This month I read a great book. It was called He Who
Fights With Monsters by Shirtaloon and Travis Deverell.
I have to admit, this book was recommended to me by one of my brothers, and it
took me quite a long time to start it. I was a victim of judging a book by its
title. The title seemed too ‘on the nose’ and I thought the book might be a bit
of the same. Consequently, it took me over a year to pick it up after it was
recommended. But I had several other people recommend it also, so I thought
maybe I was misjudging it without taking the time to take a look. So this month
I downloaded it on audio and listened to it as I traveled to a writers’
conference. It was much greater than even the recommendations made me expect.
The main character of this novel is a man who wakes up in a
new universe one morning and is forced to begin an adventure in a country that
he does not understand or really even believe exists in the beginning. This
beginning is not different from many other stories that I have read in the
past, but the author’s humor and the character’s believability make the story
engaging and believable.
This book is the beginning of a series, and I have to say,
even after 29 hours of the first book, I was not ready for the first episode to
end. I will definitely continue the series.
The characters are all well-developed, and the world-building
is exceptional. You root for this character, even though you may not always
agree with the way he goes about doing his business. Or maybe you will. Each of
us has our own way of getting through life, and you can see where this
character has gotten his values and why he does the things he does. The world
is so well-created that you can buy into the choices that each character makes
and the flow of the story.
This is another author that I will add to my list of ‘to
read’.
If you get the chance to read this series, you really ought
to do so.
~Jeff
