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Dungeon Deposed #2

Dungeon Deposed 2

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Ryker only had one goal in his life right now:

Turn a certain adventuring guild into a flaming wreck while dancing merrily through the smoldering ruins. All for the chance to get back at a handful of people.

It didn’t work out that way though.

At all.

He’d become the Count of Dungeon, made a hostage, married off to the false queen’s daughter against his will, and had his county made ground zero for a religious war.

To top all that off, the Dark Lord of the North wants to see Ryker personally.

The smoldering ruins of Dungeon have been cleared, the patterns reset, and Ryker has a task that is more than likely too much for him.

Hold Dungeon, and give Lauren, the rightful queen, some breathing room.

Warning and minor spoiler: This novel contains graphic violence, undefined relationships/harem, unconventional opinions/beliefs, and a hero who is as tactful as a dog at a cat show. Read at your own risk.

209 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 28, 2019

635 people are currently reading
229 people want to read

About the author

William D. Arand

47 books1,464 followers

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5 stars
1,071 (55%)
4 stars
543 (28%)
3 stars
238 (12%)
2 stars
63 (3%)
1 star
24 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 103 reviews
Profile Image for Kevin.
1,710 reviews30 followers
June 3, 2019
I think the author should have tried harder to keep his identity as Randi Darren secret. Now that it's out in the open his Randi Work is bleeding over to William. The only difference I'm seeing so far is that William fades to black. The same verbal pampering and excessive "gassing" of his women is present.

I don't remember Super Sales being like this until it got contaminated when Randi came over from Wild Wastes. This has just been spiraling down since.

I'm nearing the end of this novel, and the author is focusing more on his harem and adding more women to it, than the story. The author writes really interesting stories, but he then tries to shoehorn in as many harem situations as possible. You haven't eaten in days, and you're trying to hide for survival. Yet, what's on your mind is "splitting someone in half while breaking their back"?

Of course the ever-present "angry protagonist" that Arand loves to write in all his books is around.

So far the writing is subpar. The Randi pen name is supposed to be the sex-fiend, but it's showing up in William's work too.

I should have guessed that when we last saw Felix, and he was slowly being seduced by Vince's lot that "more is better", that the inevitable was near, and the author was never going to put effort into separating his pen names again.

Another thing I noticed is that the dialogue suffers greatly. The protagonist says the most random and asinine things, to it seems, appear angry.

This author has so much potential, and thinks up great stories, but he messes it all up by trying to insert a harem situation into everything.
Case in point.

I will read the sequels, but I hope the author betters his craft. The writing has been worsening instead of improving. Stop trying to have every book be about some guy sleeping with ten plus women, and all these women knowing about each other, and encouraging him to take more women to bed. There is never any conflict or fallout from this. Nobody tries to kill anybody else because "he loves your more", none of that.

These books are becoming a clone of each other, only that they are in different settings. It's the same roles, character traits, and personalities.

2/5 Stars

9 reviews
June 3, 2019
Wasn't good enough to get another

The harem stuff ends my suspension of disbelief. It became more prevalent in this book and stopped me from looking at this author again.
Profile Image for Talha.
145 reviews33 followers
January 12, 2023
[magic] [Dungeon] [Light magic] [Dark magic] [Kindgom]

He went to each of his wifies and apologize to them and get closer to each one of them.

It started to get harder and harder for the Dungeon to fight at 4 different ends and at the end due to the curse from a God he got separated from the dungeon and he was very far away from it.

With the princess with him, he turned back to the Dungeon and had to Fight with his father who died a very long time ago and got reconnected with the Dungeon.
Profile Image for Wolgan.
263 reviews21 followers
November 20, 2019
I was iffy on this one, Dungeon Deposed was one of my least favorite books because frankly Ryker is an asshole. But Ryker is growing up finally, and became more relatable and likable as the book progressed.

Beware, real spoilers here, not joking.


Five well deserved stars and I'll no doubt still be pre-ordering every book you put out. Kudos for making me swear out loud and scaring my dog awake.
Profile Image for Akshay.
820 reviews5 followers
January 29, 2025

Dungeon Deposed 2 is the second installment in William D. Arand’s Dungeon Deposed series, continuing the saga of the reluctant dungeon lord, Ryker. This sequel follows Ryker's ongoing journey to establish and expand his dungeon while struggling against the challenges of a powerful world filled with both enemies and allies.


The book builds on its predecessor, expanding the lore, characters, and dungeon mechanics that readers loved from the first novel. However, it also faces a few pitfalls in pacing, character development, and thematic consistency that can affect the overall reading experience.



