LitRPG Podcast 266 - Death's Favorite Warlock 2, Beta Test, Second Shot, ChronoTemplar, Luck's Voice Book 3, He Who Fights with Monsters 2, Oh Great! I was Reincarnated as a Farmer

 

LitRPG Podcast 266 - Death's Favorite Warlock 2, Beta Test, Second Shot, ChronoTemplar, Luck's Voice Book 3, He Who Fights with Monsters 2, Oh Great! I was Reincarnated as a Farmer


June 11th, 2021


Hello everyone, welcome to episode 266 of the LitRPG podcast. I’m Ramon Mejia. 

I’m here to bring you the latest LitRPG news, reviews, and author interviews.  We have 7 new reviews just for you and a ton of plagiarized stories to be on the lookout for. 


New Releases and Reviews:

Death's Favorite Warlock 2

An entertaining follow up

Score: 7.5 out of 10

https://amzn.to/2RKvH5t 

Beta Test: 1st of the NanoWielder Saga

Just a miss for me

Score: 6 out of 10

https://amzn.to/3iz7EBt 

Second Shot (Fantasia Book #1): LitRPG Series

Doesn't get too interesting till late in the story

Score: 6.8 out of 10

https://amzn.to/3v9AY3W 

ChronoTemplar: A Crunchy LitRPG Adventure

First 25% a bit of a slog, but the story gets much better after

Score: 7.2 out of 10

https://amzn.to/3ghElR4 

Breaking the Bank (Luck's Voice Book 3)

The story continues

Score: 7.3 out of 10

https://amzn.to/2SfMb5W 

He Who Fights with Monsters 2: A LitRPG Adventure

Serial origins show, but rather good still

Score: 7.6 out of 10

https://amzn.to/3ucavSV 

Oh Great! I was Reincarnated as a Farmer: A LitRPG Adventure : (Unorthodox Farming: Book 1)

XP farming with farming exploits

Score: 8 out of 10

https://amzn.to/3uGSDzR 


(Play Music 2)

LitRPG News

So Many Plagiarized Books - 39 found just since May 31st. Often with stolen cover art and oddly, as badly scanned, sideways uploaded text.

Plagiarist Reality Benders Book 1

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0973W6SK1/ 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0973MDWV9/ 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0973M4QNM/ 


Plagiarist of World of Changed book 2

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0973N2NK3/ 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0973JQTP5/ 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0973J7M8K/ 

 

Plagiarist of World of Changed book 3

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0973RVSZ2/

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0973PS95H/ 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0973PQ41D/ 


Plagiarist of The Rogue Dungeon Book 2 starts at about the 34%

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0973KFRVK/ 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0973K62CV/ 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0973HDXTC/ 


Plagiarist of The Rogue Dungeon Book 4

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B097379J9Q/ 


Plagiarist of  Underpowered Howard

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09734VTRT/ 


Plagiarist of How to Kill a God: A LitRPG Novel Kindle Edition

by C.G. Gaudet 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0972J49H5/ 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0972H8JH7/

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0972KJB8H/ 


Plagiarist of Stonehaven League Book 7 

https://www.amazon.com/Litrpg-Adventure-Story-Demon-Attacks-ebook/dp/B0971P6BSZ/ 

https://www.amazon.com/Desire-Litrpg-Adventure-Echoes-System-ebook/dp/B0971N5SPJ/ 

https://www.amazon.com/Advanced-Fighting-Fantasy-Fantastic-Adventure-ebook/dp/B0971MBGYB/ 


