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Divine Apostasy #12
The Twelfth Conclave
Some power can’t be leveled—it must be balanced.
The aftermath of battling the Zealot advances Ruwen’s Soul to level four, adding to the tension between his magic systems. The fate of this fragile balance hinges on mastering his Chakras, and failure will result in losing them forever.
Reuniting with old friends, Ruwen learns the basics of Chakra magic, but before making much progress, he receives a summons he can’t refuse. The Ink Lord Conclave he triggered a month earlier requires his presence, and it seems he didn’t follow tradition very closely, or at all, and now the consequences had arrived.
Every past Ink Lord who summoned their peers for a Conclave died—usually in a very bloody way. Ruwen has every intention of breaking that streak and feels confident his hard-won abilities will keep him safe.
It turns out the Conclave’s library is more like a dungeon—a labyrinth of shifting aisles, ancient guardians, and dangerous knowledge. More concerning is the library’s ability to suppress Ruwen’s power, something very few entities could manage, and a hint of the library’s hidden identity.
Within the library’s twisting stacks, Ruwen finds another Ink Lord, one with a clue to the riddle Ruwen brought with him. A riddle that leads directly to the Mind and Body Towers critical for his development.
But this Ink Lord wields the power of the Zealot—or possibly—be the Zealot in disguise.
The answers to so many questions surround Ruwen, but if he can’t survive a dungeon-turned-library, enemies disguised as allies, or, despite the hostile environment, advance his Chakras, then those secrets become meaningless.
Ruwen must succeed, because all the power he holds pales when compared to what lies just out of reach—the Realm of Bones. Only there will he find the power required to defeat the Zealot.
If Ruwen fails, then all is lost—his life, the lives of his friends, and the Universe itself.
The aftermath of battling the Zealot advances Ruwen’s Soul to level four, adding to the tension between his magic systems. The fate of this fragile balance hinges on mastering his Chakras, and failure will result in losing them forever.
Reuniting with old friends, Ruwen learns the basics of Chakra magic, but before making much progress, he receives a summons he can’t refuse. The Ink Lord Conclave he triggered a month earlier requires his presence, and it seems he didn’t follow tradition very closely, or at all, and now the consequences had arrived.
Every past Ink Lord who summoned their peers for a Conclave died—usually in a very bloody way. Ruwen has every intention of breaking that streak and feels confident his hard-won abilities will keep him safe.
It turns out the Conclave’s library is more like a dungeon—a labyrinth of shifting aisles, ancient guardians, and dangerous knowledge. More concerning is the library’s ability to suppress Ruwen’s power, something very few entities could manage, and a hint of the library’s hidden identity.
Within the library’s twisting stacks, Ruwen finds another Ink Lord, one with a clue to the riddle Ruwen brought with him. A riddle that leads directly to the Mind and Body Towers critical for his development.
But this Ink Lord wields the power of the Zealot—or possibly—be the Zealot in disguise.
The answers to so many questions surround Ruwen, but if he can’t survive a dungeon-turned-library, enemies disguised as allies, or, despite the hostile environment, advance his Chakras, then those secrets become meaningless.
Ruwen must succeed, because all the power he holds pales when compared to what lies just out of reach—the Realm of Bones. Only there will he find the power required to defeat the Zealot.
If Ruwen fails, then all is lost—his life, the lives of his friends, and the Universe itself.
- GenresFantasy
776 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 7, 2025
164 people are currently reading
53 people want to read
About the author
A.F. Kay
18 books334 followersAFK is the pen name of Ripht, a monk still wandering the Crypt of Dalnir looking for the Lumpy Goo that refuses to drop his Fighting Baton. Some of AFK's best memories happened online, and the Divine Apostasy, a LitRPG series, is his attempt to relive those days in some small part. He hopes you find a piece of yourself in this series and join him on the journey.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews
October 17, 2025
I struggled a bit
A whole lot of thinking and not enough doing. But still plenty of doing.
