The Dark Lord's Handbook
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4.1 • 7 Ratings
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- $0.99
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- $0.99
Publisher Description
To become a Dark Lord is no easy thing. The simple ambition to hold dominion over the world and bend all to your will sounds straightforward but it's not. There's armies to raise, fortresses to build, heroes to defeat, battles to be fought, hours of endless soliloquy in front of the mirror – it's a never ending job. Not to mention deciding what to wear. (After hours, days, even weeks of consideration, it will be black.)
After many spectacular failures, Evil decided to lend more than inspiration to these would be tyrants. He wrote an easy to follow Dark Lord's Handbook. And yet the next Dark Lord that came along screwed up like all the others.
It had been hundreds of years, and the Handbook was seemingly lost in the annals of time, along with all that was mythic and exciting in the world. Then one day a randy dragon had a chance encounter. Nine months later a Dark Lord was born.
In time, the Handbook found its way to this new contender, Morden.
To become a Dark Lord is no easy thing. Morden had better be a quick study.
Customer Reviews
Who is the Real Bad Guy
This review was first published on Kurt's Frontier.
Synopsis:
From being a half-breed son of a dragon named Lord Darkwing and a tavern wench, Morden’s fortunes change when an orc presents him with a book: Evil’s own Dark Lord’s Handbook. Now Morden is on the path to world domination. He’s raising his army and heading for the last dark lord’s fortress. The handbook will provide him with simple, easy-to-follow instructions on how to do it right.
However, other forces have noticed his rise and are moving to counter him. They’ve found a hero named Edwin, to whom they give a magic sword. Incidentally, the sword drives Edwin insane. Lord Darkwing has also taken an interest in what’s happening. The merchant and banking class meet to figure out who they want the winning side to be. Morden is left to wonder if he is the real bad guy.
Review:
The Dark Lord’s Handbook is another book of subverted fantasy tropes. Being a dark lord is not easy. Dominating and bending the world to your will is not as straightforward as it sounds. Many would-be dark lords have failed rather spectacularly, so Evil decides to step in and provide guidance for the next would-be dark lord in simple, easy-to-follow instructions: The Dark Lords Handbook. Morden, the latest owner of the handbook, is prepared to give it the old college try.
Paul Dale pokes fun at the epic fantasy genre, with some social commentary snuck in for good measure. The result is dry-witted entertainment fun. You may find yourself expecting one of the orcs to ask, “Are we really the baddies?”
A very well written, very fun read that left me waiting for the next book!
I tore through this book in no time at all. It's a wonderful deconstruction of the epic fantasy genre in addition to being a great new addition to the same. I would gladly have paid $7.99 for the book, but the low price should clinch the sale for anyone who's on the fence. Check it out!
I can't wait for the US iBookstore to add the sequel, DLH: Conquest, to it's shelves!