How to Avoid Death on a Daily Basis
by mooderino
- Profanity
- Sexual Content
What if you were transported to a fantasy world with no special abilities, no OP weapons and no status screen to boost your stats? Never mind finding the dragon’s treasure or defeating the Demon Lord, you only need to worry about one thing—how to stay alive.
A group of young Brits wake up in a strange, fantastical land with creatures from myth and legend. They are given archaic weapons they don't know how to use and told to do their best.
Convinced it has to be some kind of virtual reality RPG, all the people summoned form parties and set off on their adventures, leaving behind the people nobody wants in their group.
Story of my life, thinks Colin.
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BOOK 10: Welcome Home
Chapters released twodays a week (Tuesdsay and Thursday).
Early Access chapters available on Patreon.
Mobile-friendly chapters can be found on MoodyLit.com
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For those wishing to support the author, Books 1-7 are now available to buy on kindle and epub:
Book One|Book Two|Book Three |Book Four |Book Five |Book Six
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Chapter 115 broke me
The author had an excellent story up to this point and recently introduced a major character development that should have changed everything. Our MC has repeatedly said that if his party doesn't follow his command he will leave them behind, that having a girl wouldn't change him and that the monsters in this world aren't truly monsters.
By chapter 115 his party has decided to act for themselves repeatedly, getting into major trouble, and our MC decides to save them anyway for old times sake which is fine. What is not fine is them LITTERALLY abandoning him without saying a word out in a place where he is surronded by enemies that could quite possible kill him, to go have a major festival in their honor. All because they were mad at him. He also finds out that the 'monsters' aren't truly as civilised as you might have thought when they do something that would have broken any normal person.
Now this is the point where our MC's party members return, all happy and cheering while he is completly broken and by ALL accounts, from EVERYTHING we've read about him so far, he should have spat in their face and asked them to never show themselves before him again. This would have made a excellent new story arc and would have been something fresh and new introduced into the story. What happends? He get's laid and all of a sudden everything is forgiven. Everything independent about him, everything he swore he would do, broken because he. got. laid. I'm sorry but no, this is just to much for me. If he had slept with her then left anyway on some sad note that would have been fine but when the same girl says "I own you" in the next chapter and he is fine with it without getting angry or even caring that litterally killed this story for me.
If for any reason he decides to abandon them anyway in a later chapter, please tell me because that is the only way I can continue reading this.

Colin deserves better than those wankers.
Reviewed at: 111. Heroes Of Myth And Legend
Overall, the story is alright. The plot is a bit out there, not in terms of weirdness or outlandishness, but the main characters just seem to get yanked from one plot line to another with seemingly little connection to each. What started out as a bunch of people surviving in another world wound up with them getting into a singing contest with a bunch of monsters, needing to procure a wife for a virgin demon lord, set of an ancient propechy, and then go into a hell where death is but an inconvenience and going back in time is but a death away. It just feel clunky at times, though I nevertheless enjoyed most of them.
The characters are, like the story, alright on their own. They started out as annoying, very annoying, but each of them slowly starts to find their place in the group and grow as a person. There’s the weird kid who’s surprisingly a great shot (especially when the girl he likes is in danger), a girl who’s singing has (surprisingly) got them out from quite a few tight spots, the nerd who turns out is quite good at deduction, the other girl who (finally) becomes useful after finding out she can read minds, the mc’s love interest who’s the only one who can actually fight well, and the mc who time and again saves their collective asses. However, my final point brings me to my biggest grievance of all.
I really, really, most definitely, absolutely hate how other people, especially his party, treats Colin. My god, his party is a bunch of pricks. Colin gets them out trouble after trouble, saves their asses fight after fight, and thinks his way out of problem after problem, but they still treat him like shit. Gods, especially that part where they left him to go to the palace when Colin was the one who, in fact, defeated that worm thing. Fuck, they don’t even try to pretend to go back for him, not very hard anyway, and have seemed to have forgotten him altogether. Not to mention, while he was alone, the only other creature he has befriended was killed for being different. Oh man, I tell you, I was waiting for the MC to call them out on their bullshit and leave them for dead. But nope, Colin continues to be treated like a doormat and doesn’t even try to do anything about it, nothing substantial anyway. Even the girl who is supposed to be in love with hik treats him like crap. Bloody hell, she even kills him on the very slight chance that time would be reversed without his consent just to save their asses. I hate them so much. Come on Colin, you could do better than them.
So, final verdict. I give style 4 out of 5 since, despite the flaws, it still manages to keep me engage. 3 for the story since it is still servicable and makes a modicum of sense. 5 out of 5 for grammar since it is spotless and near perfect. And a 1 for character since Colin deserves better.

