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New Era Online #2
EvP [Environment vs. Player]
After defeating the hobgoblin threat, Oren is now faced with an even more tenacious enemy: the players themselves.
His old guild have discovered his village's location and a deadly strike force is closing in. With time running out, Oren must build up his clan and recruit an army of monsters if he's to have any hope of withstanding the coming attack.
His old guild have discovered his village's location and a deadly strike force is closing in. With time running out, Oren must build up his clan and recruit an army of monsters if he's to have any hope of withstanding the coming attack.
649 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 9, 2018
1324 people are currently reading
430 people want to read
About the author
Shemer Kuznits
15 books856 followers
Shemer has been a fan of Sci-Fi, Fantasy, and RPG games since the early 80’s.
In 2016 he started writing his first novel: Life Reset which turned into a 6-book series with its grand finale published in 2021. Each book in the series became an Amazon bestseller.
In 2019 Shemer quit his day job as a software developer to become a full-time author and released his second series: Earth Force, a sci-fi series consisting of a 2-book arc. Shemer hopes to garner enough community awareness and support to start writing the second arc.
As an avid gamer, a D&D dungeon master, and Navy veteran, Shemer has a wealth of life experience to draw on for his writing. His books always include elements of kingdom/settlement development where the protagonist is forced to carve out a new place for themselves in the face of adversity.
Shemer spends his days writing and his nights fighting crime (well, mostly convincing his kids to go to bed, which is very similar).
Shemer also enjoys writing about himself in the third-person and hopes you find his work enjoyable.
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Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 277 reviews
May 16, 2019
A decent read if you don't mind some annoying plot holes. Main character is still annoying in his naivety and periodic temper tantrums. Main draw is still the settlement portion of the book which is still enjoyable.
There were a number of plot related events that really just make no sense. First of all, now that the focus is on the guild being a threat, why did Vatras even feel like he needed to betray Oren? Why did the lieutenants agree to it despite the very real chance of everything not going according to plan? It is just amazing to me that there is not a single example of some event or whatever that would push the upper rank guildies to agree that this was a good idea. Obviously there must be something right? Why else would people who he has played with since the start of the game (the very first people he ever gave skills to) would decide betraying him is a good idea? Otherwise, is this just some weak attempt at garnering sympathy for the main character and his "terrible" circumstances?
Second, wasn't the whole damn point of the decoy chief hut supposed to be that it was a decoy? Why the hell would you plan and implement an ambush on a party that just destroyed that decoy and who seem like they may leave. An attack like that would do absolutely nothing but confirm that you are exactly what they are looking for and that they should now bring whatever they need to in order to destroy you.
Third, who the hell would ever think that bringing a bunch of high level players to a low level area is a blow to a guilds prestige? I can understand if they wipe while trying to do something official, but a bunch of people slumming it and just there to kill time or have fun is not exactly an indicator that the guild and its members have fallen from grace.
Game system is starting to just be there to show that there is a huge gap between the main character and whoever they are fighting. This sort of thing always feels somewhat inevitable, but the amount of deus ex machina going on in order to have the main character win is a little hard to swallow.
Overall, the book is still worth a read, especially if you like settlement sort of LitRPGs. I would, however, take the plot with a grain of salt in terms of its cohesiveness. The story is still there and it is progressing, but the events that push that progression do not always fit.
There were a number of plot related events that really just make no sense. First of all, now that the focus is on the guild being a threat, why did Vatras even feel like he needed to betray Oren? Why did the lieutenants agree to it despite the very real chance of everything not going according to plan? It is just amazing to me that there is not a single example of some event or whatever that would push the upper rank guildies to agree that this was a good idea. Obviously there must be something right? Why else would people who he has played with since the start of the game (the very first people he ever gave skills to) would decide betraying him is a good idea? Otherwise, is this just some weak attempt at garnering sympathy for the main character and his "terrible" circumstances?
Second, wasn't the whole damn point of the decoy chief hut supposed to be that it was a decoy? Why the hell would you plan and implement an ambush on a party that just destroyed that decoy and who seem like they may leave. An attack like that would do absolutely nothing but confirm that you are exactly what they are looking for and that they should now bring whatever they need to in order to destroy you.
Third, who the hell would ever think that bringing a bunch of high level players to a low level area is a blow to a guilds prestige? I can understand if they wipe while trying to do something official, but a bunch of people slumming it and just there to kill time or have fun is not exactly an indicator that the guild and its members have fallen from grace.
