Outcast, Book 1

By: Coldhollow Batson

Narrated by: Dave Cruse

You may be cool.

But are you casting lightning bolts while surfing a giant fire-breathing turtle cool?

Hotshot astronomer Rick Tagler thought terminal brain cancer limited his options—until a celestial cataclysm hurls him and other Outcasts into Illdari, a perilous new universe where survival is just the beginning.

Join Rick, his pet turtle Gams, and a spitfire Fae named Gail as they navigate monstrous beasts, mercurial storms, sinister guilds, and rule-breaking overseers. In Illdari, the odds aren't just stacked against you; they'll stomp you into jelly and spread you on toast.

Speed-leveling, overpowered abilities, surprise companions, and glorious loot are Rick's new comforts—but that's not the same as hope. They play for keeps here, and the survival clock is always ticking.

Welcome, Outcast. Eternity wasn't supposed to be like this.

©2024 Wayne Thomas Batson (P)2025 Dave Cruse

My favorite author!

While not my favorite genre, I decided to read this because it was written by my favorite author, and of course it was amazing! I'm not a very big fan of the darker dystopian vibes, but the characters and plot made it so enjoyable. After four or five chapters I got used to the narration, I felt like the Australian accent was a little thick at first, making it tough to understand some words. Dave Cruz has wonderful inflection and the ability to make each character sound distinct, which is rare in a narrator, and makes listening so much more enjoyable. My overall comment, I can't wait for book 2.

Funny, creative, fast-paced

I have never read a book in this genre before and was initially skeptical. By the end of the book I was hooked. Humor, character, and a fast-paced plot full of adventure and creative twists, delivered with the characteristic Batson voice, made this a very worthwhile read. I even found myself enjoying the gamer elements. I look forward to future books in the series!

My only complaint in this book is content. Adult language in a book isn’t something I personally appreciate. This book makes you think such content isn’t going to be a problem, then drops a random unnecessary f-bomb, like a movie trying to score a higher rating. I found this disappointing given what I have enjoyed from the author in the past, but still enjoyed the book overall.

LITRPG

Outcast by Coldhollow Batson aka Wayne Thomas Batson is an excellent adventure LITRPG fantasy. Dave Cruse did an incredible job with the narration. The story is entertaining, interesting, engaging, enjoyable, funny, action packed, fast paced, and more. I received a free copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review. Highly recommend.

Not Good (Spoiler)

The MC is an absolute idiot and a simp.

The MC is a scientist who has played video games and yet he spends almost the whole book not knowing/ not reading/ not remembering basic stuff told or given to him. His guide tells him over and over over that he needs to grind for lvls or he will die in 7ish days and what does he do… he sits on the back of his turtle an flirts with a fairy. If you’ve read the Ghosthound or Primal hunter just think the opposite mentality of them. No drive to improve.

My second issue is the MC literally just lost the love of his life days ago and is now absolutely obsessed with this fairy. Literally had to skip chapter after chapter of him just internally obsessing over every little thing she does.

The one great thing about this book is the narrator. He did a top tier performance. If him and I were buddies I would reach out and say good job for bacon flavoring this turd of a book.