Very funny... but poor characters and narrative
Some very funny moments, but the overall writing suffers from poorly fleshed out characters and a haphazardly constructed narrative.
The characters have very little depth to them: nerdy black guy, feminist nazi, fat klutz, lanky aspie. Even the main character, despite a tendency for over-monologuing, comes across as incredibly shallow. In an attempt to avoid literary cliches, rather than writing multi-dimensional characters, the author merely reverses the cliche. The attractive, confident people are villainous at worst and incompetent at best. The hero who is a misanthrope trying to run away at every opportunity. Certainly this creates some comedic situations and if this were merely a gag comedy than there would be no issue.
But whenever the story tries to create dramatic tension or take itself too seriously it immediately fails. Colin is a hypocritical character who immediately assumes the worst about everyone around him and somehow proves to be right. He constantly criticizes people for their perceived flaws, while mostly ignoring those same flaws in himself. Rather than using the narrative to point out Colin's hypocrisy, the author often makes him turn out to be right. The confident, good-looking peole really are mostly assholes. His friends usually are hapless idiots.
The comedy tends to grow stale over time as well. The same character interactions play out again and again. Colin makes a sexist remark. Claire gets mad at him. Maurice says something nerdy. Flossie does something dumb. Dudley looks away awkwardly. Characters hardly grow for the first few hundred chapters. Then, around the sixth to seventh arc, they all of a sudden become inexplicably competent and outmaneuver Colin.
Colin has a ridiculous degree of plot armour. Rather than creating an intelligent, proactive protagonist, the author reduces the intelligence of everyone around him to that of bumbling idiots. With a little bit of basic reasoning, Colin comes up with a solution and then derides everyone around him for being incompetent and stupid. Or he gets into a dangerous situation and comes out unscathed through some last-minute contrived plot device.
Colin's monologues are painfully out of touch with reality. He makes some good points, but presents them in such an emotionally vitriolic, one-dimensional way that it's hard to take him seriously. He never considers that people have complex reasons for why they behave. Instead he makes sweeping statements about religion, politics, gender and rarely bothers with nuance.
The relationships are potentially the worst part of the story. The male and female characters all get paired up with the first people they meet. And despite a few missteps, they behave as if they're soulmates. The relationships feel incredibly forced and contrived. And nobody considers dating people outside of their group.
In conclusion, HTADOADB works as a comedy and fails miserably at everything else.

I like it, but...
I really liked the first ~65 chapters of the story due to the fact that it was exactly what the title said it was: How To Avoid Death On A Daily Basis. After a around 200 chapters, the plot starts to become really grand. Other worlds, demons, time travel, etc. It might be for some people. but not for me. I came to see the team slowly struggle and manage to live a life in this apparet hostile world. I didnt read to see them battling what could be considered gods or read a weird sexual conversation between two characters every other chapter for the sake of comedic relief.

Like those beans from harry potter that can taste like anything
I really started out loving the story, the mc was somewhat out of the ordinary and the story has quite a few very nice twists and turns which makes it stand out and not seem cliche. The problem for me really arose around the 100th chapter or something. The mc had been kind off an asshole throughout the story, and that is something i liked a lot about him. He was cold and rational and he could stand his ground. After a while it feels like he has become a pushover. He has since the beginning threatened to leave the rest of the party, and the I actually though he was capable of doing it if he had to, in the end though, he has become someone who has reverted to the stereotypical cold hero type. He says he wont put himself in danger or do stuff that is basically suicide from his perspective, yet he always does it anyway. I have come to expect him to fold under pressure, and i hate it. He was so cool as an mc, then he just gets pushed around by anyone and everyone. Though i understand that making things go the way the mc want them to doesn't make a good story, it has become routine to see the mc say something, and then do what others expect him to. He was already a weak mc physically and he had a lot of flaws that would make him lose in a fight, but he had this relentlessness to not do what others tell him to that just disappeared. It has become a tedium to read on in the hopes that maybe he will do something to not be steered around and take some control himself. Yet it is nowhere in sight. I thank the author for writing the story, as it is a good read and has given me quite a few hours of entertainment, but it is beginning to feel like i am watching a movie franchise that was so good, but is slowly sinking. It has just degenerated into the traditional: "the hero gets pushed into situations against his will, and he just accepts it and solves the problems thrust at him and no longer even tries to say "fuck you" back"

disappointed. inform me if it is getting better.
I read 124 chapters of this story. First few 100ch were awesome, story was good, character development was great. But after 100ch, It became terible, story is still good, but character development became terrible. MC developing not forward but backwards. Became generic MC where you can find everywere.(Mostly in japanesse light novels). Does all hard work for his teammates, sacrifices his own life for strangers without any good reason. He became a like a puppy, a slave, does everything he is told, Without any reason, And I was dissapointed about it because, it goes agains his beliefs. No benefits just drawbacks.
everyone says that they basicaly are with him because it is safer, but always tells that something is wrong with him(written like they are insulting him) but MC is ok with that. He wants to survive, but does always endangers himself. His teammates are dumb, always does something that endangers everyone. But MC is fine with that.
Giving this book only 2 stars, mainly because after 100 chapter it became terrible. I understand that you want him to become sociable. But clearly you are rushing it. you aren't even explaining his choises.
If it is getting better after 124 chapter. please tell me. For now I giving this book a pause.

Dropped ch 93
Reviewed at: 93. Stone Cold
Dropped at ch 93. Really liked it initially, a likable anti-hero who used common sense, and an interesting world. But after the romance stuff, it kind of did a 180 on the MC's personality, and the spoilers turnt me off.

