Dabu’s life has been far from easy. Born with a crippling lung illness, he has never been as strong as his father or brother, both of whom have disappeared after attempting to challenge the Trials of Ancients. In the wake of the Tyrant King’s war, his village has come under the control of the Purus, a vicious gang of magically enhanced cutthroats and murderers. The Trials offer the promise of power to any who can clear them, but Dabu has been forbidden from entering.
After a violent encounter leaves his family in danger, Dabu faces a difficult decision — either leave the village to challenge the Trials or stay and risk starvation. The Trials are monstrously difficult, filled with dangerous beasts, deadly obstacles, and tribes of challengers who control the areas within. But if he can make it out alive, Dabu will gain the power he needs to finally drive the Purus from his home.
This book contains GameLit elements, such as stat sheets, a form of leveling, and experience gain.
This is a standalone series. No prior reading is necessary.
My Opinion: 334 pages, $3.99, Available On Kindle Unlimited
A nice opening book for a new LitRPG series. It follows a familiar pattern of a loser teen who gets a little luck but though much sacrifice and motivation goes on a kind of dungeon crawl to become powerful enough to go up against his tormentors and problem makers.
The RPG stuff was consistent with a decent mix of interesting powers. The time jumps were a little annoying in that they pushed the MC to new power levels without the reader seeing him earn it, but it was a minor thing. The mix of magic and chi was enough to keep that aspect of the game mechanics interesting. Plenty of crunch here without too many notifications to bog down the story.
The end was a little predictable, but overall the story had good action, a good bit of world building, and a nice setup for future storylines.
Score: 7.4 out of 10
Age of Ancients : A GameLit/LitRPG Series (Shattered Kingdoms Book 1)