??? Same text from litRPG material I can’t ID- Miles something

https://www.amazon.com/Adventure-Miles-Tabletop-Science-Fiction-ebook/dp/B096WXRQHY/ 

https://www.amazon.com/Journey-Miles-Crewmates-Captors-Playing-ebook/dp/B096WW2XGV/ 

https://www.amazon.com/Fate-System-Rules-Light-Storytelling-Beginners-ebook/dp/B096WP1B1S/ 

https://www.amazon.com/Fate-System-Journey-Playing-Fantasy/dp/B096TRWQSB/ 


Plagiarist of Paradise Clash: Bounty Hunter Kindle Edition

by L.E. Price 

https://www.amazon.com/Journey-Bounty-Hunter-Paradise-Science-ebook/dp/B096W6NHKG/ 

https://www.amazon.com/City-Hunter-Conflict-Science-Fiction-ebook/dp/B096W5X7R5/ 

https://www.amazon.com/Bounty-Hunter-Trips-Paradise-Litrpg-ebook/dp/B096W1ZV84/ 


Plagiarist of Sphiel's Song (A GameLit Virtual Fantasy Adventure) Kindle Edition

by Alara Branwen 

https://www.amazon.com/Mandy-Sutherland-Journey-Escaping-Adventure-ebook/dp/B096W4N7SJ/ 

https://www.amazon.com/Story-Mandy-Sutherland-Anxiety-Science-ebook/dp/B096W4J65Z/ 

https://www.amazon.com/Mandys-Adventure-Fighting-Overcome-Anxiety-ebook/dp/B096W4CVQJ/ 


??

https://www.amazon.com/Wizards-Adventure-Finding-Dragon-Gamelit-ebook/dp/B096P7QVNK/ 

https://www.amazon.com/Journey-Wizard-Searching-Science-Fiction-ebook/dp/B096PBCFJG/ 

https://www.amazon.com/Journey-Wizard-Searching-Science-Fiction-ebook/dp/B096P8213Q/ 


Plagiarist of  War in the Greenwood: A LitRPG Novel Kindle Edition

by Galen Wolf 

https://www.amazon.com/Greenwoods-War-Adventure-Playing-Fantasy-ebook/dp/B096PGWFG5/ 

https://www.amazon.com/Battle-Greenwood-LitRPG-Litrpg-Novels-ebook/dp/B096PDZ1BZ/ 

https://www.amazon.com/Game-Greenwood-Stories-LitRPG-Adventure-ebook/dp/B096PDHX2X/ 


Plagiarist of  Orc Spawn: Betrayal: A LitRPG/GameLit Story Kindle Edition

by Franklin Kendrick 

https://www.amazon.com/Orc-Spawn-Thorne-Monster-Slaught-ebook/dp/B096MWFMXH/ 

https://www.amazon.com/LitRPG-Orc-Spawn-Uncover-Origin-ebook/dp/B096MW53FT/ 


??

https://www.amazon.com/LitRPG-Adventure-Victoria-Familys-Journey-ebook/dp/B096KTNMXN/ 


??

https://www.amazon.com/Future-Adventure-Naughty-Violence-Language-ebook/dp/B096BK8JPC/ 





Out Now!


Ruins of Camelot: A GameLit/LitRPG Portal Fantasy Adventure

https://amzn.to/3cBrWGq 


Gamified - Book Two: Player vs Player (A Fantasy LitRPG) 

https://amzn.to/2RCtUiK 


Thief's Bounty: A LitRPG Dungeon Core Adventure (Dungeon of Evolution Book 1) 

https://amzn.to/3f9OHDm 


The Price of Power: A LitRPG Cultivation Saga  

https://amzn.to/2Qrk1Uh 


Hexworld: Roll: A GameLit/LitRPG Adventure 

https://amzn.to/3moQBC9 


King: An Epic LitRPG Progression Fantasy Novel (Apocosmos Book 3) 

https://amzn.to/2RCXB2J 


A Daring Plan and A Cold Shoulder: A LitRPG Fantasy Adventure 

https://amzn.to/3srK22K 


Myriad Stars: Sage, book 2. A LitRPG Universe 

https://amzn.to/3vd5ivr 


Intellectum [RPG Apocalypse: Book 2] 

https://amzn.to/3vcjvJ0 


The Dungeon Leader: A LitRPG Level-up Adventure (The Dungeon Slayer Series Book 3) 

https://amzn.to/2NZlOym 


I'm the Bad Guy: World Domination: A Supervillain LitRPG Adventure 

https://amzn.to/3fF4Q2n 


Trial: A Superhero LitRPG Adventure (VR Hero Book 2) 

