dark Overlord's appearance was a nice plot twist and raises some larger questions about Jim's future.
September 2, 2024
4.5 stars. There were lots of surprises in this one! I am hoping that Jarra might make a reappearance. Otherwise, I will be pretty disappointed.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 23, 2020
Jim never disappoints
While I always prefer to listen to the audio books, due to Johnathan McClain's perfection as the story's narrator, I wasn't going to wait to hear the next leg of my favorite LitRPG series. When it comes to constantly putting an antagonist is the worst situations possible, and making it pure comedic joy, rather than stress inducing plot drama, Ryan Rimmel is an artist. He also flawlessly toes these lines of making Jim an idiot in a couple of ways, seem to be a complete moron in many ways, but also an seem like an absolute genius in other ways, when in reality, he actually is not, but somehow still be competent and juuust lucky enough to pull the odd extraordinary feat out of his ass. The back end of this one is certainly more tense than usual, with some events that threw me more than I've experienced so far in the story. That said, there were advancements to the mechanics that broke them out of the rigid feel they had previous, which was a huge positive moving forward. All in all, another big win for Ryan, keep it up!
While I always prefer to listen to the audio books, due to Johnathan McClain's perfection as the story's narrator, I wasn't going to wait to hear the next leg of my favorite LitRPG series. When it comes to constantly putting an antagonist is the worst situations possible, and making it pure comedic joy, rather than stress inducing plot drama, Ryan Rimmel is an artist. He also flawlessly toes these lines of making Jim an idiot in a couple of ways, seem to be a complete moron in many ways, but also an seem like an absolute genius in other ways, when in reality, he actually is not, but somehow still be competent and juuust lucky enough to pull the odd extraordinary feat out of his ass. The back end of this one is certainly more tense than usual, with some events that threw me more than I've experienced so far in the story. That said, there were advancements to the mechanics that broke them out of the rigid feel they had previous, which was a huge positive moving forward. All in all, another big win for Ryan, keep it up!
October 10, 2020
Ths story does not deliver what we are looking for:
- this is a building story (noobtown) --> nothing like that here
- there is a story -->nothing here (50% of the book on "let's organize a party")
- there is an ending --> none here and it does not make sense
- the MC can get levels --> not here (it seems forced)
- the enemy is consistent --> well here we have a "ok badgelor is the real one and the heros is here and the dakr lord too, and I kill the loved one , all in 30 pages.... come on!
What can we expect: a deus ex machine as shard will come back, save jara and the whole plot of the books becomes useless.
- this is a building story (noobtown) --> nothing like that here
- there is a story -->nothing here (50% of the book on "let's organize a party")
- there is an ending --> none here and it does not make sense
- the MC can get levels --> not here (it seems forced)
- the enemy is consistent --> well here we have a "ok badgelor is the real one and the heros is here and the dakr lord too, and I kill the loved one , all in 30 pages.... come on!
What can we expect: a deus ex machine as shard will come back, save jara and the whole plot of the books becomes useless.
August 11, 2020
Book four
Mistakes: I found three and some print in different shades.
Plot: A dungeon dive turns into a battle with the evil overlord.
Characters: I swear these are some of the dumbest characters ever put in a book. I think they have one brain cell between them sometimes.
8/10 It’s a cliffhanger folks.
Mistakes: I found three and some print in different shades.
Plot: A dungeon dive turns into a battle with the evil overlord.
Characters: I swear these are some of the dumbest characters ever put in a book. I think they have one brain cell between them sometimes.
8/10 It’s a cliffhanger folks.
August 25, 2020
Was a fun series
The first part of this book was kind of pointless but still had some good humor so I will give it two stars for that. The end of the book was just so annoying with what was going on and events that have no reason to be there make it very hard to read and takes all the the suspense and tension out of it making it just bad.
The first part of this book was kind of pointless but still had some good humor so I will give it two stars for that. The end of the book was just so annoying with what was going on and events that have no reason to be there make it very hard to read and takes all the the suspense and tension out of it making it just bad.
May 23, 2025
This series is a rollercoaster. I think I’d finally had enough of the weird use of English phrases and cultural references, especially with the Indiana Jones tomb raiding scene, then the plot just unfolded like a snowball into an avalanche so I just don’t know what to think if I’m being honest.
