Scott

One review in exchamge for a recipe

Reviewed: 05-06-24

Hilarious story that has an amazing cast reading it.

I dont often immediately jump to a review right after finishing a book but the final skit at the end really won me over and had this book ending on a high note.

The story isnt perfect with a few pointa that drag a but but those are few and far between. The characters are fun and likeable most of the time and the dnd enspired world without spoiling anything is quite fun.

I would recommend this book to any fans of litrpg though if youre not a fan of constant jojes it might be pun ishishing oh ho ho ho!

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2 people found this helpful

Great story, minor trigger warning

Reviewed: 01-01-23

If you don't think you can read a book where rape and violence against children are mentioned briefly then I'd skip this one. The above trigger warning is not overly prevalent but it is sort of baked into the post apocalyptical plot. It serves to make the bad guys more vile and give the good guys something to fight against.

The cast is interesting though it mainly consists of the two main characters. The human woman has a somewhat generic backstory that is made more interesting by her being multiple generations after the world ended. The alien man has a unique culture that was nicely spiced up with the addition of so much cybernetic augmentation. The author also managed to keep things from going too sci fi by keeping all the alien jargon to a minimum and presenting the alien in frequent fish-out-of-water scenarios.

In the end this was a great story that I eagerly finished as fast as I could and I can't wait to continue it. Thought I may wait for a sale since 30 dollars for 6 hours is not worth the money.

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1 person found this helpful

Interesting style, generic substance

Reviewed: 12-28-22 Listener received this title free

The author's style is interesting, leaving you just enough detail to have a story while your imagination fleshes out the rest. Unfortunately other than that it's pretty ok adventure.

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One of my favourite Isekai fantasy stories

Reviewed: 11-04-22

Memorable characters, unique voices, and an interesting plot and hook make this a super fun read. I couldn't recommend this book enough to any fans of the genre.

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Genuinely impressed

Reviewed: 08-24-22

I loved almost every aspect of this book. The cast was varied and interesting. The story had two plotlines running in tandem and both were exactly what they needed to be. The universe is interesting and ended on what I assume was meant to be a hook for the next book but wound up just being an enjoyable up-note. I can't wait to read any more in the series or by this author.

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1 person found this helpful

Interesting story, weak prose

Reviewed: 08-24-22

Right off the bat the author sounds like he doesn't understand women at all. Women are gushing over minor acts of kindness and any nsfw content feels like it's been written by a teenager with a medical text book. Thankfully this becomes less and less common as the story continues.

The male narrator also isn't the greatest sounding like he's talking about deep outer space sci fi for everything from kissing to making a steak. It sort of suits the personality of the main character but I'd prefer less of a match if the narrator was still enjoyable to listen to.

All that being said, the world itself is interesting, the powers are thought out and explained, and the story itself has a satisfying plot. The book really gets going around halfway and I enjoyed the trip by the end. I don't know if I would recommend this series to fans of the genre but I will likely be continuing it once book 2 is released.

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2 people found this helpful

I think something was lost in translation

Reviewed: 08-19-22

This book is a translated litrpg. There are a few references you might not understand and a lot of the terminology is different from what you'd expect but I've read several similar books and found them interesting. This one sort of falls short in that the trick that the main character typically uses to progress... isn't explained. Good things are happening and all book long I was waiting for the big reveal of "ah this is why," but nothing ever came. Left me frustrated and not wanting to continue the series. It also ends rather abruptly but that seems to happen a lot of the time with these books.

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Fun adventure despite an odd accent

Reviewed: 08-08-22

I just wanted to preface this with the fact that I finished this book quite quickly but was unable to review it due to an error until now.

The performance in this book was great. At first the english accent of the male narrator took me out but it quickly became part of the character. It even serves to differentiate the story from many others I've read in the genre now.

The story was interesting and the start, or Isekai moment was pleasantly unique as well. The overarching plot was well put together and had some obvious points as well as a few surprise twists. In fact, where I feel most authors would end on a cliffhanger where the story was obviously cut in half, this one ends with a few questions and hints at the direction of the next book which I will likely be buying soon. There is even a touch of base building though it doesn't get anywhere near the territory of your average litrpg.

The characters were all nicely varied and where multiple love interests would begin to blend together, both the author and narrators do a good job of making each unique and interesting for various reasons. The author also isn't scared to introduce and remove various characters, a few of which completely blindsided me which hooked me even more.

