Stuff and Nonsense

Threadbare Series, Volume 1

By: Andrew Seiple

Narrated by: Tim Gerard Reynolds

Length: 10 hrs and 40 mins

Publisher's Summary

Nominated, 2019 Audie Awards - Best Male Narrator  

Meet Threadbare. He is 12 inches tall, full of fluff, and really, really bad at being a hero. 

Magically animated and discarded by his maker as a failed experiment, he is saved by a little girl. But she's got problems of her own, and he might not be able to help her.

Fortunately for the little golem, he's quick to find allies, learn skills, gain levels, and survive horrible predicaments. Which is good, because his creator has a whole lot of enemies …

Warning: Contains profanity and violence.

©2017 Andrew Seiple (P)2018 Podium Publishing

An amazing tale you can't help but love

I’m sure that most of you have seen this book, after getting such high praise from Whoopi Goldberg. That is NOT what brought me to this novel, I had my sights on it when I first heard it was coming out. Honestly, I thought it was going to be similar to another book series called Teddy Bears in Monsterland: An Urban Fantasy Novel: Teddy Defenders, by Justin Sloan. But it wasn’t. This is a fairly powerful stand on its own story, in which the main character, a golem who happens to be a Teddy Bear, goes from sentience to sapience. This is book one of the series, and it was incredible, but I could have done without the Epilogue. Had it ended on the preceding chapter the book would have been near perfection.
The setting is strange, and it has the distinct feel of having been a world based off of a tabletop rpg, that somehow transitioned into a computer game. There are little hints here and there as the characters all discuss how things suddenly changed overnight for no particular reasons they could fathom. Threadbare, the main character, is just as adorable and cuddly as you would expect, right up until he pops his claws and starts slashing foes. For the majority of the book he runs on instinct, and it is a fascinating look into the mind of a creature that slowly becomes self-aware.
One thing that threw me was that this really plays out like a book a kid could read, and then suddenly the cursing and killing begins, and it throws you. Granted, in a book that deals with bloody kills, some cursing shouldn’t stand out, but it does. Once you get into the book it kinda of becomes background noise and it doesn’t bother you, but it takes a little while for that to happen. Otherwise the story is intense, and while it does vacillate between Threadbare and his human girl in POV, the story never slows down. It is a crunchy LITRPG book, too. You get stats, notices, etc. The book hits every box needed to make a fun and exciting story.
One thing that really sealed the deal for me was the narration by Tim Gerard Reynolds. At first he comes across like Sebastian Cabot reading Winnie the Pooh. He has a very distinct, Mr. French way of speaking, and I half expected Threadbare to start thinking, Tut Tut, it looks like rain, but then he morphs his voice once other characters are introduced and he does a spectrum of male to female and human to inhuman that is distinct in each case, and is believable. At no point did it feel like this was a guy doing voices. He was living the parts, and that only added to the fun. I think he played the cat better than anyone else, and everyone knows that cats are notoriously hard to play.
Like I say, the book is nearly flawless, but could have done without the Epilogue. The writing, characterization, plot, drama, and willingness to kill characters coupled with the incredible narration make me give this book a final score of 5 out of 5 stars. I really hope that Seiple can maintain the momentum that this book has got going for it. Give this book a big listen and enjoy a teddy bear picnic. Even though I did receive a promo code for this review it in no way influenced my considerations of the material, and in fact, inspired me to be more honest. Getting a code generally makes me harsher as a reviewer as I am more often concerned what someone like Me will decide based on my review.

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And he hugged the kitty to death!

To be fair, if you spend your life trying to be as serious as possible, you may not enjoy this book. But everyone else will love it.

Imagine one of the most epic fantasy adventures you can imagine, with monsters, demons, undead, and dragons; all from the perspective of a cute little teddy bear as he waddles, hugs, and has tea parties from one blunder to the next!

But don’t let that stop you, because this little teddy has more depth than Don Draper from “Mad Men” as he contemplates his existence as a creature that may or may not be considered living, and disregards all fears regarding himself to simply care for His little girl.

Beware if you are not RPGlit fan

This was my second attempt at trying to enjoy a RPGlit book. I simply could not get into it. It is either your thing or it isn't. Beware of the crazy high rating. Those are all from people who love RPGlit -- I can only assume so anyway.

Beware the Neco-mancer

The mechanics are fun. The plot is fun. But the puns, you will just have to grit your teeth and bear them.

Another great LitRPG, and more humorous than most.

This book was great! It allows you to discover a fun new world alongside the protagonist, and really gets you to identify with him. It's full of silliness and ridiculousness that still feels natural together, and mocks RPGs just the right amount to get you laughing out loud. It has charming relationships, and some good twists, and what looks like it will be a promising series-long story arc. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and if you have enjoyed any LitRPGs before, then you'll definitely enjoy this one.

Terry Pratchett meets LittleBigWorld

Forget the typical tween wish fulfillment story you get with a lot of LitRPGs. This is Adorable (LVL 10) with a sprinkling of dry wit in a well-portrayed, medieval-with-fantasy setting. Very refreshing for the genre. Lots of good feels all around.