Strengths



World-Building and Dungeon Mechanics:

One of the book's standout elements is the expansion of the dungeon world. Arand crafts a detailed and creative system that allows readers to immerse themselves in how Ryker grows his dungeon, acquires new monsters, and defends his territory from invaders. This aspect feels fresh and innovative in comparison to other books in the *dungeon core* sub-genre.



Action and Strategy:

The novel shines when it comes to action sequences, which are well-paced and tense. Ryker's strategic thinking as a dungeon lord is highlighted as he maneuvers through battles, alliances, and dungeon management decisions. This adds depth to the story, making it more than just a power fantasy. Arand does an excellent job of making Ryker’s progression feel earned.



Humor:

Arand continues to incorporate his trademark humor in the dialogue, especially in Ryker’s interactions with his dungeon minions and companions. The banter lightens the darker moments, balancing the tone.




Weaknesses



Pacing Issues:

The second half of the book suffers from significant pacing problems. The initial setup is engaging, but the middle portions drag as the plot gets bogged down in dungeon management minutiae. While some readers may enjoy the detailed look into how Ryker manages his dungeon, others may find it repetitive and slow.



Character Development:

While Ryker is a compelling protagonist with a complex mix of morality and pragmatism, the supporting characters fall short in comparison. Several key figures feel underdeveloped or one-dimensional. They serve more as plot devices than fully realized individuals, which is particularly disappointing considering the potential for strong interpersonal dynamics between them and Ryker.



Harem Tropes:

One of the more divisive aspects of *Dungeon Deposed 2* is its heavy reliance on harem tropes. While this may appeal to some readers, others may find it detracts from the main story. The female characters often feel more like romantic interests for Ryker rather than fully fleshed-out individuals with their own motivations. This creates an imbalance in the narrative, as relationships sometimes overshadow plot progression.




Spoiler Section




Conclusion


Dungeon Deposed 2 is an ambitious sequel that builds upon the foundation laid in the first book. It successfully deepens the world and explores more of the dungeon core mechanics that fans enjoy. However, its flaws in pacing, character development, and reliance on certain tropes may limit its appeal to a broader audience. For fans of the first book and the *LitRPG/dungeon core* genre, it’s a solid continuation, but for new readers, the pacing issues and repetitive elements may be off-putting.



Overall Rating: 2/5

36 reviews1 follower
March 3, 2019
Holy cow what a ride

How to even attempt to put how awesome this book is into words.. yeah i cant do it justice. If your new go back to the beginning read the first to know the players and enjoy. If your smart youll go back to the true beginning because the whole universe he has created is simply amazing. You can find his facebook group to get the full idea and the correct order to read but enough of that, just buy it and enjoy.
World building A+
Characters A+
Characters that are epic pricks self centered jerks and totally awesome A+
Fleshed out supporting cast with complex belief system and goals A+
A teisted universe that you think you have figured out then you realize you were totally wrong but youve got it this time only to be smacked upside the head by your assumptions and you again realize that you were totally clueless and absolutely wrong but you now have it all figured out but this one little keystone piece that isnt at all what you think it is... yes this happened to me..
Hey did I mention this guy is an awesome author... yeah he really is
Authors whose books i wait for and look forward too is not long
John Ringo, Larry Corriea, Jim Butcher, yeah and William D Aarand.
There are a fee more but you get the idea.

Great story
Absolutely a great story
78 reviews2 followers
March 5, 2019
Dungeon Deposed 2 bloody awesome

William D. Arand is a talented and skilled Author a it's shows in this series. The characters ,world and story is well written. I really enjoyed this book and the first book as well it's in depth . You get to know more about the characters and our Hero and I can't wait to buy the next book and buy this book on audible I hope with the narration Andrea Parsneau . ☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆ 12/10 stars.
Profile Image for Sean.
86 reviews1 follower
December 27, 2021
Having finished the three books of this series, are we never going to find out what happened to the woman he buried underground quickly when all the champions were rushing at him? Is it at least addressed somewhere later in the "Sovereign-verse?" I read Super-Sales already (had no idea it was a universe until shit stopped making sense in book 3 there) and it definitely wasn't mentioned.

Furthermore, the vast majority of this book was written in such a way that I felt there was ill-intent from various people like Marybelle, Shirley, Wynne, etc. I kept expecting to have some sort of coup attempt from within on the dungeon or something. But no, they all just love him so much that everything they do is for his betterment. Which is no different than any other female in any series of this 'verse. Don't get me wrong, I know what I'm in for in this genre of books, and I hate stupid drama just for the sake of stupid drama, but don't write in such a way that it seems like there is impending trouble...and then there never is; just more of the same.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Sam Koumi.
63 reviews8 followers
January 4, 2023
"I'm dying… huh… fun."


~ Ryker


Volume two of Dungeon Deposed really stepped up its game compared to the first book.


Well, it was technically more of the same (which sequels tends to be), but I found the characters (especially Ryker) a lot more agreeable. While there still is a lot of that sexual content, it doesn't have the same dark feeling that it did in volume one, and Ryker doesn't blow up at every corner bad actually holds himself back from doing stupid stuff, like he did in volume one.


This volume continues on directly after the events of volume one, and the first half is spent with the Dungeon crew, while the second half is spent on the run.


I personally liked the second half, since then Ryker wasn't essentially immortal, like he is when he was in Dungeon. Arguably, many of his weakpoints as a human was gone, but he had very little safety to fall back on (and it IS supposed to be a power fantasy, so you can't make the MC too weak lol).


Like I say with most sequels; if you didn't like the first volume, you're probably not interested in the first place, but if you were okay with the first volume, but hesitant to pick up volume two because of Ryker's personality and the bad-feeling sex from volume one, then you should try this one as well, since it contains less of it.


I rate it 8/10 for the improvement.
Profile Image for Jake.
249 reviews7 followers
March 28, 2019
I like the book, but...

I had a hard time getting through it. In the middle of the book there seemed to be a lot of nothing happening with a little character development thrown in (and copious amounts of coitus) to prod it along. I was *very* pleased with the ending and the direction it's pointing is in as well as the last quarter of the book. Basically, first quarter is catch up and build story, middle fifty percent didn't move much (except the bed posts), then it got SUPER interesting.

I'll definitely get the next book and I might reread this one day and change my mind. I hate leaving only three stars for such an amazing author and the universe they've built, but this book, thus far, isn't one of my favs.
1 review
September 8, 2019
Unreadable

The first book in the series was cheesy, but entertaining. Something fit for, say, a long flight. This, the second in the series is also cheesy, but jumps the gap from entertaining to unreadable. The plot and plot devices are ludicrous, the dialog is painful, and worst of all, while the plot twists and turns randomly, the writing still somehow manages to be boringly predictable for page after page after page.

If you've read the first one, then you've already given the author enough money, so stay away from this and spend it on something better.
Profile Image for Travis.
2,901 reviews49 followers
June 14, 2019
Not sure what happened with this one. The first half of the book was slow, boring, and altogether forgettable.
It wasn't until the second half that the book actually wound up being the story I was expecting. If you don't mind some topic drift, I suppose the whole book will appeal to you, but if you're looking for a really good story, then hang inthere, the second half is definitely worth the read.
Profile Image for maxamoud.
160 reviews5 followers
May 25, 2020
Too much

I'm a dungeon core fan, I was only here for that , but the writer went in 120% harem story and dungeon building , driving , upgrading were forgotten.

If u looking for a dungeon story this series isn't for u.
Profile Image for Steve.
1,616 reviews60 followers
March 2, 2019
This is a good series so far, and has held my interest in large part because I actually care about the characters as well as the story. My one carp with this one is that William seems to have take a page from Daniel Schinhofen's playbook and has these characters talking about their feelings for each other entirely too much. I won't knock off a star for that, but the frequency of these expressions did lessen my enjoyment of an otherwise excellent book.

At this point I think we know how everyone feels, so I would like that cut back a bit as this continues (as I assume it will have at least one more book). Yes, I can skim past it, but since I like the writing and the rest of the story so much I'd rather not have to.
Profile Image for Charles Daniel.
584 reviews6 followers
July 6, 2021
A Solid Second Novel For This Trilogy

Ryker's battles with the Church of Light and the Church of Darkness continue as his campaign to preserve the Queendom of Dale. Unfortunately the war is going poorly in both his Queen's arena and his own. Fortunately, even death is merely an inconvenience for a wizard of Ryker's abilities as his short trip to the Capitol to visit his wives turns into a rescue mission when the city falls to one of the invading armies. On the bright side, Ryker finally gets to consummate his marriage to the Queen.

This is a LitRPG Novel and will likely appeal to Dungeon Core Novel and Fantasy fans. It may appeal to those who enjoy playing RPGs as well.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
388 reviews
March 5, 2019
Simply incredible...

I've read and loved all the preceding series. I am beyond impressed with what Arand is doing or, will have done when this project has Ben completed.

