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Peril in the Old Country

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Member Reviews

A twisty, funny, unexpected adventure featuring Peril Sloot (a professional accountant, Olympic level fretter, and rule follower for the ages) as he is swept along in the tides of espionage, wizards, blood magic, secret societies, and rivalry between nations. To attempt to explain the plot doesn't do the novel justice; it's unexpected and whirlwindy and a whole bunch of weird nonsense happens to and around Sloot and his friends that holds together in it's own, precarious way. I found the tone and humor to be right up my alley but I could totally see how a reader who likes their fantasy/world building to be a little more serious could bounce off of this. It's a strong recommend from me and I'll definitely read the next books in the series.

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I think that with this book my main problem was my expectations because they were just too high. The book is fun, enjoyable and, in some part, even brilliant but... yeah, I was expecting something more. Or something a tad more bright. I have this problem quite enough with comic fantasy to understand that, basically, the problem is mine and not of the book. This much is clear to me, but I kept hoping to find something out there that could really satisfy me. Anyway, back to the book on end.
I had some problems getting into it. I wasn't so captured by it, but the author is quite brilliant and the reading is fun, once I got over my too high expectations, and I smiled a lot.
The book is quite slow but hey! Our dear MC is an accountant (yes, you read it right!) so what would you expect? And we get our fair share of ridiculous and some satire too, so I think that once you can connect with the narration and let you be taken by the events, you would find yourself in for some fun!

3.5 stars

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This is a very strange book, but absolutely perfect for fans of Neil Gaiman or Douglas Adams. It's quirky; the dialogue is sharp and witty, and there are a plethora of fun and interesting characters.

The story itself was interesting but the writing was odd. Not necessarily bad, but could be off-putting. Some of the language used borders on pretentious if I'm honest, and the prose a bit flowery. I wish the plot had moved along at a better pace, but otherwise this was very silly and easy to get into.

I also find the cover extremely adorable; very Tim Burton-esq. I expected the content to be a little darker based on the cover art, but I'm not complaining! I think it was very fitting.

An e-copy of this book was provided by Black Spot Books and Smith Publicity via NetGalley in exchange for a review. Thank you!

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DNFed at 30%. I just couldn't get into it, it would have been a good story if Hooker wrote a bit more seriously. I just found the story a bit too cringy for me, the jokes kind of lame. But I did enjoy the way he wrote his sentences, and I liked the little added bits of fantasy. Won't be continuing.

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Sam Hooker! Yes, yes, and more yes. I really enjoyed this tale, and I look forward to more. I found myself reconsidering my choice of career path, is being a librarian the best job ever? Um yea it kinda is when I get to read fun, dark, and twisted, just the way I like it! There were some parts that made me go, "Hmmmm" but I love it still, I would put it in the hands of a few of my patron.

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This was a very well written fiction piece. Love the Tim Burton-esque read - I felt the vibe really resonated with me!

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3,5 slow-burning, but ultimately funny and promising stars

When I say slow-burning, I mean slow-burning, but that's what you get when you Main Character is an accountant. :)

I did not mind the fact that the author's writing style reminded me a bit of Terry Pratchett and a bit of Douglas Adams. It was rather a hail-book-well-met kind of feeling.

Sam Hooker is a very promising author with great potential and I hope he goes on writing more books of this kind.

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A very funny and enjoyable book! It reminded me of Terry Pratchett. It made laugh out loud and couldn't put it down.
Highly recommended!
Many thanks to Black Spot Books and Netgalley for this ARC

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Peril in the Old Country is a hilarious quest fantasy!

Sloot Peril is an accountant who has a nervous condition. He lives in the Old Country where swearing causes goblins to physically appear. There is so much bureaucracy that a union provides professional line waiters. Sloot is a patriot who despises the country just past the Old Country’s giant wall, Carpathia. What happens when he:
• Is recruited to be the financial manager of his mega-rich boss’ son
• Finds out a shocking truth about himself
• Is recruited to be a Carpathian spy
• Does the one thing his boss told him not to do—on his first day

The puns come fast and furious in Peril in the Old Country. There are running gags about swear words and shoes throughout. It is a zany ride. The world building is terrific and hilarious. Is it fantasy? Is it horror? I don’t know but it is highly recommended for readers looking for something different. This book is perfect for fans of the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy’s style of humor. 42 stars! [sorry, wrong book] 4 stars!