After the last novel, I’d resigned myself to just putting this series firmly in the fun pulp tier, and yes the overall plot does seem to be fairly tropish, but the way it’s done is… unique. Almost an irreverent parody of the good versus evil, big bad versus scrappy good trope. Is this a very self-aware series or is it just a bunch of stuff thrown at the wall?
I do not know.
That confusion aside, first the whole Grebthar link to Jim isn’t so much as foreshadowed as it’s dangled in your face, especially with Badgelor, obviously he’s actually Badgelor. I also appreciated the Lute/Lyre joke as the author used those words interchangeably in the last book, a mistake that he then turned into a real thing. Annoying as those mistakes have been in this series, at least he can make fun of it. I further appreciated the author better exploring Jim’s grief, reiterating it hadn’t been that long since he lost his family, can’t expect him to move on that fast.
However, I think one of the biggest confusions is one passage where his demon familiar is explaining how they can’t just replace Jim, that he was given this Unbound trait on purpose and it would take a thousand years for them to try again as it’s that hard to capture a soul from earth. My problem with this is then why weren’t the demons ready for him when they captured his soul? They didn’t wipe his memory, he went unsupervised bulldozing through the class levels and into Ordinal. This made sense before when I assumed they captured lots of souls, probably to farm for mana or something, and the mundane and repetitiveness of this task led to the sloppiness that allowed Jim to slip through. Now I question the whole thing, as it makes no sense in this new context how what happened happened.
Further, last book they referred to adventurers as players in one instance. The big bad in this book called this world a game. The have the whole Raiders of the Last Ark dungeon room. The constant American cultural references from movie quotes to homophones, made from multiple characters who don’t have that frame of reference and aren’t speaking English. The whole Christmas allegory. The big bad being from New Jersey despite being 1800 years old. The constant references to the administrators running everything.
It’s starting to feel like this is all a fever dream, a salvia trip. Maybe Jim is in a coma? The author even explores this in a convo between Jim and his familiar Shart.
So once again, I’m left wondering, is this some high-brow meta on progression fantasy? Or is it just sloppy? Guess I’ll find out. I don’t know any spoilers for the rest of the books, but I do know people hate the ending of Book 8. Makes me wonder…
After the last novel, I’d resigned myself to just putting this series firmly in the fun pulp tier, and yes the overall plot does seem to be fairly tropish, but the way it’s done is… unique. Almost an irreverent parody of the good versus evil, big bad versus scrappy good trope. Is this a very self-aware series or is it just a bunch of stuff thrown at the wall?
I do not know.
That confusion aside, first the whole Grebthar link to Jim isn’t so much as foreshadowed as it’s dangled in your face, especially with Badgelor, obviously he’s actually Badgelor. I also appreciated the Lute/Lyre joke as the author used those words interchangeably in the last book, a mistake that he then turned into a real thing. Annoying as those mistakes have been in this series, at least he can make fun of it. I further appreciated the author better exploring Jim’s grief, reiterating it hadn’t been that long since he lost his family, can’t expect him to move on that fast.
However, I think one of the biggest confusions is one passage where his demon familiar is explaining how they can’t just replace Jim, that he was given this Unbound trait on purpose and it would take a thousand years for them to try again as it’s that hard to capture a soul from earth. My problem with this is then why weren’t the demons ready for him when they captured his soul? They didn’t wipe his memory, he went unsupervised bulldozing through the class levels and into Ordinal. This made sense before when I assumed they captured lots of souls, probably to farm for mana or something, and the mundane and repetitiveness of this task led to the sloppiness that allowed Jim to slip through. Now I question the whole thing, as it makes no sense in this new context how what happened happened.
Further, last book they referred to adventurers as players in one instance. The big bad in this book called this world a game. The have the whole Raiders of the Last Ark dungeon room. The constant American cultural references from movie quotes to homophones, made from multiple characters who don’t have that frame of reference and aren’t speaking English. The whole Christmas allegory. The big bad being from New Jersey despite being 1800 years old. The constant references to the administrators running everything.
