Tim

Good story, world, and system brought down a star by voices and editing.

Reviewed: 06-29-25

Good enough story with unique concepts and progression. Both books really could use a pass for editing some of which interfere with the emersion (switches in voice, wrong pronouns, or swaps of who is actually speaking that make it hard to follow sometimes). Also some of the female voices are awkward with pauses or young characters sounding like old women. Lastly this seems to be a lead up to an academy and tournament plot line which is a hard stop for me, story is good enough that I will see how it’s handled.

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Good series overall

Reviewed: 06-23-25

There are some strong views in this book, not political per say but more regarding social engineering and manipulation. I had some issues with two subplots that served unrealistic regarding personal security but otherwise it was a competent trilogy. My only complaint was i never really got emotionally vested with the characters, maybe it was the voices or the writing but i was more analytically interested in the outcomes. All in all worth the credits, some of the takes on social sentiment is topical.

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Whats with the HTown hate?!?

Reviewed: 06-23-25

Good story and plot line. Just had to stick up for my hometown Houston. Houston is the best city in Texas (and more) and didn’t deserve the vitriol it got in the book (none of this has anything to do with the story, other than going to Houston, so no spoilers).

Also have to give props for all the references to other LitRPG series, I wonder how many I missed.

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Good OP progression story with deep enough world

Reviewed: 06-16-25

Good start, I broke my rule of starting a series when only book 1 is out. I did have to play this at 1.4 speed due to really slow reading (maybe even artificially, how else could 1.4 sound normal). Overall story is good with a legitimate system and world. MC is OP but only compared to his cohort, there are many others characters stronger. There is s risk of so many skills and stats that everything becomes meaningless, but that is for later. No interference with YA yet, hopefully it doesnt enter, also please no school or tournaments in next books or I am out.

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Good enough plot to look past some elements

Reviewed: 03-28-25

Daniels performance is a Daniel performance and voice. It is good and voices are well done. Every time I get upset at the Captain not acting calm the writing actually indicates with panic in his voice.

The plot of the book is interesting and I will continue but the details are all over the place. I mostly have a hard time putting myself in the moment and imagining the action because of temporal, spacial elements. Missiles arrive in space battles instantly, sometimes there is time for dialog, other times a moment delay causes impact, are these ships 10 feet from each other or are they separated. I mostly have to stop trying to imagine it and just listen. Ground combat is similar.

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1 person found this helpful

The quintessential litrpg

Reviewed: 02-21-25

,This series and Randidly Ghosthound are the ultimate progression, cultivation (or not) series. If you have not started these you have over 300 hours of continuous progression and story. Already read them? You have 300 hours of relistening while you wait for the next 27 hour installment which until recently came out quarterly.

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Really good and smart writing

Reviewed: 10-22-24

Really smart writing and amazing performance. I do not agree with the YA reviews, it’s about a teen, sort of, but does not deal with YA themes even avoids them. This was a very fun listen and now I am off to listen to book 2.

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Good but might want to wait

Reviewed: 10-05-24

The first two of these book are good and well written. My only complaint is book 1 is a setup book (origins) and this book is the start. It seems the author is working on another series also which implies the next book might not be out for another year. It might be worth waiting a year or two while these stories build up for a more complete experience, especially considering the short length compared to other long running series (27 hours every quarter).

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Continues to hold attention

Reviewed: 09-30-24

Every time I foresaw the end of the hook the story takes a new lease and keeps the interest and the commitment going. This is a fun self-aware book that keeps the reward going. I am looking forward to the next in the line.

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1 person found this helpful

Not much I can add

Reviewed: 09-30-24

It is amazing how a 26 hour book 7 in a series can make me seriously hold on to every second left not wanting it to end and wanting the next to release soon. The beginning is a little confusing, with so much going on and it being 3 months since the last book. Once I repositioned in it, I cared about each of story lines. Also glad to wrap up some and launch new. The end of the book isn't a cliff hanger but leaves you soo ready for next chapter. Well done, this and DoF are true pinnacles of what the genre can be.

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