https://amzn.to/3eJqgez 



Reborn: Evolution: A LitRPG Series (Warlock Chronicles Book 3) 

https://amzn.to/3t6hTyz 



Beastborne: Mist Wardens: An Epic Portal Fantasy LitRPG Saga (Beastborne Chronicles, Book 3) 

https://amzn.to/2PE9btP 


The Dreamweaver (Rogue Merchant Book #6): LitRPG Series https://amzn.to/2QDmHi4 


Defiance of the Fall: A LitRPG Adventure 

https://amzn.to/3uVwQEZ 


Everwood (The Weight Of It All): A LitRPG Fantasy Adventure 

https://amzn.to/3wtk9C3 


Rebirth: A Fantasy LitRPG GameLit Adventure (Enora Online Book 8) 

https://amzn.to/35cI65d 


Zero Car - A Cultivation LitRPG (Ocean Slayers Racing Book 1)

https://amzn.to/3xeW3LV 


Tower Climber 3 (A LitRPG Adventure)

https://amzn.to/3ixepnj 


The Corrupted Core (The Dungeon of Stories Book 1)

https://amzn.to/3ggZSuh 



New LitRPG Audiobooks


Defiance of the Fall A LitRPG Adventure

https://amzn.to/3xlRbEZ 


Exiled Lands Beastborne, Book 2

https://amzn.to/2SrVBv3 


True Smithing 2 - True Smithing Series Book 2

https://amzn.to/3iBL9M0 


Tales of a Northblood - Winter's Breath: A LitRPG Saga

https://amzn.to/3vbNXSJ 


God's Choice - Sigma Worlds, Book 5

https://amzn.to/3wgPAjD 


Goblin Summoner - A Deckbuilding LitRPG

https://amzn.to/3pMzyeP 


Dungeon Walkers 1

https://amzn.to/3zlsSc4 


Noob Game Plus - Noobtown, Book 5

https://amzn.to/2SrWsff 


Savage Dominion - Savage Dominion Series, Book 1

https://amzn.to/3git1FI 


The Call of the Forces - The Heavenly Throne, Book 4

https://amzn.to/3grVpUC 


Labyrinth of Fright - Underdog Series, Book 5

https://amzn.to/3gdjsaO 


The Realm Between - God of Land (Realm Between Series, Book 7)

https://amzn.to/3znpPjy 


Artificial Jelly - Artificial Jelly Series, Book 1

https://amzn.to/3iGTuyl 


Condition Evolution 3: A LitRPG/Gamelit Adventure

Condition Evolution, Book 3

https://amzn.to/3pS8fzJ 


The Aussie Mana Apocalypse: A LitRPG Novel

The Aussie Mana Apocalypse, Book 1

https://amzn.to/3gdjDTw 




Upcoming LitRPG:


Masters of Strata (Deepest Dungeon #2) - A LitRPG series (June 14th, 2021)

https://amzn.to/3wjPese 


Adventures in Clothing: A System Apocalypse short story (June 15th, 2021)

https://amzn.to/3cBavWI 


Viridian Gate Online: Resurrection: A litRPG Adventure (The Heartfire Healer Series Book 1) (June 15th, 2021)

https://amzn.to/3faIqqS 


Wyrmshard: A LitRPG Adventure (Savage Dominion Book 2) (June 15th, 2021)

https://amzn.to/35fYj9E 


Terramyr Online: An Undiscovered Country: A LitRPG Adventure (June 22nd, 2021)

https://amzn.to/3goWgqu 


City of Skye (Primacy Online Book 6) (June 29th, 2021)

https://amzn.to/3c3HRfT 


Citadel : A LitRPG Adventure (UnderVerse Book 5) (June 29th, 2021)

https://amzn.to/2RKAeoi 


True John Crusade: A Dark Fantasy Gamelit (June 30th, 2021)

https://amzn.to/3yvjcLG 


Prison of Gourmet: BlackFlame Online Litrpg/Gamelit Universe (Path of Crafting Book 2) (June 30th, 2021)