It’s starting to feel like this is all a fever dream, a salvia trip. Maybe Jim is in a coma? The author even explores this in a convo between Jim and his familiar Shart.
So once again, I’m left wondering, is this some high-brow meta on progression fantasy? Or is it just sloppy? Guess I’ll find out. I don’t know any spoilers for the rest of the books, but I do know people hate the ending of Book 8. Makes me wonder…
January 29, 2024
Dungeons and Noobs (Noobtown, #4) by Ryan Rimmel Review:
Dungeons and Noobs catapults readers once again into the captivating world of Noobtown, where Joe's adventures continue to unfold in this fourth installment by Ryan Rimmel. With each new book, Rimmel demonstrates his mastery of the litRPG genre, and this latest addition is no exception.
Rimmel's skillful storytelling keeps readers engrossed from the very first page, weaving a narrative filled with action, suspense, and unexpected twists.
In Dungeons and Noobs, Joe faces some of his most formidable challenges yet as he delves into treacherous dungeons, confronts dangerous foes, and uncovers long-hidden secrets about the world of Noobtown. The pacing is expertly crafted, with each chapter building upon the last to create a sense of urgency and excitement that propels the reader forward.
The world-building in this installment reaches new heights, with Rimmel expanding upon the lore and mythology of Noobtown in ways that will leave readers eagerly exploring every corner of this richly imagined world.
Moreover, the character development remains a highlight of the series, with Joe and his companions continuing to evolve and grow with each new challenge they face. The relationships between characters deepen, revealing new layers of complexity and adding emotional depth to the story.
Rating: ⭐⭐ (2/5)
Dungeons and Noobs is a must-read for fans of the series and a shining example of the best that the litRPG genre has to offer. With its gripping storyline, well-developed characters, and immersive world-building, it is sure to delight readers of all ages.
October 25, 2023
"Noobtown #4: Dungeons and Noobs" was a challenging read, not necessarily due to its writing style, but due to its excessive juvenile humor and overt sexual references. While some might find the humor amusing, it became tiresome after a point, making it feel like a high school joke stretched too far. A significant portion of the book is dedicated to world-building, with events like "Grebthar Day" taking up an inordinate amount of space. While world-building is essential, it would have been more effective had it been concise and not stretched over numerous chapters.
The protagonist, Jim, continues to be a perplexing character. His overpowered abilities juxtaposed with his lack of intelligence creates a dissonance that's hard to overlook. His interactions with Shart and Badgelor, which could have been a highlight, unfortunately, remain stagnant and repetitive throughout the series.
The book's ending had the potential to be its saving grace with the intriguing revelation about a character having multiple identities. However, the execution left much to be desired. It became confusing to track the character's dialogue and actions, especially when referenced by different names. Furthermore, Jim's sudden ability to confront and nearly defeat the series' main antagonist, despite previous limitations, felt out of place and contradictory.
In conclusion, while "Noobtown #4: Dungeons and Noobs" had some promising elements, it was overshadowed by its inconsistencies, repetitive humor, and missed opportunities. It's a testament to the importance of not just having good ideas but executing them well.
While the book had some promising elements, it was overshadowed by its inconsistencies, repetitive humor, and missed opportunities. It's a testament to the importance of not just having good ideas but executing them well. Solid 2/5 stars.
The protagonist, Jim, continues to be a perplexing character. His overpowered abilities juxtaposed with his lack of intelligence creates a dissonance that's hard to overlook. His interactions with Shart and Badgelor, which could have been a highlight, unfortunately, remain stagnant and repetitive throughout the series.
The book's ending had the potential to be its saving grace with the intriguing revelation about a character having multiple identities. However, the execution left much to be desired. It became confusing to track the character's dialogue and actions, especially when referenced by different names. Furthermore, Jim's sudden ability to confront and nearly defeat the series' main antagonist, despite previous limitations, felt out of place and contradictory.
In conclusion, while "Noobtown #4: Dungeons and Noobs" had some promising elements, it was overshadowed by its inconsistencies, repetitive humor, and missed opportunities. It's a testament to the importance of not just having good ideas but executing them well.
