Bronze Rank Brewer

By: James Ghoul

Narrated by: James Ghoul

Just one sip of ale leaves Hawkin with a life-changing decision.

Isolated in the northern wilderness, Hawkin—an adventurer turned hermit—is fulfilled by the small joys of his simple life. He hunts and forages for food, tends to a small garden, maintains his humble cabin, and patrols the meandering trail that leads down to the sea.

After celebrating ten years alone in his woods, visitors begin to arrive. First an ancient monster, then a trio of monks with a peculiar set of skills. When the monks share their flagship ale with Hawkin, a transcendent experience leaves him with a choice: engage with the system screen he'd gladly disabled long ago, or pass on the chance to brew magic beer. Unable to forget the wondrous ale he tasted, Hawkin accepts the Brewer’s path.

The MC of this cozy, slice of life fantasy is an in-world character. He follows a quest path that allows him to level up on his own terms by picking the quests he is willing to take, and ignoring the rest. Along his crafting journey, Hawkin is joined by an OP monster with an insatiable appetite, a talkative goblin with a deep love of onions, and a blue, squirrel-like creature that's always in the mood to shoot dice. An interest in real-world beer brewing isn't necessary to follow the story or Hawkin’s progression.

©2022 James Ghoul (P)2022 James Ghoul

good slow story

kind of a slice of life story. good stats to story ratio. I will be looking forward to the next book.

Slice of life

Nice to have an mc not being an overpowered 16 years old boy on a quest to save the world. The book has a sedate and pleasant pace. It does not need to go from battle to battle, all to update a long character sheet at the end of a chapter.
It does have a diverse set of characters, some battles, some humor, but above all an interesting storyline without to many cliches.
To be short: one of the better books recently purchased.

A great story and reading

This has been one of my favorite stories on Kindle and was happy to find it here. I was pleasantly surprised with the author's own reading of his book as those are not always the best but he has done a great job here in bringing his story to life. Hoping for Silver Rank!

Relaxed story and pace

Very slow start, so slow I almost didn't continue, but I am glad I did! As more characters enters the story, the narration and story comes to life. It is not a tale of grand dangers and adventures, but rather of the small adventures in Hawkins life like improving ones hobby or dealing with unpleasant people in a good way. And then, of course, there is the horror-totoro-like monster named Trush - a fun and unique character to be sure.

Fun

This was a great listen!
An ex-adventurer turned hermit happens upon some monks. They give him beer. It reawakens his System and drives him to discover the joys of craft brewing. He befriends a mythic beast, employs a goblin, and makes a trade deal with goblins and orcs all while plotting how to stay a recluse and protect his land. The mythic beast gets him what he needs and he puts up a magical fence. A potential love interest that has been investigating him finds him and is commanded by her god to find out why his destiny is to become one of the best.

Smooth voiced narrators. Great flow. Easy listen story. The resolution goes on for a few chapters more than needed in this book and seemed more suited to an epilogue, bonus content, or the beginnings of the next book. Still, I loved the story and will be returning for the next in the series.

Please enjoy.

it's a fun story

I really enjoyed the story however I could have done without the description of the ingredients in the beer for goblin spit beer that was really gross

unique slice of life

Great slice of life litrpg. A nice but steady slow pace with lots going on even then.

Nice Slice of Life LitRpg

Nice Slice of Life LitRpg. Narrator does a great job with the different characters. Author changes up the pov between multiple characters.

peaceful retreat from reality into another world

love the character progression, the brewing is a bonus and interaction with different types of people. new take on world building I felt was breath of freshness.

Nice slice of life, but too friendly

The story is a fairly enjoyable slice of life, and the author adds in some pretty interesting elements to make even simple things like beer a bit more magical. It isn't particularly crunchy, although the leveling rate is pretty wild. Regardless, you won't be overwhelmed with constant stat blocks or level-up notifications. The only concern I have is that the MC is so averse to conflict that it almost makes him seem like someone who would smile and thank you as you take his lunch money or mug him.