https://amzn.to/3pLSBWx 


Wild Wild Quest: A LitRPG/Gamelit Adventure (The Good Guys Book 12) (June 30th, 2021)

https://amzn.to/3uakqJE 


Engage (EvoBorne - A LitRPG Saga Book 4) (July 1st, 2021)

https://amzn.to/3dpCpWn


Cyber-Mage Realization: A Dark LitRPG / LitFPS SciFi-Shooter (Overtaken Online Book 3) (July 1st, 2021)

https://amzn.to/3wvKGPv 


The Gate of the Feral Gods: Dungeon Crawler Carl Book 4 (July 1st, 2021)

https://amzn.to/3uaNAbo 


Clan Dominance: The Sleepless Ones (Book #7): LitRPG Series

(July 2nd, 2021)

https://amzn.to/2PC5EMA 


Devourer (Reality Benders Book #8): LitRPG Series (July 12th, 2021)

https://amzn.to/2RQnsou 


 

Pride (Dinosaur Dungeon Book 2) (July 12th, 2021)

https://amzn.to/3aUpXw7 


Awakening: A LitRPG/GameLit Series (World of Magic Book 1) (July 13th, 2021)

https://amzn.to/32pxBKt 


Isekai Magus 3: A LitRPG Progression Saga (The Fantasy World of Nordan) (July 18th, 2021)

https://amzn.to/3x7OOp4 


Hexworld 2: Play: A GameLit/LitRPG Adventure (July 20th, 2021)

https://amzn.to/3ed0wGS 


They Called Me Madder: A LitRPG Apocalypse Series (July 20th, 2021)

https://amzn.to/3ggOK0V 


Frostworld: Ice & Blood: A GameLit/LitRPG Adventure (July 27th, 2021)

https://amzn.to/3dnBlT2 


Player Reached the Top. LitRPG Series. Book VI (July 27th, 2021)

https://amzn.to/3akJWUG 


Tower of Steel and Shadow: A LitRPG Progression Fantasy (July 30th, 2021)

https://amzn.to/2RB2mKs 


The Merchant System (Book Two) (July 31st, 2021)

https://amzn.to/3iANyqh 


Corsair's Prize: A LitRPG Dungeon Core Adventure (Dungeon of Evolution Book 2) (Aug. 2nd, 2021)

https://amzn.to/3cBkzPj 


Bushido Online: Pacchi Festival: A LitRPG Saga (Aug. 2nd, 2021)

https://amzn.to/2RKq2MA 


Enemy of the Inferno (Disgardium Book #8): LitRPG Series (Aug. 9th, 2021)

https://amzn.to/3wgi64I 


Executor Rising: A LitRPG Adventure (Magnus Book 2) (Aug. 10th, 2021)

https://amzn.to/3zjaBMl 


Defiance of the Fall 2: A LitRPG Adventure (Aug. 10th, 2021)

https://amzn.to/3vipafM 


Back to One: A LitRPG/Gamelit Adventure (The Bad Guys Book 7) (Aug. 12th, 2021)

https://amzn.to/3wlxFs6 


Neverstone: A LitRPG Adventure (The Mad Elf Book 1) (Aug. 24th, 2021)

https://amzn.to/3vf7dyP 


The Crew (Captains & Cannons Book 2)  (Aug. 24th, 2021)

https://amzn.to/3vf79z5 


The Starlight Fleet (Rogue Merchant Book #7): LitRPG Series (August 25th, 2021)

https://amzn.to/3whjTq5 

Onto New Releases and Reviews


(Play Music 3)

New Releases and Reviews


(Picture 1)

Death's Favorite Warlock 2

Kill after kill, Lars’s bloody hands have grown stronger by the day as he’s soaked in the EXP from every cultivator whose life he’s taken. What was once horrific is now becoming an addiction, but just getting strong enough to survive was only the start.


When an elder cultivator powerful enough to destroy Lars with a gesture spirits him away to the Sect of the Spring Rain, he ends up as the subject of a twisted plot to uncover and exploit his secret cultivation technique.


