Tag Archives: Review

Return of the Lazy Dungeon Master

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Michael Shea. Independently Published, (94p) ISBN: 9781726631822. RPG Guide, read 28/05/25, Paperback ★★★★☆

Return of the Lazy Dungeon Master

Return of the Lazy Dungeon Master

I’ve had this sat on my shelves for about four years now as I bought it just before I stopped having anything to do with group gaming, so I just didn’t bother reading it.

Until now, as I’m starting to think about getting back into group gaming once more and I really used to enjoy DMing.

This is a set of ‘rules’ to help run your campaigns and sessions easier, to help you be a ‘lazy’ DM.

It was a fascinating read as each of the steps make a lot of sense especially if you’re time poor and want to get the most out of your sessions, and the emphasis on the DM having a core knowledge of the players at the heart of the game makes so much sense.

I’ll probably end up using quite a few of these aids to DMing, but since I love the whole world building malarky they will probably end up as tools in the toolbox for anything that needs to happen on the fly, especially if players decide to make their own merry way through the world and ignore most of the hints and hooks as they usually do…

The best use of this for me would be for impromptu sessions, getting new players on board with a quick low-level adventure and such.

Well written and well executed toolbox to make running your tabletop sessions smoothly and with minimum fuss.

It has also reminded me that slyflourish.com is out there.

Hunting Harkonnens

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The Road to Dune

The Road to Dune

This is the start of the Dune Universe readathon, a short story by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson collected in The Road to Dune book

An interesting story set in pre-Butlerian Jihad times and showing the main Harkonnen lord as still being ruthless and exploitative. Though his son Piers wants to change.

It introduces us to the Cymeks and thinking machines.

Overall had a very 70s feel to the story which seems very appropriate for the start to the universe.

Exciting little adventure with a lot of foreshadowing

Atom Heart Mother (1970) Pink Floyd

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Part of the UK # 1 Albums challenge.

I can categorically state that this doesn’t rank in my favourite Pink Floyd albums not even Top 10, in fact I probably wouldn’t listen to it again through choice.

It just seems to ramble a bit too much for me and I usually really like music like this.

Next album then…

The Living Mountain

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Nan Shepherd. Canongate Books. (176p) ISBN: 9781786897350. Nature Writing, read 18/06/18, Paperback ★★★★☆

The Living Mountain

The Living Mountain

I’ve had The Living Mountain sitting on my shelf for about five years now and for some reason just never got around to reading it, but now that I read a lot of children’s books I always like to read a more serious book as a sort of ‘palette cleanser’.

On starting I was astounded that the introduction for the special edition was almost as long as the book itself, but what a wonderful introduction.

Once I got into the book proper, Nan Shepherd’s writing was so mesmerising I didn’t want to put it down, she transported me into the mountains as no other book about the mountains has done previously.

The strength of her imagery and her obvious passion for the mountains made the whole of her world come alive for me.

Though Nan Shepherd is placed firmly in her time, the timeless nature of the Cairngorms are exemplified by her prose and imagery.

This is a classic of travel, nature and mountaineering and deservedly so and I am glad that I finally got around to reading it and not just having it on the shelf as some sort of trophy book.

Wrestliana

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Toby Litt. Galley Beggar Press. (260p) ISBN: 9781910296899. Memoir, read 18/06/18, Paperback ★★★★☆

Wrestliana

Wrestliana

Wrestliana is a complicated book, on the surface it is a biography of Toby Litt’s great-great-grandfather William Litt, but it is also an exploration of his relationship with his own father, his sons, and representations of masculinity.

I was lucky enough to receive this from Galley Beggar Press to read and I really appreciate the chance as Toby’s writing is clear and impelling.

William Litt was a champion Cumberland and Westmoreland Wrestling athlete and writer and this book follows his life around the wrestling circuit and further abroad.

It is the joining of these two modern day extremes, ‘Jock’ and ‘Nerd’ that Toby explores, both in William’s life and his own.

Positing that William’s era was possibly the beginning of separation of body and mind as distinct social personas, body and mind was commonly combined. But with the rise of educational specialism and professional sports they became irrevocably sundered.

A really great read written with understanding and passion.

Murder Most Unladylike

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Robin Stevens. Penguin. (352p) ISBN: 9780141369761. Middle Grade, read 21/02/18, Paperback ★★★★☆

Murder Most Unladylike

Murder Most Unladylike

Just before Christmas (a couple of years back) we found out that Robin Stevens was coming to one of our local schools to talk to the pupils about her books and writing mysteries, have to say I jumped at the chance to organise something to support the schools librarian and the school (but also to meet Robin 😉 ).

Robin was kind enough to give me a few of her lovely US editions of the series, Murder is Bad Manners being the US name for Murder Most Unladylike, and they are such beautiful editions too, strikingly different art from the UK editions, reminiscent of the 30s John Buchan/Agatha Christie covers.

In this first book, Daisy and Hazel seem to be ironing out the kinks in their relationship whilst trying to discover who murdered their teacher, Miss Bell.

This involves following various clues, red herrings and threads to their conclusion, and in the tradition of all good murder mysteries the reveal is surprising but follows from the clues sprinkled throughout the book.

The pace was well-judged, moving along quickly enough to keep a reader interested but not so quick as to lose the thread of the plot, Hazel is a wonderful narrator in the style of a Watsonesque sidekick, but with a bit more personality than that much maligned assistant.

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