Game system is starting to just be there to show that there is a huge gap between the main character and whoever they are fighting. This sort of thing always feels somewhat inevitable, but the amount of deus ex machina going on in order to have the main character win is a little hard to swallow.
Overall, the book is still worth a read, especially if you like settlement sort of LitRPGs. I would, however, take the plot with a grain of salt in terms of its cohesiveness. The story is still there and it is progressing, but the events that push that progression do not always fit.
July 15, 2018
Book two
I read this in one go. Of course I read a lot of books in one go, but most of them I can put down and do something else for a few hours. I just didn't want to put this book down. People say The Land series is the best. I'm of the opinion that this series is better.
I read this in one go. Of course I read a lot of books in one go, but most of them I can put down and do something else for a few hours. I just didn't want to put this book down. People say The Land series is the best. I'm of the opinion that this series is better.
July 13, 2018
Great read as expected
Read the first was excited...second exceeded expectations..
Great litrpg for those not wanting straight porn
Buy the book. Read the book
Read the first was excited...second exceeded expectations..
Great litrpg for those not wanting straight porn
Buy the book. Read the book
October 14, 2018
Yeah, the more I read LitRPG, the more apparent it becomes that the settlement-building kind is what I really like.
This book was a nice follow-up to the series, except for the weak points that seem to recur in LitRPG.
- A total disregard for combat-time (people having conversations while fighting just makes the whole experience... absurd)
- way too many "remind me", "need I remind you" and "as you know" extremely flakey info-dump through dialogue. It was just... bad.
- the bad guy's motivation was illogical, or rather, moronic.
Had those issues been ironed out (maybe a last rewrite, or an editor?), the book could have gone up to a 4 stars, because I really liked the world in itself.
This book was a nice follow-up to the series, except for the weak points that seem to recur in LitRPG.
- A total disregard for combat-time (people having conversations while fighting just makes the whole experience... absurd)
- way too many "remind me", "need I remind you" and "as you know" extremely flakey info-dump through dialogue. It was just... bad.
- the bad guy's motivation was illogical, or rather, moronic.
Had those issues been ironed out (maybe a last rewrite, or an editor?), the book could have gone up to a 4 stars, because I really liked the world in itself.
October 25, 2018
So many bots boosting the rating.
The whole plot makes zero sense, motivations of the bad guy (and actions) are just borderline retarded.
Top 100 guild can't spare 10 high level players to go annihilate some goblins, shit most people would go out of there way in MMO game to stamp on somebodies sandcastle just because they can.
The romance part added nothing to this book. Zero. Nil. Nada. Just filler.
The mentality change, rages had a plot purpose, but were badly done and cringy.
The whole plot makes zero sense, motivations of the bad guy (and actions) are just borderline retarded.
Top 100 guild can't spare 10 high level players to go annihilate some goblins, shit most people would go out of there way in MMO game to stamp on somebodies sandcastle just because they can.
The romance part added nothing to this book. Zero. Nil. Nada. Just filler.
The mentality change, rages had a plot purpose, but were badly done and cringy.
December 14, 2023
12/13/23 Notes:
EvP is still better than book 1. The sound effects aren't as obnoxious in this production, but that has more to do with the fact that I'm listening to the audiobook with speakers vs headphones. With headphones, sound imbalances are more obvious.
03/26/19 Notes:
I may up to 4 stars. It was much better than first book but still had pacing issues.
EvP is still better than book 1. The sound effects aren't as obnoxious in this production, but that has more to do with the fact that I'm listening to the audiobook with speakers vs headphones. With headphones, sound imbalances are more obvious.
03/26/19 Notes:
I may up to 4 stars. It was much better than first book but still had pacing issues.
February 6, 2019
Just couldn't put it down. Awesome
September 12, 2018
Fantastic. Absolutely fantastic.
Awesome writing!
Loved it.
Awesome writing!
Loved it.
August 2, 2019
Rating 4.25 stars
This is a very good book for people who like 3 things: LitRPG, world building, and complex game mechanics (level ups, stat points, etc). Oren is building up his small goblin village. His goal is to reach boss level 4 in order to try and log out of the game. Oren knows that the players are coming to get him though, so he has to work quickly. Almost the entire book is spent building the village, power leveling his people and himself, as well as learning skills that can help him survive. I love this type of book!
Just like the first book, Oren is insanely overpowered for his level, but at the same time the odds are stacked so far against him that even if he was twice as powerful he would still be in trouble. A couple of things pop up throughout the book that complicates matters
I took 3/4 of a star off for two reasons:
I am worried about the next book though. Just with the set up at the end of this book I can come up tons of reasons that his plan isn't going to work. And I have been so impressed with Oren's strategies up to this point. I hope he doesn't make me regret saying that in the next book.