Can he navigate the treacherous power struggles of the sect within or will he be killed off by the factions vying for power? What happens if his grisly methods are exposed? One thing is for certain, he must prove once again that you shouldn't mess with a warlock who grows more powerful with every life he takes.


Join Lars as he continues to carve his own bloody path to power in this cultivation-themed xanxia inspired LitRPG and Gamelit adventure.


My Opinion: 340 pages, $3.99, Available On Kindle Unlimited


*Full disclosure: I received an advanced copy for review. I purchased a copy when it became available. 


Lars is back and delves deeper into the cultivation world when he tries to join a martial arts sect. There are some very good fights, lots of humorous banter, and some new RPG related powers that the main character (MC) gets. If you enjoy a martial arts story with a RPG bent and have a sense of humor, you’ll enjoy the follow up to the popular story. 


Score: 7.5 out of 10

Death's Favorite Warlock 2

https://amzn.to/2RKvH5t 


Beta Test: 1st of the NanoWielder Saga

Monsters are real. Magic works. Its a dry run for the apocalypse. Will you survive The Beta Test?


The wild places have become more and more dangerous as animals and plants have become altered. Some are larger, some exhibit strange powers but many are dangerous. Cody, a down on his luck veteran of the US Army, goes to the forest to die. He's going to earn an insurance payout for his family and maybe help protect some of the countless squatters forced from their homes when automation took their jobs. It will be a good death. That isn't quite the way things work out.


The artificial intelligence thinks it is operating a game. The players are the residents of the forest. They all undergo forced character creation and try to survive while learning their new powers. Cody is determined to break out of the test zone and builds a team that work closely together to survive the new game-like reality.


The NanoWielder Saga combines modern technology with emergent magic. Many normal animals are altered into super predators. The most dangerous monsters of all are the gamers.


Beta Test contains game elements. Both characters and monsters level up and gain new powers as they grow in experience. Some of the crew learn to create simple magic items and learn to use magical runes.


My Opinion: 225 pages, $3.99, Available On Kindle Unlimited


There are a few issues that might turn off readers but if they don’t you’ll likely enjoy the good action and depth of the RPG system. However, the issues below were enough to just push the story to the point where it didn’t work for me. But plenty of other readers have enjoyed the story.


One of the early issues, for me, is that the early part of the story is a bit of an info dump and it takes too long to get to the actual story. About 14% before you finish the setup, the main character (MC)  finishes his character creation, and you get to any action. There's also a bit about an AI secretly releasing nanites all over the world to create monsters and justify the RPG apocalypse thing. 


The other part I actually disliked is the scene where a mother was transformed into a monster and she murders her husband and two young children. It didn't add anything to the story and was frankly off putting enough to make some readers stop reading. I think part of my issue is that the scenes where parents kill their children or children kill their parents are dark and that darkness isn’t carried through the other scenes in the story. It's the apocalypse, so a level of darkness is expected, but the level established by those deaths isn’t maintained throughout the story. The rest of the fights, while brutal and show the MC getting constantly hurt, don’t reflect the vileness I’d expect if this was a full blown dark story. Most of the people in the story are surprisingly good, don’t take advantage of others, and are even willing to risk their lives to help strangers. 


There's certainly a depth to the game mechanics of the story. A customized system that will feel familiar. The MC has a templar class that is a combat class with healing, but the MC wields a modern firearm in addition to an axe and he has a bound dog companion that levels too. The RPG progression is regular, though you can tell some of the mechanics, like the nanocredits gained, are fleshed out as the story progresses.


Overall, while the combat in the novel is good with a variety of monsters, it's not enough to carry the story for me. The inconsistent level of darkness was a big turn off too. Either go full dark apocalypse where the evils of humanity show through or cut it out as it’s a distraction.


Score: 6 out of 10

Beta Test: 1st of the NanoWielder Saga

https://amzn.to/3iz7EBt 


Second Shot (Fantasia Book #1): LitRPG Series

I was on a date with the girl of my dreams when life took a strange turn and I found myself sucked into a virtual game world. It was pretty much a nose dive out of my own world of comforts, where I had everything: money, love and a bright future on the horizon. I'm not a gamer and I’ve never been one to run from reality, but it seems fate has decided that my real life no longer belongs to me. Now I'm rotting away in some dumpy medieval village where everyone I meet wants to kill me.