I only have two real complaints about the book and they're on the minor side. First off, the author doesn't describe the land sufficiently for me. I found myself constantly imagining details to fill in the gaps but the I can't really make a genuine picture of the land or locations for the most part. The second is that the book is a bit on the short side. Maybe an extra bit of detail about the countryside or a few more descriptors on people or places would have added an extra hour and fixed both problems but it is what is.

In the end, I enjoyed the series and will likely continue. I may even look into the author's other works to see if they're up to similar quality!

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A surprisingly mature and enjoyable read

Reviewed: 06-18-22

I was given this book in exchange for an honest review which you can find below.

First impressions:
Right off the bat, this story impressed me with how little handholding there was. It was action between mystery characters who we see again later and appreciate more for the details we've gotten along the way. Many authors would drag you from paragraph to paragraph, pointing out the important bits but the best will set you loose and let you fill in the details over time. Right as I was getting settled in for a grand adventure I was surprised again at how mature society and relationships were. Society is ok with same sex marriages, birth control is high tech and widely available, and best of all, everything is handled so casually that you don't feel like you're reading a liberal agenda and are instead living in an ideal future. When your average book in the genre is typical male powergamer fantasy, this felt amazing to read. I'd recommend people read this series for the opening few chapters alone just to see how a great start to a book can go.

The Story:
It took me a while to really get the story as the beginning throws you in the deep end and leaves you to figure it out. This is great and I really enjoyed the process for almost the entirety of the first book. Unfortunately the story starts to lose headway into the second and third books. It's not bad by any means but felt like a bit of a downer after that amazing opener. A sudden power spike near the end of the second book was particularly jarring, and the ending of the third felt very rushed. The series felt like it should have been a few books longer but the author cut it at the third book and made as good of an ending as he could with all the threads he had on hand. One particular moment still annoys me and I'll stay as spoiler free as possible while I mention it. The main character asks a certain all powerful being about some important detail revolving around the number 8 since he was only up to around 6 at the time. The all powerful being brushes it aside with something along the lines of everyone gets the details wrong, just be happy with what you have. It felt like there was more story there waiting but was chopped off at the last minute to sew up all those loose ends. This element is probably the weakest of the three books.

Lit RPG systems:
The systems in the game seem well thought out and explained though I didn't go through them with a fine toothed comb by any means. I just used them as a general guide for the world and character's power levels in comparison to one another. I think this is what the author intended since things like stats are only mentioned rarely so you don't see growth in that aspect, and the conflict in the world is so abstract with such little detail that you don't really see the impact the characters are having. Anyone who wants to really see some numbers crunched probably won't be happy with the author's style in this regard but if you take it as a bit of video game flavoring then you'll be much happier.

Characters:
Similar to the plot, the characters start well but get weaker in the second book. In book 1, everyone is important and you know details and motive for them all. In book 3 the roster has grown to the point that new characters aren't fleshed out enough for you to genuinely care about them. There was even one love interest character we hadn't heard anything important about in several chapters and I still can't remember who she even was to this day. It isn't all bad though. The narrators do a great job differentiating between people and giving them unique voices, and the author does a good job of promoting characters and relationships outside of the inevitable harem that pops up.

In the end this was a good series with a great start and a weak ending. I do not regret listening to it and think it's a great deal for a single credit. I would recommend this to any fans of the genre and am currently checking out the author's other available works to see if any are as good as this one.

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2 people found this helpful

Very worth the credit

Reviewed: 04-15-22

Three books for one credit is a deal, 3 good ones is a steal.

The cover threw me for a loop but the books are very aggressive, enjoyable, and balanced. If you're looking for anime girls and fancy homes you'll likely be dissapointed, but if you enjoy small scale fights to the death, training to stay alive, and constant increases in power and danger then you're in luck.

The cast is varied and likeable and grows at a slow steady rate. Rare was the time that I felt like people were blurring together, though this could be due to the great narrators giving everyone unique accents or ways of speaking. The plot is interesting with growing challenges as well as both spiritual and almost litRPG elements for spice. Even the adult content feels appropriate to the situation instead of showing up every few minutes to keep people reading. Honestly, it feels like if Game Of Thrones was a LitRPG.

I do not regret getting this series. It would have even been worth it for three credits even if it would have been a bit on the short side in that case.

If you're on the fence, buy it for the deal if nothing else.

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3 people found this helpful