This is a very good book for people who like 3 things: LitRPG, world building, and complex game mechanics (level ups, stat points, etc). Oren is building up his small goblin village. His goal is to reach boss level 4 in order to try and log out of the game. Oren knows that the players are coming to get him though, so he has to work quickly. Almost the entire book is spent building the village, power leveling his people and himself, as well as learning skills that can help him survive. I love this type of book!
Just like the first book, Oren is insanely overpowered for his level, but at the same time the odds are stacked so far against him that even if he was twice as powerful he would still be in trouble. A couple of things pop up throughout the book that complicates matters
I took 3/4 of a star off for two reasons:
I am worried about the next book though. Just with the set up at the end of this book I can come up tons of reasons that his plan isn't going to work. And I have been so impressed with Oren's strategies up to this point. I hope he doesn't make me regret saying that in the next book.
July 18, 2018
Great
Loved the whole book keep up the good work and write the next book really really really really really soon
Loved the whole book keep up the good work and write the next book really really really really really soon
June 13, 2020
In many books, LitRPG and otherwise, we meet snarky companions. It starts with playful banter but at times they become unnecessarily rude in name of being snide. This is exactly how SpecOps ruined the series for me.
But that's exactly where this book shines the most. Vic is an outstanding companion. He loves teasing our Totem but he is one of the most genuinely caring and lovable companion I've seen since Sylphrena from The Way of Kings. At times he's the only person standing between our Totem and madness.
That brings to my next point. Like Kaladin in Way of Kings, Oren has faced lot of torture which nearly breaks him. He now has an identity crisis where he is sometimes unable to differentiate between the game world and reality. In fact I wasn't expecting this by reading the book name but that's one of the main things. EvP is a really good summarization to the story. And it is so well written. You can feel the identity crisis and you feel like you want to be in Vic's place, trying to help Oren.
Also, if you are a fan of city building stories, this will exceed your expectations. It exceeded mine anyways.
Can't recommend the series enough. This book was better than the 1st one by a long shot.
But that's exactly where this book shines the most. Vic is an outstanding companion. He loves teasing our Totem but he is one of the most genuinely caring and lovable companion I've seen since Sylphrena from The Way of Kings. At times he's the only person standing between our Totem and madness.
That brings to my next point. Like Kaladin in Way of Kings, Oren has faced lot of torture which nearly breaks him. He now has an identity crisis where he is sometimes unable to differentiate between the game world and reality. In fact I wasn't expecting this by reading the book name but that's one of the main things. EvP is a really good summarization to the story. And it is so well written. You can feel the identity crisis and you feel like you want to be in Vic's place, trying to help Oren.
Also, if you are a fan of city building stories, this will exceed your expectations. It exceeded mine anyways.
Can't recommend the series enough. This book was better than the 1st one by a long shot.
May 16, 2020
Ehhhhh, not an improvement over the first.
Introduced new players and Characters? Cool, then make them more a part of the story. Pretty much all side characters were forgotten about in this installment. Then, on the last edit, the author decided to cram a few asides to round it out. The sabotage side-plot was just bad, laughably so. The MC got a little too predictable in this one as well.
This book has one strength and its settlement building and game mechanics. However, you can't just focus solely on that or it will get old fast. That's why I was looking forward to POV's from different players. That is until they were promptly all forgotten about until they were smashed into the last few chapters.
Introduced new players and Characters? Cool, then make them more a part of the story. Pretty much all side characters were forgotten about in this installment. Then, on the last edit, the author decided to cram a few asides to round it out. The sabotage side-plot was just bad, laughably so. The MC got a little too predictable in this one as well.
This book has one strength and its settlement building and game mechanics. However, you can't just focus solely on that or it will get old fast. That's why I was looking forward to POV's from different players. That is until they were promptly all forgotten about until they were smashed into the last few chapters.
October 10, 2018
The only issue I have with the story is why isn’t the MC handing out LOADS of quests with ever increasing amounts of gold as rewards? The system would generate the gold, which the players would then spend on his stuff, thereby netting him more gold. I just remember feeling really frustrated when he couldn’t afford a rune, and it didn’t occur to him to have the players assist with getting the funds...
July 27, 2018
If you love LitRPG buy this series!
