Feb 2026 Book Recommendation: The Fallbacks: Bound for Ruin by Jaleigh Johnson

Intro

As anyone who’s been keeping up with the blog has probably figured out by now, I’m a big fan of the Dungeons and Dragons novels. I like them as a fan of the game, of course, but I think that the biggest thing that I like about them is the fact that they’re fantasy books that are focused pretty much exclusively on the characters, the action, and whatever antics the characters get themselves into. They don’t have to spend time explaining the world because it’s all predefined, and, thanks to the limited page count, the pacing is usually pretty fast. They’re great books for if you want fantasy, but don’t necessarily want a big giant epic that’s going to take you months to finish. (Though of course the big giant epics have their place too.)

And, in my opinion, there is no better example of the perfect Dungeons and Dragons novel than The Fallbacks: Bound for Ruin by Jaleigh Johnson. It’s everything that fans of the game could possibly want from a DnD book, with a quirky cast, tons of action and humor, and overarching themes of teamwork and friendship. But, of course, you don’t have to be a fan of the game to enjoy those same things; like all the other Dungeons and Dragons books that I’ve read, you really don’t have to know a thing about the game to understand the plot and enjoy the book.

So, let’s get into details, shall we?

The Fallbacks: Bound for Ruin by Jaleigh Johnson Overview

Genre(s): Fantasy

Series: Book 1 of 2 of The Fallbacks

POV/Tense: Third-person past

Length: 304 pages

Tessalynde, a young elf, has only one ambition in life: leading the greatest team of adventurers that the mystical and dangerous land of Faerûn has ever seen. And, though the team of misfits that she’s brought together doesn’t exactly seem like hero material yet, she’s certain that she can whip them into shape in time.

The only trouble is that their time together doesn’t look like it’s going to be very long. Their first job, which is to retrieve a mysterious spellbook from a temple that fell into ruin long ago, is rife with disorganization and conflict within the team. And, when they finally manage to recover their prize and bring it back to their client, an even nastier problem arises: Their client has been murdered—and the killer has framed Tess and her team for the crime.

Their mission turns into one to clear their name, survive the flocks of mercenaries and undead that are determined to kill them, and get rid of the spellbook, which they quickly learn is sentient and of wicked intent. But success will be impossible if they can’t learn how to trust each other and function as a team. Will they manage to overcome the many challenges in their way, or will their time as an adventuring party come to a disastrous end before it could even truly begin?

Personal Thoughts

One of the best parts of this book is the team dynamics. Every member of the team has a very distinct personality, and those personalities often wind up clashing, adding tension and humor. Also, just about every member of the team has some big secret from their past that’s gradually revealed as the story goes on, which I thought was a really good way to keep the reader’s interest. (At least, that’s how it worked for me.)

Another thing that I liked—and that you may have guessed from all the chaos I mentioned in the overview—is that this is definitely one of those books where there’s always something going on. There isn’t a single dull moment that I can remember, which made it very hard to put down.

As I mentioned earlier, you don’t have to know a thing about Dungeons and Dragons to enjoy this book but, for those of you who are existing fans, there are plenty of settings and characters that you’d recognize. They go to iconic locations like Waterdeep and Candlekeep, and meet characters like Valindra Shadowmantle. And, even aside from the recognizable people and places, this is probably one of the most DnD-feeling DnD books that I’ve ever read. It really does feel like an actual DnD campaign, and the team really does feel like an actual DnD party, which, as an existing fan myself, I appreciated very much.

Outro

That’s all for this month’s reading recommendation. I hope I’ve gotten you interested in this book and that you’ll check it out. Or, if you’ve already read it and are looking for something similar, be sure to look into the other Dungeons and Dragons books that I’ve listed below. As always, thanks for reading!