I don’t know. I put this down a few times, which usually means I lost interest. But I still love the series. The free association conversations that even confuse participants are great.
So, yeah, I will get lucky 13 whenever it appears.
A whole lot of thinking and not enough doing. But still plenty of doing.
I don’t know. I put this down a few times, which usually means I lost interest. But I still love the series. The free association conversations that even confuse participants are great.
So, yeah, I will get lucky 13 whenever it appears.
November 14, 2025
At some point this story stopped being good and it's difficult to point to exactly where or why but I will do my best to explain what I dislike.
1. The power systems are interesting but barely meaningful. The MC gains everything without much struggle and even he doesn't really seem to view them as being more then just a means to an ends. Compare that to earlier series progression where things were acquired through hard work, pain and through great effort and it just isn't quite as fun to read.
2. The whole cleverness allowing the MC to "Sherlock Holmes" away every problem has alway been a weaker part of this story, but it feels really really bad this time around. I kindof feel like I am reading a manual for how things work since I am never given a chance to imagine things myself.
3. The story reads like a sprint to the conclusion rather then a logical progression of events. It's possible that the story has gotten too big for the author to manage, but that still doesn't change the fact that everything felt rushed and shallow compared to previous books.
Just my two cents.
1. The power systems are interesting but barely meaningful. The MC gains everything without much struggle and even he doesn't really seem to view them as being more then just a means to an ends. Compare that to earlier series progression where things were acquired through hard work, pain and through great effort and it just isn't quite as fun to read.
2. The whole cleverness allowing the MC to "Sherlock Holmes" away every problem has alway been a weaker part of this story, but it feels really really bad this time around. I kindof feel like I am reading a manual for how things work since I am never given a chance to imagine things myself.
3. The story reads like a sprint to the conclusion rather then a logical progression of events. It's possible that the story has gotten too big for the author to manage, but that still doesn't change the fact that everything felt rushed and shallow compared to previous books.
Just my two cents.
November 11, 2025
Worth the wait !
The Twelfth Conclave proves that twelve books in, A.F. Kay hasn’t lost his touch. This entry raises the stakes yet again—pushing Ruwen into one of the most creative and dangerous environments in the series. The Conclave’s living library setting is equal parts eerie, mysterious, and fascinating, and the twist of having Ruwen’s powers suppressed adds real tension. For a character who’s become nearly godlike, it’s refreshing to see him forced to think, adapt, and survive without relying on raw strength.
The worldbuilding is as intricate as ever, the puzzles and riddles are clever, and the sense of scale keeps expanding in a way that still feels purposeful. There’s payoff for longtime readers, with threads from earlier books finally coming full circle.
If you’ve followed the Divine Apostasy series this far, you’ll find plenty to love here—progression, danger, growth, and that trademark blend of LitRPG systems and epic fantasy storytelling. It’s not the best entry point for new readers, but for fans, this is another home run.
The Twelfth Conclave proves that twelve books in, A.F. Kay hasn’t lost his touch. This entry raises the stakes yet again—pushing Ruwen into one of the most creative and dangerous environments in the series. The Conclave’s living library setting is equal parts eerie, mysterious, and fascinating, and the twist of having Ruwen’s powers suppressed adds real tension. For a character who’s become nearly godlike, it’s refreshing to see him forced to think, adapt, and survive without relying on raw strength.
The worldbuilding is as intricate as ever, the puzzles and riddles are clever, and the sense of scale keeps expanding in a way that still feels purposeful. There’s payoff for longtime readers, with threads from earlier books finally coming full circle.
If you’ve followed the Divine Apostasy series this far, you’ll find plenty to love here—progression, danger, growth, and that trademark blend of LitRPG systems and epic fantasy storytelling. It’s not the best entry point for new readers, but for fans, this is another home run.