Not Heroes
At the time of this review, I have read through chapter 38 (which marks the end of volume 1).
I want to start by saying that I evaluate stories in the context of their genre. As far as amateur fish out of water stories in fantasy worlds, this one is great!
Style:
The story is told from the first person perspective, and thus we have access to all the thoughts and observations of the protagonist. Very engaging, and written in a very natural voice. The flow was so nice that I honestly read the entire story in a single day.
Story:
The set up is familiar: a group of modern day 20 somethings end up in a fantasy world. However, the execution is where it really shines. The author has done a wonderful job with pacing, never forcing the story along and allowing situations and transitions to unfold realistically. It's also nice to see things like hunting monsters, skinning them, eating them, and raiding their homes presented in a less-than-flattering fashion. Nice challenging of the genre.
Grammar:
Very good. No glaring mistakes with grammar I can think of. I think I only noticed 3 spelling mistakes in the entire 38 chapters.
Characters:
At the beginning of this story, all the characters, including the MC, are generally unlikable. However, I ask that you don't let this turn you off, as they are written to be this way. Interesting, as the story carries on and personalities start to get fleshed out, the MC's party members become generally likable.
However, the main character makes much less progress in that department, as he is extremely manipulative. Once again, this shouldn't turn you off to reading this story. An unlikable character is perfectly acceptable if they are interesting. The MC's polarizing personality really sets up a lot of possibilities for drama with any new people they might meet in coming chapters, as well as potential in-group fighting.
The reason why I only gave 4 stars here was because I felt that there could have been more done with Jenny. She's the first character the MC interacts with, but there really aren't many interactions between them afterward. Likely, this is something that will be explored in later chapters. The MC is also very concerned with himself, and since he's paired with four people that aren't particularly socially adept, I was left wanting a little more character interaction as well.
All in all, I highly recommend HTADOADB (Whoa, that's a long acronym). If you're looking for a very well planned "transported to fantasy world" story, and if you're a little sick of when the main characters adapt too quickly to these kinds of situations, then this is the story for you!

Finally not a stupid OP stories or insane or sexual or "weak" but not so weak MC.
Its nice to finally able to read normal story where the MC not someone who OP or "weak" but gain "unexpected" power. The story flow is nice, the pace is nice, and overall its relatable and realistic. This is a great story with a good writing. Thanks for the story and please continue writing. You got me hooked up on the story.

Great story hindered by character interaction(slight spoilers up to ch 125)
I don't really have that much to add here, everything about your story,style and grammar are good stuff and I love how you conduct the story for the most part. Your characters on the other hand start out as really good and fun to be around, but as the story goes on they're becoming more and more irritating.
Only thing I really want to touch on like Lunitan did in his review is your characters. Simply put can we do something about the relationship between the characters? I'm at chapter 113 and the development of the party is getting quite stale. Colin is constantly in a battle to retain any respect from his party, even though he has led them to success this entire time. But instead his party mocks him at points, and outright ignores or leaves him behind. Like that's all fine and dandy for awhile, but at this point it's making it hard for me to read the story as you largely make the reader identify with Colin, who is mistreated pretty hard.
You make it a warring battle between his self-depreciation, and their helpfulness towards him as he doesn't really treat them that well because he fears it will be for nothing. He fears they will toss him aside, and for the most part you could say they don't. Yet there are certain parts throughout the story that validate his fear as they openly show contempt or distrust of his methods, which then only sets his character back even further. In fact the only reason I make this review is because in chapter 110, his party just straight up leaves him behind. Now I assume your going to go into more detail and make this a conflict of sorts, but either way this still really irks me because atm I really can't see a way they can justify doing this. Jenny was sharing a tent with him, and it seems that the party left in the morning so they had plenty of time to find and take him with them, but instead he was ditched while they went to the capital and had fun. Jenny is supposed to be the person that is the relief of his depression, and make him open up, but instead she is serving at this point as another downer for him.
I'm going to keep reading the story ofc as it's still really good, but I really hope you fix the character development between the party because it's getting quite stale and actually aggravating to me at least. It really hurts my enjoyment of the series to see Colin get shafted so hard constantly, there needs to be a relief to this constant depreciation which the story is sorely lacking at this point. Can we please see Colin and his party develop to have some sense of camaraderie, as the only people that even seem to remotely care about Colin is Jenny and Maurice, but they kind of just shit on this as well in the latest chapters. I will update this when I see something change.
EDIT: Party is back, and Jenny spills the beans on why they left him behind. Pretty shitty on their part, but kind of understandable? I like that Jenny and him have finally taken the step forward, but it feels kinda forced? I think their needs to be more depth on why she actually likes him to make it more natural. Not much has changed in dynamics towards party health but it's only been 2 chapters. Bumped character to 3.5, overall to 4.5.
EDIT: Ch.125, characters are coming into their own usefulness, and getting back into the stride of being a funny group while also maintaining their adventuring status. Character bumped to 4/5. Keep up the good work.
EDIT: Book 4 ending, characters are really fun again gotta say, bumping characters back to 5, and I'm really enjoying the wildness of the story now again