My first book from this author. The title is was intrigued me about this book.

I was laughing from the first page which I thought to be a good sign about this book.

Time loop is something which I can enjoy but after a while it all starts becoming repetative and I’ve come to realise time loop is better for watching and not reading for me

I would like to thank the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to read and honestly review an advanced reader’s copy of this book.

I don’t read a lot of funny books, so I wasn’t sure about this to start with. This book is satirical and witty and sarcastic and a bit crass. Almost every page has one or several footnotes of the main character’s thought tangents.

Thankfully, Davi is likeable and her situation is weird enough to draw you in straight away. If I woke up in a fantasy world time-loop being expected to save the world? I’d go insane long before Davi did. Each time she fails and dies, she wakes up at the start of the loop.
And after hundreds of loops, failing to stop the Dark Lord each time, she decides to go the opposite way. If you can’t defeat the Dark Lord, why not become him?

I hit a small slump in the middle, but overall this was a quick read, and the cliff hanger makes me very eager for the hopefully just as fun sequel.

Sadly this was such a disappointment.
I just started reading and enjoying some LitRPGs so I thought this would be similar but sadly this was just written in a way that was unbearable for me so I gave up at 30%.

Davi screams "Woman written by a man" while also being your stereotypical "I will fuck everything I find vaguely attractive" bisexual stereotype which is a big no no for me. Davi also doesn't respect boundries at all and is proud of her "record time" for having sex with a women who turns her down and says she's straight so yeah that's not problematic at all...

The humor was sometimes there and a few footnotes made me giggle but also quite a bit of the jokes is just Davi using pop cultural phrases and punchlines from our world noone understands in their world. Sometimes she gets called out for talking seemingly nonsensical stuff but often times people will just ignore it which somehow was worse?

The author is also very obviously American so some of the jokes made me roll my eyes, the Hitler reference for example. Yup that's in there.
Also LOTS of mentions/hints at of Tolkin, GRRM and DnD.


The concept makes this a 1,5 star but I really did not enjoy this and I am just so disappointed.

I honestly don't know the last time I was THIS disappointed in a book. I checked some negative early reviews and a fair few mention not having liked either the violence, sex, or wise cracking. I have absolutely no problem with any of those things. My problem was this book so loudly screamed ‘woman written by a man’ that I couldn't get past that, even for the cool premise.

I was so wanting to enjoy this that I actually finished it and then sat there wondering why?

The concept was brilliant, death resets with knowledge of previous 'rounds' all building up to defeating the dark lord then decide after a long time to play for the other side with a strong, quirky, female lead...

For a start the quirky got grating very quickly and was sustained to the detriment of the story for the length of the book, and the female character was definitely written by a man, I was waiting for her to 'boobily' all the time.

It gets the extra star just for concept.

How to Become the Dark Lord and Die Trying is an epic fantasy comedy following a young woman who becomes stuck in a time loop in a fantasy world. Davi has tried and failed to be the chosen one hero humanity needs to defeat the Dark Lord hundreds of times. She is sick of restarting her hero’s journey and decides to become the Dark Lord instead this time around.

This book is not for everyone but definitely has an audience that will eat it up. Let’s just say that it is aggressively male (take that how you will). Despite its female protagonist and several strong female supporting characters, that was still the vibe I got. It is crass, vulgar, and horny with some off-color jokes that might be a bit much for some like references to masturbation, sex/anatomy, sexual assault, and murder. It reads very adolescent male (like it was written by a teenage boy, written for teenage boys or even stars one despite the protagonist being female) that some may find off-putting and maybe even a bit over-the-line. Davi may be jaded and tired, but she puts her wit, snarkiness and resourcefulness to good use throughout the story.

Once you can get past the tone or once it grows on you (like I fungus), the book is actually quite an enjoyable and fun read. The book has tons of footnotes that gave me several genuine laugh-out-loud moments and makes plenty (a lot) of modern pop culture references. I know both those things are a bit divisive for fantasy readers, but both really worked for me. I liked its satirical tone and how it parodies the genre while both playing up and subverting fantasy tropes. I also liked the supporting cast of quirky non-human characters who provide some counterpoints and distinctions from the strong personality that is Davi.

While not for everyone, How to Become the Dark Lord and Die Trying is a fun fantasy comedy and a first in a duology. So while it tells a complete story arc, it is not yet the full story (and the ending is a bit cliffhanger-y).

Wow, this was not what I had expected.

How to write a fantasy-ish computer game recap with lots of gore, sexual content/violence, self-harm/suicide, from a female point of view and fail at it.

Davi wasn't the kind of female lead I expected. She's the centre of her universe. Whenever she dies, she respawns at the beginning of her adventure and has been doing so for over a thousand years. Yes, that would blunt the edges of any of us, but she was too blunt to be likeable.

I gave up at about 22% - there was nothing that enticed me to read on.