While the book had some promising elements, it was overshadowed by its inconsistencies, repetitive humor, and missed opportunities. It's a testament to the importance of not just having good ideas but executing them well. Solid 2/5 stars.
May 27, 2024
This novel spends a good chunk of the first half focusing on a Christmas-like holiday in which our hero, Jim, gets stuck playing Santa Clause. It’s overly long, but it gives the opportunity for a lot of world building—information about the great struggle against the Dark One and the hero, Grebthar, who keeps defeating him.
The other thing that is happening in the first half of the book is that the characters are getting ready to enter the town’s dungeon when it opens. Naturally, they are hoping for a great deal of experience. The ever-annoying female wizard who keeps betraying Jim is still there and he puts up with her for reasons that never felt convincing. After all, he knows she has used her magic to manipulate him, and yet, what’s a few betrayals among enemies?
The dungeon should have been the highlight of the story, but it was just long. I report that with sadness. There’s nice action and we get to see the range of Jim and his fellow adventurers’ abilities—but mostly I spent the chapters in the dungeon waiting for the great betrayal that was obviously coming.
And then they find something absolutely awesome and I immediately figured out what the obvious result would be—but even though I was correct, it didn’t in any way damage my enjoyment of the novel. Ryan Rimmel had rediscovered his mojo. There is an absolutely fabulous final battle and I loved every single word of it. For four books, we have watched Jim acquire a huge number of classes and amazing variety of perks and skills and in this boss battle, Rimmel shows us why he gave Jim all of them. It’s extremely well thought out and it’s incredibly exciting.
The ending makes the book!
The other thing that is happening in the first half of the book is that the characters are getting ready to enter the town’s dungeon when it opens. Naturally, they are hoping for a great deal of experience. The ever-annoying female wizard who keeps betraying Jim is still there and he puts up with her for reasons that never felt convincing. After all, he knows she has used her magic to manipulate him, and yet, what’s a few betrayals among enemies?
The dungeon should have been the highlight of the story, but it was just long. I report that with sadness. There’s nice action and we get to see the range of Jim and his fellow adventurers’ abilities—but mostly I spent the chapters in the dungeon waiting for the great betrayal that was obviously coming.
And then they find something absolutely awesome and I immediately figured out what the obvious result would be—but even though I was correct, it didn’t in any way damage my enjoyment of the novel. Ryan Rimmel had rediscovered his mojo. There is an absolutely fabulous final battle and I loved every single word of it. For four books, we have watched Jim acquire a huge number of classes and amazing variety of perks and skills and in this boss battle, Rimmel shows us why he gave Jim all of them. It’s extremely well thought out and it’s incredibly exciting.
The ending makes the book!
October 8, 2024
Dungeons and Noobs by Ryan Rimmel is a good sequel, and ends with one hell of a shake-up to the story. There's a lot to like about it, including its more consistent tone and the trip to the Dungeon being a vehicle for character and plot progression in way that had been lacking. Some of the female character interactions were a bit too catty and MC-focused, but they became a whole lot better once the thing we all hoped would happen finally happened, making Jim aware of how he'd been misled and charmed. The betrayal felt a bit out of left field (not character motivation-wise, but plot-wise [I was thinking "How'd you get there?]), and so was a revelation about The Dark Overlord. If its not handled carefully, it'll feel like a retcon. I also still found some attempts at humor to be strange, especially at what is supposed to be a tragic, rage-inducing scene at the very end. Also, Rimmel throws a ton of references in his text, but he doesn't acknowledge them as such all that often. That can be strange, especially during the fight at the end of the book.
Still, curious to see where this leads me.
Still, curious to see where this leads me.
August 3, 2022
Creative or Chaotic
Jim's slow burning relationship with Jarra the healer continues to develop, in part pushed along by Sir Dalton pursuing her. Jim gets a nice house.
Badgelor's quest to kill Charles continues, leading Jim and crew to a dungeon underneath the Castle they are claiming in order to get more farming permits which they need in order to feed more refugees from the war and keep Windfall growing.
The party. mechanics during the dungeon crawl are awesome but relatively short-lived, and Jim gets separated from the rest of the party and a lot of the story is about him finding his way back to the group.