Oren's adventures in city building continue in the second installment of this series. If you are a fan of The Land or any of the other top LitRPG books, you need to buy these books! Thank me later.
Oren's adventures in city building continue in the second installment of this series. If you are a fan of The Land or any of the other top LitRPG books, you need to buy these books! Thank me later.
June 7, 2024
Who wants to build a village? I do!
Summary:
If you want a good old LitRPG with lots of world-building and some convoluted game mechanics you've found your series. Our hero theBread.... "Dread Totem" is gearing up for the upcoming invasion set on him by his former guildmates. In order to survive this conflict, he needs to continue building up his army, his village's economy, his skills, and most importantly his mental state.
Oren has started to see plenty of upsides about being a Tier 2 boss, but sadly life in NEO is much like in Earth. You always have to keep moving, because someone is always looking to bring you down. And Oren has all kinds of enemies after him, but the most challenging one is definitely himself. Sometimes your worst enemy isn't even other people, it's you. But no need to worry, GUY is all about having you succeed by continuously facing adversity. It's all part of the system.
Throughout most of the book, we get to see Oren trying to recover from a damaged psyche. During the first half, we see him act as if he was a full-on native. From starting to call players "travelers", to acting out on their racial hatred towards other races because of what the system states, and even having to battle against a goblin's baser instincts towards life-partners. This book uses lots of moments to show you that the consequences stated in the first installment weren't understated and that real-life immersion in a video game can be as painful as it can be pleasurable. Sadly, even when he snaps back to reality after a friendly intervention he'll have to constantly be on guard against the perils of the system due to his hybrid status.
Meanwhile, the traitor Vartas has commissioned a raiding party to go and destroy the clan in order to then capture and enslave Oren for his Prime Badges. Oren now has six weeks to raise a strong enough combat force to repel the oncoming attack. Luckily, NEO has decided to make his little village a starting point for a new type of player, goblinoids. With their arrival, he now has a bit of help on building up his village and its defenses. Sadly not every player is keen on seeing the Green Piece Clan survive this challenge. Oren now has to face enemies from both the outside and the inside, all while trying to save his village.
Overall I really enjoyed this book. All of the character development, world-building, and game mechanics mixed together created an amazing experience for me. One of the things that I enjoyed about this book is that no matter what was happening, you always had a clear goal. Get stronger, build up the village, survive the oncoming attack, and protect the village. All while continuing to develop some of the established characters.
Sadly this didn't provide much character development on people that weren't Oren, Vic, Tika, Zuban, Tal, and Hoshisu. The rest of the clan just had a bit of an upgrade when it comes to their skills, but no overall development. I get that the author wanted to introduce the new cast, but I wanted to see more of the Green Piece Clan. It also did have some plot holes that left me wondering where this is going to go. But since this is a 6 book saga, this means I still have 4 more books to look for explanations.
4.25 out of 5 stars.
Summary:
If you want a good old LitRPG with lots of world-building and some convoluted game mechanics you've found your series. Our hero the
Oren has started to see plenty of upsides about being a Tier 2 boss, but sadly life in NEO is much like in Earth. You always have to keep moving, because someone is always looking to bring you down. And Oren has all kinds of enemies after him, but the most challenging one is definitely himself. Sometimes your worst enemy isn't even other people, it's you. But no need to worry, GUY is all about having you succeed by continuously facing adversity. It's all part of the system.
“It’ll be okay, Oren. We’ll finish this quest together, and once we do, you’ll be even stronger than before.” His voice sounded weird suddenly, almost ancient. “That’s how the system works, it puts seemingly insurmountable challenges in front of you, but those who pass the test are rewarded for it. That is the game and the prison it creates in your mind.”
Throughout most of the book, we get to see Oren trying to recover from a damaged psyche. During the first half, we see him act as if he was a full-on native. From starting to call players "travelers", to acting out on their racial hatred towards other races because of what the system states, and even having to battle against a goblin's baser instincts towards life-partners. This book uses lots of moments to show you that the consequences stated in the first installment weren't understated and that real-life immersion in a video game can be as painful as it can be pleasurable. Sadly, even when he snaps back to reality after a friendly intervention he'll have to constantly be on guard against the perils of the system due to his hybrid status.
The nightmare touched on a deep fear I tried to suppress. I couldn’t avoid facing the issue any longer, I had to face the reality: Little by little, this world … this game was shattering my psyche, one piece at a time. I have to get out of here, or I’ll end up a savage, ruthless monster, I thought bitterly.
Meanwhile, the traitor Vartas has commissioned a raiding party to go and destroy the clan in order to then capture and enslave Oren for his Prime Badges. Oren now has six weeks to raise a strong enough combat force to repel the oncoming attack. Luckily, NEO has decided to make his little village a starting point for a new type of player, goblinoids. With their arrival, he now has a bit of help on building up his village and its defenses. Sadly not every player is keen on seeing the Green Piece Clan survive this challenge. Oren now has to face enemies from both the outside and the inside, all while trying to save his village.
“This is what I brought you here for. This is your purpose. To defend our clan from our enemies. Fight well. Fight until the last drop of blood. Do not falter and do not hesitate. Remember, should any of you fall, as long as the battle is won, you will return to life again. This I vow to you, in Nihilator’s name.”
Overall I really enjoyed this book. All of the character development, world-building, and game mechanics mixed together created an amazing experience for me. One of the things that I enjoyed about this book is that no matter what was happening, you always had a clear goal. Get stronger, build up the village, survive the oncoming attack, and protect the village. All while continuing to develop some of the established characters.
Sadly this didn't provide much character development on people that weren't Oren, Vic, Tika, Zuban, Tal, and Hoshisu. The rest of the clan just had a bit of an upgrade when it comes to their skills, but no overall development. I get that the author wanted to introduce the new cast, but I wanted to see more of the Green Piece Clan. It also did have some plot holes that left me wondering where this is going to go. But since this is a 6 book saga, this means I still have 4 more books to look for explanations.
4.25 out of 5 stars.
April 1, 2025
4.5 ⭐️
Outstanding Production and Delivery
This is a good story elevated to new heights by the brilliant narration and delivery. Jeff Hays is officially one of my favorite narrators.
I enjoyed this installment a bit more than its predecessor. The expansion of the cast is a big reason.
Excited to continue this goblin journey.
Outstanding Production and Delivery
This is a good story elevated to new heights by the brilliant narration and delivery. Jeff Hays is officially one of my favorite narrators.
I enjoyed this installment a bit more than its predecessor. The expansion of the cast is a big reason.
Excited to continue this goblin journey.
April 20, 2025
3.5 rounded up due to the great narrator.
A bit better than the first one. I still dislike the MC. There's a terrible romance, some pacing issues, plot holes, and it was too long.
The base building continues to be the best part. It scratches that litrpg itch, and sometimes that's enough for it to be a good read!
A bit better than the first one. I still dislike the MC. There's a terrible romance, some pacing issues, plot holes, and it was too long.
The base building continues to be the best part. It scratches that litrpg itch, and sometimes that's enough for it to be a good read!
August 14, 2018
Mind blown!!
Had a difficult time putting this one down, got off the settlement building a bit but kept the entertainment factor high. The touch and go sabotage and final battle were great! Keep writing and I’ll keep reading!!!
Had a difficult time putting this one down, got off the settlement building a bit but kept the entertainment factor high. The touch and go sabotage and final battle were great! Keep writing and I’ll keep reading!!!
March 5, 2019
Great sequel. Character development took a backseat. This book is more focused on action than the characters.
July 15, 2018
I liked this book better than the first book. I thought the author did a great job with the game mechanics updating and/or introducing stats, skills, loot, spells, and other stuff which keeps things interesting. I am looking forward to the next book in the story.
September 19, 2018
The direct sequel to Life Reset, this book is a masterwork of LitRPG. With an engaging protagonist, sympathetic side characters, a heavy focus on settlement building and a tense, exciting timebomb plot, Life Reset: EvP has everything fans of the first book - and of LitRPG in general - could possibly want.
July 14, 2018
Fantastic continuation
This is a fantastic continuation of a wonderful series. I love the length of each book and I adore that it's a builder. There are few books that match this one in creativity and pure enjoyment 5 stars well earned sir
This is a fantastic continuation of a wonderful series. I love the length of each book and I adore that it's a builder. There are few books that match this one in creativity and pure enjoyment 5 stars well earned sir
July 12, 2018
PHENOMENAL
This book uses the first one (which is amazing btw) as a springboard that catapults it into a new extreme. Shemer is a truly gifted author with a boundless talent. I absolutely cannot wait for the next installment in this series!!!
This book uses the first one (which is amazing btw) as a springboard that catapults it into a new extreme. Shemer is a truly gifted author with a boundless talent. I absolutely cannot wait for the next installment in this series!!!