But I won’t give up and I won’t lose hope. I'll get to the bottom of this! What’s it all for, and who's the mastermind behind it? I don’t plan on just rolling over and accepting any “gift” fate wants to bestow upon me, and if I have to turn this whole damn world inside out, so be it!


Think there are no more offbeat and original plotlines in the world of LitRPG? Well, friends, you’re in for a big surprise!


My Opinion: 461 pages, $3.99, Available On Kindle Unlimited


*Full disclosure: I received an advanced copy for review. I purchased a copy when it became available.


A Russian translation story that adds a twist to the trapped in the game format by making the main character (MC) a scanned copy of a real person uploaded to the game without his permission. The game world is PvP centric, with added permadeath since all the players are just scanned copies. 


My initial impression was a little confused since it takes till about the 10% mark to explain the premise. But after that point, the setup is clear, even if the ultimate goal of the story isn’t. Instead, most of the novel is a bit slice of life as you follow the MC as he tries to escape the players trying to enslave newbies, figures out the game system, levels up, and recruits others to help him to stay alive against the monsters and other players trying to kill him, and eventually reaches a larger community that he gets involved with. There’s a little bit of a storyline to do with the real world, but for most of the novel, there doesn’t seem to be a clear plot. It’s not until about 66% into it that you get something rather interesting. It relates to real life, the creators of the system, and the real purpose behind the game. It’s a pretty good twist that adds purpose to what comes after in addition to some good town defense stuff. But it’s honestly something that took way too long to get to. 


The game mechanics are fine. Nothing particularly innovative, but solid RPG progression with some smart spell combos and group tactics. There’s an emphasis on PvP and the tactics associated with that, so that might be a highlight for some.


Overall, unless you just fall in love with the early PvP aspect of the story or some of the group fights, it’s a challenge to see where the story is going until you’re almost done with it. There’s some rather good stuff after that 66% reveal that kept me interested, but I found it challenging to stay fully engaged with the story up to that point.


Score: 6.8 out of 10

Second Shot (Fantasia Book #1): LitRPG Series

https://amzn.to/3v9AY3W 



ChronoTemplar: A Crunchy LitRPG Adventure

You don't always get a second chance... unless you're a pawn for an eldritch horror that: (A) can bend time, and (B) is a sore loser.


Justin Thyme is not a good man, nor one destined for glory. He was meant to die in obscurity, yet another level 82 Templar that was just about to get chewed up by a horde of skittering monstrosities clawing at humanity's last enclave.


One short conversation with a time-splitting monstrosity later, and Justin finds himself flung five years into the past—right when the Earth was first chosen to host the 9,947th Gladiatorial Games.


Justin must now do all that he can to help save the world from crumbling under the twin pressures of monsters and murderers. But it's not all about grinding experience, gaining the most levels, and kicking the most ass. He can’t even stand out too much, lest he draw the attention of the other eldritch horrors observing Earth’s struggles for their amusement.


No, it’s all about making the right connections, sowing the seeds of hope, culling the pests causing despair… oh, and exploiting the hell out of the System with his ‘borrowed’ ability to tweak time to his advantage.


My Opinion: 431 pages, $4.99, Available On Kindle Unlimited


*First 25% a bit of a slog, but the story gets much better after*


The first 10% of the story is frankly a bit tedious. It sets up a regressor story using an alien that lost a bet on how long humanity would last on their instigated RPG apocalypse to send the main character (MC) back in time to help people do better. Then once back on earth at the very start of the RPG apocalypse, it's a huge info dump about game mechanics instead of any kind of emotional response to the chance to start over or character development. 


