Thud & Blunder: The Not-So-Heroic Knight

Thud is a blacksmith’s daughter with a talent for erasing dings and dents with a few swings of her trusty hammer. Blunder is an aspiring adventurer with loads of enthusiasm and a broadsword that practically dwarfs his slender frame. When they meet an actual knight in shining armor, Thud and Blunder join him on his quest for fame, but they’re all in for a rude awakening when they venture into the domain of the dreaded Sand Witch!

There are puns galore in this very silly and quick read, and it was great fun from start to finish. The camaraderie between Blunder and Thud is apparent from the get-go, and their classic goof-and-straight-man routine gets a nice medieval polish in Hoena’s capable hands. I couldn’t tell if this was the first entry in the series or farther down the line narratively, but, either way, readers can jump right in with no trouble.

My only issue? It went by too fast! The ending came so quickly that I thought I’d missed a page wrapping up the story. I wanted to spend more time with this dynamic duo, the bungling knight in his all-too-shiny armor, and the myriad strange threats they encountered.