December 13, 2025
Filler book
This series has been good until the last 2-3 books. The author has been drawing the story out. The last 2 books has involved the “conclave” - Mind you the conclave was started at the end of the last book, but the conclave took up this entire book. I can’t even remember why the conclave was even called. Why did the author called it the alchemy conclave because spoiler really wasn’t any alchemy involved - other than curing the poisoning in the last book.
I gave a poor rating because of the story being drawn out. I hate giving such a poor review on a series, I mostly enjoyed but seriously the story took a wrong turn. Hopefully the next book will get back on track.
This series has been good until the last 2-3 books. The author has been drawing the story out. The last 2 books has involved the “conclave” - Mind you the conclave was started at the end of the last book, but the conclave took up this entire book. I can’t even remember why the conclave was even called. Why did the author called it the alchemy conclave because spoiler really wasn’t any alchemy involved - other than curing the poisoning in the last book.
I gave a poor rating because of the story being drawn out. I hate giving such a poor review on a series, I mostly enjoyed but seriously the story took a wrong turn. Hopefully the next book will get back on track.
October 8, 2025
…and there’s a prophecy
Ruwen Starfield had the stats to be a mage, and at the time of his accession he was not in favor with the city. A party went on a journey delivering valuable goods across the territory everyone in the party revived back in town except Ruwen’s parents and the priests son had a limp Ruwen’s dreams of being a mage were crushed being forced into the worker class, but then he is given the honor of being a champion and so much more… this is book 12 of Ruwen’s journey if you haven’t already read the other 11 books they are all amazing
Ruwen Starfield had the stats to be a mage, and at the time of his accession he was not in favor with the city. A party went on a journey delivering valuable goods across the territory everyone in the party revived back in town except Ruwen’s parents and the priests son had a limp Ruwen’s dreams of being a mage were crushed being forced into the worker class, but then he is given the honor of being a champion and so much more… this is book 12 of Ruwen’s journey if you haven’t already read the other 11 books they are all amazing
November 15, 2025
12 Books into this LitRPG series
I do like this series - I find it very similar to the Cradle series by Will Wight, however there is some things I also disliked.
I appreciated some of the character building and humour involved, I really liked the dungeon systems and basic magic class systems, as the books progressed more and more magic systems come available and intertwined and it got a bit too complex and difficult to follow (at least to me)
I'll continue to follow this series though as I'm still interested to see where this story goes
I do like this series - I find it very similar to the Cradle series by Will Wight, however there is some things I also disliked.
I appreciated some of the character building and humour involved, I really liked the dungeon systems and basic magic class systems, as the books progressed more and more magic systems come available and intertwined and it got a bit too complex and difficult to follow (at least to me)
I'll continue to follow this series though as I'm still interested to see where this story goes
October 18, 2025
I had a good time.
I don’t remember what the conclave was for and missed any reminder. Never found out what protocol he messed up calling the conclave or much about the library in general. There were some editing errors like wrong word used, especially Pen for Pine. There are leprechauns I really think iron should have done more damage to. I’ve been neutral on fall pumpkin spice flavors but may find myself more inclined this year. I had a good time.;)
I don’t remember what the conclave was for and missed any reminder. Never found out what protocol he messed up calling the conclave or much about the library in general. There were some editing errors like wrong word used, especially Pen for Pine. There are leprechauns I really think iron should have done more damage to. I’ve been neutral on fall pumpkin spice flavors but may find myself more inclined this year. I had a good time.;)
December 18, 2025
Divine Apostasy —
More like Duende Apogee...
Or maybe Daimon Arche...?
Perchance Dasein Ananke...!
Ah, Hell's bells. I'll keep sifting.
Shing! You have acquired a skill.
Skill: Ruwenation
Level: Max
Description: Did you read the books?
Effect (passive): Crush all competition into fine terium dust (has alchemical uses)
Effect (triggered): Once per fortification cycle, expand the reach of Ruwen's fanbase by one country. Impact relative to size.
More like Duende Apogee...