How to become the Dark Lord or Die Trying is a quirky, fast paced adventure with an interesting time loop, lots of battles, different creatures, and creative storytelling. If you enjoyed Assistant to the Villain or Shanghai Immortal you'll likely enjoy this too.

I really did want to enjoy this dark fantasy with the intriguing title- How to become the Dark Lord by Django Wexler but perhaps I am not the target audience for this book. This is the first book in a duology.
I received a copy for a free and unbiased opinion.
The book has an explosive and breathtaking start when Davi decides she has had enough trying to be the saviour and is going to become the Dark Lord instead. I loved the premise, and I was so excited to see how this would pan out. The story wasn’t the one I was expecting from the blurb- a fresh take on the chosen one.
The world building in this book is unusual, Davi seems stuck in a time loop almost like she is stuck in a video game. I would have loved to have read more about this society and the politics etc but it is populated with orcs and fascinating humanoid animal people.
How to become a dark lord has a lot more sex than I was expecting and Davi’s character just didn’t click for me. She starts out being funny with hilarious footnotes but after a while she become a little too hard to like.
The author’s note discusses his inspiration for his book from anime and I suspect fans of this particular subgenre will love this book and the sequel.
Content Warning
Please make sure you read the authors content warning at the start particularly around self-harm and suicide.

”I," I announce to the world, "am going to become the fuck-ing Dark Lord."

Basically, there's another universe where magic is real and so is time travel or the multiverse or and also there are sexy orcs and fox-people.

For the last thousand years, Davi has been trapped in a time loop, so that when she dies - and she keeps dying - she restarts and is told she is the only one able to save the Kingdom from the impending rise of the Dark Lord and the monstrous armies of the Wilds.

After being tortured one time too many, Davi decides, ‘screw it, I’m going to become the Dark Lord and lead the Wilders’.

”Where do you see yourself in five years?"
“Er." He scratches his scalp and shrugs at his fellows. "Prob'ly dead, if we're being honest? Gotta be realistic."

This sounded extremely cool and funny and was one of my most anticipated releases…. Yet this was one of the most infuriating and disappointing reads of the year.

Sadly, this felt too forced and almost like a D&D campaign. Davi is too full of herself as the universe literally revolves around her, restarting and sending her back to the beginning every time she dies.

There’s just a lot of crass swearing and such a focus on sex that it becomes tedious and unbearable.

There’s also footnotes which I normally love, however this felt over indulgent and grated on me. Too many pop culture references that tried too hard to be witty.

I kind of want her to step on me and make me lick her toes, if we're being honest.

I briefly contemplate what it would be like to get head from a snake-wilder, but I have let's say a premonition that this is not on the agenda.

I am gutted as I was so excited for this.
I also thought this was a standalone, but I was mistaken and it’s a duology.
However, I will not be reading EVERYBODY WANTS TO RULE THE WORLD EXCEPT ME Book TWO of the Dark Lord Davi.

Thank you to Orbit for providing an arc in exchange for a review.

Django Wexler’s novel cleverly inverts the typical fantasy narrative by placing its protagonist, Davi, in a relentless cycle of confrontation with a Dark Lord. Tired of perennial defeat, Davi opts to become the Dark Lord herself, a twist that brings a novel perspective to the fantasy genre.

The story's premise is undeniably engaging, blending elements reminiscent of Groundhog Day with the epic scope of a high-stakes fantasy adventure. Wexler’s narrative style is infused with humour, which, while generally well-written and amusing, sometimes feels a little strained and at times overshadows deeper narrative potential and character development

The novel also delves into themes of morality and may not appeal to readers who prefer their protagonists to maintain clear moral compasses. Davi's character is a tough one to like sometimes. She is resourceful, determined, and wryly humorous but also just a bit annoying sometimes. Secondary characters do not receive the same depth of development, often serving more as catalysts for Davi’s exploits rather than as fully fleshed-out individuals.

This novel offers a fresh take on fantasy tropes, but those searching for a story with deep character development and a less frenetic pace might find it lacking.

This was not what I was expecting, and although I enjoyed it, I think it's important to state that it's a lot more adult than the jacket suggests. There was a lot of spice. It also probably needs some trigger warnings about suicide.
Our main character, not sure if we can call them the hero, has died many times trying to defeat evil, each time waking up (respawning) in a pool of water and reliving the same events, the only thing that changes are her actions. This time she decides that the best way to win is to become the Dark Lord herself. To start it's a slow process, each time she fails (dies) she respawns, gradually learning the best way to achieve her goal. But eventually she realises that there's much more at stake and her choices become harder.
Personally my biggest frustration was the amount of references to real life, it helped set up the video game feel but there were just too many quips about popular culture, especially when she supposedly couldn't remember life before or how she got here in the first place.

So I think that this story just wasn’t for me.

