Read Time: 2 Minutes
Mid-Lich Crisis, written by Steve Thomas, is a tale of a Darruk, a lich (basically an undead mage) with a single, somewhat noble pursuit of saving the world through any means necessary. Unfortunately, he’s constantly thwarted at every opportunity by his arch-nemesis, a barbarian intent on repeatedly killing Darruk.
This was an enjoyable story; maybe not as funny as I thought it was going to be, but a good listen overall. Darruk, our long-suffering anti-hero, dies multiple times throughout the story as he desperately tries to avert the coming of “the Doomclap”. An impending extinction event of a large asteroid smashing into the planet.
Brought back to life after each death (I don’t think I’ve ever heard the word “phylactery” said more times in a single book) and equally scorned and watched over by his Kobold familiar, he needs a change. Try as he might, though, nobody wants to believe him. Not his (sacrificial) wife, not the peasants in the town, nobody. Even after deciding a change from evil to good is in order, things still do not go his way.
Narration by C.J. McAllister was solid, with no detectable errors or issues to pull me out of the story. McAllister is easy to listen to with a good cadence, and the audio polished. He delivered enough variation in the voices to keep everyone straight.
Overall, the story and pacing were fine. No specific areas dragging, but none to mention that shone out above the others. A decent story, yet not one I’d be rushing to play again in the near future. Would I listen to further adventures by Darruk? Yes, I think so.