Or maybe Daimon Arche...?
Perchance Dasein Ananke...!
Ah, Hell's bells. I'll keep sifting.
Shing! You have acquired a skill.
Skill: Ruwenation
Level: Max
Description: Did you read the books?
Effect (passive): Crush all competition into fine terium dust (has alchemical uses)
Effect (triggered): Once per fortification cycle, expand the reach of Ruwen's fanbase by one country. Impact relative to size.
October 17, 2025
My absolute favorite series!
Pretty much of all time. 800 pages read in a couple days. Appropriate for all ages, exciting and engaging and emotionally charged. Forget about sleep. Read them all. Read the companion stuff. Then reread them. Join a discussion forum so you can talk about them with others. Please give them a shot, you won't be disappointed.
Pretty much of all time. 800 pages read in a couple days. Appropriate for all ages, exciting and engaging and emotionally charged. Forget about sleep. Read them all. Read the companion stuff. Then reread them. Join a discussion forum so you can talk about them with others. Please give them a shot, you won't be disappointed.
October 21, 2025
My Favorite Series
This series is perfect. I compare all other books to this series when looking for new reads. This book in particular was awesome. We finally learned more about the different magic systems and of course get to see the MC get even more powerful. Lastly every book has me laughing more and more.
This series is perfect. I compare all other books to this series when looking for new reads. This book in particular was awesome. We finally learned more about the different magic systems and of course get to see the MC get even more powerful. Lastly every book has me laughing more and more.
October 25, 2025
Another great one
This book is as good as all the previous ones. I don't have much for to say. The characters continue to be fun and interesting. Every ridiculous plot event turns out to be both fun and clever. The world building is still very cool.
Honesty, if you've reached this book, you already know how good it's go to be. Go read it.
This book is as good as all the previous ones. I don't have much for to say. The characters continue to be fun and interesting. Every ridiculous plot event turns out to be both fun and clever. The world building is still very cool.
Honesty, if you've reached this book, you already know how good it's go to be. Go read it.
December 26, 2025
More!
We need 11 more series with 12 books each, and 11 more people to follow after that just to begin to explain all of what could be going on in this amazing world building you have done! Thank you A.F.Key for the best series I've read since the imager portfolio from R.F.Salvator... this was amazing!
We need 11 more series with 12 books each, and 11 more people to follow after that just to begin to explain all of what could be going on in this amazing world building you have done! Thank you A.F.Key for the best series I've read since the imager portfolio from R.F.Salvator... this was amazing!
December 31, 2025
loved it!
This series always comes together for a great continuation of the story! If I could forget them, I would start over with glee!!
This series is super detail oriented, but is also silly at times. Character growth actually happens and the story continues in such a woven pattern. Loved it.
This series always comes together for a great continuation of the story! If I could forget them, I would start over with glee!!
This series is super detail oriented, but is also silly at times. Character growth actually happens and the story continues in such a woven pattern. Loved it.
October 13, 2025
wonderful
Once again I am happy for another amazing story! It was so good and made me smile and laugh many times. I recommend this book and the entire series to anyone who loves fantasy. I hope that’s what it is lol. I love it
Once again I am happy for another amazing story! It was so good and made me smile and laugh many times. I recommend this book and the entire series to anyone who loves fantasy. I hope that’s what it is lol. I love it
October 16, 2025
Hilarity incarnate
I don't know exactly how or what your writing process is but I laugh so hard while reading this series. I highly recommend this book to everyone and be prepared for weird looks when you start laughing in public.
I don't know exactly how or what your writing process is but I laugh so hard while reading this series. I highly recommend this book to everyone and be prepared for weird looks when you start laughing in public.
October 19, 2025
Another Excellent Entry
Can’t get enough of this series. Made me laugh out loud a couple of times, and the author does a fantastic job of keeping things interesting despite Ruwen always being the strongest person in the room. Will be impatiently waiting for the next to come out.
