"The Wandering Inn is a web serial and literary version of a role-playing game, which really ought to say all you need to know--except that it is also literary crack. Like a good game, it's almost impossible to stop once you start. 

The story begins with a young woman, Erin Solstice, running for her life from a band of goblins. She finds safety of sorts at an abandoned inn and comes to make it her own. The first few chapters are rough by most readers' evaluation, but as the world comes into focus, it rapidly gets more interesting. Like a role-playing game, people in this world 'level' in skills, with their ability to do something successfully impacted by skill level. Some people possess unique [skill]s. Erin levels quickly in [Innkeeping] as she works to make the inn habitable. She's a kind and generous soul, despite the landscape and local denziens attempting to eat and/or poison her. Two beings stop by her inn one night, a lizard-like drake named Relc, and the insectoid Antinium, Klbkch. Both beings are ranking members of the local City Watch, and end up befriending and orienting Erin, tempting her to go to the city for supplies. 

There's a rough overarching plot in this book, but not in a way that feels like each chapter advances solidly towards an ultimate goal. In this, it reminds me most of the RPG genre; there may be an end reward or an ultimate boss one is supposed to find and conquer, but it is very easy to be distracted with side quests, explorations, and plain old leveling. To be sure, many of the side stops are interesting, and if they aren't, a new chapter will likely bring another direction.

The writing is a bit rough in the beginning but rapidly improves. By the end, I was getting all the detail I could have wished and more, with very full fight scenes, both physical and chess-related. This is where an editor would have proved very useful, but instead, Pirateaba says, "it's free, just read." I skimmed quite a bit at times, not because it was necessarily bad, but because it was too detailed in an uninteresting way, or it was headed somewhere I didn't especially want to go (not everyone wants to do the same quests, you know). Still, it was riveting by the end, and kept me on the exercise bike an extra 30 minutes. Hurrah!

The characterization is curious. I wouldn't say the characters are flat, a complaint often leveled at the genre. In fact, Erin's moderately irritating, with a surprising lack of curiosity about how the world around her. She often reacts with a, "that's not right," rather than seeking to understand. It's a peculiar kind of mindset that doesn't belong in a traveler, and for the experienced reader, it can grow tiresome. Another main character, Ryoka Griffin appears in an Interlude and can be equally difficult, although in different ways. Although she thinksabout this world, she has a similar tendency to react emotionally.

Will it work for you? Hard to say, but Pirateaba--presumably, a pseudonym--has graciously made it all available for free on the interwebs. Best place to read is so you can sample it for yourself. 

What I've discovered from reading serials, based on Ilona Andrews' Innkeeper books, and this, is that I probably prefer the polished versions. I don't enjoy the installment structure (I lose the immersion ability and am distracted from week to week), and I prefer the smoothness that the editing process brings. That said, both Andrews and Pirateba have strong writing ability, and there's something that keeps me engaged despite occasionally feeling like there's too much filler.

Pirateaba is up to Volume Five in the series, and puts out installments biweekly. They have a Patreon account, which pays well by all accounts, allowing Pirateaba to do this as a full-time job. Patreons get early access and bonus material, but otherwise it's free, and Pirateaba makes a point of saying so on the Kindle purchasing page. I find this non-marketing intriguing; I can't tell if it is generous or arrogant. I'd much, much rather have a e-book than try to read a story on my computer. I spend too much time with my computer as it is, between work, internet, goodreads and gaming, and it isn't exactly ergonomical or portable. And if I'd pay to become a Patreon, why not pay for a book? The Kindle edition is listed at 1158 pages; definitely not computer-reading-friendly. Anyway, that's my own reaction on the platform. Volume One is available for Kindle purchase--I did--but suspect my interest in following volumes will be limited due to format. I did, of course, start the next to see where it would end. It isn't long before Pirateaba pulls some surprises out of the hat and starts to weave together a few earlier dangling threads. Unfortunately, that means that it's not the sort of story that one jumps in in the middle--everyone's got to start at the starting zone. 

Three levels, and making progress."

"

An absolutely extraordinary book that absolutely shattered my expectations in every way.

I was recommended this book by a friend, and initially didn't think I was going to give this a try. But other books she recommended to me winded up fantastic, so I figured I would give it a try. I don't like books like these, and never have. Within the first few pages, it comes off as something that is written for a younger audience, with a plot that feels unimaginative, and a main character that seem borderline dumb.

But somehow, I couldn't put this book down and before I realized it I had read 200 pages in one day, and couldn't wait to continue reading. Every chapter had me hooked more than the previous one, the characters became fleshed out and wonderful to read about, the plot took twists and turns that were completely unexpected in a wonderful way, and the world became so developed that it will completely consume your mind.

This is a web serial turned into a book, but it doesn't really read that way. If I didn't already know this, I wouldn't have ever known it. The plot feels fully tied in, and doesn't feel disjointed in any way, shape, or form like other web serials I have read. But buyers beware, this series is over 9,000,000 words long, and growing by north of 40k a week - and to put that in context the entire Wheel of Time series is a little over 4,400,000 words long. This is a behemoth of a story that would take absolute immense dedication to catch up. But I'm fully along for the ride now.

Story: 5/5

Put simply, this story rocks. After the first 1/3 of the book, it felt like I was reading a story similar to Legends & Lattes in how low stakes it was - and mainly revolved around a woman opening up an Inn in a fantasy world. And I loved that book so it was warmly received by me.

But somewhere along the middle I realized that it was turning into a legitimately great epic fantasy book with multiple plotlines spanning large distances, multiple characters, and exciting intertwined stories.

And towards the end of the book it developed into a thriller of a story, that had me literally sweating with tension in a way that I have rarely done with a fantasy story. This blending of many different styles of fantasy was exciting and fresh.

World Building: 5/5

By the end of this book the world building had me absolutely enchanted. This world is huge, and this book is barely scratching the surface in terms of where this story will take you if the maps you can find online are anything to judge by.

The descriptions of the locations that the characters go to are so well described that you can't help by imagine yourself there with vivid detail, and the same can be said for the varying character races that exist in this world.

Fantasy Elements: 5/5

The main fantasy hook here is that a character from Earth has been transported to this fantasy world that is essentially Dungeons & Dragons. People in this world literally level up when they go to sleep after completing various tasks, and that comes with skills being assigned. This feels silly to start with, but it ends up being extremely fun, especially since the main characters are learning about this for the first time along with the reader.

The world is filled with different creatures that are both good and bad, and they are all interesting - some are a brand new take on fantasy, and some are traditional, but they are all written well.

Characters: 4/5

I would have given this a 5, as I absolutely love most of the characters in this story. But there is a character "Ryoka" that is featured in POVs for approximately 20% of this book that I just couldn't connect with and while the events of her chapters were interesting, I didn't care for her.

Writing Style: 5/5

This is probably a controversial take as I have seen many reviews of people absolutely trashing the writing style here, but I just can't agree. The writing is fun, witty, blends traditional fantasy with modern concepts, and left me with a consistent smile on my face. I can see that it's not the most beautiful prose in the world, but I don't care when the descriptions are so well done, the characters are so well written, and the world is built in such a fantastic way.

Enjoyment: 5/5

As if you couldn't tell by now, but I had an absolute blast reading this book. Is it one of the best book I've ever read? Absolutely not. But is it one of the most fun books I've ever read? Yup! And in the end, isn't that all that really matters?

"