Battlemaster

Victor of Tucson #5

by Plum Parrot

It feels like a lifetime ago that the young, irreverent Victor Sandoval was pulled from Earth into an existence of battle and brutality in a mystifyingly magical world where the more one fights, kills, and survives, the greater their levels, class, skills, and attributes. And right now, things are pretty freaking great for Victor.

After causing the usual amount of mayhem elsewhere, he and his warrior-maiden ally, Valla, have finally taken a portal back to Fanwath—loaded up with more powers and treasure than they know what to do with. But stumbling upon Fainhallow, a school for studying the art of magic, Victor uncovers a revelation that shakes him to his very core.

And such personal chaos couldn’t come at a worse time. Because the advances Victor has made are pushing him to the brink of losing all control, awakening hidden aspects of his spirit and threatening to transform him into something very dark and very, very deadly. But then again, on Fanwath the deadlier you are now, the more alive you’re bound to be later . . .

Genres: Fantasy

378 pages, Paperback

First published May 21, 2024

About the author

Plum Parrot is the pen name of author MC Gallup, who grew up in Southern Arizona and spent much of his youth wandering around the Sonoran Desert, hunting imaginary monsters and building forts. He studied creative writing at the University of Arizona and, for a number of years, attempted to teach middle schoolers to love literature and write their own stories. If he's not out walking his Airedale Terrier, you can find Gallup writing, reading his favorite authors, or playing D&D with friends and family.

Reviews

[Abel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love the whole series

Anyone who's ever felt stuck in a situation bigger than them can understand Víctor Sandoval hes a relatable guy. The writing is good and has good pace so that it doesn't feel overly too descriptive or goes off on unnecessary tangents with no substance. It keeps you waiting to see what happens next. With just enough detail.

[Jim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great arc in Victor’s story, as the Ridonne confront him

Another great arc in Victor’s story, as the Ridonne confront him and his army on their way to the Untamed Marches.
Unlikely allies arrive after Victor has terrorized the enemy army and slain its leaders.
Looking forward to the next book already!!

[Devan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this. Such a cool series. The MC’s progression is cool and I loved how his powers have developed and the focus on his fear affinity.

I was a bit disappointed in the story progression. Thought this book would be about the conquest of the marches. Turns out they barely left home port so to speak before the book ended.

[Peter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book

Stellar work once again from Plum Parrot! Lots of action and adventure, magic and twists. Looking forward to the next one!

[Garrett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing

This was a great read. Fantastic writing, as always.

A lot of development and more characters with a great send off for the next book. 6/5. Can’t wait for more!

[J.D. Glasscock · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my fav series

Another brilliant book.. One of my fav series... Beautiful.. Highly recommend
JD Glasscock
Author of the Series Blood Brothers and Nocturne

[Ray Ritchey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun Read - typical Victor story

Summary - Victor grows in power and makes new enemies in an action packed gun to read story. More details revealed on the empire.

[Kyle · Rating 5 out of 5]

another perfect round

Plum Parrot continues to give me exactly what I want. Victor, Victor, and more Victor. Things just keep getting better.

[Johnie C · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read

I enjoyed reading this book very much and I recommend this book to anyone who likes LitRPG and progression type of books with lots of action.

[Zibendou Richardson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Engaging World

Reading this series as been a joy. Great main character and well crafted side characters. The world is very fleshed out and the gaming mechanism that defines character growth is a good plot tool. Overall, this is a very fun series.

[Mr. J · Rating 5 out of 5]

Probably the best book in the series so far. Absolutely loved the inner monologue of the aspect of terror POV and the narration of it. Spectacular stuff. Plum does an amazing job of writing people.

[david cross · Rating 5 out of 5]

great addition

Another great addition to the series. Probably one of my favorite series currently and I can’t wait to read more about Victor and his exploits.

[Russell lawrence]

Battlemaster .... by Plum Parrot

Excellent ..... Really enjoyed book 5 of Victor's saga ..... Looking forward for Book 6 . . . . A+A+A+A+A+

[R · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mostly filler and setting up drama with the empire. Next one will likely be a banger though.

