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Incursion: A LitRPG Adventure
Malefic snowmen. Eldritch trains. Fanatical bovines.Dii Van Damme was having a bad week when the universe decided to sneeze, and accidentally uncovered some of its secrets. When the reality he knew turned out to be a lie, he reacted like any proper human improvise, adapt, and kill an evil snowman with a can of beans. Now, armed with a stolen cosmic power and an unhealthy amount of spite, he’s ready to power-play his way out of this nightmare.
But the deeper he digs, the bigger the conspiracy. Every puzzle piece uncovered sheds light on an ever grander design—a design meant to keep humanity under a boot, and the powers that be relegated to the service of entertainment.
Intelligent Systems see all of creation as their playground and entire realms battle for control. The game is rigged—but Dii has the ultimate cheat human ingenuity, defiance, and the sheer refusal to quit.
One insignificant human against cosmic tyranny? Sounds like a fair fight.
But the deeper he digs, the bigger the conspiracy. Every puzzle piece uncovered sheds light on an ever grander design—a design meant to keep humanity under a boot, and the powers that be relegated to the service of entertainment.
Intelligent Systems see all of creation as their playground and entire realms battle for control. The game is rigged—but Dii has the ultimate cheat human ingenuity, defiance, and the sheer refusal to quit.
One insignificant human against cosmic tyranny? Sounds like a fair fight.
568 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 29, 2025
48 people are currently reading
9 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
November 25, 2025
TL;DR I am absolutely going to buy the next one.
Alternative title: What if Dennis Vanderkerken experience isekai?
What I know of the author Dennis Vanderkerken I only know from his books and from Dakota Krout's origin story about how they met. It's probably all mixed up in my memory but I think that Dakota Krout was contacted by this guy who told him that he was missing all of these amazing details about the Divine Dungeon world Krout had created and gave him all of the spreadsheets and logical deductions evidence to prove it. And Krout said well write it all then. And thus the wild excrutiatingly detailed 19 books of the Artorian's Archives. It's full of love, brutality, comfy pillows and insanity, not to mention wild insane geese, ever-altering realities, dread gazebos and secret cow levels.
I think this new series is the story of the author himself going through a similar journey without the limits set by an existing series. The beginning is a fast dunking in a lake, but if you learn how to swim it is worth it in the end, even if in some spots you wonder what is making the water warm or cold right there.
The main character is a detailed obsessed ADHD laden man who loves gaming and hidden exploits and just wants to get along with everyone, except those who opose him and must be destroyed. At least that's how he plays his games. And if the world he finds himself in thanks to a door that appears in his ouse is guided by gaming rules, then his course is clear: figure out everything, find every exploit, reward those who help you, crush those who like crushing others.
The cover immediately reminded me of a Stargate and as the next book in the series has the second symbol lit up on the cover, I suspect there will be 12 books in this series and each will focus on a new world or system. This echos the set up of Artorian's Archives, and with a reasonable number of books in the series. I stepped away from the AA series when I wasn't sure if any progress was being made to a conclusion. This series has a set size and is a known investment.
If the next book were out on audiobook, I'd have started it immediately.
Alternative title: What if Dennis Vanderkerken experience isekai?
What I know of the author Dennis Vanderkerken I only know from his books and from Dakota Krout's origin story about how they met. It's probably all mixed up in my memory but I think that Dakota Krout was contacted by this guy who told him that he was missing all of these amazing details about the Divine Dungeon world Krout had created and gave him all of the spreadsheets and logical deductions evidence to prove it. And Krout said well write it all then. And thus the wild excrutiatingly detailed 19 books of the Artorian's Archives. It's full of love, brutality, comfy pillows and insanity, not to mention wild insane geese, ever-altering realities, dread gazebos and secret cow levels.
I think this new series is the story of the author himself going through a similar journey without the limits set by an existing series. The beginning is a fast dunking in a lake, but if you learn how to swim it is worth it in the end, even if in some spots you wonder what is making the water warm or cold right there.
The main character is a detailed obsessed ADHD laden man who loves gaming and hidden exploits and just wants to get along with everyone, except those who opose him and must be destroyed. At least that's how he plays his games. And if the world he finds himself in thanks to a door that appears in his ouse is guided by gaming rules, then his course is clear: figure out everything, find every exploit, reward those who help you, crush those who like crushing others.
