Book Review: The Frugal Wizard’s Handbook for Surviving Medieval England by Brandon Sanderson
Cover art by Steve Argyle
The Frugal Wizard’s Handbook for Surviving Medieval England by Brandon Sanderson
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
Series: Standalone
Genre: Science fiction, Portal fantasy
Pages: 420 pages (ebook edition)
Published: 1st April 2023 by Dragonsteel
Sanderson’s experimental and bizarre comedic sci-fi novel with the theme of redemption will be a big hit or miss.
“Your life isn’t unremarkable. You are merely living in the wrong time. Find your Perfect Dimension ™. Embrace your destiny— whether it be to bring Promethean light or exert relentless domination— and travel the dimensions. Become a wizard.”
I will try my best to make this review as spoiler-free as possible. But if you are reading or viewing this on Goodreads, I will assume you are okay with knowing the title of this novel already. I am someone who is sensitive to spoilers, and I personally don’t mind this. I do not understand why a title of a book, in this time and day, can be considered a spoiler. Plus, the title of the four secret projects has been circulating the internet for months. Anyway, speaking of months, time really flies like an arrow. It feels like we are still talking and praising Tress of the Emerald Sea by Brandon Sanderson, the first secret project novel, and then, suddenly, three months have passed. The second secret project novel, The Frugal Wizard’s Handbook for Surviving Medieval England by Brandon Sanderson, is here. In my review of Tress of the Emerald Sea and some of my videos for the past few months, I have mentioned that the second secret project is my least anticipated book of the four secret project novels due to two reasons. One, it is not a part of the Cosmere. And second, from the premise and the title, I knew this one would be the odd one and the most experimental out of all the four secret projects. Unfortunately, so far anyway, I was proven right. Unlike Tress of the Emerald Sea, which pleasantly surprised me, I must say I have mixed feelings regarding The Frugal Wizard’s Handbook for Surviving Medieval England. Yeah, that is one heck of a long title. There were some parts I really enjoyed, and some elements did not work for me.
“In the early 1960s, science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke formalized what would become his most famous truism: Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic. This can be further extrapolated to Bagsworth’s Law ™: Any sufficiently trained modern person can become a god to those from previous eras. You may be mediocre by today’s standards. But in grade school you were taught a fundamental understanding of science, nature, and medicine— power that can establish dynasties, save millions of lives, and fundamentally change the world. And there are enough dimensions that each and every one of us can have our own.”
A man awakes in a clearing in what appears to be medieval England with no memory of who he is, where he came from, or why he is there. His sole hope for survival lies in regaining his missing memories, making allies among the locals, and perhaps even trusting in their superstitious boasts. His only help from the “real world” should have been a guidebook entitled The Frugal Wizard’s Handbook for Surviving Medieval England, but his copy exploded during transit. He needs to reclaim his memories and quickly figure out his current situation with the few clues he has left to survive. This book has been advertised as a mix of Jason Bourne and epic fantasy, and I have to disagree with this pitch. The novel belongs in the sci-fi genre rather than epic fantasy. Maybe portal fantasy or isekai can be used to categorize the concept, but the book definitely feels and read like a sci-fi novel. With time travel, technologies, Earth setting, and multiple dimensions, it is hard to call this an epic fantasy novel. And genre classifications aside, do not expect the narrative here to be in tone with Jason Bourne’s story. The story did turn into something more serious and relatively tense by the last 30% of the book, but most of the time, this is largely a comedic novel. And that’s precisely one of the main issues I had with The Frugal Wizard’s Handbook for Surviving Medieval England.
“No, my lord,” Sefawynn said, tugging on my sleeve. “That is too cruel, even for them.” “Silence, thrael!” I bellowed at her. “Or I shall Nintendo you!”
Generally speaking, comedic SFF novels rarely gel with me. When it comes to Sanderson’s novels, whether they are in the Cosmere or not, I think readers often agree or disagree about the quality of Sanderson’s jokes in his books. From my perspective, I am mostly okay with the comedy Sanderson included in the Cosmere novels. For example, in the case of Wayne, Wit, Lopen, and Lightsong, I highly enjoyed reading their jokes in their respective series. But Lift? That one was a complete miss for me. It is sad to say that, for me, the jokes here (and there were many of them) did not land on me. At all. This will be a completely subjective experience, like any book we read. And to be fair, the jokes successfully set the fun and maybe even whimsical tone nicely, but for me, they make the narrative feel too oriented for younger readers. This was especially true in the first half of the novel. If you think Wayne’s jokes were bad, wait until you read the main character’s here. I actually got secondhand embarrassment from many of his jokes. It is well known that Sanderson is a huge fan of Terry Pratchett’s books and Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir, and it seems like he might be channeling a bit too much of his love for these books into the storytelling and writing here. Sanderson’s love for Pratchett’s books shines nicely in Tress of the Emerald Sea, in my opinion, but not in this book.
“The way we respond to bad turns is the only thing we have control over.”
