Transformation

Battle Mage Farmer #5

by Seth Ring

Just when John thinks that things are finally calming down, the world never fails to throw a new twist his way.

And the latest one is deadly.

A distress call from Katrine has set John on a crash course with a band of vicious dimensional raiders led by a supreme mage who are already planning an invasion, while back home the clock is ticking on the prophecy of the beast invasion that will wipe humans from the face of the world.

Worse still, John’s mana is growing stronger, forcing him to choose between sealing his mana away and becoming mortal, or destroying the world by his very presence. With the corrosive influence of the dragon, Farroutef, dogging his every step, he is forced to try and broker peace with the mages of New Dawn only to find himself trapped by the mysterious King of Beasts.

Forced into a prison of his own making, John’s options are limited, but luckily, he’s got great friends. Unwilling to leave him to his fate, Ellie decides it's time to step out and be the hero mounting a rescue attempt with Sigvald and Ferdie.

Book 5 of the bestselling Fantasy LitRPG Series by Seth Ring, author of Nova Terra. Get your copy today and explore a world whose secrets have been buried under decades of war.

About the Mixing slice-of-life with epic fantasy action, mystery, magic, cultivation, and a broken game system that seems determined to make everything as hard as possible for the already overpowered protagonist, this LitRPG/GameLit series is perfect for readers who enjoy exploring rich worlds and complex characters.

Genres: Fantasy, Audiobook, Science Fiction Fantasy, Magic, Fiction, Dragons, Monsters

418 pages, Paperback

First published May 24, 2023

Reviews

[Roberto Flores · Rating 1 out of 5]

These series get progressively worse the longer they go.

The conflict is forced by very convenient, situational choices that are exasperated by delayed choices. None of this is necessary, it is very obvious plot railroads. This is what happened in Nova Terra.

[Steve Naylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rating 3.5 stars

I didn't like this one as much. The MC has always been insanely OP which I like. I like when a guy has the power and knowledge that nobody else has and they all stand around with a "holy shit!" look on their face when he does something amazing. I also like the slow pace of him being on a farm and trying to get away from that. For the last couple of books the farm is more of an idea than an actual part of the story. It is about fighting and the end of the world now. I miss that balance of farming and fighting. It is now 95% all about fighting. Another problem is that even though John's power is insanely high, the problems he has to face are almost impossible to overcome. John does something in this one that makes it even worse. He goes to another world to save Catrine. I knew there was going to be a problem with this from the beginning. He has too much mana on this world. If he leaves how is he supposed to come back. Of course after he saves Catrine and comes back he about destroys the world just by taking a step. He ends up having to seal his mana making him weaker right at the time all his enemies are getting stronger. So now he is OP but can't use most of his power and ends up barely winning most fights. Who wants to read about a weak OP MC? There was a good chunk of the story that annoyed me because of his decision to lock away his mana. Every problem he faced from that decision I wanted to yell at the audiobook " See, that was a dumb idea!". It did pick up and get better by the end. Again, I just wish there was more of a balance instead of just fighting off multiple apocalypse's at the same time.

[Tye Fortenberry · Rating 1 out of 5]

Downhill

I really liked the first 2 books but the books have only got worse as the series progresses. The author lost me when it was obvious he had no idea how to write an alpha male character. He just doesn't understand his own MC motives and how he would act. Anyone with the MC background wouldn't be letting slavers live or let powerful enemies escape to be a problem in the future

[ReadToBreathe · Rating 4 out of 5]

The beasts killed hundreds of thousands if not millions of humans and then John decided to spare their lives after almost invading his home😑I keep giving the series 4 stars bc I actually like the characters but sometimes I just want to slap some sense into him. His priorities are questionable. If the system gives you quests to save the world don't ignore them😡

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

It has a clear 'rushed' feeling which leads to the characters not hsving the room to be themselves. John acts not in line with what we know of him, multiple plot points are easily dealt with (despite not being dealt with), and the book ends in the middle of a battle. The outcome is clear but still the ending feels very abrupt and...unearned somehow.

[Gareth Otton · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was the first miss for me in this series. I still like where this overarching story is going, but this particular book has some major problems.