Can’t get enough of this series. Made me laugh out loud a couple of times, and the author does a fantastic job of keeping things interesting despite Ruwen always being the strongest person in the room. Will be impatiently waiting for the next to come out.
October 21, 2025
this series
Still remains as o e of the all time greats. Blows my mind how the author thinks and what he can create. Absolute masterpiece of a series and a must have in any persons' collection.
Still remains as o e of the all time greats. Blows my mind how the author thinks and what he can create. Absolute masterpiece of a series and a must have in any persons' collection.
October 22, 2025
Better and better
This series just keeps getting better.
Multiple magic systems, interesting main and side characters, and really enjoyable banter between them all. It all adds up to a very enjoyable read, that never seems to get old.
This series just keeps getting better.
Multiple magic systems, interesting main and side characters, and really enjoyable banter between them all. It all adds up to a very enjoyable read, that never seems to get old.
October 23, 2025
I loved it
Charming story with Twisty goodness all the way through. Easy to read with a good flow. I didn't feel like I was wading through technicalities. I so look forward to the next book.
Charming story with Twisty goodness all the way through. Easy to read with a good flow. I didn't feel like I was wading through technicalities. I so look forward to the next book.
October 31, 2025
missed the insanity
It’s been a while since the last book, and although this book was the longest in the series, I thoroughly enjoyed it. In particular, I missed the banter between characters - it was a great return of that.
It’s been a while since the last book, and although this book was the longest in the series, I thoroughly enjoyed it. In particular, I missed the banter between characters - it was a great return of that.
October 9, 2025
Very entertaining
The story continues, still enjoyable, but now I'm wondering when the split into different series starts. Keep it up good sir.
The story continues, still enjoyable, but now I'm wondering when the split into different series starts. Keep it up good sir.
October 11, 2025
this series is simply the best
No matter which genres you like, whether it’s fantasy lit RPG, Sci fi, or just entertaining stories and world building, the series has it all
No matter which genres you like, whether it’s fantasy lit RPG, Sci fi, or just entertaining stories and world building, the series has it all
October 18, 2025
Shade's First Rule: Read the Book First, Leave a Review Second
Truly a wonderful Book and I cant wait to the next one. I look forward to seeing what the author has in store for us.
Truly a wonderful Book and I cant wait to the next one. I look forward to seeing what the author has in store for us.
October 25, 2025
great series
Whole series has be phenomenal, a nice twist on the normal litrpg story line! For sure should read them all!
Whole series has be phenomenal, a nice twist on the normal litrpg story line! For sure should read them all!
November 1, 2025
EXCELLENT
I love this Divine Apostasy series. I do not have enough superlatives to describe it. Thank you and roll on number 13.
I love this Divine Apostasy series. I do not have enough superlatives to describe it. Thank you and roll on number 13.
November 9, 2025
Lost i n space...
Sad to see the series get so complicated and hard to follow with all the different development paths. Need a phd to keep up.
Sad to see the series get so complicated and hard to follow with all the different development paths. Need a phd to keep up.
November 19, 2025
Loved it
Great addition to the series. I had to read the last few in the series to get caught up again because of the time between releases but was worth the wait.
Great addition to the series. I had to read the last few in the series to get caught up again because of the time between releases but was worth the wait.
November 21, 2025
This series continues to be delightful, fun, and a more than solid story. Ruwen and Sift still have the best friendship in the genre. 👍🏽👍🏽
November 21, 2025
they keep gettin go better
As usual a very solid read. Cant wait for the higher realms and a bit more soft and rami would be great
As usual a very solid read. Cant wait for the higher realms and a bit more soft and rami would be great
December 18, 2025
Awesome!!
AFK has done it. Again!! Another amazing book overflowing with great world building, awesome characters, magic, and action!! I can’t wait for the next one!!
AFK has done it. Again!! Another amazing book overflowing with great world building, awesome characters, magic, and action!! I can’t wait for the next one!!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews