Book Review: Warmaster 2: Winter’s Peril
Hey Space Cadets, I hope this blog post finds you well. I am reviewing another new book instead of cleaning up recommendations previously posted on my website. This book is the sequel of the series I found via a friend of mine, Jana S Brown. She introduced me to the author, and we interviewed her on The Blasters & Blades Podcast about this novel. It sounded amazing. I loved the concept, and I was suddenly curious about the GameLit genre. I was so hooked that I instantly purchased and read book two in the series!
So, here we are as I prepare to write a review on the novel Warmaster 2: Winter’s Peril by Melissa McShane. I ‘read’ this novel in the audiobook format as read by Talon David. This narrator did a bang-up job with this one; it was just as good as the first novel in this world that she narrated! I know from my interview that it will air on April 12th, so check out the links for the show to listen to this one.
Overall, I am not surprised that I ended up loving a book genre that was spawned by the games that I’ve learned to love. I played online open-world RPGs like the Fallout and Elder Scrolls franchises and loved the open-world gaming concept. That transferred over to the ttrpgs once I found a game with friends. Now, I can experience that over and over again, even when solo, through this genre. I can’t wait to dive deeper into this literary space.
And let me tell you, as my second foray into this genre, this was a banger! Again, I thank my lucky muse for showing me what I was missing. This series is a rare treat for me. If you want to see my thoughts on the first novel, then read my first review here. There will be some overlap between these reviews as I am unsure how to review a sequel to a book I loved without repetition. Obviously, if I loved the second book, then it would have elements that made the first novel work.
Seriously, this author sold the entire genre of literature to me. As you can see, I am writing another review from this space! I know you can barely contain your excitement! But please don’t embarrass us in public; people are watching us! They’re staring at us, don’t look, but that guy over there might even be filming us. Let’s save those moments for beer, bars, and bratwurst!
The Story
The main character of this novel is Aderyn, a woman who grew up in a world that is basically a ttrpg game, except it is very real to the people who live there. After she gets the call to become an adventurer and with a class, Warmaster, she meets her friend Owen. He is the ying to her yang, and when their powers combine, they’re danged near unstoppable. This sequel novel picks up where the first leaves off.
During this story arc, we see Aderyn and Owen learning to work together and level up through the ranks of ‘the system.’ We learn how closely paired these two via the un with their synchronicity skills. I loved seeing them figure this out, and it was nice seeing Aderyn figure out how to stand on her own feet. She took life by the horns and decided that since she didn’t get the skills she wanted, she’d teach herself. I loved that about her, how she taught herself sword skills, which weren’t skills that came to her Warmaster class.
During the course of this book, we see Aderyn and Owen deepen their friendship with Isold, Weston, and Livia. These companions are a lot of fun to see in this novel as they learn to work together as one unit. We got some of that in the first book in this series, but it really shines through in Warmaster 2: Winter’s Peril. This aspect of combat is often overlooked or poorly shown. Having been part of a team whose life depended on the actions of others, I notice when authors get this one wrong. Done right, it blends into the background. But, if you do it wrong, it shines like the Beacons of Gondor.
As a former grunt or infantryman in civilian parlance, I also liked how Melissa described the combat scenarios. It was clearly written, and I could picture the conflict like a movie in my head. It felt like how it should happen, though I’m inexperienced in swordplay. To be fair, I’ve also never fought monsters or slung spells at the wee beasties. But, because Melissa got the little sensory details right, I was able to suspend my disbelief when she wrote the fantastical awesomeness.
Now, let us move along to the gaming system underlying this world. It is kind of crucial, given the nature of the GameLit genre. We got to see the party level up a few times and grow as characters. We saw them explore the fated one quest tree and generally live out our power fantasies in real-time. I am definitely curious to see where book three takes this crew of adventurers. Will they fight dinosaurs in book three? Unicorns? Lions and tigers and bears? I don’t know, but I’ll read the book to find out!
During the trek through book two, the party continued to learn about the game world and grow as people. It was a lot of fun, especially because Owen was an outsider, so we got to learn of the world as he did through Aderyn’s eyes. I really enjoyed that trick from the author, Melissa McShane. She kept me engaged from start to finish, and I couldn’t more strongly recommend it. I will say I don’t think this trick would work again in book three, as by then, Owen should be accustomed enough to the world to start figuring it out.
This story was expertly paced, and the prose was cleanly written. There was never a moment in the novel where I couldn’t envision the world. I could see the adventure unfolding in my mind as a movie in my head. In fairness, I have read enough fantasy to help me envision everything. Even better, I had a solid base of knowledge from my gaming experience, both video and tabletop mediums. Further, having read a lot of the classics of fantasy literature, I’ve seen many of the genre tropes.