The rest of the story is fairly slice of life with the MC finding places to educate about the new rules of the world and the hardness that comes with evil people suddenly getting power. There are semi-regular fights, but despite the fact that the MC disables all his notifications, there’s a load of unneeded text that breaks up the battle a bit too much. Additionally, there’s a continued deluge of info dumps from the MC as he describes other people’s classes, their abilities, all the stuff they could hypothetically do, and all the minuta that honestly would have been better to just show. For example, I don’t need to know the stats of all 7 pieces of equipment the MC wears, and I don’t need a full character sheet including descriptions of all the powers when the MC only gets one new power.


This peters out about 25% into the story and it actually gets much better from here on in.

The story still has a bit too much minuta sometimes, but a lot of the info dumping goes away. The fights get really good as the MC gets a team and faces foes that are his equal. There’s a really good variety of class builds that skew towards PvP, but are interesting to read about. There’s a good bit of cruelty and evil that fits the apocalypse style story. I also liked seeing the wider view of how the MCs information changed the timeline and how well the entire earth does, though it's never clear how the MC knows about the changes. Eventually you even get a bit of background on who the MC was during his first life, which surprisingly wasn’t a good person at all. Like a terrible, terrible, human being. My only complaint here is that the reader doesn’t get to see his redemption arc from. The story ends in a pretty good and  unexpected way which capped things off nicely.


Overall, the first 25% of the story is pretty rough sometimes and I didn’t really care for much of it. But the rest of the novel really redeemed itself and I eventually really got into it. I’m not sure everyone will want to slog through the beginning but if you like an RPG apocalypse story that focuses heavily on PvP and has some neat builds, then it might be worth the slog. 


Score: 7.2 out of 10

ChronoTemplar: A Crunchy LitRPG Adventure

https://amzn.to/3ghElR4 


Breaking the Bank (Luck's Voice Book 3)

Doc was happy with his new life— he’d married Fiala and Sonya, had allies who were steadfastly beside him, and was building the name of Lady Luck. Things were moving in the right direction, and life was good.


Powerful enemies were starting to rise against him. Doc knew that Sheriff Grange and McIan, the preacher of Apoc, would be problems eventually, but the two he had to deal with first were Suez and Goodman. Suez was still a mystery to Doc, and the man had effectively split the town with Goodman. Goodman was a larger concern, being the head of the only bank in town and the mayor of Deep Gulch.


Doc’s lucky strike in the wilds helped give him leverage in town. Using the windfall from his mine, he moved to break the town free from the deep pockets that had it in a stranglehold.


When Lia, Ayla, Sophia, and his wives left town to work on their outdoor knowledge and shooting, Doc was left to mind the Lily and keep healing the wounded. He thought things would be fine, until Spot, one of the deputies, came stumbling in mortally wounded.


Pushing himself more than he should, Doc poured his energy, vitality, and his life into saving Spot. Darkness closed in around him as he used almost everything he had to bring the deputy back from death’s door.


After escaping death by the barest of margins himself, Doc had no idea what was coming for him next, but he had faith that his goddess would help see him through it.


(This book contains adult situations, including but not limited to: sex, gambling, abuse, drug use, harem, and murder. It also contains graphic sex scenes, which portray elements of BDSM. You’ve been warned.)


My Opinion: 500 pages, $4.99, Available On Kindle Unlimited


A fine continuation of the slice of life series. In particular I liked the sneaky backstabbing section. It was a nice bit of intrigue that had a good twist. There's also lots of tying off of loose story threads as the MC prepares to leave his town, though it doesn't happen in this book. 


As usual, warning that there are sex scenes and polyamorous relationships in the story. 


Score: 7.3 out of 10

Breaking the Bank (Luck's Voice Book 3)

https://amzn.to/2SfMb5W 


He Who Fights with Monsters 2: A LitRPG Adventure

The path from retail middle management to inter-dimensional wizard adventurer wasn’t easy.


But Jason Asano is settling into his new life. Now, a contest draws young elites to the city of Greenstone to compete for a grand prize. Jason must gather a band of companions if he is to stand a chance against the best the world has to offer. 


