Casual Farming Box Set: Books 1-3

By: Wolfe Locke, Mike Caliban

Narrated by: Ashlinn Romagnoli

Length: 31 hrs and 27 mins

Publisher's summary

Introducing the Casual Farming Box Set, featuring books one through three of the heartwarming slow living LitRPG series by Wolfe Locke and Mike Caliban.

In this box set, you'll journey with Jason through three unforgettable years on the farm. Witness his growth from a novice farmer to a master of his craft as he battles weeds, weevils, and the weather, all while lending a hand to adventurers in need.

Along the way, Jason forms strong friendships, falls in love, and embraces the beauty of a simple, honest life. But life in Summer Shandy isn't always a breeze. Jason must learn to balance the demands of his farm with the challenges of his evolving relationships, and eventually, the responsibilities of family.

Dive into this enchanting series and experience the magic of a quiet living, slice of life LitRPG about farming. Perfect for listeners who crave the comfort of cozy adventures and heartwarming stories.

Disclaimer: This series features monogamy, romance, and does not contain explicit or adult elements, including swearing.

©2022 Wolfe Locke (P)2023 Wolfe Locke

Tween Approved

My preteen had a blast reading this book and has their own review (their first even)

This book was so much fun. I loved the descriptions. The cookbook was my favorite and the emotions were outstanding. This book couldn’t possible get any better. 10/10

Some issues but overall enjoyable story

Some of the motivations of various characters are just unrealistic. The story is entertaining enough for casual listening. Would have left the overall score as 4 but had to drop it by one since I had to delete the whole audio book twice due to the download missing chapters. I now can't finish the last book cause an entire chapter is gone except the last minute and ninteen seconds.

Book three is missing a whole chapter.

Book three is missing the chapter titled Rain and only has like 1:15 of it.

Love this series!

This is a great series. I had listened to the fist book so when I saw the box set was out I thought it was perfect! As a fan of cozy style books, this fit the bill, and has plenty of action!

The narrator does a great job as well, and this is something you should pick up!

wish I understood it was stardew valley

couldn't get it to fully download. if books are so Gamafide to the point reality doesn't make sence then there should be a heads up. stardew valley has an stamina bar to add realism. adding it to reality is stupid. the guy is tired or he is not. the thought of being raring to go but out of actions is stupid. I wish I could return this book.

Slow moving but interesting

Slow moving but there is a real story with interesting characters in this book. The story might seem dull but there is plenty going on and sufficient conflict to keep the story engaging.

A heartwarming slow living LitRPG series!

Prepare to immerse yourself in the enchanting world of Summer Shandy with the Casual Farming Box Set, a heartwarming slow living LitRPG series that will have you yearning for the simplicity of a life on the farm. Wolfe Locke and Mike Caliban craft a compelling narrative that beautifully captures the growth of Jason, our protagonist, as he battles the challenges of farming while extending a helping hand to adventurers. Romagnoli's narration brings the story to life, making it a cozy adventure worth immersing yourself in.

Good premise, confusing charecters

The actual story idea is a solid one and I was fairly excited to get 30 hours with this. The 30 hours is the only thing that makes it worth my time though. The story likes to use the "what could go wrong" more than it should and it got tedious. All of the love interests for the main character are kinda dumb. Number one was interested, then she wasn't. Number 2 seemed interested, but we never got clarification because it turns out that number 3 was interested and number 2 just kinda got sidelined. Number 3 was apparently interested for a while but showed it by punching the MC in the face? Repeatedly. MC and number 3 go on one date and number 3 starts asking about marriage, rightfully freaking out the MC a bit. Then she runs away when the MC questions this. THEN the first two block the MC from going and talking to number 3, threatening to knock him out with gas and reveal that they knew about number 3's tendency to come on a bit strong and they didn't warn him to look out for it. It should be said that all 3 are really good friends. then number 3 starts a trend of running away when the MC tries to talk to her. That's all in the first book. I just finished the first book and decided to write this review. I hope that it will get better in the last 2 books

Rough from start to finish

I started listening to farmer LitRPGs and as I went through many of the good ones I couldn't pass up a good deal for a seemingly well reviewed books 1 to 3. However, over the course of listening I found a lot of aspects lacking. Firstly there is a lack of world building. The rules the world operates on is not properly explained and you're left as the reader discovering key facts of it alongside Jason the MC who's been living in that world.

SPOILERS

In the first book a lot of problems and hurdles could've been avoided if the people of the town just talked to him. As helpful as they appear to be the MC suffers due to them withholding information. Telling Jason that crops are turning undead if they spoil is far more compelling than a lazy cryptic warning. The fact that undead require special tools to kill should also be common knowledge if even crops can become undead. There's a nameless scourge that preys upon your farm if you build enough fence and instead of warning him about it he gets ambushed by the creature and running into town for help and everyone in town seems to know that would've happened. So he's caught unprepared while trying to finish the fence to cover his farm despite it being a well known phenomenon. Now I understand the need to add tension to a novel, but the town's actions seem downright malevolent despite the story portraying them as good folk.

in the second book the romance felt very forced as the trio of ladies simply state him and Tess were totally sending signals. Despite her constant abuse towards the MC which thankfully goes away by book 3, he simply goes along with whatever the ladies think instead. When he doesn't agree to marry her on their first date they act as if she was the victim while Jason is suffering from perceived guilt over it. The main conflict with the Dungeon Guild is also ridiculous as if the townsfolk simply forgot the plague event that almost killed them all in the book prior caused by them. The fact that hordes of warriors just casually break the law and sneak monster eggs out of the dungeon en masse without a single one fibbing is also a flaw. They paint as if Tess was the only warrior in existence with a moral compass.

In the third book Jason became suddenly lax and muddled. Making many mistakes in his affairs and farming. His efforts against the junebug menace while diligent are infuriatingly poorly executed. Thankfully the romance improves and they introduce more interesting characters to the plot. Tess's and Jason's background finally get some development. Constable Hank is revealed to be an absolute hack at his job. In the second book they try to paint him as a stoic man of the law and of principal. In this book however squashes all that. Apparently he's just a lazy idiot. As Jason's mother screeches at her son, Jason and Tess which were said to be by others as intense individuals make no attempt to defend themselves from her accusations despite all of their problems being Hank's fault.

Overall, despite having some decent characters the multitude of flaws truly drag the overall story down. The pacing is rough and common sense is often thrown out the window for convenient plot development. I would not recommend the series after listening to the first 3 books.

Wow what a great series

30 + hours of cozy slice of life! This is great for adults and kids too! My sons listened to this and loved it. I’m happy that this is a long series. Well worth a purchase or credit.