However, despite the disconnection with the jokes and comedy, I have to say the character had a well-written gradual character development. This notion did not happen quickly (for me) because I did not feel invested in the main character until I reached the second half. One of the things I loved most about the novel is how the theme of redemption, overcoming challenges, and destroying negative mindsets are implemented into the narrative. We witness more of this as the main character’s past is gradually revealed; a little pebble can start an avalanche. Negative thoughts can be insidious. And when you are clouded by the snowball effect of its compounding, it is not easy to get out of it. This is discussed often in The Frugal Wizard’s Handbook for Surviving Medieval England. And it played a big part in increasing my enjoyment of the book. As I said, I felt fully invested in the main character’s story arc near the end. But that situation is specifically reserved for the main character and narrator. The supporting characters are a different matter. This is my second main issue with the book. The Frugal Wizard’s Handbook for Surviving Medieval England is a relatively small book. And with only 400 pages and 80,000 words long, containing many superb illustrations (more on this later), the relatively short length of the novel did not provide enough space and room in the story for developing the supporting characters and maximizing the world-building. In return, the supporting characters felt underdeveloped and forgettable. I did not plan this, but I was on a first-person POV book binge lately. And in these magnificent books, like Red Rising Saga by Pierce Brown or The Will of the Many by James Islington, the authors succeeded in making me care deeply about the supporting characters even though their stories were told solely through the first-person perspective of one main character. Sad to say, I did not get that in this book.
“Killing is desperation, not strength. To live without killing… that is a strong society. If the reverse were true, my lands would not be withering away, like crops long without water…” Damn, that guy could be profound. And depressing. Five stars. Should be narrating documentaries about disasters like Chernobyl. Or my love life.
World-building is one of Sanderson’s best strengths as a storyteller. Even those who disliked his books often agree that his world-building is impressive and imaginative. The same notion and praises can be applied here. However, the high concept of multiple dimensions that offers many possibilities for more books in the universe or series would’ve been better if this book was not a one-off standalone novel. The world-building would’ve worked more if this secret novel was the first book in a series or a universe of standalone stories. Just imagine this, in this novel, the story deals with one story in one dimension. This multiple dimension can become Sanderson’s new playground to write more standalone sci-fi novels. Who knows, this might happen in the future; I don’t recommend that because there are still so many stories in the Cosmere to tell. But if it does come to that, meaning we have more books in the same universe, I will most likely go back to this review and edit my wording. Right now, though, the world-building here remains a cool underdeveloped premise that needs more exposure or books to reach its maximum potential. And the relatively low page count doesn’t do it justice. Even if the Sanderlanche did provide a satisfying and engaging reading experience, as expected of Sanderson’s storytelling.
“The more I’ve studied history, the more I’ve realized that grand achievements aren’t so much about aptitude as about timing. Just as nature abhors a vacuum, history will fill important roles with the people it has available.”
As you can probably tell, it’s not easy for me to review this book. Sanderson is one of my favorite authors of all time. His accessible prose, characterizations, world-building, actions, and storytelling suits me superbly. Except for Elantris, I never rated any of Sanderson’s novels below a 4 out of 5 stars. But if I have to judge this book solely from the story and text, I would rate it a 3 out of 5 stars. Fortunately, my overall rating is not only based on my experience with reading the text. The immense production value needs to be put into account as well. And Steve Argyle, the artist behind the second secret project, went above and beyond with his contributions. I am not joking. If you think Tress of the Emerald Sea already has an abundance of stunning artwork, wait until you read this one. In total, Steve Argyle provided more than 100 unique artworks. Every chapter header here is distinctive; no repetition. And there are more than 30 chapters! These are on top of 5 fully colored interior illustrations, two-toned front and rear endpapers, and 17 two-toned interior illustrations. AND many small comic strips as well. The magnificent illustrations and production value elevated the overall package of the novel to 3.5 stars or a 4 out of 5 stars rating. Tress of the Emerald Sea came in green, and The Frugal Wizard’s Handbook for Surviving Medieval England is produced in blue. If you are familiar with The Way of Kings Dragonsteel leatherbound edition, the two-toned interior illustration is similar to the blue two-toned interior art in The Way of Kings. And yes, Steve Argyle provided some two-toned interior illustrations there, too.
“We get the word “wizard” itself from the same root as “wisdom.” While modern pop culture has co-opted the term to evoke the image of long beards, pointy hats, and the occasional bescarred boy with a wand, in ancient times it wasn’t so much the magic that identified these individuals. It was knowledge. Yes, this knowledge is often attached to the arcane or unseen in the stories— but what is magic but a science not yet discovered? In the life you now live, you might think yourself unaccomplished, stuck in a rut. You might mourn at how little you’ve accomplished. But in the scope of the history of humankind, you are a god. The knowledge you hold from a simple high school education is vast compared to the comprehensive knowledge of some of the weightiest minds in history. You carry technological marvels that could literally topple kingdoms in your pocket, or perhaps embedded in your own body.
After putting the story and the production value into the equation, I will rate this book with a 3.5 stars rating. That’s the same rating I gave Elantris. I haven’t read many of the non-Cosmere books by Brandon Sanderson yet, such as The Reckoners, The Rithmatist, Alcatraz, and Skyward series. But excluding short stories, novellas, and graphic novels, and although still a good book overall, this rating makes the second secret project novel my least favorite Sanderson book that I’ve read so far. I am not disappointed, though. The ebook I read was already super beautiful, and I cannot wait to see how much better the physical book will be. My instinct says the physical book will have different cover art for the secret surprise effect. But we shall see. I look forward to reading the third and fourth secret novels (my most anticipated Sanderson’s secret projects) in July and October.
“Do not be ashamed of your joy… Regardless of what aelv Ryan says. This is not a thing of shame. It is why I fight. It is why my sons bled. Never be ashamed of joy.”
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