The Bookwyrm's Review of Leap of Faith by J.S. Grulke

Author: J.S. Grulke

Length: 359 Pages

Release Date: December 18, 2019

Series: Anura Rising: Book One

Genre: LitRPG

Rating: 4.5/5 Stars

I have been getting more into LitRPG of late, and when offered a chance to review Leap of Faith, I jumped, so to speak. It just had the look of a light bit of fun, and while it was, it turned out to be a bit deeper, which really worked.

PLOT SUMMARY

Henry Thomas is a high school kid dealing with a series of life tragedies. After a life altering bad decision, Henry decides to end his life by parking on a train bridge. When he meets his end, he is surprised to come to at all. Awakening on the world Anura, he meets a man named Verlos, who tells Henry he's being given a second chance; a chance that, if he accomplishes certain tasks, will result in him being reunited with his family. There's only one catch: He will have to do it in his new body, that of a man sized humanoid frog in what amounts to a role playing game universe.

Accepting the deal, Henry starts to move through the area he got left in, a swampy area. He runs into some other frog men, who don't take kindly to him being in their territory. Deciding to fight them, he manages to beat a couple, but when the fight starts turning against him, he tries to escape and is captured. Returning with Henry to their village, Henry discover's they are called Bruggs, one of several different tribes of frog men. The village just had a bunch of villagers stolen by gnolls, who plan on sacrificing them in dark ceremonies. Henry is given a chance to earn the Brugg's trust if he agrees to a quest to rescue the villagers. Realizing he has nothing to lose, he agrees, and goes to find them. He has to bring the tribes shaman with him, a kobold named Ott, who can hopefully use his magic to help the mission.

This quest is the start of a much larger dangerous adventure for Henry, because the Gnolls are the least of his problems. It turns out they are working for Nergal, a powerfully evil being who is looking to destroy Anura and it's inhabitants, using a magical poison gas cloud he produces to do it. Barely escaping Nergal and the gnolls, Henry returns to the village, only to have it be attacked by monsters, forcing the survivors to flee. This leaves Henry in charge of the villagers, his life literally tied to their survival, although he gains buffs by their being attached to his leadership, which disturbs Henry, being a loner and not wanting to lead anyone. 

Escaping the area, Henry and Ott discover a hidden area that would make a perfect site for a new village. Unfortunately, the current inhabitants are willing to kill anyone who enters to keep secret the reason the area remains hidden. After a crazy series of events, Henry must finally do what he hates, trust others to help him, if he is to have a chance to defeat Nergal. The way that battle occurs is completely unexpected, and the results will have unforeseen repercussions for Henry's group and the wider world.

CHARACTERS AND WORLD BUILDING

Deep characterization is not something a lot of people would associate with LitRPG, and in a  lot of cases, that's accurate, since the stories tend to be lighter and more comedic. Leap of Faith, however, is a bit different in that regard, especially with the main character. Henry starts the book as a selfish, shallow loner who doesn't see the value in other people, because they will let him down. As the story progresses, though, you realize this is a defense mechanism to deal with a traumatic upbringing, with tragedy and abuse mixed throughout, until Henry's final acts in the real world leading to his rebirth in Anura. Throughout the story you can see Henry refusing responsibility, making mistakes and paying the price again and again, as he slowly grows to realize the world is larger than his immediate concerns, and he must step up and accept he can't remain a loner all his life, and must give of himself. In short, actual character growth. I have to admit, the physical character growth was amusing, too. Having a buff where you have a 10% chance of decapitating someone with your tongue was a funny bit of character creation.

The secondary characters are fleshed out as well, with Ott and the hunter Kai getting the most attention, but even the minor characters get a look into their lives and motivations. Nergal makes a good villain for the story, being powerful and truly evil, but his motivations remained a mystery, even if it was just watch the world burn, which seemed a bit of a missed opportunity to expand the character to me. That's a minor point, though, and didn't affect my enjoyment of the story.

The world building for Anura is creative, seeking to keep it from being a two dimensional typical game universe. There are a variety of fantasy races as well as ones the author created specifically for the book, and they work well within the setting. The world itself has a wide variety of settings, from swampy marshes to river valleys and forests. The magic is intrinsic to the world, and the gods of the world are actual beings, which can effect the world around them. The nature god Kana is a huge surprise, quite literally. You'll understand when you read the book.