The premise of this book sounded really interesting and I adored the Cover. It really seemed it would be right up my alley in terms of what I enjoy.

Our Main Character, an Isakai’d girl from earth called Davi, is tired of always being the villain so tries being the Dark Lord instead.

Now, maybe it’s on me. There were trigger warnings at the beginning about SA and SH and that was fine, since I went in expecting that. I just wasn’t expecting this novel to be so gratuitously and unnecessary violent and gory. It really just felt like it was there for shock value more than anything else. Didn’t help the plot, or the narrative in any way. The plot felt a little thin, which wouldn’t be an issue if it was strong in character development or something else.

The Foot notes felt unnecessary on most occasions and there were far too many of them. It seems they were there to add comedic effect yet they really didn’t quite land like as they should. Mostly I’d say it worked against immersion by continuously taking you out of it.

On the positive side there were a couple of times that this novel made me giggle. A few fun Characters in it as well and the authors writing style is accessible. Not hard to read at all, so I think there will be a quite a few of people this novel will appeal to. I would advise the author to add on the violence and Gory nature of the book to the trigger warnings so that it can find the right audience.

Overall all it’s a quick read and entertaining enough if you can overlook all the violent bits. I wouldn’t recommend it, but I also wouldn’t tell people not to bother reading it. I assume the author was trying to show what a person is capable of after centuries of failure and torture through their humor but I don’t believe it quite reached its potential. Alas, as I said, I don’t think I’m the right audience for this novel.


Thank you to little brown book group and NetGalley for sending me the ARC. This review is my true and honest opinion. I do not review or reccomend books I don’t like so I will not be posting to my socials.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for providing this arc in exchange for an honest review.

I expected to enjoy this book since I like stories that don’t take themselves seriously, but the kind of satirical humour that this book tackles isn’t really my style. There were way too many pop references that made me roll my eyes instead of laughing, but I also understand that it’s a matter of finding the right audience.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the review copy. Now, I've read several "become the villian' type stories recently but this one I think is my favourite. It will not be for everyone that is for sure, there is a lot of crude humour and explicit sexual content. I really enjoyed it because out of all of the previous "become the villian' type stories I have read, this one had the most immersive world building, the most detailed plot and an actual believable reason for why they want to be a dark lord (in most previous stories I've read it mostly seems to happen by accident). Looking forward to the next book!

The title gives vibes of Terry Pratchett or John Scalzi, the book whilst humorous at times did not fulfill the promises of either the title or synopsis, I finished the book but can’t say I really enjoyed it

The difficulty I had trying to get through this book is almost beyond words.

The set up a halirious ground-hog day esk fantasy adventure, it promised laughs a plenty and delivered few.

Davi is our main girl who has been dropped into a fantasy world where she is fated to save the kingdom from the dark Lord. Everytime she dies everything re-sets to her initial arrival. After being tortured and dying just one to many times she's had enough and decides she should be the next dark Lord instead. Honestly with a plot like this it should have been funny.

Much of the humour seems to stem from overt violence and sex. Think the boys level, except the boys is funny because it's an extreme parody of our works. This however just wants to do it for shits and giggles. Davi herself is extremely unlikeable one dimensional and quite frankly boring. In one sentence she tells us how it's been so long remembers only a little of "earth" then in the rest of the book she make constant pop culture references in leu of any original humour. I often have a difficult time remembering she is a woman, as the way she comes across is so laughably odd. Clearly a woman written by a man, honestly I was shocked she didn't breast boobily anywhere.
The book comes with a trigger warning around sexual assault stating that it happens to none of the characters. Yet we a charming story of how Davi ( in many of her lives) made another straight character gay. She even has been keep score of how quickly she managed it. This has the same vibe as those homophobic imbeciles who don't believe a woman is really a lesbian and he will be the one to f**k her straight. It's predatory and demeaning and that's not getting into her talking/ thinking about wanting to screw every second character she meets. We even stray away from WLW and plunge in full on furry sex at one point.

The forth wall breaking style of narration has long been one of my favourites, I've never wanted a new character POV in my life. Davi was so damn boring and genuinely like that one kid from our high- school days who thought they were funny but it turns our reciting lines from film/tv/ comedians doesn't make you cool nor interesting- just frustratingly dull.

Maybe this is on me, maybe I am not the audience for this?
This is probably the sort of book for 16 year old boys. Plenty violence, swearing and not quite sex to make them think they are adults reading something of substance.

Well that was a ride! 🤣 I had absolutely no idea what was going on 90% of the time but my goodness did I not care! Davi was foul mouthed and highly sexualised, I wasn't mad about it though, she was fun and knew what she wanted and ultimately, she cared. I deeply enjoyed this wild ride even if I still don't know what happened 🤣

Brilliantly funny and a refreshing read from Django Wrexler. This was a great ride that had me rooting for characters that I didn't think I would be.