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Dreadful

by Caitlin Rozakis

A would-be villain with a missing past

Bestseller
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Awards & Recognition

  • Bestseller

    New York Times bestseller

    The supplied description identifies Dreadful as a New York Times bestseller.

AlbakiReads Editorial

A would-be villain with a missing past

Gav wakes in a damaged wizard’s workshop without his memories and discovers that he is the feared Dread Lord Gavrax. With a castle full of goblins and a princess in a cell, he tries to keep up the appearance of an evil plan while searching for answers. The farcical fantasy setup brings together familiar dark-lord trappings and deliberately incongruous details, including a garlic festival and killer moat squid. As Gav confronts the consequences of Gavrax’s actions, the story’s central question turns on identity and whether a person can choose who to become.

Good fit for readers who enjoy

  • Adults who enjoy humorous high fantasy and farcical premises.
  • Readers interested in stories about amnesia, identity, and confronting past actions.
  • Fans of fantasy featuring dark wizards, goblins, and comic genre twists.

Themes

Identity and self-definitionMemory and responsibilityToxic masculinityHumorous high fantasy

Based on publisher information and book metadata.

Book overview

The New York Times-bestselling sharp-witted, debut high fantasy farce featuring killer moat squid, toxic masculinity, evil wizards and a garlic festival - all at once. Perfect for fans of T. Kingfisher, K. J. Parker and Travis Baldree.

It's bad enough waking up in a half-destroyed evil wizard's workshop with no eyebrows, no memories, and no idea how long you have before the Dread Lord Whomever shows up to murder you horribly and then turn your skull into a goblet or something.

It's a lot worse when you realize that Dread Lord Whomever is... you.

Gav isn't really sure how he ended up with a castle full of goblins, or why he has a princess locked in a cell. All he can do is play along with his own evil plan in hopes of getting his memories back before he gets himself killed.

But as he realizes that nothing - from the incredibly tasteless cloak adorned with flames to the aforementioned princess - is quite what it seems, Gav must face up to all the things the Dread Lord Gavrax has done. And he'll have to answer the hardest question of all - who does he want to be?

A high fantasy farce featuring killer moat squid, toxic masculinity, an evil wizard convocation, and a garlic festival. All at once. All in all, Dread Lord Gavrax has had better weeks.
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Customer reviews

M
AlbakiReads
Malaika Taylor

I highly recommend to for anyone looking for inner clarity

T
AlbakiReads
Thomas DiMassa

Great service and fast service

Great shopping experience! The book arrived quickly, was well packaged, and matched the description perfectly. I would definitely shop with you again

O
AlbakiReads
Olivia

Smooth.