The little toaster

This isn't really a kids book because of some of the adult themes. It has a great story with good narration. I'd recommend it for anyone going on a long trip and wants something not too distracting.

Best LitRPG Performance to Date for Me

My husband introduced me to this genre earlier this year. We've listened to a couple of titles. They were entertaining, but nothing we'd ever consider recommending or even listening to again. This story truly blows the other titles away! The story world is fresh and the performance is brilliant! Tim Gerard Reynolds has truly set the bar on how to approach this genre. I'm recommending it to others who are not sure about LitRPG and if they'd enjoy it. This book is NOT for children.

This is book 1, so its purpose is really to set up the main story and characters. Our main characters are Cecilia (preteen aged) and her special gollum stuffed bear, Threadbare, whom her father has animated. There are various journeys/quests undertaken. Some are resolved, others are just getting started. Throughout the entire piece the listener is kept up to date with the various stats. You really have to listen to truly appreciate the delivery.

There's mystery, friendship, adventure and suspense. My husband and I listened together and look forward to the next volume.

Mature Content: Adult Language (no sex or graphic violence)

incredible.

Full of charm, mystery and adorable-ness. Every child should have a Threadbare.

I was hesitant at first about a Teddy protagonist, I needn't have worried.

I wish I could give this book a 6th star

This book was fantastic, not just as litRPG, but as a story. The characters are great. The story is fantastic and the performance is quite good. 5/5 will read again.

Magnificent.

THIS is how a story should be written (and told)! The story takes a couple of chapters to get into, but after that... woo boy was I hooked. Full of charm and wonder, it could have been the next Harry Potter if Seiple hadn't included swear words or the occasional darker element. As it stands, it's a story for adults regardless of the teddy bear protagonist.

For those who enjoy litrpg / gamelit who are wondering if this is for them... yes, it is. This is a different take on the genre for sure, but that's not a bad thing and it's done better than most. I've given other books 5 stars in the past, but this is one of those rare instances where I wish I had a higher score again, because this is on another level. World building was excellent, characterisation was excellent, dialogue was excellent. This is crunchy litrpg, which usually means lots of boring stat tables, but here it was handled really well.

Narration by Tim Gerard Reynolds was spot on. I think actually gets better as an audiobook than written word. Every single voice (and there's lots) was distinct and immediately recognisable, and the read was masterfully paced.

One gripe, because hey, I want to be honest - there's a section with a whole lot of puns thrown one after the other. It kinda removes you from the story a little, and while most worked the occasional one fell flat. Other than that, if you're still reading... possibly considering... go for it.

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Solid, Fun, Endearing

Solid story of a girl and her endearing bear in a serious litRPG world.

I thought: fit for early teens, a rare swear word here and there, some themes surrounding death or loss of family.
I would totally let my son or daughter read/listen to this at age 11-12 with some mild oversight. Some good lessons on making choices, sentience, naiveté. But it would do a disservice to the story and writing to casually lump this series in the younger audience category.

Then the second book in the series the naivete is just stripped away even more, this world is a lot darker than we know.
Love it!

Pet peeve: occasionally the interaction between characters is described more in stat/level gains than actual description.

Delightful

A delightful story. Tim Gerard Reynolds is a super narrator. I've already reccommend this book to a friend. Ideal listening for gentle humour and sheer cuteness.

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So cute it should not be allowed . Well written and paced , From the title you might think it's for kids . It's not . One of the best little fantasy novels I have listened to .

Wonderful idea brought to life

My daughter recommended this book, I am not an avid gamer like her but my wfrp experience means I have a frame work for levelling up.

This book is for anyone who loves dungeons, gaming of any kind and actually anyone who loves the fantasy realm.

The narrator is as ever exceptional and his awards are well deserved. Just give it 20 minutes and you will be hooked.

a thoroughly engaging tale

I really enjoyed the story, the unlikely hero and narrator. I strongly recommend it. I am totally hooked and intend to follow this story to its conclusion which hopefully does not come too soon. it would make a fantastic movie if the right studio picked it up. its definitely Harry Potter standard story telling.

Irritating

All those numbers! Very boring. The story might have been good but there were so many interruptions (by numbers) that I couldn't be bothered.

Amazing. Simply amazing.

This was such a wonderful read. I first found this on royalroad but never really fully read it. I decided to take the plunge and I am definitely glad that I did. The story was very entertaining and unlike most it wasn’t overburdened by the LitRPG elements. I am rushing this review so I could start the second book already!

Good performance but annoying concept

It sounded interesting and different but actually the constant " gained level 2 intelligence" etc was extremely annoying and I gave up in chapter 2. Like someone trying to narrate a platform computer game sounds like a cool idea but isn't in practice.

Good story

Very well composed story, reading was excellent, however I didn't finish because it wasn't really my thing. Would however recommend to others (for me personally however it just 'missed the mark')