Thanks to the publisher, Black Spot Books, and NetGalley for an advanced copy.

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"You may be a mild-mannered bundle of nerves, Peril, but you're the most earnest and loyal bundle of nerves I've ever met."

The Writing and Worldbuilding

I found this book to be a riot, and I was giggling and laughing basically the entire time. Sam Hooker really got that strange niche of humor I reside in, and I was really happy with the world and most of the characters.

The concept of the goblins was honestly the best running joke I've ever heard of and I seriously loved it so much. Seriously, if you want a good laugh, this is the book for you. It feels like you got a bunch of Russian people drunk and had them very inaccurately reenact 1984 by George Orwell.

Unfortunately, once the main cast actually got to Carpathia, I found the humor slipped from the absurd to the annoying and irritating, and I really didn't like that part of the book. Most of that was the characters introduced in that section of the book, and the rest was Sloot's arc (which kind of paused, reverted, and then got back on track basically as soon as he left), and also, not much really happened in Carpathia, and what did happen wasn't as funny or interesting.

The Characters

Sloot Peril: This guy is literally my worrier-spirit animal (and I mean worrier, not warrior). He was so funny and awkward. but his arc of coming into his own and gaining some degree of self-confidence was really awesome.

Roman: I really liked Roman. He was pretty straight-faced and also absurd, which is a difficult combination to do well, but Hooker did just that.

Myrtle (and Arthur): I liked her enough, but found her fairly annoying during the Carpathia parts. Arthur was pretty consistent but if he hadn't been there, I probably wouldn't have missed his presence. It was fairly unnecessary to the story.

Greta and Vlad: I liked Greta when she was introduced, but once she got into Carpathia, she became really annoying and I really didn't like her. Vlad's introduction was promising, but she quickly became a more annoying version of Willie without his stupidly endearing qualities. They were more plot devices than anything.

Willie: I really loved Willie's complete idiocy. He was so silly and consistent.

Mrs. Knife: lol this lady was a classic bad guy. I really liked her.

Conclusion

This was a very enjoyable book. I really liked it and I'm so glad I read it.

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For those of you who cuaght this post of my very first ARC, I have decided to not go with the blurp on GR or any of the sites where this book is promoted. I personaly feel that blurps (I know the correct spelling is blurb, but I like blurp better...) are becoming more and more like move trailers in the art spoiling it for me...
Before I begin, I would like to say thank you to Netgally and Black Spot Books for allowing me to request this before the initial release date which is on the 5th of June. I would also like to state that this in no way affects my review of this book.
Peril in The Old Country is a novel that has its tongue firmly in cheek throughout the story. If you like your Terry Pratchett and Douglas Adams, then you are in for a treat my friends. I had a lot of fun getting to know Old Country and its surrounds. The characters all had equal page time to shine and I will be looking out for the follow up books. Sam Hooker did a super job at keeping me entertained. I love the cover they went for because it gives us the best glimpse into our main character.
I feel this review might sell the book short because I don't talk about what exactly happens, but that is the way I do things on my blog. I dont want to become the next "book trailer dude". I gave it a 5 out of 5 on Goodreads and it comes highly recomended to those that are up for a laugh.
Have a great Sunday!

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Sloot Peril is my favorite sort of protagonist – the kind who comes from a place of honesty. In much the same way that most of us would find ourselves sorted into Hufflepuff if we were totally honest with ourselves, the majority of us have more in common with Sloot than we do the real heroic heroes of fantasy, like Aragorn or Conan. Sloot is a tightly wound accountant with a strong survival instinct and a deep love of bureaucracy and routine. He’s anxious, cowardly and somewhat haughty – sort of an interesting mix of all the negative qualities of a pre-tower Thomas Senlin, Bilbo Baggins and Rincewind.