In the boss battle with the Dark Lord, Jarra is killed out of spite. This launches the next book in the series, where having seen how evil Charles is, Jim develops the same obsessive need to kill him that Badgelor has.
The Christmas-like celebration and Jim's toy making are a fun diversion.
Jim's slow burning relationship with Jarra the healer continues to develop, in part pushed along by Sir Dalton pursuing her. Jim gets a nice house.
Badgelor's quest to kill Charles continues, leading Jim and crew to a dungeon underneath the Castle they are claiming in order to get more farming permits which they need in order to feed more refugees from the war and keep Windfall growing.
The party. mechanics during the dungeon crawl are awesome but relatively short-lived, and Jim gets separated from the rest of the party and a lot of the story is about him finding his way back to the group.
In the boss battle with the Dark Lord, Jarra is killed out of spite. This launches the next book in the series, where having seen how evil Charles is, Jim develops the same obsessive need to kill him that Badgelor has.
The Christmas-like celebration and Jim's toy making are a fun diversion.
August 6, 2020
Rushed
Characters are hilarious. The allusions to modern pop culture are witty, and the setting is creative. But the plot of this book...
It felt like it rushed to get somewhere in the series plot that we weren’t ready for yet.
In a book, you have a series of promises that you make to your readers. This book, in the beginning, promised to be a heist. We get a mini-heist with Badgelor and Jim on Badger’s Night, and the promise of more heist-like activity with a dungeon dive.
But the ending didn’t deliver on the promises made. I can accept that the plot goes sideways, and we no longer have a heist story. But that really shouldn’t happen at 90% of the way through.
Love the series. Fully intend to keep reading. But you have to have a least favorite book in a series, and this is it for me.
Characters are hilarious. The allusions to modern pop culture are witty, and the setting is creative. But the plot of this book...
It felt like it rushed to get somewhere in the series plot that we weren’t ready for yet.
In a book, you have a series of promises that you make to your readers. This book, in the beginning, promised to be a heist. We get a mini-heist with Badgelor and Jim on Badger’s Night, and the promise of more heist-like activity with a dungeon dive.
But the ending didn’t deliver on the promises made. I can accept that the plot goes sideways, and we no longer have a heist story. But that really shouldn’t happen at 90% of the way through.
Love the series. Fully intend to keep reading. But you have to have a least favorite book in a series, and this is it for me.
February 8, 2021
Sorry to say this is the least favorite of the series. Part of me was tempted to give this 3 stars but then the author did pull it out in the end. To be fair one of my peeves is one the hero is OP but I always forgive this in Eric Uglands books so why is it hard to do that for Jim in this series. Probably because it just did not feel right for him. I also had a hard time with some of the odd battle mechanics and results but maybe a second listen will fix some of that and also part of why I am giving it 4 stars instead of 3. I love Ryan Rimmels work on this series and have to believe the next installment will bring that to being one of my favorite series in Litrpg. Don't get me wrong this is still better than 90% of what I read in Litrpg but I also have to admit past success has me dealing with higher expectations.
September 2, 2020
Entertaining
First of all, I did enjoy this book enough to stay up well past my bedtime to finish it. However, it failed to really engage me until the end and the multiple continuity errors, mostly minor, made it frustrating to follow at times. The fact that Ordinal's physics are non-standard also made it difficult to assign tension to situational scenes (admittedly, this frustrates Jim as well and intended or not it 'feels' like a cop out to progress the story regardless of circumstances).
There are a couple epilogue chapters and honestly it feels like the real story is finally starting... I'll probably read the next book when it comes out, but I could also end my journey here and be satisfied.
First of all, I did enjoy this book enough to stay up well past my bedtime to finish it. However, it failed to really engage me until the end and the multiple continuity errors, mostly minor, made it frustrating to follow at times. The fact that Ordinal's physics are non-standard also made it difficult to assign tension to situational scenes (admittedly, this frustrates Jim as well and intended or not it 'feels' like a cop out to progress the story regardless of circumstances).
There are a couple epilogue chapters and honestly it feels like the real story is finally starting... I'll probably read the next book when it comes out, but I could also end my journey here and be satisfied.
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