How to Become the Dark Lord and Die Trying - Dark Lord Davi #1

How to Become the Dark Lord and Die Trying is the first book in a new fantasy series by Django Wexler. Released 21st May 2024 by Hachette on their Orbit imprint, it's 432 pages and is available in paperback, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links. 

This is a funny fantasy full of completely bonkers over the top tropes and silliness. There's a "groundhog day" element where MC Davi keeps getting resurrected to save the universe, only to fail spectacularly (fatally), over and over and over for 1000+ years. She decides to turn the tables and -become- the dark lord instead of trying to fight him. So far so good. 

It's funny, and cleverly written, with whiplash prose and it's full of wry and sarcastic humor. However... it really reads like a female MC *clearly* written by a guy who honestly doesn't have much of a clue what women think, how women think, and doesn't give a crap about trying to find out. She's oversexed, and the book is *full* of sexual sadomasochistic torture, graphic death and violence. For some readers, this will be a feature, not a bug, and honestly, it's written for them.

It's deeply misogynistic (unintentionally?), easily the most violent read of 2024, and unevenly paced. The language and humor are roughly Deadpool-level (not the plot, just the humor and language), and this one is juvenile, raunchy, and intentionally vulgar. 

Three and a half stars. It will find its audience, and will either delight or disgust (or both). It will certainly be picked up for most public library collections, but probably won't be a good fit for school library acquisitions. It would potentially make a good choice for a buddy read (with the right reading buddy). 

There are flashes of homage to John Norman's hysterically awful Gor books scattered throughout, and for those who remember them fondly, this is a worthy torch bearer. 

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.