In this dark comedic fantasy there are echoes of a great many influences, a little of everything from Edward Gorey to George Orwell. This is a dystopian tale that covers a number of fairly heavy subjects in a light and satirical fashion. While there is definitely a hint of the Discworld in its tone, Pratchett’s rage against injustice was never far from the surface. Hooker opts for a more darkly amused, fatalistic approach. It’s gallows humor done very well indeed, and while for me there weren’t always big laughs, it was consistently amusing and I chuckled a lot. The plot at its most basic is a standard reluctant-hero-thrown-into-an-adventure story, but there are none more reluctant than Sloot Peril, and therein lies the comedy.

The pacing of the story is a little inconsistent, but the author’s voice is strong enough to carry it through the lulls, and the characters are great fun. The secondary characters are pretty well developed for the most part and they are each given the opportunity to shine through the excellent dialogue. Lord Wilhelm and Nan in particular are absolutely hilarious – Willie’s naive ignorance and lack of self awareness was the highlight of the novel for me, and Hooker’s deft commentary on people who have more money than sense was hugely enjoyable. It reminded me quite strongly of Hugh Laurie’s portrayal of Prince George in Blackadder, just the right blend of well-meaning and dimwitted that comes with having been born too rich to really need to learn anything. I also found that despite some obvious foreshadowing, I genuinely believed the narrative was heading in a certain direction, and then, it… didn’t. It did exactly the opposite of what I expected, and I was absolutely delighted. I don’t want to go into detail because it would ruin one of the fun surprises of the book, but Hooker did a great job of turning my expectations on their head despite having signalled well in advance that he was going to do so.

However, sometimes there has to be a bit of bad with the good. While the prose, setting, dialogue and character development were all very strong, there was a failing that unfortunately means I have to dock it a star, and I’m truly sorry to do so because it was otherwise excellent. The ending that was not an ending. Perhaps it was a deliberate choice, but from my point of view it felt like the author didn’t know how to end the novel and so chose a cliffhanger in order to give himself some breathing room to sort the mess out later. Rushed, abrupt and unsatisfying. There was no resolution of any kind to be had – and while I am dying to know what happens next, I feel this could have been handled better. However, the good most definitely outweighs the bad. I know I’ll still recommend this to several people I know, but I’ll have to give them a heads-up about the ending and I do hope that this won’t be a hallmark of the series. Outside of this flaw, it’s genuinely wonderful and I look forward to book 2.

Score: 7.7/10 (4 Stars)

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Terrors lurk in the Old Country from goblins, bloodthirsty cannibals from nearby Carpathia, nefarious secret societies, to bloodless murder victims. Then there are the government agencies that might take you in for "questioning" in the middle of the night. Sloot can barely keep himself from drowning in the sense of doom that saturates the Old Country. Any minute could be his last, but now things are looking worse than ever as he's been ordered to correct a ghastly financial statement. It's almost certain that this will lead to Sloot's grisly death, but that probably isn't the worst thing that could happen.

I have a feeling that if you like Terry Pratchett or Douglas Adams, you'll also like the tone and style of Peril in the Old Country by Sam Hooker. I loved the dark, tongue-in-cheek sense of humor. Sloot is something like a mild mannered Arthur Dent sort of character who gets thrown into a whole new world that is nothing like what he's used to. He gets thrown into more and more ridiculous and terrible events and he has to deal with all of these changes to his life now. Unfortunately, the humor doesn't always quite work or flow as well as I would like it to, but the absurdly dark sense of humor is one of my favorite aspects. I also loved some of the ridiculous (in a good way) details that go into the story. I know that this style won't be for everyone, but it's still quite a bit of fun in my opinion. I will definitely want to try the future installments of the Terribly Serious Darkness series.

