Death has Joined the Party by Rachel Aaron and Travis Bach:

5 stars

How desperate would you have to be to listen to the proposed miracle cure of an intruder, one who looks rather ill himself, who busted through your door in the middle of the night? Tavin is that desperate, and then some. He’s spent his life in a lead-lined box, but now he has a chance to live! Unfortunately, he didn’t read the fine print. Tavin’s stuck with a permanent ride-along, and to continue living, he must kill at least one sentient being every day…which would be fine, except he has morals. With the clock ticking, he does the only thing he can do: he volunteers to be on Mana Runners, a viral reality show! The weird thing is…it’s going well!

I’m new to LitRPG—a total noob—but that was a ride! I’ve always enjoyed the storytelling aspect of D&D, and Rachel Aaron and Travis Bach keep that spirit. From the Shadow to Whitepeak College to the Endless Dungeon, the settings are specific, vivid, and textured. Many terms are familiar (Feather Fall, Fireball, cantrips, etc.), but they’ve built a new and engaging world on top of that, with incredible characters and a twisty plot.

Zavrak is a very special, sarcastic kind of evil with great one-liners; Mavis hides a good heart under her convincingly mercenary talent-manager façade; Mim is who I want to be when I grow up; Ryker’s the guy who will get you killed and blame you for it; and Rok is single-minded to an impressive and disturbing degree…but he’s just a kid! These characters are lovingly rendered, and even the side characters have depth, personality, and a questionable agenda.

There is so much going on here: darkness, hope, honor, glory, dungeon monsters with hearts of gold. It’s a funny story, and yes, there is a lot of violence, gore, and senseless death, but Death Has Joined The Party possesses (no pun intended) a strong underlying current of optimism, even when the world is a very scary place. And, come on, that title is just cool!

Unleash your inner nerd and dive in! This book will appeal to fantasy gamers, folks who like a bit of dark humor to shake off a deeply depressing situation, heroes who stand fast against overwhelming odds, and the dungeon monsters who have their backs. Truly, mimics are the best!