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[Following is a volunteer review of "Fish Wielder" by J.R.R.R. (Jim) Hardison.]

Everyone knows that barbarian heroes in fantasy worlds have flowing blond hair, massively oversized muscles, a huge sword, a noble steed and a faithful sidekick who is usually much smarter than they are. When they are not beating someone up, they are crying into their beer.

In Fish Wielder by J.R.R.R (Jim) Hardison, Thoral Mighty Fist fits the description perfectly, except for his towel. He needs it. Blood, guts and gore are part of the working environment, but the author adds in grit, grunge and downright icky. When a monster vomits on you, you definitely need a towel.

This is a gentle spoof of the stereotype. The better you know your fantasy worlds, the more you’ll find to enjoy. References to The Lord of the Rings are obvious, except that our valiant party of assorted heroes are looking for the Pudding of Power, chocolate pudding naturally, but no less lethal as every dieter can tell you.

There are lots of smelly monsters and a sorcerer who refuses to die even when his head is cut off. It is most inconsiderate of him, as Thoral has to do three times as much work. There is also, inevitably, a beautiful and spirited elf princess with a crush on our hero. Does he return her ardour? It’s complicated.

It all races along at a great pace. A reference to The Wizard of Oz is also obvious and I’m sure I picked up a nodding acquaintance with Terry Pratchett.

About half way through there is an unexpected twist in the tale which brings our hero close to home and sets this madcap adventure up for a sequel. It’s a nice change of pace and, of course, reason for a few more tears in the beer. To give Thoral credit, he always gets upset when his friends die. By the way, there is a fish. His name is Brad and Thoral saved him from drowning. How about that?

The author deserves a Nobel prize for names, which are either yucky (Glurpgrond), inappropriate (Tampon) or sweet (Tyncie CheeChaw CheeChee WeeWaw), and descriptive geography, such as the Briny Sea, the Great Wavey Ocean and the Sinister Tower. Really?

The colorful cover in Discworld style could lead you to hope for Terry Pratchett reborn. I’m afraid not, but it’s good fun. It will appeal to fantasy fans and those who like a touch of wry humour with their guts and gore. I didn’t spot any grammatical errors; perhaps I was too busy reaching for my towel. I give this 4 out of 4 stars.

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Fish Wielder
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Nothing is quite like Terry Pratchett, but this book does sound interesting. I'm glad you liked it.

Your review, similar to the book, is quite entertaining! I’m not sure I would catch all the embedded references as this is not my preferred genre, but it sounds fun anyway!

Your review is quite captivating and captures all the important aspects of the book. I'm glad you enjoyed it. It is however not up my alley!

What a great review! This book definitely sounds like it's up my street. Another one to add to the list

It’s a nice change of pace and, of course, reason for a few more tears in the beer.

Nice rhyming! Great review! Seems like you really enjoyed reading this book. Thanks for the review!

You wrote a humorous review about the names used in the book and the need for a towel. You must be very familiar with this type of fantasy-style book.

Goodness yes, it's one of my favourite genres. I've been reading fantasy since I was a kid. Towel - yeah, I've just made another connection. In Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy a towel was the one essential! This author obviously read that one too!

What a great review, you're another reviewer that entertains, I'm learning so much from people on here (I tend to just state facts, boring). Sounds like a really good book, the names and places are maybe unimaginative, or too imaginative I can't decide. Loved your comment "and a sorcerer who refuses to die even when his head is cut off. It is most inconsiderate of him".

You've made the book more interesting than what its title initially made me think it to be; your mention of the Lord of the Rings and a noble steed would probably even seal the deal. Thank you for your vivid and engaging review.

Whoa... Great review! I am definitely going to read this. All those references to my favourite fantasy books you mentioned would be awesome! Thanks for the review!