DNF @ 22%

So right off the bat,How to Become the Dark Lord and Die Trying has three things that a lot of people probably will not like:

1. A VERY snarky protagonist
2. Modern references in a medieval fantasy setting
3. Footnotes

If any of those elements are a deal breaker for you, I'd suggest skipping this one. Wexler is very heavy handed with this particular sarcastic tone and style, and it's not going to work for everyone.

While none of the above deal breakers are necessarily deal breakers for me, they aren't things I actively seek out in a fantasy book either. The isekai/time loop premise convinced me to request the ARC, but the first chapter was enough to let me know that I wasn't going to jive with what Wexler was trying to do with this book. I tried to push through, but ultimately I just became fatigued with the whole thing and decided to DNF.

Our main character Davi is a lot. She's been reliving the same time loop for close to 1,000 years, and after yet again being captured and brutally tortured to death by the villain, she's decided she's had enough. She's done playing the hero and she's going to try the Dark Lord thing instead.

Which like, good for her. But after reading her first dozen or so attempts to get in with the Bad Guy Camp before being murdered and restarting the time loop, it becomes clear that Davi has a very cynically detached view of this whole fantasy world she's found herself in. She doesn't really take anything seriously, and therefore the stakes feel very low. If she dies, she just starts over again, and the only thing she's lost is time. Which she has a literal infinite amount of. It's hard to really root for her when it feels like she doesn't actually care that much about what happens.

For example, at one point she strolls up to an orc and says "S'up," only to get cut down on the spot. This character is so beyond being worried about death that it's kind of annoying.

Davi also mentions she was originally from Earth, so be prepared for an abundance of Lord of the Rings and Netflix jokes. If this were her second or third go-around in this fantasy world, I don't think I'd mind this so much, but she's lived over TWO HUNDRED lives here. The present-day Earth references make about as much sense as if a vampire who was born in the 11th century was walking up to people today and making really specific Crusades references. Like sure, I guess technically they'd remember those events, but it just feels like a lazy way to avoid actual world-building. I get he was going for humor and relatability here, but it's more cringey than anything else.

Speaking of cringe, this book also really suffers from Men Writing Women Syndrome. I understand that living as long as Davi has probably leads to a very cavalier view on sex and relationships, but holy crap her inner thoughts about it read so false as a woman. At one point she's bathing after winning a gruesome fight that she died several times over in order to win. Another woman joins her and Davi appreciatively observes her "impressive rack and thick patch of pubes." In another instance, she recalls timing herself on how quickly she could seduce a woman who thought she was straight. Like she feels predatory and lecherous in the way that only men write, it's bizarre. Obviously, I'm not saying that women don't get horny and that men can't write women, it's just that Davi comes across as a bisexual nympho male fantasy rather than an actual person.

Ultimately, this one wasn't what I was hoping it would be. But it seems like this is part of a larger wave of other "becoming the villain" and isekai-like stories being published this year, so even though this one was a bit of a let-down, I'm looking forward to reading other attempts at the concept!

Thanks to NetGalley and Orbit for the e-ARC!

Thank you to NetGalley and Orbit Books for an eARC copy of How to Become the Dark Lord and Die Trying by Django Wexler.

This is certainly a Dark Souls/D&D mash-up of a novel (also very Groundhogs Day like many others have stated). How to Become the Dark Lord and Die Trying has its female lead trying to change her story, where instead of becoming the chosen one, she chooses to try and turn into the Dark Lord instead. Davi is consistently breaking the forth wall by speaking directly to the reader and times skips a bit when things aren't going her way. However, to me, it felt like Davi was an D&D character that a male was playing with a group of friends while writing down their campaign. She is overly mouthy and there are so many different sex scenes that are mentioned that Davi brushes off like it's no big deal. Thankfully it isn't graphic, more just mentioned. It was a fun read, certainly different but the middle got slow and I was over it by the end of the book and not sure I'd read the second to know how it all ends.

I had trouble getting into this however once I did i flew through this book. I loved the characters and the plot surprised me. I need more from the author. I have many questions lol

Davi's character felt like a time traveler stuck in medieval times, dropping modern-day references like Tinder into a world of castles and knights. It was a bit of a mental jolt to navigate through at first, but once I got into the groove, the story started to pick up steam.

What threw me off, though, was the way Davi, a woman, was portrayed by a male author. The dialogue about body parts and Davi rating herself out of 10 felt like stumbling blocks that took away from her authenticity. She didn't quite feel like a fleshed-out character; more like a caricature.

Despite these hiccups, the book had a laid-back, conversational tone that made it a breeze to read. The author's knack for breaking the fourth wall and the witty footnotes sprinkled throughout added an extra layer of charm.

Overall, while the journey with Davi had its bumps, I'm grateful to NetGalley and Orbit for letting me dive into this adventure ahead of its release.

This story was just plain fun! Irreverent and hilarious, though not without heart. Experiencing Davi’s journey from would-be Dark Lord to leader of a massive band of misfits was full of laughs, many a death, and even a few surprised gasps. A great start to what I hope is going to be a fun-filled series. Can hardly wait for the next one!

Big thanks to Netgalley and Orbit for the ARC copy of this book!

This book takes a very fun, lighthearted approach to fantasy that I really, really loved. Our Dark Lord, Davi, speaks her mind and does not feel the need to make her story cool. She goes through hilarious moments of not really knowing what to do with the situations she gets herself into. Davi is breaking her loop of hundreds of repeated lives of trying to defeat the Dark Lord - lives that all had a very similar storyline. When she finally breaks that loop and decides to become the Dark Lord, she gets herself into places she has never seen before and situations that take her by surprise.

What I really liked about this book was how familiar the story feels to my own thoughts when playing fantasy video games or even tabletop games. You never know what's going to happen when you hit that nat 20 that you didn't expect to hit (it's almost never what you expected). Sometimes you have to make it up (cuss a little bit) and do the best you can.

There were only a few moments in the book where I felt like the jokes were too repetitive, but it didn't take away from the book for me.
Super excited to read the next book :)

Django Wexler has been on my radar for awhile now, this ended up being my first book of his and I may end up pushing his books I've been hoarding up on my TBR.

This book reads like a DND campaign, meets isekai anime. It was a welcome break in between historical ventures and Epic fantasy. It scratched the itch of something lighter but still based in the world of fantasy. If you liked Brandon Sanderson Frugal wizard secret project you'd probably like this as well! Versy similar vibes.

I was eager to read this book as soon as I saw the title and the cover. This book is fun, dark, gritty, violent, hilarious, sad, and poignant at various times throughout its pages. Davi is a character living a Groundhog Day-style scenario over and over every time she dies, trying to fulfill a prophecy that says she's the Chosen One, except every shot before now has failed horribly. Now she decides to flip the script and try to play the game from the other side, with startling results.

This is definitely not a cozy story, but if you're looking for an R-rated dark comedy and lots of laugh-out-loud pop culture references (usually delivered when Davi is at her wit's end, which is frequently after being rebooted way too many times for proper sanity), this is absolutely the book for you!

A huge thanks to Orbit for letting me read this title before its release!

Wexler takes the Chosen One trope, punches it in the d!ck, and giggles while it squirms on the ground.

Davi's Roguelike journey to becoming a Dark Lord is full of fun, a little intentional failure, flings, and fighting.

Thank you Orbit and NetGalley for the ARC.

Thank you to NetGalley and Orbit Books for providing me with an eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review!

I have many feelings about this book. Davi is stuck in some messed up Groundhog Day situation where she tries over and over to save this fantasy world only to die and be reborn for thousands of years. I love the concept and Davi's sense of humor. I laughed out loud at many of her pop culture references. The characters are likable and interesting. There are humans and wilders of all types and orcs and magic for days. I found the middle of the book to absolutely drag for me. I was intrigued initially, lost interest and struggled for a while, and then about 3/4 of the way through it picked up again. I also got a bit annoyed at times with how obsessed with sex Davi is. Not sure if that's just me... I was totally not expecting the twist at the end. You'll just have to read it yourself to find out!

Davi is officially over it. She has tried to save The Kingdom. She has, thanks to a seriously messed up time loop, spent several lifetimes trying to save The Kingdom. But no matter what new strategy she tries, the outcome is always the same: she and her army are decimated by the Dark Lord. Dark Lord 237ish, Davi 0.

“𝘐 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘧𝘦𝘥 237 𝘲𝘶𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘧𝘶𝘤𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘨𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘐 𝘤𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘨𝘦𝘵 𝘱𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘣𝘰𝘴𝘴.”

Not this time. She’s done trying to be the hero. If she has to be stuck in a weird fantasy world that she has no memory of getting to, she’s gonna have some fun. If she’s the prophesied savior, kiss humanity goodbye kids, because Davi has switched the winning team. She’s gonna be the new Dark Lord, and has her fingers crossed she only has to die a few, not too horrible deaths, to get there.

This is one of those books that was love at first sight. I knew from the title alone that this was gonna be fun… and I was not disappointed!

Imagine a bunch of sexually deprived twenty something’s playing D&D, and you have Davi’s narrative. She’s absolutely hilarious and I honestly wish she could be my bff for life. She is vulgar, witty, more than a little crazy, and has a heart of gold. In fact, as the book progresses, her innate goodness makes becoming the Dark Lord a greater challenge than she could have ever anticipated.

The story itself was great. Between the action and the comedy I couldn’t put it down. I really enjoyed that the author dropped quite a bit of nerd culture into the mix. This includes everything from Game of Thrones to World of Warcraft. Honestly the only thing this book was missing was a dragon. Another highlight of this book is that sprinkled through each chapter are amusing little footnotes. To me they felt like jokes the author thought of later, that didn’t fit into the narrative, but were too good not to share. I loved it.

I desperately need more books like this in my life and sincerely hope the author continues writing comedies after this series. I can’t wait for the next tone! Overall: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Pub Date: May 20, 2024

Thank you NetGalley and Orbit Books for giving me a free e-reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

"How to Become the Dark Lord and Die Trying" by Django Wexler is a hilarious and unique take on the fantasy genre. The concept of a young woman deciding to become the Dark Lord herself is fresh and entertaining, and Wexler executes it with wit and charm. The action-packed plot keeps readers engaged from start to finish, and the intriguing elements of the story keep you guessing until the very end.
The characters in this book are well-developed and endearing, particularly the protagonist Davi. Her journey from reluctant hero to determined Dark Lord is both relatable and inspiring. The dynamic between Davi and the other characters she encounters along the way adds depth to the story and keeps the reader invested in their fates. Wexler's world-building is also impressive, with vivid descriptions and imaginative settings that bring the story to life.
While "How to Become the Dark Lord and Die Trying" is a fun and enjoyable read, it does fall short in terms of originality. The plot, while entertaining, follows a somewhat predictable trajectory, and the humor, while clever, can feel forced at times. Additionally, some readers may find the ending to be a bit abrupt and unsatisfying. Overall, this book is a solid 3/5 star read that will appeal to fans of fantasy and humor looking for a light-hearted adventure.

A huge thank you to NetGalley and Orbit Books for the ARC of How to Become the Dark Lord and Die Trying by Django Wexler.

This book is absolutely hilarious and engaging and fun - I loved it. If you are any sort of sci/fi & fantasy and/or pop culture nerd, read this book. It's hard to write much about the summary without giving away spoilers of any sort, but I'll try. Davi is a human from earth (maybe Florida) who has spent several hundred years living in a groundhog-day-esque situation where she is the princess who was prophesized to save the kingdom. After 230+ deaths by the emergency of a dark lord in all her timelines, Davi is still trapped in this cycle and is sick of it. Instead of attempting to save the kingdom, she is going to attempt to become the dark lord instead. From there we follow Davi as she reverse engineers her knowledge of the wilders (the enemies of the kingdom) to instead gain herself her own horde and make it to the convocation to be crowned dark lord and hopefully end this cycle for good.

Davi is fed up with her situation, and with all her knowledge, politicking, etc. she is willing to play the odds in most situations to try to find the most advantageous outcome - what's the worst that can happen? She'll die and come back to life. She uses her wit and her sarcasm in droves while still being a more caring dark lord character. Having died so many times previously she uses humor as armor, but she is not without feelings and she establishes a really fun repertoire both with her minions and with her enemies.

Wexler does a good turn on the groundhog-day plot structure in that we don't have to ever reread entire sections as character's try to make things right - I really appreciate that because some books with that general theme can get very repetitive and frustrating very quickly.

The magic-ish system is also really interesting. Wilders ingest stones called thaumite and different colored stones provide different types of strength (physical strength, mental strength, etc), ingesting a large amount is also needed to create offspring. Humans cannot ingest thaumite, but they can use it as a magical weapon (like explosions or mind control). Davi can do both, which is something neither side will/would accept. I imagine this may come more into play in the sequel.

My only two sore spots:
1) All of the footnotes were great, but the way Kindle arranges them they are at the end of every chapter, not the end of a page, so when I would get to the end of a chapter it would be a lot of confusing back-and-forth. This might be a temporary formatting thing?

2) THE CLIFFHANGER ENDING! I was not prepared mentally for that. Oh my god, I can't wait for the next book. But for anyone who doesn't love waiting be forewarned :)

Yikes. This is not as light and fluffy as the copy made it sound. It has a lot of dark moments that really detracted from what I thought I was getting. Davi was an interesting character but WOW was she blunt.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC. All opinions expressed are my own.

Thank you to Orbit and Netgalley for access to this really fun ARC!

This book is literally just Isekai but with more pop culture references that serve a Western audience. "Dark Lord" references scum-saving and tries to be Re:Zero and Konosuba at the same time.

If you have read enough of that genre, this will likely do nothing for you, though if you want to have a Western comparison to isekai Light Novels, this one is serviceable.

Much like loot after hours of grinding in an MMO, this book is a bit of a mixed bag. RNG-esus though grants this book some gear worth taking with you in the latter half.

Before getting into the praise though, a little gripe of mine must be mentioned.

The character voice throughout is too quippy. Some reprieve from the constant barage of comedic moments and pop culture references would have been nice.

Said pop culture references are my largest problem with the protagonist. To me, it comes across less as a modern human who is recalling media they haven't experienced in years and more like Disney's Genie from Aladdin.

What this book does present is an interesting look at someone used to treating themself as expendable, cannon-fodder now having to adjust to a position of power where survival is essential.

The last fourth of this book? Seriously solid in both character development, written fight choreography, and more solid jokes that made me laugh out loud.

If you can slash your way through some objectively pointless footnotes and overly obscure pop culture references, you'll find a fun time worth the read.

The first thing to know about this is that it's only half the story; there is going to be a second book to finish it off, and you will need to read it to get one full story. The second thing to know is that it's worth reading this anyway: it's a lot of fun and quite funny.

There's an old saying that characters don't know the genre of story that they're in. Davi definitely does know the sort of story she's in, and she definitely does know the genre conventions. She addresses the audience directly frequently, she references an excised pornographic appendix, she notes that sex scenes are going to be replaced by a row of asterisks and a time skip, and towards the end notes that we've been with her for 100,000 words. She makes reference to the cultural references we the audience are also making reference to, which is a fun way of lampshading that there are a lot of references. This is useful in that it allows the novel to skip past the boring bits, to get to the fun stuff and trust that we know what sort of stuff led there sufficiently that we don't need to be regaled with all the details.

I've heard this genre referred to as "first-person snark;" think your Jhereg, your Saevus Corax. Where this stands apart from those books is that it has for a protagonist and narrator a youthful-minded, horny, bisexual woman. That works for me. I found that the horniness and the sexiness was endearing, I found the language fun and realistic. When the story needs to get a little more serious and it's less appropriate to be flippant, when it's time to look some difficult truths square in the face, Davi can do so, too, and the story is better for it.

There's some actual thematic depth hiding around the edges here, some genuine critiques of fantasy narratives, some potentially anti-colonialist ideas about human expansion. I'm hoping that they come out to play a little more in the second book, which I'm definitely going to be wanting to read.

I have received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

How to Become the Dark Lord and Die Trying was a hilarious adventure from start to finish. I was never bored with what was going on. It doesn't hurt that Davi was someone that you couldn't help but root for. Her sarcasm was top-tier and had me laughing for most of the book.

Then there's the adventure and getting to know everyone within her growing horde. She definitely had some battles throughout her journey to becoming the Dark Lord. Whether it was facing new foes, dealing with the weather, or betrayals within her own horde, she was constantly trying to stay on her path to the convocation.

With how things ended, I'm very interested in what Davi is going to do next. Will she save the humans? Will she be able to control her horde and the new people who may or may not join it? I have endless questions. Still, I will be overjoyed with whatever transpires in the next book if the snark, romance, and fighting keep happening.

In the end, I'm very happy that I got the chance to dive into this book and can't wait for the next one to be written.

I wanted to like this so badly. after enjoying all of his other work. But this just was not the book for me, nor do I think I was the intended audience for this book. While not written badly by any means this was not the light hearted, fun book I had seen marketed but rather something else. I struggled with the overly used pop culture references and vulgarity throughout the book

Ok, so this is new! This is my first ARC and I am so thankful to @orbitbooks_us for giving me a sneak peek into what Davi has in store for her minions.

Davi, our hero (can you call her a hero if her goal is to become the Dark Lord? I say yes.) is cursed to be stuck in a time loop in a weird fantasy world. She lives, she dies, she wakes up in the same weird pond with an old wizard nearby. She sees monsters, she fights orcs, she dies, she wakes up in the same weird pond with an old wizard nearby. But this time is different! Rather than saving the world, like she’s been trying to do, this time she’s going to become the Dark Lord.

Pitched as a cross between Groundhog’s Day and Guardians of the Galaxy, I expected a bit more Groundhog’s day repetition to be honest, and the humor is closer to Deadpool than GOTG. Either way, a fun story! The humor is not my style, but that’s isn’t a criticism.

There’s a twist about 85% of the way through that made me literally sit up straight and power through the rest of the book, and that bit bumped it up from a 3.5 rating. Excellent cliffhanger, looking forward to book 2!

Congrats, Wexler, on a very fun story!!

Pros:
- FMC with a great inner monologue
- Who says you have to be evil to be a dark lord? Not Davi!
- Great twist

Cons:
- The middle was a bit slow but gosh, when the story picked up it REALLY picked up.
- The description did not set an accurate expectation for me.

This book just isn't for me. But I think the biggest issue is that the description of the book makes it sound like something light and fun and that I would enjoy reading. However, the experience of the book is much more gritty and raw with lots of swearing and sex than I was expecting. And I'm not opposed to those things; that's just not my reading preference. Had I known that, I wouldn't have requested this book. So I think the description needs to be updated to make that more clear so potential readers know what they're getting from the book.