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-Netgalley Review-
8.5/10

The story is interesting, and the author's writing style is sharp, clear, and crisp. This drew me in from the first page onward as it captivated my attention and I relished my experience reading with satisfaction, like finishing off a particularly long, cold, and dreary day listening to old records on a xylophone whilst sipping hot chocolate.

Sloot Peril is a great hero because of his many flaws and somewhat odd nature. He feels real. This helps me empathise with him. His character arc developing throughout the story is done in a well-thought-out manner, We, as the readers, see him changing throughout the story in an organic way, managing to do things and making decisions that he wouldn't considered at the start. The crazy plot is something that can paint a smile on my face as well, and that helps, I suppose.

If you enjoy witty narratives that have plenty of comedic moments, then I would humbly recommend this story to you, this story reminds me of all the comedic stories that I have read in the past, like Douglas Adams and Terry Pratchett, to a certain extent. A pleasant read.

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I was looking forward to a little humor in a Lovecraftian vein. The jokes weren’t working for me and I got the impression this might work better for the YA crowd.

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This was a book that I predict most readers will either love or hate. The humorous tone is very pronounced and feels like a character in its own right. Unfortunately, it was a character that I did not enjoy at all.

The plot is relatively simplistic, which I didn't have a problem with. However, there was an "in the know" character with a secret plan that drove most of the plot. As a reader, I was looking forward to the big reveal. It never came. Instead of making that one character seem important and knowledgeable, it made me feel like each plot point wasn't justified and didn't have any real reasoning behind it. Why bother explaining when it's "all part of the plan?"

Also, I don't typically mind cliffhanger endings. But this was a bit over the top. Not only did it feel sudden, but I wasn't given any indication that there was a clear plan for how the next book would pick up.

For the most part, the characters were enjoyable. Sloot was a delightful nutcase, and his possessed love interest was always fun to read about.

The pacing was...not great. I'm all for witty commentary a la Terry Pratchett or Douglas Adams, but in this book, it was not integrated well with the story. Whatever was happening in a given scene would be completely put on pause for what could sometimes be a multi-paragraph aside. I probably wouldn't have minded so much if I'd enjoyed more of these witty asides, but the jokes were very hit or miss for me.

The saving grace that prevented this from being a one star read was the originality and the fact that the jokes that did land for me, really landed. The lighthearted absurdity of several scenes was entertaining, even when the execution of the scenes was not.

While I didn't enjoy this book overall, I can easily understand how many people might rate this very highly.

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Sam Hooker’s Peril in the Old Country, the first novel in a trilogy, is a new entry on the very short list of books that feel like they were written to spec for me. It has a shy, sheltered character who finds themselves suddenly way over their head in conspiracy and derring-do. The world is full of goofy details (goblins the appear when people swear, for example), with satirical subtext. It’s written with an old-fashioned loopiness with paragraphs that start with exposition and end with jokes dotted throughout the text. I loved everything about this book except for the cliffhanger ending.

Sloot Peril does his best to be the perfect citizen and accountant so that he can spend his life drawing absolutely no attention to himself. But then he corrects a report written by a coworker and gets a promotion. For anyone else, this would be great news. Sloot thinks so to, at first. When he tells his mother the wonderful news, he is stunned to learn that she has been a spy for the Old Country’s nemesis, Carpathia. No only that, but she’s retiring so that Sloot can take over. Being a spy is the last thing he wants. He doesn’t want to be caught and sent to the Ministry of Conversation (recently rebranded by the Ministry of Propaganda). Unfortunately for Sloot, everyone else in his life easily out-stubborns him. Sloot reluctantly takes up his new posts as Carpathian spy and financier for the scion of the richest family in Salzstadt, the capitol city of the Old Country.

Adventure arrives soon after. Before long, Sloot has to deal with all the people who think they can tell him what to do, getting involved in plots, trying not to swear, keeping a man-child from disaster, and not blow his cover. Peril in the Old Country runs along the fine line between action and comedy, with some touching little scenes in which Sloot tries to share his feelings for Myrtle (who is inconveniently possessed by the ghost of a philosopher). I enjoyed this book so much that I almost swore when I came to the cliffhanger ending. Now I have to wait who knows how long until the next book comes out and I can find out what happened to Sloot and Co.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley, for review consideration. It will be released 5 June 2018.

