Book Review of The Merry Band

For every book we release, we'll be sure to post a review of it during the week before the book comes out. Our next book, The Merry Band by Katherine Vick, is the sequel to The Disposable and comes out on August 2nd. This review comes from Terrence Saville.

Take it away, Terrence. . . .
​

Well, here we go again!   
 
The Merry Band is the second book in Katherine Vick’s exuberantly anarchic fantasy trilogy, The Plot Bandits, which looks, points, and laughs at the tropes of traditional heroic fantasy. It’s fresh, frenetic, and genuinely funny and like the first book in the series, The Disposable, is almost impossible to put down.   
 
Following an unexpectedly successful tussle with the all-powerful Narrative, the exceptionally ordinary Fodder, whose main skills are standing at the back and not getting in the way, is reeling from actually having. Done. Magic. Now he and his mis-matched band of slightly reluctant revolutionaries are on the run from . . . well, pretty much everybody, including a whole bunch of big buggers with swords and the very Narrative itself. It’s okay, though. Fodder has a cunning plan. Which is to come up with a cunning plan. Eventually. At some point. Which could involve a dragon. And is almost certain to go wrong . . . 
 
The Merry Band is my top-pick fantasy read for 2021, an all-round joyful romp, undercut by Katherine Vick’s satirical eye and gloriously dry humour. It’s the kind of book that reminds me exactly why I fell in love with fantasy novels in the first place, and everyone should read it. Now publish Book Three! 


Our thanks to Terrence, and we are certainly eager to publish the final volume of the trilogy, so stay tuned!

Click here to read our initial book review of The Disposable, from Kerry Nicholls. And while you're waiting for The Merry Band, check out Katherine Vick's blog, where you'll find not only thoughtful essays but also some funny Very Short Stories.

What's your favorite, or least favorite, trope in fantasy novels?

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