June 2, 2021
This will probably seem blasphemous, but I dropped this at 62%. It just feels like the author is spending a lot of time running through a Litrpg checklist rather than actually trying to advance a plot or have the characters be slightly realistic. I love settlement building and in-depth mechanics as much as the next guy, but the story needs to go somewhere and the characters still need to be real people with real stakes.
I rated the 1st book fairly high mostly because it was decently written and full of mechanics, which was really all it took to be good a few years ago, but it had little to no impact on me. The only thing I remembered about the first book was that it's the one where the MC is a goblin.
This book seems to be more of the same and it's mind-numbingly boring to me. The literary equivalent of grinding early game quests. No story, no character, just repetition of basic stuff. I have too many good books on my To-Read list, so I can't justify the time to continue this. I feel like this book should have only been maybe 150 pages instead of 650.
I rated the 1st book fairly high mostly because it was decently written and full of mechanics, which was really all it took to be good a few years ago, but it had little to no impact on me. The only thing I remembered about the first book was that it's the one where the MC is a goblin.
This book seems to be more of the same and it's mind-numbingly boring to me. The literary equivalent of grinding early game quests. No story, no character, just repetition of basic stuff. I have too many good books on my To-Read list, so I can't justify the time to continue this. I feel like this book should have only been maybe 150 pages instead of 650.
October 7, 2018
Pros:
Not a complete piece of shit
fight scenes mostly do not make you vomit with blood.(does not mean the rest of the book is the same) Their okayish
Stole a bunch of game mechanics from AK and others.. still readable(barely)
MC is not completely braindead.. yet he couldn't even solve a simple Sherlock Holmes case..
well written
Cons:
most of the book is unreadable.. way too boring..
Super boring, its like a slow torture with some good shit that just is enough for you to keep reading
21h on audibe.. lots of filler stuff in there
Also most of the ideas were stolen from Aleron Kong.. still it kinda works and improves the book a bit
The only people who gave 5 starts are those who have no idea what litRpg is. this is just barelly good enough. not to quit. if you want a lot of frustration and to kill time when in limbo read it.
Not a complete piece of shit
fight scenes mostly do not make you vomit with blood.(does not mean the rest of the book is the same) Their okayish
Stole a bunch of game mechanics from AK and others.. still readable(barely)
MC is not completely braindead.. yet he couldn't even solve a simple Sherlock Holmes case..
well written
Cons:
most of the book is unreadable.. way too boring..
Super boring, its like a slow torture with some good shit that just is enough for you to keep reading
21h on audibe.. lots of filler stuff in there
Also most of the ideas were stolen from Aleron Kong.. still it kinda works and improves the book a bit
The only people who gave 5 starts are those who have no idea what litRpg is. this is just barelly good enough. not to quit. if you want a lot of frustration and to kill time when in limbo read it.
August 9, 2018
Its got it all
Length!
Action!
Romance!
Twists!
And, honestly? Its a shining example of the best of this genre. Read it in its infancy on RRL, reread the first two days ago. This one was worth the money. Cant wait for book 3!
Length!
Action!
Romance!
Twists!
And, honestly? Its a shining example of the best of this genre. Read it in its infancy on RRL, reread the first two days ago. This one was worth the money. Cant wait for book 3!
October 9, 2018
4 stars, Great series, really enjoying it.
May 14, 2025
A detailed builder story hampered by unbalanced combat and plot contrivances.
My review for this novel will be similar to the my review for the first novel, so I won’t go into as much detail on my likes and dislikes. But the gist is this series has an interesting premise and world-building, with a detailed focus on faction building and crafting. The characters are also fairly likable and diverse.
However, just like with the climax in the last novel, where the MC’s choices didn’t make much sense in the context the author had already created, except in light that those choices allowed for the plot to develop as the author imagined, this novel’s climax equals and exceeds those mistakes. Long story short, contrivances.
The trope the author continuously deploys is all seems lost, then at the last moment some plot device allows a victory. That is annoying enough. But it’s made even harder to tolerate by the unbalanced fights with enemies of relatively equal level (20-40) to one that’s level 321. For the equal level fights, they devolve into desperation, despite having taken out all the enemy healers. If you’ve ever played these types of games, that spells a quick end to a raid. Not in this book. Somehow it doesn’t seem to matter. The author has already set up that boss levels equal to a 100% boost in abilities versus apparent levels per boss level. So a level 16, level 1 boss would fight like they are level 32. The MC is level 2 boss, and in the forties in his level, so his should be punching at level 120, yet he struggles to help his army and level 1 boss minions in the second act of the climax. That makes no sense. The reason for this contradiction is simple, so the author’s plot outline can play out. That’s not good enough for me. That’s bad writing.
The third act pits the MC alone against his level 321 nemesis. Somehow he’s able to whittle this guy’s HP to 50%, allowing him to use a new ability he unlocked during the second act, a plot device.
I hate… everything… about this! The way to tell a builder story right is preparation, progression, leading to results. Not having everything they did count for virtually nothing and in the end needing a new plot device ability to win the day. That is so lame!
I really hoped that the author would get better with his second novel. In his defense, the pace of the building did seem to ramp up in this book, which was one of my complaints in the first one. But other than that, the good is the same and the bad is WORSE. Perusing the ratings for the other books in the series, there is a slight increase in ratings over the course, but I don’t know if this is because the author’s penchant for plot devices and contrived climaxes improves or he loses the more discerning readers on the way and his less discerning fans are left to inflate the numbers.
I’m going to read the next book, if this issue isn’t resolved, I think I’ll have to move on.
My review for this novel will be similar to the my review for the first novel, so I won’t go into as much detail on my likes and dislikes. But the gist is this series has an interesting premise and world-building, with a detailed focus on faction building and crafting. The characters are also fairly likable and diverse.
However, just like with the climax in the last novel, where the MC’s choices didn’t make much sense in the context the author had already created, except in light that those choices allowed for the plot to develop as the author imagined, this novel’s climax equals and exceeds those mistakes. Long story short, contrivances.
The trope the author continuously deploys is all seems lost, then at the last moment some plot device allows a victory. That is annoying enough. But it’s made even harder to tolerate by the unbalanced fights with enemies of relatively equal level (20-40) to one that’s level 321. For the equal level fights, they devolve into desperation, despite having taken out all the enemy healers. If you’ve ever played these types of games, that spells a quick end to a raid. Not in this book. Somehow it doesn’t seem to matter. The author has already set up that boss levels equal to a 100% boost in abilities versus apparent levels per boss level. So a level 16, level 1 boss would fight like they are level 32. The MC is level 2 boss, and in the forties in his level, so his should be punching at level 120, yet he struggles to help his army and level 1 boss minions in the second act of the climax. That makes no sense. The reason for this contradiction is simple, so the author’s plot outline can play out. That’s not good enough for me. That’s bad writing.
The third act pits the MC alone against his level 321 nemesis. Somehow he’s able to whittle this guy’s HP to 50%, allowing him to use a new ability he unlocked during the second act, a plot device.
I hate… everything… about this! The way to tell a builder story right is preparation, progression, leading to results. Not having everything they did count for virtually nothing and in the end needing a new plot device ability to win the day. That is so lame!
I really hoped that the author would get better with his second novel. In his defense, the pace of the building did seem to ramp up in this book, which was one of my complaints in the first one. But other than that, the good is the same and the bad is WORSE. Perusing the ratings for the other books in the series, there is a slight increase in ratings over the course, but I don’t know if this is because the author’s penchant for plot devices and contrived climaxes improves or he loses the more discerning readers on the way and his less discerning fans are left to inflate the numbers.
I’m going to read the next book, if this issue isn’t resolved, I think I’ll have to move on.
February 14, 2019
In this sequel to the very enjoyable Life Reset, Oren, Dread Totem of his monster community, Green Piece, has a new and serious challenge on the horizon—the player characters are coming after him. The same group of players who betrayed him in the first novel have figured out where he is and are coming to finish the stealing everything Oren has created in the game and author, Shemer Kuznits, has cleverly managed to make this a real world crisis in addition to a gaming one.
To understand this, we need to take a step back and look at a few unique features in this gaming environment. Because of the enormous popularity of the New Era Online (NEO) gaming system, many of the top players actually make a living in the real world off the game. The most important part of this real world income revolves around “Prime” skills which are owned by the player who first thinks to create them. So if your player has made a new spell it becomes a “Prime” skill which he can give to other players and many times the skills are sold to other players. When Oren’s “friends” betrayed him they were trying to steal from him dozens (or maybe more than dozens) of prime skills that allowed him to live a comfortable life in the real world based on his gaming. In addition, Oren had built the most successful guild in the game (the Manipulators) which also added to both his game and real world wealth. Without Oren managing the guild and making all of these prime skills available to his guild members, the Manipulators are falling apart and all of this wealth is about to be lost to the people who stabbed Oren in the back. So the bad guys have developed a plan to save themselves: find Oren in the game, destroy his new goblin town, kidnap him and torture him in game until he agrees to use all his prime skills for their benefit. They have figured out that Oren, because of a glitch in the system that occurred in book 1 can’t log out anymore and so could literally be tortured forever. Notice how smoothly Kuznits has taken an in game rivalry and bumped it up into serious real world evil.
