Audio Book Review: Death's Mantle

Death's Mantle

By:  Harmon Cooper

Publish Date:  September 25, 2019, Audiobook Release December 17, 2019

Format:  Audiobook - 10 hrs 25 mins
Narrated By:  Andrea Parsneau

Genre:  Fantasy

Series:  1st in series

Impression:  Light and dark in gamer view.

Synopsis:
Lucian North is supposed to be dead.

Suffering from a rare heart condition that doctors say should have killed him over a year ago, Lucian is playing a video game when Death finally comes.

Rather than give in, Lucian pulls a gun on the Grim Reaper.

As the two stare each other down, terrible demons known as injuresouls swarm into the room in pursuit of Death.

Summoning courage he never knew he had, Lucian comes to Death's aid. And for his troubles, he is awarded Death's Mantle.

Transported to a spiritual world he could have never fathomed, Lucian finds that he is instantly powerful, able to conjure weapons from scratch and perform incredible feats. He introduces game mechanics to his new role, develops a carefully curated inventory list, and modifies a HUD system that allows him to better track his targets.

It isn’t easy being Death, and Lucian will need just about everything he can get as he faces off against fallen angels, appalling parasites, demon-born injuresouls, and savage Death Hunters.

Regardless of his sudden strength, his newfound enemies, and his gamer ingenuity, Lucian can't communicate with the living, which wouldn't be a problem if he hadn’t discovered something terrible about his family...

Lucian’s brother is scheduled to die, and only Lucian has the power to do anything about it.

Death’s Mantle is a dark fantasy GameLit novel that LitRPG, metaphysical fantasy, occult sci-fi, and thriller readers will love. Death’s Mantle is written by Harmon Cooper, bestselling GameLit author of Way of the Immortals, House of Dolls, Cherry Blossom Girls, The Feedback Loop and Monster Hunt NYC. It was inspired by the anime Parasyte, the comic book series Sandman and Spawn, the books On a Pale Horse and the Tibetan Book of the Dead.

First Sentence:
Any day could have been Lucian North's last day on Earth.

Purchase At:
Amazon   

Audible

My Thoughts and Summary:

*I was given this free review copy of this audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Andrea does a great job of voicing each character with different voices. Wow. There's great differences and great detail in each characters voice. I enjoyed the variety found between the characters. I did listen at 1.4 speed, which felt to go well with the narration. The audio sounded clean and clear and full of life with the characters emotions.

Lucian has a rare heart condition. He's lived beyond his time the doctor gave him, and his last day arrives. When he sees Death's arrival he is ready to stand up to him, and ends up helping to save Death. Lucian is the given Death's position. Now Lucian gets to help people pass on by removing the parasite that's feeding off of them and prolonging their life.

This is a very interesting concept! I like learning the basics with Lucian as he learns what Death does along with those that will try to kill Death. The twist of being Death and seeing things as a gamer's view is very interesting. I really enjoyed this creation.

The story starts right in with Lucian and how he gets to the LitRPG world. No delay in learning, we get there ASAP. There were moments I wasn't sure where the story was going as we see Lucian visit his family and go through moments with them as he's in his new position. I know he's worried about his brother, Connor, and wants to help him. But I feel as though we are living through life's moments and not in a story. We then get direction, to help Connor and to find Old Death and bring him home.

Along the way, Lucian powers up and learns about the parasites in the world. Lucian also learns about other beings; Deaths, Lifes (angels), Fallen Angels, and more that can harm him. Lucian has a way about him to make a few friends along the way too. I enjoy these friends and what they bring to the story with information on how things work.

As I listened to the book, I started to feel as Lucian does about death. I understand his questions, and I had my own start to pop up about the position of death and details. It felt like death was turned into a job and wasn't personal, or even a game. When I started to think about this I wondered if the gamer style detail view Lucian makes is what brings it to feel this way. Maybe the gamer view isn't the best for something that feels so personal.

I found I wanted to be with these people in their last moments, as they pass on. It feels like death is so lonely.

I liked the concept of using a gaming system setup with what is a reality for the character. If there's more in the world, I'd be curious to see where things go with all the characters.



About the Author:
Harmon Cooper is a prolific Amazon best-selling author of 50 science fantasy books and counting. He was one of the earliest authors to bring GameLit to the West. His most popular series include Way of the Immortals, House of Dolls, Cherry Blossom Girls, The Feedback Loop and Monster Hunt NYC. Originally from Austin, Texas, Cooper was a musician before transitioning to world traveler and writer, spending five years in Asia honing his writing skills, wanderlusting, studying languages, and teaching English. He now lives in New England (and loves it!) with his wife. www.harmoncooper.com.

Audio Book Review: Fantasy Online: Hyperborea

Fantasy Online: Hyperborea

By:  Harmon Cooper

Publish Date:  June 2, 2017, Audiobook Release July 17, 2017

Format:  Audiobook - 10 hrs 43 mins
Narrated By:  Jeff Hays

Genre:  Fantasy

Series:  1st in Fantasy Online series

Impression:  New deadly problem for people in the gaming world.

Synopsis:
Nineteen-year-old Ryuk Matsuzaki and his best friend Tamana decide to start over with new avatars. When Tamana is suddenly killed right in front of him in a Tokyo subway, Ryuk knows there is only one place he can search for answers –Tritania, the world’s most popular online fantasy world. Standing in his way are a mysterious guild known as the Shinigami, and his older brother, a Yakuza crime lord hell-bent on squashing his dreams.

As a lowly Ballistics Mage, Ryuk must quickly recruit guild members, level up, loot and shoot his way across Tritania to discover the dark and sinister secret behind Tamana’s untimely death. Joining him in his quest are a famous Swedish gamer, a powerful half-dragon half-human female assassin, and a devious ax-wielding goblin.

Get started on this action-packed, coming of age LitRPG saga from the author of The Feedback Loop series now!

First Sentence:
At half the length of her body, Tamana's buster sword is meant to be held with both hands, to be used as both a shield and a weapon, but she's never been one to do things in a conventional way.

Purchase At:
Amazon 

Audible

My Thoughts and Summary:

*I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Ryuk and Tamana have gamed together for years. At Tamana's request, they restart with new avatars in Titania. When they logout, Tamana is attacked and Ryuk watches her jump to her death in a train station. Then Ryuk is attacked by a Thulian warrior from the game. He knows it can't be real but seeing it makes it hard to believe. With the help of his human droid bodyguard Ryuk realizes it's not real. There are posts in gaming forums that people have been experiencing this, and dying. Someone's hacking their iNet. Ryuk is determined to warn others he once knew, and spend time with his lost friend in the world of Titania.

Jeff is always a treat for me to listen to. I have high standards going into one of his narrations, and he delivers! I expect to the characters to each have their own voice and life to come through as he acts them. I expect to have the characters easily differentiated in their voices and personalities. I expect to be entertained with the enthusiasm of the narrator. Jeff hits all these points and more with clear audio.

Harmon takes the world we last visited with Quantum and creates it's own series with it. Titania is the perfect world to play with as a spin-off. There are three layers to the world which you can only get to by reaching different levels in your character.

But! We also have a new trouble for the players several years after Quantum and his battles. Their iNet, a program in their eye, is hacked and they are seeing the evils from the world they just logged out of. It's getting them killed! Ryuk is a character that is not going to take this, especially after the girl he's known for years and asked out is now dead because of it.

It's neat how the game world is connected to the real person. See, if the person dies in the real world they will be reborn in their game - RPC (reborn player character).

There are mentions of Quantum and the characters from the original series. This book takes place years after Quantum has been through the game. We hear the name of the guild that Quantum started, Ryuk had been part of that guild before he reset to start over in the game. Then he goes in search of them, leveling up, to tell them what is happening in the world now. Ryuk is determined to help his friend in RPC form as it's the closest thing to her he can get, and wants. Ryuk's wants seem to go against what he should be doing in Titania. But this is his inner conflict with what has happened to his dearest friend. This is something he'll have to work through in order to move on to what the next step is.

We are introduced to Ryuk and his friends and family here. The new problems in the gaming world of Titania is strongly influencing the real world. We learn there is more going on and in the end we are anxious to get to the next book. It felt a bit like a cliffhanger  with the leads on Kodai. I want to find out who he's working with and what the next phase is. There is something bigger than Kodai knows going on here, and I want to know what!



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Audio Book Review: High Fantasy

High Fantasy

By:  Harmon Cooper

Publish Date:  December 26, 2015, Audiobook Release June 1, 2017

Format:  Audiobook - 5 hrs 49 mins
Narrated By:  Jeff Hays

Genre:  Fantasy

Series:  3rd in The Feedback Loop series; 1st Book ~ The Feedback Loop, 2nd Book ~ Steampunk Is Dead

Impression:  Dive into a gaming fantasy world to find answers

Synopsis:
The third installment of The Feedback Loop Series is out now!
Quantum Hughes and the Dream Team dive to Tritania, an MMORPG fantasy Proxima World filled with dragons, orcs, swords, floating continents, and magic attacks. With the clock ticking, and his problems in the real world growing, including his legal troubles and his blossoming relationship with Frances Euphoria, Quantum is forced to make a decision that could change his life forever.

The stakes are higher than they’ve ever been. Steam, The Loop, Tritania and the real world – four worlds collide in the third installment of The Feedback Loop Series.

The thin line between dream and reality is pixilated.

First Sentence:
Aiden is in a basketball jersey with the initials M.A. across his back.

Purchase At:
Amazon

Audible

My Thoughts and Summary:

*I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Jeff returns to continue with the series as narrator. Cool! I've grown to know the voices he's assigned the characters and enjoy the vast cast he can voice in a book with this many characters that speak. Totally mind blowing! It's great to hear. He also has Quantum's personality locked down, along with all the characters we've grown to enjoy. Another amazing job in vocals and audio.

Quantum likes a challenge, like trying to attack and kill with unconventional weapons in the loop. lol. Him and Aiden have a great friendship. I have enjoyed Aiden, aka Morning Assassin from the first book. I'm glad we get to carry on with many of the secondary characters that are created for in games. You wouldn't think they would have personalities, but goodness do they have them. And Quantum's interaction with them brings them to life.

Frances isn't as highly present in this story as previous one. But she still knows how to play Quantum in what needs to be done. In listening to the audio book, we can hear and get the feel of the excitement of Frances on the pain medicines in the hospital. And see her interact with Quantum in the real world. But with her accident and not diving into the loop it opens the opportunity for us to meet and interact with other members of The Dream Team. We do get to spend time with Zedic Woods. Zedic seems rather cool when we meet him. And he's in a band, which we get to "see". I like him thus far.

Oh, the FDA guidelines for foods and drinks. lol. This is terrible. The government regulates types of food and amounts one should eat. Quantum doesn't follow these guidelines and hears about it constantly. It's a continuous battle for him to get what he wants. It would get on my nerves too. I feel Quantum's irritation when he reads these emails as I'm irritated for him.

Other than fighting with the FDA, Quantum seems to be settling into real life. He's not as sassy. He seems to have found the balance in fighting in the Proxima worlds and living. We get to see Quantum interact with more people, and he does well.

I feel we get a closure to one piece of the story with Quantum. With his Proxima world he's lived in for eight years and finding Strata Godsick. This book also leaves open the next mission started here, finding Strata's son. We are left looking forward to the next book with plans of what they are to do.



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Audio Book Review: Steampunk Is Dead

Steampunk Is Dead

By:  Harmon Cooper

Publish Date:  September 23, 2015, Audiobook Release June 2, 2017

Format:  Audiobook - 5 hrs 26 mins
Narrated By:  Jeff Hays

Genre:  Fantasy, Science Fiction, Steampunk

Series:  2nd in The Feedback Loop series; 1st Book ~ The Feedback Loop

Impression:  Fun in game story with action always present.

Synopsis:
The exciting sequel to The Feedback Loop.

Adjusting to the real world isn't exactly easy for Quantum Hughes. Instead of focusing on his recovery, he takes an assignment alongside Frances Euphoria to a virtual entertainment dreamworld called Steam, in search of a Proxima Developer. True to his nature, Quantum acts out of turn, causing the entire world to turn against him. This gives him two options: return to The Loop for help, or try and hold his own. There is also the problem of the Reapers, who have appeared in Steam ready to hunt him down or worse, kill him.

The real world, The Loop, Steam -- three worlds with their own rules, their own enemies.

The thin line between dream and reality is pixilated.

First Sentence:
I try in vain to access my inventory list.

Purchase At:
Amazon 

Audible

My Thoughts and Summary:

*I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.


I enjoy listening to Jeff. He really makes the story feel like a full cast of people. Jeff does extras as he's narrating to go with what the characters are doing. One example is a slightly different sound to the air when talking to someone on a phone. All these small extras and the voices creates a world and people for us. Jeff is not only talented in voice, but portraying emotions felt in these characters. Good grief does he make it lively and fun to listen too!

From the first paragraph we see that Quantum is struggling with living in the real world. He was in the digital world fighting for so long, that those habits have stuck. Living style and slang from the noir fantasy he was in are still what's fresh in his mind, so we still get the sassy one liners. Quantum seems to find a balance in his trigger happiness and jobs, though this doesn't happen right away. It's, actually, kind of brutal for all around him until he does. lol. But, eventually it seems like there is a balance, when he finally goes to one place where he feels at home.

Quantum still has his sense of humor with living people, though they don't seem to react as creative with him as the characters in the feedback loop do. He toys with people all the time. lol.

I was excited to get into this book. I enjoy steampunk! With Quantum's humor and view of things around him, I thought it'd be interesting to see him in a steam punk world. Seriously! The weapons that could be crafted here...imagination run wild with ideas for weapons... Is it terrible that I got excited when we got to a big weapons cache? lol.

Just like in video games, there is always trouble when you least expect it and from people you may not expect too. This, along with Quantum always attacking everyone, is what keeps the story moving with action.

I thoroughly enjoy the way these storylines are written in the gaming world. I know we are in a video type game, but Quantum and Frances interact as though they were associating with other people. The worlds are different but a pleasure to visit. It's like a treat when we get to dive into The Loop.

The title of the book. I'm shocked! It'll all make sense when you read/listen to the book. It's totally cool and the best title!

This story is a fun listen for me. It's full of action and off hand comments and sayings from Quantum. Quantum makes it fun with his trigger happy feel to kill anyone that tells him no or questions him and his snarky remarks.



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Audio Book Review: The Feedback Loop

The Feedback Loop

By:  Harmon Cooper

Publish Date:  August 2015, Audiobook Release February 2, 2017

Format:  Audiobook - 4 hrs 46 mins
Narrated By:  Jeff Hays

Genre:  Science Fiction

Series:  1st in The Feedback Loop series

Impression:  Neat character driven story in the virtual game world. Great start to a cool series!

Synopsis:
Stuck in a virtual dreamworld called The Loop, a man named Quantum Hughes struggles to free himself from a glitch that forces him to live the same day on repeat. His life changes when a mysterious letter arrives one morning from a woman named Frances Euphoria, the first human player he has made contact with in a very long time. Once Frances appears, members of a murder guild known as the Reapers begin surfacing in The Loop, hoping to capture Quantum or worse -- kill him. To further complicate matters, The Loop itself is doing everything it can to stop Quantum from finding the hidden logout point by turning everything in the virtual dreamworld against him.

With time running out, will Quantum break free from his digital coma before he's captured or killed by the Reapers? Who is Frances Euphoria, and what does she actually know about how long Quantum has been trapped?

The Feedback Loop Series takes place thirty years before the Life is a Beautiful Thing Series. It shares the same world, but is a standalone series that focus on dream-based virtual reality worlds and the people who are trapped in them. The next book in the series will be called Steampunk is Dead, and will be released in the fall.

First Sentence:
I'm afraid to die even though I know I can't die.

Purchase At:
Amazon  

Audible

My Thoughts and Summary:
*I was voluntarily provided this review copy audiobook at no charge by the author, publisher and/or narrator.

Quantum Hughes has been stuck in The Loop of a virtual game for nearly two years. Reliving the same day, over and over killing the assassins who come for him. Until one day he receives a message from Frances Euphoria claiming to have returned for him. Things change in the world, the way they interact with him and more.


Jeff is one of the amazing narrators I know I love listening to. He adds entertainment to the stories by voicing them all completely different. Each character has their own voice and personality. I love it! You can feel the moments in them, like when sarcastic along with humor and more. The different voices, for male and female, makes it tremendously easy to quickly differentiate the characters and get a feel for the story.

Sometimes the books of being stuck in a virtual game or video game are boring for me. I just feel as they are the same read written by a different person. This one, however, felt more alive to me. Quantum felt to be connected to his world he was stuck in. Even though it repeated he was use to a pattern and it became something he relied on. When it all changes, Quantum tries to slip back to what he knows best even though he doesn't want to be here any longer. This book was strong character wise.

The world in which Quantum lives has a 1950's feel with a dark dreariness to the places Quantum visits. There is danger with a higher tech feel as it's a virtual game setting he's stuck in that combines the elements. It's neat because we get small phrases from the time frame. Yet it's a fantasy setting as well with assassins.

What do you do to not get bored repeating the same day for nearly two years? Quantum tries changing up the weapon he kills the assassins coming after him with. This I found humorous at times. He does different things and goes different places, but you can only do so much after 544 days have passed.

I enjoyed the humor in some of Quantum's quick clips and comments. This was entertaining to listen to. I had a feel of a few different blends in this creation. Fantasy, 1950's, Matrix, and more. I enjoyed this story to the end and look forward to seeing Quantum get stronger and venture in the virtual world again to help more people.

I see there are many more books in this series and hope they will be narrated because I'd love to listen to them!



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