I was doing some very un-ladylike hooting and oh my goshing when Rike got name dropped as the goddess of compassion and forgiveness. And that kid that's not a kid? Woohoo! Love that boy! Things seem to have been brought back to Runner's home world. Hoping that Ryker's electric light self prevails and advances. Truly looking forward to more. After all, a certain AI nemesis is yet to be defeated. Or converted.
275 reviews7 followers
March 6, 2019
Amazing

Not sure what I can say about this one. Aside from noting how awesome it is. If you enjoyed the previous books, you'll love this one. It gets better and more intense. The story develops a bit different than I was expecting but I'm a great way, honestly. You won't be disappointed with the new people introduced not with the length. I'm eager for the next one. The length of this book was also perfect in my opinion. But of course I could always have more lol. Great job!!! Looking forward to the next book from Arand or Darren.
286 reviews4 followers
March 7, 2019
Wonderful

I used to be obsessed about this one author till he started rebooting all his series and tossing in convoluted timelines and unnecessary crossovers....this is NOT that author. This author is a great example how to do that sort of stuff right. First of all the main plot and story were amazing and the crossover stuff was like the icing on the cake..except not icing because I hate icing. This was the pudding on the cake. A Sweet wonderful gooey bit of extra fun that made me look forward to what was coming next in the series.
241 reviews1 follower
March 4, 2019
Yum

Wow... this ride was fantastic. Ryker and company continue to battle a multi-front war whilst trying to keep Dungeon ,its dungeon and citizens safe. The action starts and does not stop until the end. I was on the edge of my chair as I headed into the final portion of the book. Cannot wait until the next book! It is quite titillating how things are coming together and how questions are beginning to be ansewered...
690 reviews11 followers
March 9, 2019
Being Bad is Good

When fighting against 4 armies cheating is ok. When you can make the churches of good fight against the churches of evil, that's a good days work and it keeps them from fighting you. But, then you can make a dungeon that is nearly impossible to beat that is designed to kill all who enter, another good day.
I enjoyed the book more than the first showing that it's a fun series to read.
I look forward to seeing what troubles the DM gets into next!
Profile Image for Johnny.
2,179 reviews82 followers
March 12, 2019
Book two

Mistakes: I found a few throughout the book.
Plot: rebuilding and war. The problem is that all the building was, We used a massive amount of resources and book it was built. So the building part was nothing good.
Characters: As good a story as this author writes, he tends to overdo the harem aspect. The sex adds nothing to the story. Also he tends to tie-in to other series.
7.5/10
585 reviews
March 19, 2019
A tight fast faced read I struggled to put down

Really enjoyed book 2 of this series, its an in depth read and a detailed struggle to overcome insurmountable forces with cunning strategies, fierce magic and intense battles. With the number of females trying to force their way into his bed (fade to black) I wonder how he has time to do all that he needs to get done in this epic 5 army fight to keep Dungeon/dungeon and his wives safe.
125 reviews4 followers
March 29, 2019
Another great book

The only critic I have is that Ryker's personality seems to have morphed into Felix from the super sale on superheroes series.

I know Ryker isn't as angry anymore, and Marybelle has been messing around in his head, but still the cussing rage and violence that was Ryker is no longer there, and the planner, organizer, and confident that is Felix seems to be the character in this book.

Other than that is fantastic! Another great book in the series!
Profile Image for Cat.
1,138 reviews17 followers
May 28, 2019
Can't wait for book 3

At this point I've read everything Arand has published, and I've yet to find a book I didn't like. While I don't like this series as much as his newest (starting with Swing Shift) I'm still very much looking forward to what I assume will be the final book in this story. If you've read and enjoyed any books by Arand or Randi Darren then you'll be right at home here.
278 reviews5 followers
March 3, 2019
Stand the Man

Mr. Arand has made me a believer in epic magic mixed with deep harem tropes coupled with insightful character progression. His stories are the stuff of wet dreams. An interconnected universe that just keeps getting better. I don't have enough good thing to say. I'm a huge fan, and drop everything for one of his books. Cannot wait for the Farm.
266 reviews13 followers
March 7, 2019
Buy it

I really like the whole book it's a very unique concept well executed. I would definitely recommend reading it and all other William D. Arand books. I will say that I don't like Meino at all as a character though. I also hope the crossover between this book and his others which I know is coming eventually doesn't get too insane.
38 reviews1 follower
March 9, 2019
Again, another great book by Arand

This story keeps getting better and better. I like the direction it is heading and look forward to the next book. I wasn't expecting the story to move in the path it did. It was refreshing to read, not like reading a copy of another book. This whole universe is amazing
273 reviews6 followers
March 11, 2019
Outstanding!

This is turning out to be another fantastic series by this author. Runner is coming... yeah, this guy is awesome. I enjoyed many things about this book, but one thing above others is how the MC transformed between start of first book, and the ending of this one. Looking forward to next book.
Profile Image for Paul.
438 reviews
March 12, 2019
Must Read

A good author keeps you interested, a great author has you falling for the book’s characters, Dungeon Deposed does that.
Action, politics, fighting, relationships, all on a non-stop roller coaster. Ryker is a scoundrel with a good heart, I can’t wait to see what he does next.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 103 reviews

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