The cover immediately reminded me of a Stargate and as the next book in the series has the second symbol lit up on the cover, I suspect there will be 12 books in this series and each will focus on a new world or system. This echos the set up of Artorian's Archives, and with a reasonable number of books in the series. I stepped away from the AA series when I wasn't sure if any progress was being made to a conclusion. This series has a set size and is a known investment.
If the next book were out on audiobook, I'd have started it immediately.
December 24, 2025
Not for me
The premise on this one is interesting but more creepy than I care for. I don't like how the powers that be are able to mess with his mind and memory. Yes, he finds a way around it, but I don't care for mental manipulation. That's just a hard no for me. Also, at 15% of the way in, our main character doesn't really have a goal or purpose other than stubbornly wanting to throw a wrench in the system because it tried to mess with him. I prefer a goal that's more noble or at least more relatable for me, like protecting one's friends and family, helping others, living a peaceful life, or seeking to become the best you can be. I wouldn’t change the course of my life purely based on stubbornness and spite because I have values I believe in that mean more to me than thumbing my nose at the authorities. This guy doesn't seem to. I guess that's why he was chosen to be the main character for this series.
Also, due to the nature of the system, the world building is confusing and not well explained. This perfectly suits the plot, but it feels scattered and unexplained-- because our character was thrown into things with no explanation. Again, this perfectly suits the plot, it's just not something I particularly care for. If I loved the character, I'd put up with it. Since I don't, all I can say is this one is not for me.
The premise on this one is interesting but more creepy than I care for. I don't like how the powers that be are able to mess with his mind and memory. Yes, he finds a way around it, but I don't care for mental manipulation. That's just a hard no for me. Also, at 15% of the way in, our main character doesn't really have a goal or purpose other than stubbornly wanting to throw a wrench in the system because it tried to mess with him. I prefer a goal that's more noble or at least more relatable for me, like protecting one's friends and family, helping others, living a peaceful life, or seeking to become the best you can be. I wouldn’t change the course of my life purely based on stubbornness and spite because I have values I believe in that mean more to me than thumbing my nose at the authorities. This guy doesn't seem to. I guess that's why he was chosen to be the main character for this series.
Also, due to the nature of the system, the world building is confusing and not well explained. This perfectly suits the plot, but it feels scattered and unexplained-- because our character was thrown into things with no explanation. Again, this perfectly suits the plot, it's just not something I particularly care for. If I loved the character, I'd put up with it. Since I don't, all I can say is this one is not for me.
December 16, 2025
zip, zap, reeeeee!
This book is not for short reading sessions. The narrative zips all over the place, reflecting the main character’s (and possibly the author’s) chaotic mental space.
In short, he finds a hidden passage between fantasy realms in his home, and experiences the entertainment of that passage being the source of the title: he is an incursion, but other things come through to his side. And I’m guessing that is how the book ends.
This book is not for short reading sessions. The narrative zips all over the place, reflecting the main character’s (and possibly the author’s) chaotic mental space.
In short, he finds a hidden passage between fantasy realms in his home, and experiences the entertainment of that passage being the source of the title: he is an incursion, but other things come through to his side. And I’m guessing that is how the book ends.
January 4, 2026
I enjoyed it
Dii Van Damme struggles with staying focused on things for long. Finding a collection of notes in his own handwriting that he has no recollection of writing doesn't help matters.
Life is getting seriously chaotic but maybe this chaos is just what Dii needs to hyper-focus and dodge the obstacles that life is throwing his way.
Dii Van Damme struggles with staying focused on things for long. Finding a collection of notes in his own handwriting that he has no recollection of writing doesn't help matters.
Life is getting seriously chaotic but maybe this chaos is just what Dii needs to hyper-focus and dodge the obstacles that life is throwing his way.
December 26, 2025
3.5 stars
November 28, 2025
A rollicking read of preposterous proportions!
As an AuDHD adult around the same age as the protagonist, I really resonated with.. EVERYTHING. The moods. The hyper focus. Sporadic emotions, applied limitedly when energy allows, and naming things what you'll remember instead of what others call them.
100% recommend this laugh along lark full of shenanigans, high and low brow humor, and puns. So. Many. Well-applied, impeccably timed. PUNS.
As an AuDHD adult around the same age as the protagonist, I really resonated with.. EVERYTHING. The moods. The hyper focus. Sporadic emotions, applied limitedly when energy allows, and naming things what you'll remember instead of what others call them.
100% recommend this laugh along lark full of shenanigans, high and low brow humor, and puns. So. Many. Well-applied, impeccably timed. PUNS.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews