Fun and light. Comedic fantasy set in a Tolkien-esque setting ( Holt’s beloved goblins), and loosely a YouSpace book with some recurring characters.

Starts strong and slowly loses steam. The ending is a little rushed and anticlimactic, but some fun Tolkien jokes throughout. I do think holt/Parker is best at the novella length. ( )

that was just... no.. NO.

This was a gift and I really didn't need another fantasy comedy in my life, and certainly not a parody sequel to LotR's with a real world crossover satire. Didn't need any of that... HOWEVER! I was still going to give this one 4 stars, just on a nuts and bolts level, based on the first third.

But as it went on it got less funny to the point it was genuinely unpleasant to read during the middle section. Then the author realised he was using too many pages and just crammed the story into whatever non-sensical shape he could to make it fit. The last third is interesting at times but mostly, so random, so quick, so messy and so utterly lacking in effort.

Look it isn't awful, but i'm genuinely confused as to whether it supposed to be a comedy, satire or something else entirely. In any case i found it to be unpleasant, messy and rushed. ( )

This is a Tolkien satire, and that's certainly a topic ripe for spoofing. This book misses few opportunities for absurdity, and it's great fun, for awhile. Problem is, it's a one-note joke that just kind of goes on and on and on. I think this would have been far more effective as a novella or novelette, rather than a 14-hour tome. Still, the brilliant bits are brilliant indeed. ( )