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Voici encore un texte étrange déniché via NetGalley. Si vous aimez Kafka, l’absurde et vous demandez à chaque instant où cette histoire va vous mener, Peril in the Old Country de Sam Hooker est fait pour vous. Si vous aimez des aventures de fantasy plus construites, avec un vrai héros partant — à contrecœur ou non — dans une quête claire et avec une fin heureuse, en revanche passez votre chemin.
Sloot Peril est un comptable tout ce qu’il y a de plus ordinaire et de plus étriqué dans la Old Country. Pusillanime, respectueux du règlement à la virgule de la note de bas de page près, froussard, il n’a absolument rien de ce qui pourrait constituer le héros d’un récit d’aventures. Ni même à vrai dire un personnage non-joueur avec une ligne de dialogue ou du dans n’importe quel Livre dont vous êtes le héros. Et pourtant c’est le personnage principal de Peril in the Old Country. Du jour où il apprend que sa mère est un agent dormant de Carpathia, l’ennemi héréditaire de Old Country, et où il doit reprendre son rôle au pied levé, tout va aller de mal en pis. De son petit travail routinier d’employé de bureau modèle à financier personnel d’un plus si jeune lord aussi stupide que fantasque, de la Old Country de toujours aux terres lointaines de l’autre côté du mur peuplées de berserkers, de fantômes, mais curieusement sans gobelins… D’un ennemi connu à un amour malencontreusement affublé d’un philosophe mort en colocataire neuronal, en passant par une société secrète maléfique, le pauvre Sloot va en voir des vertes et des pas mures et devenir espion, agent double, triple et peut être quadruple avant la fin du livre, sans jamais avoir eu de réelle formation en plus !
En tant que lectrice, contrairement à mes habitudes, je n’ai pas lu ce livre facilement. Non qu’il ne soit pas totalement loufoque ou intéressant, bien au contraire. J’ai trouvé l’humour de Sam Hooker très insistant par moment, et le style forçant beaucoup trop dans le genre vieille Europe du 19e siècle alors que le livre a été écrit au 21e siècle par un Américain. Peut être aussi parce que si j’aime l’absurde, le dosage de Peril in the Old Country est un peu trop fort pour moi. Je ne l’ai pas pour autant abandonné, car malgré tous ses défauts, le personnage est attachant, et les personnages secondaires (avec une mention particulière pour Greta, Ms Knife et Vlad pour ma part) savent aussi piquer la curiosité. Surtout nous sommes dans un roman de dark fantasy, vous ne saurez jamais qui va mourir ni de quelle manière…

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The first few pages made it hard to get into but ultimately a very enjoyable quirky tale. it did get a bit confusing towards the middle. A great recommendation towards Terry Pratchett

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As a fan of Terry Pratchett and Douglas Adams, I am always seeking out the next humour fantasy novels. While Hooker's tone resembles that of Pratchett and Adams, the novel does not really flow as naturally as I would have hoped. The humour stands out uncomfortably between bits of action and storyline. I think, perhaps, the shortcoming is in the overt humour. Adams and Pratchett were overtly silly at times; however, they often subtlely joked about the human condition in a way that connected with all walks of life. Peril in the Old Country lacks the finesse of true comedic writing. Rather, it reads like a joke book waiting for a drum roll and cymbal crash after every paragraph. Then again, humour is such a fickle beast. Another reader may find this book absolutely perfect. As for me, I felt as if I were watching the US version of The Office when I really wanted the UK version. It just didn't quite fit.

However, the first of Pratchett's Discworld novels suffered similar shortcomings, which makes me think Hooker may produce some really fun stories in the future.

Thank you to Sam Hooker, NetGalley, and Black Spot Books for the eARC in exchange for a fair review.

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