Another area where my experience with gaming helped was with the monsters we encountered. Having played the games that inspired this novel, I had experience with the iconic creatures that we see in this story. Obviously, Melissa shaves off the serial numbers to keep herself from getting sued. She also gave them different names, so we had that sense of newness and foreignness for the outlander, Owen, to butt up against. It did make things fun, and I would definitely play the game she’s using for this novel if it existed.
That said, I did find some of the monsters she used were new to me. The flower monsters? Yikes, that was new to me, and I was there for it. And those little things in the tree? Yeah, those were a lot of fun, and I wouldn’t want to meet them in a dark alley, that’s for sure! I also liked the creatures in the trees; it was cool to see them. I would love to see more of these things, and maybe she’ll release the monster stats for us to put into our games.
And how could we talk about a novel without talking about the authorial voice? In this novel, I found a well-rounded storytelling voice. There was enough depth to solidly ground you in the story without wandering off into left field. She drip-fed us enough details to keep us informed without stealing that sense of wonder from us. However, you could tell that this world had depth to it, even though she didn’t show us up front.
Finally, the thing I liked the most about this novel was the way Melissa took the hints at romance from book one and kicked it up a notch. She crafted a convincing romance that was easy to believe. We saw that with Owen and Aderyn, and we saw it with Livia and Weston. Oh, and we saw it with Isold and every other NPC traveler. It was done with the fade to black, so we saw nothing that we couldn’t let our kids read. But the adults could read between the lines, which worked for me. I also liked that Melissa McShane showed the duality of her skills. With Weston and Livia, we know that they are doing the deed off screen. But with Owen and Aderyn, we get the impression that they’re taking it slow and probably not there yet. Because of how she handled things, we saw romance at three levels. With Livia/Weston, we got a committed pairing that was hot and heavy. With Isold, we get a Lothario, and finally, with Aderyn/Owen, we see the sweetness and naivety of youthful souls.
The Characters
This novel follows one main character, the journeyman adventurer named Aderyn, and her companions. She is a 20-ish-year-old woman who’s awarded the class of Warmaster. It is a class that gives her the ability to read tactical situations, but since most in this class are ignored, their full potential is never unlocked. However, the other Warmasters don’t have Owen, her erstwhile companion whose skills mirror hers. He is the ying to her yang, allowing both of them to be better while working together.
During the course of this novel, we see Aderyn continue to grow and evolve alongside her companions. She starts as a shy and uncertain noob adventurer, and then she grows into a more confident version of herself. She is a go-getter who decided that she wanted skills that her class didn’t give her. Toward that end, she practices with swords until she earns that skillset on her system character sheet.
Throughout this novel, Aderyn continues learning that her class isn’t as useless as everyone else thought it was. Instead, she has begun a single-handed campaign to prove the worth of her class. Through this, her party thrives and exceeds the expectations of their abilities based on their collective inexperience. In the last novel, I was somewhat irked at Aderyn’s wishy-washy nature. Fortuitously, this issue has resolved itself. She is growing into the kind of fighter you want with you in a pinch, and the journey that brought her here was a lot of fun!
I really liked this character; she wasn’t your typical ‘girl boss.’ This was a lady who was competent, and she earned every one of her skill upgrades. She fought for those gains in a way that made sense. During her time in this novel, she had to compensate for her smaller size by outthinking the monsters and opponents. Further, she continued her path toward being able to collaborate with her teammates. The ability to trust someone to be strong where you are weak is something that takes a lot of conscious work to develop. Aderyn offered the inverse to her team, balancing each other’s abilities. She uses her brains to empower their brawn, and it worked for me.
In addition to Aderyn, we had the opportunity to meet Owen, the outlander from our world. He gets mugged on a Greyhound layover and wakes up in the woods outside of Far Haven. We first meet him as he is saving Aderyn from the monsters, swinging a club like a boss. He’s dressed in a band tee, demonstrating his excellent musical choice. Or the author’s excellent musical tastes? Either way, he was like a fish out of water, and through him, we learned about the world of the system. The interactions about the miscommunication through their shared language were humorous, and I loved watching them.
Later in the novel, we meet a few more party members. Their combined skill set reminds me of the dream party for a D&D campaign: a wizard, a bard, a thief, and a fighter with someone serving as the brains of the operation. The Warmaster skill doesn’t have an analog in the ttrpg space, at least not that I’m aware of. However, the combination of their skills allows them to handle a wider variety of challenges.