FINAL THOUGHTS

While Leap of Faith may look like a goofy, lighthearted fluff LitRPG, it was written with care and skill for plot, characters and world building. It has actual organic character growth, with a flawed protagonist that you grow to understand more as his story is revealed. I would definitely recommend this one to fans of the genre, as well as more traditional fantasy fans. I understand that Soundbooth Theater is working on the audio version, and when that one comes out, I'll update this review to cover that version as well. Definitely give this book a try.

The Bookwyrm's Review of They Eat Their Own by Amanda K. King and Michael R. Swanson

Authors: Amanda K. King & Michael R. Swanson

Length: 276 Pages

Publisher: Ismae Books

Release Date: May 19, 2020

Genre: Sci-fi/Fantasy

Rating: 5/5 Stars

I read and reviewed Things They Buried, the first book in this series, about a year ago. I was hugely impressed that a debut novel could be so polished and creative, mixing genres seamlessly to create something entirely new. It created a world where genetic manipulation is common, while some things, such as photography, are rare and expensive. The first book had quite a few horror elements to boot, but this book takes an entirely different, but just as effective approach, not suffering a sophomore slump at all.

PLOT SUMMARY

Starting about a year after the events of Things They Buried, the story starts off in a way I didn't expect: a pirate raid on a ship off the coast of Dockhaven. The ship, a merchant vessel, is carrying a variety of cargo, but apparently has some special items the pirates are looking for: items from a dig in a lost civilization. After getting what they came for, they ensure they will not be identified by any crew, permanently.

We then move to Dockhaven, where we see Sylandair, Duke of Chiv'vastezz, in a high stakes card game with some of the movers and shakers of Dockhaven society, including his rival Flark, who own's the building Sylandair and his mate Aliara, called Rift, live in. Idra, The Mayor of Dockhaven, and another of Sylandair's rivals, is also playing. There is a lot of political and financial intriguing going on with the game, as Flark is trying to influence Idra, who owes substantial loans to Flark, and is holding up other building plans he has. The tension at the table gets especially bad when Flark's minions implode one of his buildings with people still inside it, creating political issues for Idra. 

Meanwhile, while the game is going on, Rift agrees to help Dreg, one of the Thung Toh thieves/assassins guild members, on one of his jobs. The job involves breaking into Flark's penthouse, and retrieve shipping guild ledgers, and permanently remove the guild member, now Flark's mate, permanently. In addition, they are to bring a artifact, a Voshar mask, back to Sylandair. The mask is the one thing an enemy from their past needs to enact her evil plan.

While all this is going on, Sylandair is dodging assassination attempts, and when Rift and Dreg return to the party the card game is held at, they end up going with Sylandair, Idra and Flark's ex Daisy to Flark's yacht for a game with higher stakes. What happens there is a crazy series of events, which even the quick witted Sylandair and Rift could not have seen coming, and which leaves them with more questions than answers about certain events in the city. It does present some new opportunities in the future though, as Sylandair and Aliara have some decisions to make.

CHARACTERS AND WORLD BUILDING

This is one of those books that mixes creative characters who push the story along with fantastic world building. The characters from the first book, with the emphasis on Sylandair and Aliara, get more depth throughout the book. Adding a bit more to their backstory, you find out even more clearly how they got where they are, and get a closer look at their decision making process. The events of the previous books have left their mark on them both, and they are still dealing with the trauma, especially Aliara, who's injuries almost killed her. She is unsure if her abilities will return completely, and this doubt really helps makes her a more sympathetic character, while still leaving her to grow back to her strong, resilient self. Sylandair too is a complex character, with strengths and flaws that really make him ring true. The secondary characters are all well written, written as well rounded characters with strengths and flaws, which really helps sell their various stories.

The world building is such a strength of this series. Dockhaven, in my opinion, is one of the best settings in fantasy/sci-fi, on par with the great ones such as Lankhmar, Ankh-Morpork and Sanctuary. It is so well described, you can practically smell the sea salt and feel the wind blowing the stink from the slums. The dichotomy of high tech and low fantasy really shines through, and creates such a unique setting. You really do get a feeling of a hive of scum and villainy, with a thin veneer of gentility over it. 

FINAL THOUGHTS

The change in tones between the first and second book could have gone badly wrong if handled by the wrong authors. Fortunately, Amanda and Michael were the right authors, and did an amazing job shifting tones from a sci-fi/ fantasy hybrid with some serious horror elements, to what I think of as a down and dirty Ocean's Eight kind of heist story with an underlying conspiracy. I can see this book appealing to people on both sides of the sci-fi/fantasy divide, and create new fans of both.