The biggest one was that a great number of the problems in this novel were self created by the main character making seemingly deliberate bad decisions. So many big moments in this novel felt forced because the story needed them to happen and not because this was the natural path the main characters would take.

The second issue I had is a huge pet peeve of mine, de-powering the overpowered main character. This never works as a storyline for multiple reasons:

1. Readers who like OP characters come to these stories to read about "superman" not "man". Readers who don't like this sort of character probably won't have read this far into a series with such an OP lead character anyway, so you're just frustrating your reader.

2. It's obvious that the main character will return to full power eventually. When something obvious is going to happen and the story gets in the way of it happening soon, you create a scenario that sucks the momentum out of your story and makes the story feel like it's dragging.

3. Making the character take a huge step backwards like this means they now are trying to catch up with where they already were. This is the opposite of growth and progression which stagnates your story.

4. Most stories with OP characters can only work because they need their characters to be OP. This is especially true for this series, so it seriously stretches the levels of credibility within the story because now I struggle to believe what I'm reading when the main character comes out on top.

Finally I have an issue with Ellie. She has always felt awkward for me in this series. The author doesn't seem to know what to do with her other than to have her as a love interest. The problem was that it never made sense for her to be a love interest because of the disparity in power, temperament and interests between her and the main character.

In order to force the issue, she has undergone some jarring changes in this series. The first was her going from a meek girl hiding with her brother who didn't seem to know much about magic and the dangers of the world to a fully powered witch who is suddenly a magical expert who can actually teach John a lot about magic. Then she went from a home maker style character who felt like the driving force on the farm and the thing John was fighting to stay home for, to an adventurer who almost seems to be pushing John back into an adventurer's life.

Now in this novel she makes another huge change again which takes her so far from the character we knew in the first book that it is hard to recognise her any longer. It's been jarring, unnatural, and definitely doesn't feel earned.

All that being said, I am enjoying the overall direction of this series as a whole. The start of this novel was really interesting and spoke to the promise of things to come. I think this story was just a slight set back and I hope the next novel picks up the ball and gets running again.

It's 2 stars for me on this outing, and one extra star to account for personal taste.

[Krisdach · Rating 2 out of 5]

disappointing

Ellie improved in depth but John’s reactions felt rather shallow.

Glad to see such an advancement in the storyline, though. Saved it from a single star review.

[Fakhrur Razi · Rating 1 out of 5]

I thought the beginning of the book was great in a sense that I was so captured by the book that I couldn't put it down. But towards the middle section it starts to taper off and it starts to feel like a drag. I feel certain events start to be forced. Right towards the end I lost interest. I feel that there could be so much to build on but it was just left at a weird point.

Contrary to what other reviewers liked about Ellie powering up. I actually disliked how fast it was. I get that the situation demands it but still it felt so rush and the romantic development just accelerated from there. It wasn't enjoyable at the least.

--Spoilers--
I would have liked more development with Gorra. But I guess that's just me. It suddenly became Ferdie who wants to mate with Gorra dynamic and John just don't do shit while Ellie comes in to save him. Heck even the saving wasn't even cool. They just come in, a quick clash and intimidate before they run back to the portal. It just feels so forced. Which is why I had to put the book down. I can't. As much as I am all for the relationship between John and Ellie, the part where Ellie came to the rescue and John realises his feelings felt so weird for me. Maybe I did want a harem where Gorra and Ellie shares him. But I guess that's just me and that some people wouldn't like that. Still, I felt the way the relationship progressed was not to my liking. This arc with Gorra was so disappointing.

Perhaps you'd love it. But sadly it's not for me. It's a pity, I really loved the previous few books but I have to learn to put down something I don't enjoy reading.

[GiGi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lol that last chunk was so lame. At least a Deux Ex Machina introduces a new mechanic. We've been building up to this invasion for a few books and suddenly "MC overcame his inner demons, made it to the battlefield in the nick of time and all the world's strongest enemies ran away crying of terror "
Really? -_-

[Lamar Logan · Rating 1 out of 5]

What I enjoy about all powerful MCs is all powerful MCs.

