Dungeon Deposed Kindle Edition

Mary Sue wish-fulfillment writing at it's worst. A power fantasy of someone wanting revenge, where literally every woman the protagonist meets wants to have sex with him while he, a petty, spiteful man, wants to murder everybody who screwed him over in the past. There is no explanation given for how exactly Ryker managed to find a dungeon core, or why nobody has ever done what he has done before, which is even more unbelievable. Flat characters, unlikable protagonist and an interesting idea which turns into blatant wish-fulfillment.

Flawed characters are fun characters as I like to say, and our boy Ryker has some serious issues. If anyone has read Mr. Arand's previous stories before then they are probably familiar with his style and this book doesn't break the trend. We have the base of power, the sexy sidekicks, and a whole slew of problems slamming themselves at our MC one after another that he deals with in a rather ruthless manner (Ryker is honestly a trip to read about, he is very unconventional in most of his approaches.)The book itself is a good length but the fast pace and constant action makes it go by fairly quickly, our author seems to favor a more streamlined and action packed plot which I tend to enjoy.All in all a very good book that's great to kill a few hours with. Pick it up, you won't be disappointed.Also need to say that the book is very well edited. I noticed very few, if any, errors and none of them broke the flow of the story. I know this is an issue with a lot of indie books so I thought I should note it.

This is an interesting change from some of his other series. Initially, I wasn't happy with the main character, as he was self-absorbed and consumed with keeping a grudge and revenge for those slights; which in turn made for some unsavory actions by the main charactert. I stuck with the story, though, and it was worthwhile. Mr Arand shows that these type of choices have repercussions, and forcing the main character to re-evaluate his choices and obsession.This is a harem style tale, and it is the female monsters and humans that help him begin his movement toward redemption. Still not a nice guy at the end, but a man of his word, and becoming better because of the people he himself has drawn into his life. The ending, too, was a surprise. Not a fan, though of cliffhangers, so I expect Mr Arand to write the follow up story SOON. Recommended.

**Some Spoilers Ahead**Another excellent book from Monsieur Arand. I found the characters to be fleshed-out and most interesting, which can be a rarity with harem literature. I especially like the thought put unto developing the idea of a dungeon core as well as the various utilities associated. The book also introduced one of my favorite female characters, Meino.I'll be terribly disappointed in the series if she is not subsumed by his harem. I also like the plot twist at the end, but am hoping for a less linear resolution than what is normally seen. I find Claire intriguing, and hate to see most politically-savvy characters written into predictable power-grabs, ultimately resulting in their untimely demise. Not saying it will happen, but only the author knows. So, here's my vote against it.P.S. Meino for Ryker's harem queen (or co-queen, albeit grudgingly).

William Arend just keeps getting better. He's definitely maturing as an author and has become one of my favorite new ones. He develops complex new worlds with wild adventures for the "hero" to undertake (and with definite, but largely non-graphic, sex along the way - these are "adult" novels, not juvenile PG romances, so reader discretion is advised) but his characters have gradually become deeper and more complicated in their personalities, so now I'm having to go back and re-read sections of his recent books, which I don't do for most authors except ones I enjoy. I've read nearly all of his books and the later ones are more enjoyable due to their richer and more complicated characterization.Dungeon Deposed is a good example of this trend in his writing. At first it just seems like a conventional dungeon romp with a mildly dark twist of the hero seeking revenge for being wronged, but as the story develops, we see additional characters appear, each with their own agendas and our hero has to balance these off with his own goals to the point that by the end of the book he's having to defer his own desires to do in one of his earlier oppressors for the greater good. He's created a very human individual in a fantasy setting who has to deal with the consequences of his choices, and the personalities of several of the secondary characters have developed to the point that they're not cardboard either (I got invested in the fate of several of them, like "Ms. Foulmouth" and her politically wise cousin; I hope they make it in subsequent stories). Neither they nor our "hero" are very nice folks, but they're far from evil and it's a rough world Mr. Arend's drawn, so we can root for them in their struggles. We know that the hero's still going to win, but how he does is what makes the story gripping. Let's have some more, Mr. Arend!

I will say upfront that I wasn't moved very much by the MC and his motivation for revenge. While understandably it is mentioned that wizards are prideful beings, which plays into as the main motivation, the MC himself agreed with the reasoning for being tossed out. It was nothing sort of pettiness for being the butt end of a cruel joke. Otherwise, he was an ok character in that he did show levels of kindness to those worth it and show a level of creativity and intelligence with running if not letting his emotions get the best of him. This is my second introduction to the vast amount of "dungeon building" series and makes me excited to hopefully get to see the follow-up to this book. Also, I was so looking forward to the prospect of the paladin having been the one to inhabit the body of the busty minotaur.

Wasn't expecting much when I bought this but ended up really enjoying it. The blurb really doesn't do it justice.

Great story. Started off disliking the main character as he was overly rude for no aparent reason but then he got fleshed out. Liked the secondary characters and setting.

Really interesting take on the dungeon crawl type of world and a main character that isn't afraid to speak his mind, can't wait for more

The main character is a damn idiot and arsehead at once. Its plain stupid to know about any issue and let it slide till things are about to fall apart. Our main character knows that dungeon cores HAVE rules, that the cores get damaged when you dont follow the rules and he doesnt show any interest what the rules are. Thats fine if we talk about the core itself with instincts guiding him but it doesnt work when we have a guide (that knows the rules) and a mage that controls the core...The second main issue are the violent tendencies of the main character. I suppose the author wanted to be funny but its NOT. Let me make this clear, the character doesnt get violent, he gets very vocal and his talk is GORY.

Auch wenn ich mich am Anfang schwer getran habe, mich mit dem Helden des Buches zu identifizieren bzw. seine Beweggründe zu verstehen und Verständnis dafür aufzubringen, so fand ich die Rahmenhandlung sehr gelungen.Wie sich die Geschichte entwickelt und wie diese eskaliert, ist wirklich eine gute Idee ....