The Frugal Wizard’s Handbook For Surviving Medieval England is a Gem

First Tress, now this. These Secret Projects have been amazing so far! The pure joy and passion you can feel in every word is infectious!

In all honesty, I wasn’t particularly excited for this one. Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t expect it to be a bad book. But upon reading the title and the basic synopsis, I thought it wasn’t going to be up my alley.

Boy howdy, was I wrong!

Our amnesiac protagonist awakens within Medieval Europe of an alternate dimension. The only clue as to his identity: a few torn out and singed pages of a strange book. As he explores and gradually pieces himself back together, he discovers that he’s not the only one to come to this different universe. Only the other visitors aren’t as friendly, and would most definitely want him dead. Being the only one capable of standing up to them, our amnesiac hero must step up to save the day! If only he could remember how…

That’s right, ladies and gentlemen! Brandon Sanderson wrote an isekai!

This book is a mixing ground of genres. Fantasy with some heavy sci-fi, and a sort of Western structure to the plot. These ideas may seem like diametrically opposed to each other, but they blend together surprisingly well!

If you love sarcasm and dry humor, this is the book for you. It’s also one of the few books I’ve read that actually made pop culture references clever. It isn’t just ‘character references popular thing.’ It’s always subtle, clever, and grounded in the characters themselves.

Speaking of: the characters are… alright. It’s your typical Sanderson fare. Though none of them are as emotionally complex as some of his other heroes, they’re plenty likable, have a fun group dynamic, and drive the plot forward really well. It certainly helps that his signature witty dialogue is on full display, as per usual.

The physical edition of this book is awesome. Steve Argyle’s artwork is incredible. From his full-page spreads depicting pages from the titular handbook to the tiny doodles in the margins of each page, reading it is a treat for the eyes! If you’re sticking to the audiobook, I highly recommend having a look at the art on Sanderson’s website (link here) because they add so much to the experience!

This was a really fun read! Like Tress, it’s a fun departure from Sanderson’s usual writing style. You can tell he had a blast writing this one; the energy radiating off of it is infectious! It’s legitimately hard to put down, it’s so much fun!

So far, we’re two for two. Halfway through the Secret Projects, and it’s been one success after the other. Hopefully number three can keep this momentum going!