While the young adventurers are caught up in competition, the city leaders deal with revelations of betrayal as a vast and terrible enemy is revealed. Although Jason seems uninvolved, he has unknowingly crossed the enemy’s path before. Friends and foes made along the way will lead him to cross it again. Inevitable conflict looms....


My Opinion: 564 pages, $5.99, Available On Kindle Unlimited


The 2nd book in the series, while still very entertaining, also shows much more clearly that this is a section of a continuing serial story and not a fully plotted out novel. 


Though a portion of the story, the mid-big adventure in subspace, had clear goals, quests, and character growth, much of the rest of the story didn’t. Not to say that it was unstructured, just that it was a bit looser on plotting with some random feeling sections with good banter, fights, or just casual sightseeing. There were also several story threads that were started in the novel that didn’t end up with any additional development, which matches the slice of life serial storytelling. While it’s likely these threads are developed further in the story, they are left hanging in this collected novel version. 


Besides those small points, the story on the whole continues to be full of action, adventure, power development, and the addition of the more reasonable romance options allowed for some fun playful banter in the group. Good stuff overall.


Score: 7.6 out of 10

He Who Fights with Monsters 2: A LitRPG Adventure

https://amzn.to/3ucavSV 



Oh Great! I was Reincarnated as a Farmer: A LitRPG Adventure : (Unorthodox Farming: Book 1)

What do you have when you blend a pinch of litrpg, a touch of farming simulator, a sprinkle of epic fantasy, a whole cup of Isekai, and a dash of Home Alone?



You have Arnold’s life.



Accidentally murdered by a cleric in another universe during a botched resurrection, Arnold, a semi-pro gamer, wakes upon an altar to find himself incarnated into the overweight body of a farmer who could have been his fatter twin. He’s not the hero. He’s not the villain. He’s certainly not the chosen one who is there to save the world. He’s a clerical error.


It could be a bad joke, but apparently, it happens so often that they have a standard procedure for returning you. That standard procedure doesn't apply to Arnold.


Now stuck on a new earth, in a new universe, with no way home, Arnold must use his gaming skills to figure out how to level his farmer class to 100 and gain a second class which doesn't make him want to beat his head against the wall. There is just one small problem: farmers don't gain experience from killing monsters. Like at all.


Follow Arnold on his hilarious journey as he stubbornly comes to grips with his new reality and tries to change his destiny from that of your typical farmer.


My Opinion: 660 pages, $5.99, Available On Kindle Unlimited


This is a great reincarnated to an RPG fantasy world story where the main character (MC) has the farmer class foisted upon him. His goal, to reach level 100 hundred in the class so that he can take a 2nd class that feeds what he thinks a reincarnation should be. Only the system is stacked against him and he has to figure out every exploit to gain the XP he needs which spirals into some truly fun and funky adventures with an emphasis on a kind of trap filled farmer dungeon being used to lure in increasingly powerful monsters. Beyond the action, there’s good character development, town building, lots of RPG exploitation, and some good world building mid story that develops some series villains. The sense of humor, if it lands with you, will have you chuckling throughout. 


Score: 8 out of 10

Oh Great! I was Reincarnated as a Farmer: A LitRPG Adventure : (Unorthodox Farming: Book 1)

https://amzn.to/3uGSDzR 



That’s it everyone! Thank you for watching/listening. 


You can follow us on

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/litrpgpodcast/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/LitRPGPodcast 

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3-eBvpm-g7IkjfVktObGAA 

Patreon:  https://www.patreon.com/geekbytespodcast 

Our Webpage: www.litrpgpodcast.com  

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0rbgdut7cghvVBy572lG6o  

Audible: https://www.audible.com/pd/LitRPG-Podcast-Podcast/B08JJPS6S5 


Other LitRPG facebook pages

https://www.facebook.com/groups/LitRPG.books 

https://www.facebook.com/groups/LitRPGsociety/ 

https://www.facebook.com/groups/541733016223492/


If you enjoy the podcast and want to support us you can also find all the other ways to support the podcast at www.litrpgpodcast.com/support  



Thanks for hanging out with me today. Until we can hangout again, remember to go read some LitRPG!  


(Music 4)