[Leslie Baptiste · Rating 4 out of 5]

another good book in the series, keep them coming.

I still enjoy Victor‘s journey, the world building and the friends he is making. I also enjoyed the romantic interest. The MC is showing in his traveling companion and sidekick. She is a more apropos character to be developed as a love interest. The only thing I don’t like are the rage aspects of the MC, the problem in the world today is we have too many rage monsters so by elevating this part of the MC’s character readers will probably think it’s OK to basically go off. all you authors should remember, words have power. and some people emulate the things that they read. I am supposed to love and cheer for a character that has common sense and decency. Rooting for a rage monster is not my cup of tea. I hope as the story progresses the MC can get more of a handle on his rage aspects and keep it under control so he doesn’t lose his mind. Yes, I enjoy the fact that he has more abilities and more power but he also needs control. Power without control is just wonton destruction. I Will be anxiously awaiting the next book in the series.

[Starr · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series is awesome 👌 👏 not to excited about him getting tired up in a war campaign with 2 ladies using him to get land not under the empires control because he actually has no plans to lay down roots so it really didn't make sense for him to do all this and for me i just didn't care and thought about skipping the traveling to get to the unclaimed lands 😉 can't wait for book 6

[Tamara M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book

Again, I find myself struggling with books that have teenage male characters. The immaturity of the main character when they’re teens is difficult to get by. The action is great in this book. The suspense is there. It’s just the constant immature actions thoughts that get in the way of making this a great book.

[Martin Hernandez · Rating 5 out of 5]

These books just keep getting better and better.

I particularly like, as mentioned before; that Victor genuinely does his best to remain a good person. To help the less fortunate, and try to be optimistic that people are inherently good, but without being overly naive.

That ending though. Where Victor deals with Pazra? *chef's kiss*

[Jeff · Rating 5 out of 5]

what can I say other than it’s an amazing series

I mean, if you’re this far along, you already know. Fantastic series. Can’t wait for the next. Easily one of the best series I’ve read this year

[Colette Andrea · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rousing battles!

I really enjoyed the war and the battles leading up to it. It is always great when the good guys surprise the bad guys and win! With new bad guys and the system coming for the hero there is lots for the next book to entertain us with!

[Brent Morton · Rating 5 out of 5]

very well written and highly enjoyable.

“Then another wild, terrible shriek split the night, and his bladder joined his bowels in their dereliction of duty.”

What an eloquent way to say ‘he crapped himself’

[Arthur Nugent · Rating 3 out of 5]

first books were awesome but they are getting shorter and shorter and seemed like the story didnt go anywhere in this book.

[Gerbo · Rating 5 out of 5]

good

Good action and characters with interesting writing are why I like reading this series. Thankfully the next book is coming soon.

[Tom Tancredi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm getting series fatigue

[Timothy McGowan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Combat was great, it is interesting to see how sieges were conducted in this power system. Crazy twists near the end that def threw me for a loop

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely fantastic.

The deeper you get the better it gets,
all the characters and the build of the story. Highly recommend you pick up this series.

[Brad · Rating 5 out of 5]

good read

Victors growth is unparalleled and every time he gets stronger so do his enemies and he makes a lot. Great continuation of the story.

[Spencer Lambert · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another enjoyable addition and the Ridonne were a fun enemy to confront. This was a fun shakeup to the formula of the solo adventuring to the leading of an army, but one of those situations where the ease and cheese with which Victor tackles things more noticeable. I'd felt the widening of stakes & scope for the world itself was going to add some emotional counterweight to Victor and the characters around him, but it seems like it will remain relatively light on the emotional/moral repercussions throughout. But that's all you ask from a fun book.

[Vader · Rating 3 out of 5]

5 star - Perfect
4 star - i would recommend
3 star - good
2 star - struggled to complete
1 star - could not finish