I liked large chunks of This Will Be Fun. Humor, worldbuilding, drama and deep emotions are mashed into a entertaining package, but the ending does some major damage to the narrative. Nevertheless, it should provide a thrill or two for any fans of Critical Role or other character-driven fantasy.

Galwell True, aka Galwell the Great, dreams of becoming a heroic swordsman of grand repute, but he knows that his quest will be over once he and his friends complete this mission and rescue the Princess Thessia. He his sister, the warrior Elowen, and their friends – bandit Clare Grandheart and the conjurer Beatrice – who have been fighting over their fling-gone-wrong – are set to storm Mytheria. Mytheria is under the sway of dark magic conjured up by the Fraternal Order, and everything is on the line. This fight will make their names – but will change everything for them, winning them riches but taking a terrible toll on one and all.

Ten years later, the now-Lady Beatrice of the Four is flat broke and in the middle of a divorce from her husband, Robert de Noughton. Having lost her home, she’s living in a rented cottage and is bitterly disappointed in her perceived failures. Stumbling into the eviction party Robert is throwing, she bumps into Clare and sparks fly. The Festival of the Four looms over all of them – a yearly celebration of their deeds – and this year, Mytheria’s Princess, Thessia, will be wed during the fete. Beatrice wants to do anything but spend time with Clare or deal with fame again. The sad truth is that Galwell is dead – something Beatrice blames herself for. But her devotion to Thessia means she decides to go to the wedding.

Elowen, meanwhile, has stayed far away from anything and anyone since her brother’s death, watching shadowplays in her head in her high treehouse. Since, thanks to her power, she’s basically an emotional sponge, she prefers things that way. Her whole life is now comprised of obsessively consuming Desires of the Night and avoiding other people. The invitation to Thessia’s wedding also brings back unpleasant memories for her; she is financially tied to the princess, who finances her isolated lifestyle with tithes. But she decides to go to her brother’s former fiancée’s wedding, if only because Vandra Ravenfall, the lady assassin who stole her heart all those years ago, shows up to escort her to the celebration.

Clare, an ex-mercenary, has become the face of the Four, always ready to make a public appearance and charm the latest fan. He’s been living loose, drunk and wild since they defeated the Fraternal Order, and stayed the closest to the Princess. Too bad he’s still pining for Beatrice. He quickly RSVPs to the wedding, hoping to see her there while denying his attraction to her the entire time.

By wagon and by magic, the surviving members of The Four approach Thessia’s wedding. Unfortunately, their plans for louche retirement soon run into a big snag – The Fraternal Order may be back, and The Four – well, the Three – must spring into action to protect their princess. Do they have the mettle to make it? And can they settle their old grievances?

This is a book that has a lot of trouble being both fish and foul – it’s filled with a lot of wallowing angst because no one’s gotten over Galwell’s death, and everyone blames themselves and everyone else on the team for it. And yet it (the book) wants to be lighthearted and fluffy, filled with puns and one-liners and doused with a Shrek-like light fantasy candy coating. It’s a little bit cozy, a little bit silly, but it takes itself too seriously to fly. This meandering see-sawing keeps the book from reaching its full potential.

And yet parts of each scenario work well. Our three leads and the flirtatious, funny Vandra, are all interesting people with complexities who can make you laugh, but also frustrate you with their foibles. Watching them reclaim their inner heroes is great fun and even moving. Galwell needs to have more flesh on his bones, but well. Plot contrivances must do as they will.

Romance-wise, we have two different connections going on – the constantly sparring Clare and Beatrice, who refuse to get out of their own way, and Vandra and Elowen, who have a classic grumpy/sunshine connection. Both are decently handled stories, though Clare and Beatrice get way more focus than Vandra and Elowen.

And then the ending. I won’t spoil it as it’s best you get there yourself. All I can say is that it’s sweet and warm – and yet serves to undo all of the self-acceptance and healing these three do throughout the book.

Ultimately This Will Be Fun is decent – funny, lighthearted, a good fit if you liked Legends and Lattes – but not as good as I hoped it would be.