Of Mice and Mendacity

I’ll admit, I approached *Of Mice and Mendacity* with skepticism—political satire in fantasy can feel either too on-the-nose or painfully dated. But Amanda Lash leans *hard* into the absurd, and it works. The plot, such as it is, follows our ragtag team of misfits as they navigate a world where Trump’s necromantic blunders have turned the GOP into a literal horde of undead loyalists. The humor isn’t subtle (a scene involving a cursed golf club had me snort-laughing on my commute), but it’s also not trying to be. The real surprise is how *light* it all feels—this isn’t a bitter takedown, just a goofy, fast-paced farce where the rules of magic are as arbitrary as a tweetstorm at 3 AM. Cherise Knapp’s narration is a masterclass in comedic timing. She nails the exaggerated cadence of a certain former president’s speech patterns without veering into impression territory, and her delivery of the side characters—particularly a jaded intern turned reluctant hero—adds layers of charm. My only critique? The pacing stumbles slightly in the middle, where a subplot about a rogue enchanted tie feels like it drags for a few minutes too long. And while the short runtime is a plus, the ending wraps up *too* neatly, as if Lash suddenly remembered she had a word count limit. Still, for fans of irreverent fantasy or anyone who’s ever wanted to see a zombie horde disrupted by a poorly timed indictment, this is 73 minutes of pure, guilty pleasure.