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

This managed to mostly pull out of the depressing spiral it was descending into, but there was too much extra padding in this one that caused me to skim ahead a few times. Really, there were things that didn't add to the story, the MC taking one step forward before two rather contrived steps back. I think this one could have ended with this book, but the next one really had better be the last one.

[Tony Hinde · Rating 4 out of 5]

Except for a section in the middle, where the protagonists spent time deciding on their ideal selves, this episode was excellent. I was worried when John nerfed his powers but it was necessary to the plot, and served to further his struggle against his inner dragon. Good stuff!

[Lena · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay I love this book series. I’ve loved it since book one. And one of the main reasons is John. His character is so good. He’s such a manly man. Not a ‘jock’ or a ‘misogynist’ or whatever other derogatory sexist term people use to describe males today. I mean he’s a MAN. That is so rare in books nowadays and I just really appreciate it.

He’s strong. And not just because he uses dragon fire. He has his own strength and part of that is his perseverance. But he gets to learn that he can ask for support from his loved ones. And does so. That’s how it should be. He should be supported.

He’s smart. He’s not bumbling around and making silly decisions. He makes plans. He thinks things through….except for his name lol! How he thought telling people ‘call me John, just John’ would keep his identity anonymous is a mystery.

He’s a man of his word. Listen. This is amazing. If he says he’ll burn your city down HE WILL DO IT! In big things and small things he says what he means and I love it!

He’s kind. Even though he’s strong he’s very caring and careful with his powers and honestly has stuck around in this super inconvenient world way longer than I would have.

He’s confident. His confidence is intoxicating no wonder people believe in him so much. His entire demeanor makes you want to follow him.

He’s funny. He knows how to laugh even when he’s been through so much hurt. I love that he can find joy and mirth in the little things that make life worth living.

He’s committed. Do I really need to say more on that? He doesn’t deny he’s a man with urges, but also he just refuses them when necessary. That brings a tidal wave of security that is just lost across the board in relationships today.

He’s reliable. You knew this review had spoilers but the fact he went and got Katrina and she didn’t even have to ask was just fantastic. And I don’t mean that in a ‘she shouldn’t have to ask’ way but in a ‘my friend didn’t ask for help but CLEARLY they need it so I will go help them’ kind of way.

I mean honestly I could go on but I digress. He makes this entire series worth it. The only negative thing I will say about this book is that the ending was much too abrupt. I was severely caught off guard and don’t think that was a great place to end, but it is what it is. Can’t wait for the next one!

[Andrei · Rating 2 out of 5]

EDIT: Review has been updated after finishing the audiobook.

That was truly a disappointment.

Aside from the truly magnificient work Graphic Audio has done on the audiobook, everything else about the story has gone downhill significantly.

Parroting another reviewer's phrase "If I'm reading a story about an overpowered character is because I want to see an overpowered character", and that's exactly what Seth Ring keeps not delivering on.

At every single point he finding increasingly contrived reasons to limit or restrict the MC and for the MC to constantly keep dropping the idiot ball to make for believable adversaries, and in this book this got to an excessive level, with John's decision not to kill the bad guy and then seal his own power away.

It made no sense, it wasn't properly built up, and overall it reeked of the author's inability to deliver on the "Promise" (as Sanderson calls it) done to the readers.

Now, the continuation of that storyline ended up providing an understandable conclusion, and the few scenes where John has the chance to learn things about himself that he wouldn't have been able without having his powers stripped were interesting, but overall the contrived plot reasons for all the scenes of him being beat down and then entrapped were disappointing and unsatisfying

I'm really sad about this, because I loved the premise, I loved the worldbuilding, and loved the initial characterization (though afterwards John's behavior became so inconsistent that the characterization itself was broken). And I loved the fact that Graphic Audio picked up a Litrpg for adaptation.

I'm a bit invested still so I'll wait for the next Graphic Audio audiobook, but definitely not enough to pick up the normal audiobook or the ebook to continue.

[Phil · Rating 5 out of 5]

Me: Wow MC (main character) is so OP (over-powered). It isn't even fun anymore.
Ring: Ok. I'll take almost all of MC's power away.
Me: [Suprised Pikachu face].

That sums up most of the story. For many books, John (or should we call him "Jod") was an unstoppable force only contained by self-discipline and fear of what would happen if he unleashed his full power. Having artificially handicapped himself, John finds himself in new territory and is no longer the strongest force. This was a much needed respite and actually helped move the plot significantly as other characters found their own moments to shine and required John to undergo significant self-reflection.

All of these books (any I review in this genre and by Ring) are simply guilty pleasure reads. The writing is passable at best. The character relationships are mostly contrived. But the overall stories are so much fun. Think of them in the same manner as Young Adult novels. You cannot rate on the same scale Twilight or Hunger Games as Metamorphosis or Great Expectations (not sure why any of those came to mind honestly). So too does the LitRPG need its own scale because one can take enjoyment from these novels without trying to derive greater meaning into each word.

With that, I'll simply say that Ring has become a favorite of mine because the stories are easy, entertaining, and fun.

[Gilbert Stack · Rating 2 out of 5]

I want to state up front that I have really enjoyed this series. Each book so far has been an extraordinary pleasure to read—until this one. John Sutton, the hero, is undoubtedly the most powerful man on his world, but this time he has to go to other realms of existence where it is not clear that he will be top of the ladder. The book starts out with Ring giving us his typical well thought out and interesting storyline. Then, purely for story purposes (keeping around a bad guy and limiting John's power so that other bad guys can be a problem), he has his genius hero make two absolutely stupid mistakes. To my mind, these are mistakes a second grader wouldn't have made and they completely destroyed my enjoyment of the story as the fallout from these errors will be impacting the series for books to come. I don't think I'm going to read any more of them, and that's a shame because up to this point it had been a great ride.

[Bert Babb · Rating 5 out of 5]

still going strong despite the MC being OP

Love the developing relationship between John and Ellie and now they are growing powerful together rather than John doing it all. They can become a partnership, side by side rather than John out front and Ellie behind, even though he needs her as a stabilizing force, more than he realizes. Dimensional hopping, mental fights with old dragons while Ferdie woos his own GF?

This story keeps on giving and despite how OP John is, he still faces challenges, some of which cannot be solved by smiting them. But some can…. Yay!

Looking forward to the next installment even as it seems to be entering the endgame. I really enjoy this series and will look for other books by the author.

[Astro Dune · Rating 1 out of 5]

What happened???, it went so downhill all of a sudden , I thought that going to the higher world would have given us some mid point between mc not able to use is op powers and still being a badass, but then it's still a brave choice to seal the MC's mana, and it was nice, but then the story just went and powered up the female , i mean come on u just replace once character with another.
I thought it would be like a full on invasion and mc fighting on the higher world and slowly bringing his mana into a stable state and so on, and the other female lead would have sent back to the main world and fight from that side and stuff like that, but man did it went in an unexpected route and it sorts failed miserably.

[Cmoore · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ohhhh man Transformation is finally ready for me to dive right into it. This is definitely great! And this book has even more action than I could've dreamed of. As John gears up his mana and fights against some of his strongest foes to date, including himself as he finally faces down that paracidic dragon that's found lodging in his soul! But Ellie isn't gonna be left behind as someone that needs to be protected 🙄 and she powers up her mana too. So she'll be able to keep up and fight right along side John... and man don't forget Ferdie and Sigvald they get powered up and join the battle against the Beast army that wants to obliterate the humans from this world.
I love Michael Kramer as he narrates another fabulous Battle Mage Farmer book in the series.

[Dennis Murphy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Transformation by Seth Ring is book five of the Battle Mage farmer series, and I still have mixed feelings about it. Some parts of the book are strong, but man is there a fair bit of lazy writing. John basically jumping to the height of a new world of mages in a couple of months just by existing was mary sue-ish, him being instantly desired by the King of Beasts as a consort had potential that the story didn't quite deliver on, and he overcome the dragon in a way that reminded me of the power of friendship (though a bit different in execution). Ring is setting something up here that I enjoy, and some of the plot progression is also quite nice, but... man, what could have been great is now just around okay.

[Jane Balke Andersen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This series is becoming less enjoyable as it progresses. Transformation, no. 5 in the series, was disappointing. As I read it, I felt there was a whole lot of time wasting leading up to some action at the end. This series could have been finished in this book.

And where it finished? With a battle still raging. The humans have pulled back but Ferdie the Bull is still fighting, and it isn’t over. Is that so we are forced to buy the next one?

Only Ellie saved this book from being even less stars. At least she progressed and grew.

Will I read the next one? I don’t know. Is it the last?

[Ford Miller · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ok, some bad character choices that ruin the tone of the story.

Worse book of the series. Does the main character have to be so clueless and selfish all the time. Why do you force a supporting character with zero experience into a savior girl boss who saves the day. You turn interesting beast characters into comic relief. This book makes me not care about the series anymore. Just cobbled together making bad choices and simple plot lines with so many holes that there are no surprises for the reader except how dumb the story gets. May be done with this. I can't recommend this book except to just painfully finish a series.

[Anzzy · Rating 3 out of 5]

The series are really great and first books got 5 stars from me. Would have given even more if it was possible. But this one didn't feel as exciting and some plot twists were not to my taste, like mating offers all of a sudden flying around. Also plot felt a bit repetitive with defending farm. In some parts I found it hard to continue. Also I thought that defeating dragon within will be the most epic fight since it's key component of main character, but it felt a bit simple - defeating him with hope and remembering his own strength. But overall it was good read and I really enjoyed these series.

[Zachary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Why stop there?!

Lol, this was a fun one. Ring has done a great job with this series, and he seems to have a good grasp on how to come up with great stories that build on each other without regurgitating previous ones. Transformation was a truly apt title for this book. My only complaint is that I'll have to wait a bit to get to the next in the series.

BTW, do not start the series here. John, the Mc, had gone through quite a journey, and the climactic conclusion will lose much of its luster if you miss it on what brought him to this point.

[Lisa Algee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Falling apart

Still have it five, but the next book will probably be three or four. Most of this mixed genre cultivation/wuxia/litrpg go on too long with repetitive combat sequences, too slow development, and boring long blocks of text about scraping for another .000001% power increase. I may have forgot a few zeros.
Then there are the variable power levels in the more classic versions known as peak, half step, etc. that get increasingly introduced. The language isn't used here but it is obviously there.

[Adam Roberts · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent as always!

Man what a ride on this one! We get to visit the higher realms, save Katrine, get some awesome power ups for our supporting cast, and finally get to meet Gorraleck! John is gonna stay a busy man all book! Loved it as usual, and the way things seem to be going is very interesting, I’m serious what the next book will bring as John continues to try and stop the apocalypse from destroying the world.

[Levia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Unexpected but also expected and an fiery bull

I didn't expect to see John travel. His rescue is touching, his growth is unsurprising but also had me feeling vindicated, and so much more. Ellie is absolutely amazing and heartwarming. John's solution seemed obvious to me, but I didn't expect how that confrontation would turn out. Highly enjoyed this book, and I don't regret binge reading instead of sleeping.

[Brian Hess · Rating 5 out of 5]

Prefect series

Do you have a favorite series where the minute a new book comes out you drop anything you've been reading to grab the new title and start reading? That's what this series is for me. A massively OP MC of which you know very little background or detail and as the books progress you find out more and more. It just keeps getting better and better. Now back to waiting for the next one.

[Vivek Satyasi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow what a tease

I’ve got to say, I was addicted to this book from the beginning to the end. That’s not to say that it doesn’t have its negatives, though. Every book in the series has in general followed the same formula, but it does not detract from my enjoyment of this particular book.

But the ending … is truly a tease. I’m more than happy to wait until the next book, however and see how the rest of the story plays out!

[David Rodriguez · Rating 4 out of 5]

I normally would give this series a 5 star rating as it's been so fun. However this book goes a little further away from the core story telling it has had. He's away from his farm, there is a little silly bit of he's gotten too powerful so now they have to drastically bump up the strength of everyone else, so it didn't quite feel as fun as previous books. Outside of that it's a great story and fun to follow.