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Mid-Lich Crisis  By  cover art

Mid-Lich Crisis

By: Steve Thomas
Narrated by: C.J. McAllister
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Publisher's summary

An evil wizard has a midlife crisis.

Is trying to sacrifice your estranged wife to a bloodthirsty demon an irredeemable act of evil? This is the sort of question the Dread Wizard Darruk Darkbringer struggles with. After being called evil one too many times, Darruk sets off to find a new purpose in his life and become a beloved celebrity. Can a dark wizard come to terms with himself and prove to the world that a few atrocities don’t define who he is? You’ll feel guilty for laughing at his twisted tale of self-discovery.

©2019 Steve Thomas (P)2020 Steve Thomas

What listeners say about Mid-Lich Crisis

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    5 out of 5 stars

Hilariously Funny

The title grabbed my attention, I was determined to buy this book after reading the first two sentences of its description, moved it to the top of my listening list, and have listened to it all weekend. Wow, I kept laughing so hard throughout this book that I wish the second book was out because I’d get it immediately.

The story is about a misunderstood Lich (dead mage) trying to better himself in order to save the world, while being foiled and often killed by his nemesis. The satirical elements are so accurate and well done that you have to laugh at them. This definitely a credit worth spending!

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10 people found this helpful

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Different and funny

This is a look at life from the POV of the villain. Our protagonist believes he is saving the world, but everyone else disagrees. The narrator was good and made it easy to distinguish who is speaking. Definitely worth a listen.

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5 people found this helpful

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Listener received this title free

So apparently, my children are cobalds.

To start with the whole "Bad Guy Struggles against His Nature to Become a Good Guy" story is played out. Surprisingly enough, that isn't really what this story is. Sure some of the bones are the same, but as any good necromancer will tell you, "a few similar bones does not a dead ringer make." Derick Darkbringer never admits to ever being evil. In fact he hates the mere use of the word, favoring to call it the "e" word. Sure he's killed thousands for even the slightest infractions. Sure he's over thrown entire regions in bloody battle. Sure he's tried on numerous occasions to kill his wife in blood sacrifices. But it was always in the pursuit of something good, wasn't it? The fact that he also has the Wile E. Coyote-esque ability to regrow his body after every death he suffers adds to his charm.

The story is fun. The pace is great. And I loved all the innovative and imaginative side characters. These include, a snake woman would-be girlfriend, a buffoonish barbarian nemesis, a troop of vampire slaying pop-music stars, and a slightly faithful cobald named Princess who enjoys being helpful in the most unhelpful ways possible.

I enjoyed this book a great deal and would gleefully recommend it for lovers of humor, fantasy, absurdity, and the "e" word.

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4 people found this helpful

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Great Comedy!

Darruk isn't evil. He's misunderstood. Er, maybe. I already enjoyed this in book form. C.J. McAllister brought a good deal to the telling with a great performance. Great timing. Everything you want in a comedic fantasy romp!

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Mid-Book Crisis

love evil main characters/anti-heroes!

It's a cool concept, and pretty well written:
the dialog feels natural,
most characters have a well-differentiated voice,
and there's enough exposition to flesh out the world without taking away from the action.

However, this book was a bit too satirical for me, and the plot a bit too whimsical - I couldn't take it seriously and found the journey lacked tension.

Is it fair for me to mark a book that's tagged with 'Humorous' down for being too funny? Maybe not, but I was in the mood for something a bit more serious. If you were too, here are a couple of books with a similar feeling but a more gripping plot:

Overlord - The Protagonist is a normal person who gets reincarnated as the Overlord Lich, with loyal, adoring minions he has to hide his incompetence from.
Demons of Astlan - A kid smoking weed has an out-of-body experience and gets summoned into another world as a demon.
Waldo Rabbit - An e-word mage has to go on a coming of age journey, committing evil deeds to bring honor to his family, but he turns out to not be very good at being the e-word.

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3 people found this helpful

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Drop dead and regroup!

To describe this book I'll use TWO 'E words.' Eminently Enjoyable! I know Darruk Darkbringer and his gang would, most likely, beat me to death and sell my pancreas on Ye Olde Ebay, but hooray for the anti-hero! Also, the turning point (no hints) in this book is laughable and such-a-guy thing. You know who you are 😈 Thoroughly recommended.

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mind numbingly boring, boatload of fake reviews,

mind numbingly boring, boatload of fake reviews, good premise but the body was a drag

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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3 words describes this book

Those 3 words. are "What the *** ?" Very strange , disturbed and warped book

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I hope we'll hear more from Steve Thomas

I enjoyed this book a lot and I hope we'll get to hear more of Darruk Darkbringer's adventures.

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Listener received this title free

Funny and interesting

I was given this free review copy audio book at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

This was a pretty good book. I liked the dark humor in it and I love the fact that it was about a "dead" person who was misunderstood trying to find his way in life. Talk about a different type of book and a strange idea for a plot!

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