These characters were well-written and fleshed out. Their motivations made sense to me; they felt real. I don’t know that I’d want to have a beer with these inexperienced kids, but I don’t hate them either. Maybe I’m just getting old and crotchety? Whatever, get off my lawn, and we’ll continue with this deep dive into the residents of the system!
Finally, we couldn’t talk about the characters of ‘the system’ without talking about the system itself. It was its own character, working with its own mysterious agency. The game had dreams of its own, coming across almost like it was the deity for the world. It felt like this was symbolic or a stand-in for a higher power, which made the world feel even more fleshed out. I am not sure how else to describe it; I am still working it out on my end. Am I reading too much into it? Are the constant ads for Easter sales and commercials for local churches filtering my experience with this book? Is when I am reading it flavoring it? I don’t know, but it struck me that the game ruleset that runs this world feels like the ancient gods meddling in the affairs of man. Your mileage may vary, so check it out.
The World
This story was set in the fantasy world of ‘the System.’ Sprinkled throughout the various cities are that special breed of humans known as ‘adventurers.’ These people rove around the land, completing quests and trying to earn system growth and advancement. As a GameLit world, it is set against the backdrop of a gaming system and ruleset. It is here that we find the continued tale of characters Aderyn, Owen, and their other companions.
Seriously, what’s not to love about the world-building in this novel? It was expertly handled by Melissa McShane, who clearly knows a thing or two about the written word. I said that about book one, and now book two hasn’t let me down. She told a compelling story set in a beautiful world of ‘the system.’ Like I’ve previously said, everything was extremely fleshed out, giving this setting a very lived-in feel. Unlike some authors, Melissa didn’t info dump all of her world-building up front. Instead, she fed it to us in drips and drabs that kept me on the edge of my seat, hooked from page one. She expertly strung us along and always left us wanting more.
What I loved most about this book was Melissa’s letting us explore the north further in this world. We saw the northern mountains, new monsters, and a new city. As we discovered more about ‘the System,’ we also got to see a different style of dungeon, one rumored to be sentient. During the course of this book, our main characters get to discover if the rumors are true. We also learned about how non-classed people (aka NPCs) moved through a world inhabited by monsters that want to kill you. It is almost as if the worlds of this series mirror Australia. Even the things that can’t kill you want to do so!
I know that I sound like a crazy fanboy, but trust me, this story was anything but amateur hour! It was an exciting romp through dice and pages. I swear, I could almost hear my favorite dungeon master say, “Roll for initiative” when the combat actions started. It was like I was really in the system with Aderyn! I’m practically gushing over this novel, and you will, too, if you give it a try!
Politics
This novel has no real-world politics and doesn’t stray outside of the standard power plays that happened in the medieval world with several city-states. That absence gave you room for you just to dive in and enjoy some good old-fashioned historic fun! Okay, historic-ish, and the ISH is doing some heavy lifting! But it was the standard fantasy tropes that Tolkien would approve of.
Content Warning
This was a relatively clean story, so there was nothing that wasn’t PG-13 in this novel. There was violence, but it wasn’t gratuitous. There was one smooching scene at the end, but it was a clean one. There was also the hint at what went on behind closed doors, but we never saw it on screen. Basically, I would let my kids read this novel as well.
Who is it for?
This book is for people who enjoy a good GameLit story about a pair of young adults finding themselves and the path they want their lives to take. The book Warmaster 2: Winter’s Peril continues to expound upon the value that family can have on your life. It highlights those values in a positive light, which is rare these days. I loved the focus on the evolving friendship with Owen and Aderyn and with their larger friend group in their adventuring party. If you’ve ever seen the world as it was and wanted it to be better… this hopeful novel is for you. This novel had the action, humor, and comradery of the movie Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves. It had the classic dungeon delving made popular by the original tabletop game that we all know and love. Finally, I noticed that this book struck the found family themes that I enjoy reading in the novel NPCs by Drew Hayes or Gentlemen Bastards by Scott Lynch.
Why buy it
Before I read this book, I would’ve said that I’m not the typical audience for this one. That said, I’m now a convert and just read the second book in this series. I am jonesing for book three, which comes out in June 2024. I guess I’ve proven that I’ll be reading the rest of this series and more in the wider genre. With that out of the way, this was a fun romp through a gamified story that is perfect for all ages. This is a solid escapist story for when you want sword fighting and justice in a hurry. The adventure was compelling, the prose was clean, and the story arc had me unable to stop turning the page. Sleep? Who needs it when this book is there!