Three Sticks by David R Anderson Review: A Nostalgic, Earnest Heroic Fantasy Debut

Three Sticks is the opening volume of a planned three-book series and is marketed as a coming-of-age fantasy. Its central protagonist is Sten, a seventeen-year-old half-elf who carries both a physical scar from a childhood injury and the emotional weight that comes with it — specifically, a deep self-consciousness that causes him to withdraw whenever girls attempt to speak with him, convinced their interest is pity rather than genuine connection. The story begins in the context of village life but pivots when Sten and his brother (described in Amazon listings as two brothers on a shared journey) head into the Wild, a realm populated by elves, pixies, and an array of fantastic creatures. The publisher describes the book as "a sweeping coming-of-age fantasy about courage, scars, and the bonds that shape us," and its thematic territory spans romance, friendship, heartbreak, and wonder. The world also features humans, elves, Hurks (a species that, as one Amazon reviewer notes, rhymes with Orcs), and an magic system integrated into the action.

David R Anderson came to fiction writing after a long career in software development, having earned an engineering degree from the University of Minnesota before working in Los Angeles, Salt Lake City, and Minneapolis. Now retired, he has described the Three Sticks series as emerging directly from the teenage Dungeons & Dragons sessions held in the Anderson family basement — memories, he notes, that "linger and demand a voice from five decades past." That biographical context is not merely promotional colour; it shapes the book's sensibility. Three Sticks is Anderson's first novel, which makes it a notable act of late-career creative ambition. The series already has a second book out, with a third — titled Three Bones — reported to be in progress. Tim Cleary is credited as the illustrator, and Steve Anderson serves as editor.

Reader responses on Amazon, while not drawn from major critical outlets, reflect consistent enthusiasm. Several reviewers highlight the cast as a particular strength — one notes "a most entertaining cast of characters whose adventures keep the reader's attention from page one," going on to describe dreading the final pages because the reading experience was so engaging. Others point to the book's tonal balance: one reviewer praises "just the right amount of world building, just the right amount of magic and sword/staff action, a good plot pace… humor (!) and, even a touch of romance." A standalone ghost story embedded near the book's midpoint is singled out as a highlight — described by one Amazon reader as an "eerie ghost story near the middle that would make a nice stand-alone story" — suggesting Anderson has a feel for varying register and pacing within a longer narrative structure.

The book plants its flag firmly in classic, or secondary-world, heroic fantasy rather than grimdark or epic political fantasy. Its D&D lineage is visible in the creature roster and the adventure-forward structure, and readers who grew up on that tradition — or who are looking for an accessible entry point into the genre — are its clearest intended audience. The coming-of-age framing, with Sten's emotional arc around self-worth and connection running alongside the external quest, gives the story a layer of interiority that distinguishes it from purely action-driven fare. That said, the book's roots in nostalgic genre memory mean it is unlikely to surprise readers seeking formally experimental or genre-subverting fantasy; its pleasures are those of a well-executed traditional adventure.

As a self-published debut, Three Sticks arrives without the editorial infrastructure of a major imprint, and readers who weigh production context when choosing their reading may factor that in. The series is also ongoing and incomplete at the time of this book's publication — the first volume is Book 1 of 3 — so readers who prefer to wait for a complete story before investing may want to note that the third instalment was still in progress as of the author's most recent public update. On the other hand, for readers happy to follow a series as it unfolds, the existing momentum — two books available, a third underway — offers reasonable assurance of continuity.