To protect himself (and eventually get his own vengeance by destroying the Manipulators so that he breaks the wealth of the betrayers) Oren has to build up the power of his goblin/hobgoblin/ogre community. This is the heart of the book—Oren learning to manipulate the system like the pro he is to permit him to take relatively weak monsters and boost them to a power level that will let them best some very high level characters. Kuznits does this very well, but it’s basically what he did for the vast majority of the first book and that part of the plot didn’t hold my interest this time. Fortunately, he has added some new subplots which did keep me intrigued. Oren is in danger of going native—forgetting that he’s really a human and not a goblin. There are some new players joining the game as monsters and one of them is clearly working for the Manipulators. Oren needs these players help to defeat his old guild, but can’t trust them. Also, his patron demon/god who wants to escape to cause the apocalypse is getting more powerful and closer to breaking out of prison. Again, Oren needs the power this creature is feeding him, but every success that Oren achieves brings Armageddon closer to fruition.
There is a lot to like about this book and the last fifth or so is all devoted to a mighty battle that everyone who’s played a computer roleplaying game will love working their way through to see how Oren bests a far superior force of player characters. That being said, I found myself skimming through many sections in the middle where Oren was building up his town and NPCs. I realize these scenes were important to the overall plot, but I think Kuznits could have trimmed this section down quite a bit and we’d have had a tighter, more action-packed novel. That being said, the last chapter lays out a lot of plot threads that have me looking forward to book 3.
If you liked this review, you can find more at www.gilbertstack.com/reviews.
To understand this, we need to take a step back and look at a few unique features in this gaming environment. Because of the enormous popularity of the New Era Online (NEO) gaming system, many of the top players actually make a living in the real world off the game. The most important part of this real world income revolves around “Prime” skills which are owned by the player who first thinks to create them. So if your player has made a new spell it becomes a “Prime” skill which he can give to other players and many times the skills are sold to other players. When Oren’s “friends” betrayed him they were trying to steal from him dozens (or maybe more than dozens) of prime skills that allowed him to live a comfortable life in the real world based on his gaming. In addition, Oren had built the most successful guild in the game (the Manipulators) which also added to both his game and real world wealth. Without Oren managing the guild and making all of these prime skills available to his guild members, the Manipulators are falling apart and all of this wealth is about to be lost to the people who stabbed Oren in the back. So the bad guys have developed a plan to save themselves: find Oren in the game, destroy his new goblin town, kidnap him and torture him in game until he agrees to use all his prime skills for their benefit. They have figured out that Oren, because of a glitch in the system that occurred in book 1 can’t log out anymore and so could literally be tortured forever. Notice how smoothly Kuznits has taken an in game rivalry and bumped it up into serious real world evil.
To protect himself (and eventually get his own vengeance by destroying the Manipulators so that he breaks the wealth of the betrayers) Oren has to build up the power of his goblin/hobgoblin/ogre community. This is the heart of the book—Oren learning to manipulate the system like the pro he is to permit him to take relatively weak monsters and boost them to a power level that will let them best some very high level characters. Kuznits does this very well, but it’s basically what he did for the vast majority of the first book and that part of the plot didn’t hold my interest this time. Fortunately, he has added some new subplots which did keep me intrigued. Oren is in danger of going native—forgetting that he’s really a human and not a goblin. There are some new players joining the game as monsters and one of them is clearly working for the Manipulators. Oren needs these players help to defeat his old guild, but can’t trust them. Also, his patron demon/god who wants to escape to cause the apocalypse is getting more powerful and closer to breaking out of prison. Again, Oren needs the power this creature is feeding him, but every success that Oren achieves brings Armageddon closer to fruition.
There is a lot to like about this book and the last fifth or so is all devoted to a mighty battle that everyone who’s played a computer roleplaying game will love working their way through to see how Oren bests a far superior force of player characters. That being said, I found myself skimming through many sections in the middle where Oren was building up his town and NPCs. I realize these scenes were important to the overall plot, but I think Kuznits could have trimmed this section down quite a bit and we’d have had a tighter, more action-packed novel. That being said, the last chapter lays out a lot of plot threads that have me looking forward to book 3.
If you liked this review, you can find more at www.gilbertstack.com/reviews.
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