The Land: Forging

Executive Summary: More of the same really. Fun, but not the best written. Enjoyable enough that I plan to continue the series at some point in the future.

Audiobook: Nick Podehl once again does a fantastic job. The book still suffers a bit from being unabridged because reading out character sheets doesn't make for a compelling listen. I feel like this book had less than the first, probably because it takes longer between levels the higher up you get.

Despite my issues, I'll continue to do this series in audio. Nick Podehl is that good and the actual story works well in audio.

Full Review
Much like the first book, this book has me itching to level a new character in World of Warcraft, something I've started doing for the first time in long time after listening to the first book of this series.

Richter continues to be a bit of a dude-bro, but at least there seems to be consequences for it in this book. We also get female character who actually does some things, albeit still far less than her male counterparts. I'm hoping her part grows in the later books and that he adds more substantive female characters as well.

Overall there isn't a lot to say about the book without straight up discussing plot. It continues right where the last book left off, and leaves off at a reasonable place while making it apparent the story is far from complete.

I do feel like the writing was a bit better in this one that the first, so Mr. Kong is showing improvement in that regard. I also think he tells an interesting story, which is the most important part for me. I would be interested in playing a game similar to what he describes in this book. The idea of having and leveling a town as you level yourself is a pretty cool idea. There are likely games out there that let you do this already. It reminds me a little bit of the Garrison system WoW introduced a few years back, but with far fewer consequences.

These books have been enjoyable enough that I'll continue to pick them up when I have some more time.