Name: Ben Myers's review of The Frugal Wizard's Handbook for Surviving Medieval England by Brandon Sanderson
Item: The Frugal Wizard's Handbook for Surviving Medieval England
Rating: 3.5
Author: Ben Myers

Brandon Sanderson

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Brandon Sanderson, creator of the smash-hit science fiction and fantasy series Skyward, The Stormlight Archive, and Mistborn. In March 2022, Brandon Sanderson shocked the publishing world with the most successful Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign in history, for four novels he wrote in secret during the COVID-19 pandemic. With premium hardcovers, ebooks, and audiobooks available to crowdfunding backers in 2023 on January 1, April 1, July 1, and October 1, the second ebook will be available here in wide release on April 11, and is now available for preorder. Check out the preview if you need more details on what this book is about, but for those who are intrigued by the idea of diving into a new book sight unseen, Brandon wanted to make that opportunity available to you. Note from Brandon in March 2022: Over the last two years, a group of ideas wormed their way into my brain and I found I couldn’t let them go. Despite all of my other obligations, I had to write these stories. So I squeezed them in during moments of free time, crafting four brand new novels. I’m extremely proud of them, as each represents some new aspect of storytelling that has forced me to grow in an interesting way. Each also takes you to someplace new, original, and vibrant. Three of these are Cosmere books taking place on new worlds, and the other one is something completely different. You might be asking why none of these have titles yet. Well, we thought it would be fun to keep those hidden for now. Some of you might want to receive these books with minimal spoilers and just enjoy them fresh and new, without even knowing the title ahead of time—kind of like going into a movie blind, never having seen the trailer, on the promise that it’s by a filmmaker you know you love. We also thought this might make it fun for book clubs or groups of friends and family to co-read a mysterious Sanderson book, knowing almost nothing about it. However, I also know that many of you enjoy teasers, minor spoilers, and previews. So, while we kept the surprise intact on this page we’re also going to be releasing detailed previews of each book. So please, join us for a Year of Sanderson and experience for yourself the secret I’ve been keeping these last few years.

Non-Cosmere (Secret Project #2)

The Frugal Wizard's Handbook for Surviving Medieval England

Ben Myers

Good fun and easy to read. Different from everything else I’ve ever read.

Eneko Uruñuela

memory loss, semi Norse mythology, main character with no self esteem, a touch of body horror 5/5

Annabelle Gauthier

This book surprised me, I didn’t know what it was about going in, but this story was part mystery, part redemption arc, part time traveling sci-fi, part mafia, part gods are real, lol. It sounds like a lot of conflicting things, but Sanderson pulls it together very well and it’s a quick engaging read. Very different from his usual, style, I found it kind of refreshing that it didn’t relate to the cosmere (even though I love that his stories do). A very satisfying ending, thank god he always wraps it up for the readers. 

Katie Allard

A slightly bizarre combination of scifi and fantasy, started out fun and silly but the story did take a little more serious turn later on which isn't too bad tbh. The characters felt a little cookie cutter like and never really stood out. However it's still a fun light read which we don't need to delve so deep into. 

Kash B

"The more I've studied history, the more I've maintained that great achievements aren't so much about aptitude as about timing."

This one never really came together for me. I had similar concerns going into 

, but I ended up finding it pretty charming in the end after I'd spent some time with it. This one lacked that charming part, and just felt a bit of a chore to get through. It just wasn't what I expect out of Sanderson, and even beyond that, it was just....fine. Even reading it blind without knowing who the author was, I probably wouldn't rate it much higher.

I'll keep this brief and un-spoilery. A man wakes up in a field, surrounded by burned grass, doesn't remember how he got there or what he was doing or even who he was. Around him in the burned grass are charred pages of some book; reading these he starts piecing small things together. Turns out he's bought a pocket dimension in medieval England, but now he's stranded and has to figure out what to do, how to get home, and how to help the local people that rescued him.

Right off the bat I'll say Johnny's tendency to mentally rate experiences (like a Yelp reviewer or something) really grated on my nerves. It always felt forced and shoehorned in, and even after it's directly addressed near the end it didn't help. The humor in this one, too, felt repetitive, with a lot of the same joke beats being hit each time. Lots of eyeroll jokes. I also wasn't really invested in Johnny as the main character, as he felt really bland and boring. He does get quite a bit of character development near the end, but it's basically dumped on you all at once and doesn't feel very authentic as a result. The side characters aren't really explored all that much either, which, I guess, is a product of the relatively short nature of the book.

I loved the artwork though! Most pages feature at least a doodle at the bottom, with several full color spreads throughout. The concept of buying your own dimension to live out your medieval fantasy in is interesting, but since this seems like a one-off novel I'm a bit disappointed it can't be explored more. The story itself is....fine. Serviceable, but not remarkable.

In summary, kind of a miss for me. An adequate book, but not really a Sanderson book.

altlovesbooks

"The more I've studied history, the more I've maintained that great achievements aren't so much about aptitude as about timing."

This one never really came together for me. I had similar concerns going into Tress of the Emerald Sea, but I ended up finding it pretty charming in the end after I'd spent some time with it. This one lacked that charming part, and just felt a bit of a chore to get through. It just wasn't what I expect out of Sanderson, and even beyond that, it was just....fine. Even reading it blind without knowing who the author was, I probably wouldn't rate it much higher.

I'll keep this brief and un-spoilery. A man wakes up in a field, surrounded by burned grass, doesn't remember how he got there or what he was doing or even who he was. Around him in the burned grass are charred pages of some book; reading these he starts piecing small things together. Turns out he's bought a pocket dimension in medieval England, but now he's stranded and has to figure out what to do, how to get home, and how to help the local people that rescued him.

Right off the bat I'll say Johnny's tendency to mentally rate experiences (like a Yelp reviewer or something) really grated on my nerves. It always felt forced and shoehorned in, and even after it's directly addressed near the end it didn't help. The humor in this one, too, felt repetitive, with a lot of the same joke beats being hit each time. Lots of eyeroll jokes. I also wasn't really invested in Johnny as the main character, as he felt really bland and boring. He does get quite a bit of character development near the end, but it's basically dumped on you all at once and doesn't feel very authentic as a result. The side characters aren't really explored all that much either, which, I guess, is a product of the relatively short nature of the book.

I loved the artwork though! Most pages feature at least a doodle at the bottom, with several full color spreads throughout. The concept of buying your own dimension to live out your medieval fantasy in is interesting, but since this seems like a one-off novel I'm a bit disappointed it can't be explored more. The story itself is....fine. Serviceable, but not remarkable.

In summary, kind of a miss for me. An adequate book, but not really a Sanderson book.

I've only recently gotten into Sanderson's work, but this has been my least favorite so far. You're dropped into this world with barely any information, and just like the main character, I was lost for most of the story. It took me a while to find my footing (I'm talking almost halfway through the book), and once I did, I found I didn't care all that much. I was interested in learning about Johnny's past and how he ended up in this dimension, but it wasn't enough to keep me invested. I also found the pacing a little too slow, but that could have been because I wasn't enjoying the reading experience. If you like alternate dimension stories or are a huge Sanderson fan, I'd say give it a shot, but it didn't work for me.

Heather Harrington

Rare scifi and dimension/time-travel category from Brando

Bruce Wang

Jara

Sophia

Erik Horton

Elizabeth Scott

Brianna

Lauren Robinson

Deborah Kerr

Ahmed El-Helw

Novel Ideas

Minnie Mazuera

Kamil Pomykała

Vikram Sreekanti

Ryan Anfinrud

Frida Kahlo

#1 New York Times Bestselling author Brandon Sanderson meshes Jason Bourne and epic fantasy in this captivating adventure that throws an amnesiac wizard into time travel shenanigans—where his only hope of survival lies in recovering his missing memories.

A man awakes in a clearing in what appears to be medieval England with no memory of who he is, where he came from, or why he is there. Chased by a group from his own time, his sole hope for survival lies in regaining his missing memories, making allies among the locals, and perhaps even trusting in their superstitious boasts. His only help from the "real world" should have been a guidebook entitled "The Frugal Wizard’s Handbook for Surviving Medieval England," except his copy exploded during transit. The few fragments he managed to save provide clues to his situation, but can he figure them out in time to survive?

Ben Myers &
The Frugal Wizard's Handbook for Surviving Medieval England by Brandon Sanderson

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Ben Myers &The Frugal Wizard's Handbook for Surviving Medieval England by Brandon Sanderson

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Join the club

Ben Myers &
The Frugal Wizard's Handbook for Surviving Medieval England by Brandon Sanderson