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Invasion #1
A Second Chance
Read the opening chapters here -
magicdomebooks.blogspot.com/2019/05/i...
More Barliona adventures from the bestselling author of The Way of the Shaman LitRPG series!
Reality is cruel. The rising level of technological development has led to a rising level of unemployment. They're laying off everybody, from teachers to technical servicemen. What's the point of holding onto a person if they can be replaced by an advanced mechanism?
But what are the people to do? How are they to live? Where are they to get money from? There is only one answer – Barliona. The official government project is gathering steam, luring more and more people into its net. Who knows how people will behave when they lose everything?
Brody West is one such person. Unlike most, he doesn't lose heart. A professional project manager with thirty years in the business simply cannot do that. He has a goal, and a clear understanding of how to achieve it. Nobody can get in his way – not the new class, not the strange friend, and not the unexpected foes.
More Barliona adventures from the bestselling author of The Way of the Shaman LitRPG series!
Reality is cruel. The rising level of technological development has led to a rising level of unemployment. They're laying off everybody, from teachers to technical servicemen. What's the point of holding onto a person if they can be replaced by an advanced mechanism?
But what are the people to do? How are they to live? Where are they to get money from? There is only one answer – Barliona. The official government project is gathering steam, luring more and more people into its net. Who knows how people will behave when they lose everything?
Brody West is one such person. Unlike most, he doesn't lose heart. A professional project manager with thirty years in the business simply cannot do that. He has a goal, and a clear understanding of how to achieve it. Nobody can get in his way – not the new class, not the strange friend, and not the unexpected foes.
539 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 16, 2018
233 people are currently reading
109 people want to read
About the author
Vasily Mahanenko
99 books1,098 followersBe the first to know when Vasily Mahanenko’s next book is available! Follow him at https://www.bookbub.com/profile/v-mah... to get an alert whenever he has a new release, preorder, or discount!
Vasily Mahanenko is a fantasy author working in the new genre of LitRPG - the MMO-based fantasy and sci fi. His Way of the Shaman series took Russian literature by storm in 2012.
Vasily dipped into his college-days insider knowledge as a hardcore gamer in order to create a believable world of the virtual-reality MMO game. His bestselling series combines fiction and video games, telling the story of Shaman and his friends stuck in the ruthless reality of Barliona. He used his more than ten years' experience as an ERP implementation project manager to approach his writing in a well-organized manner, working to a strict schedule, a set of deadlines and even a budget. At the moment, the series boasts six novels with the seventh one in the works - this time the author expands on stories of Shaman's companions and those who helped and supported him in his trials and tribulations.
The first book of the series has already been translated into English, with more translations to follow, aiming to make the Way of the Shaman series available to the English-language reader in its entirety.
Vasily's other passion is space exploration which is why he now works on a follow-up series entitled Galaktiona. Set in a space-simulator based world, the first book of the series in already finished while Vasily works on its sequel.
Vasily Mahanenko is a fantasy author working in the new genre of LitRPG - the MMO-based fantasy and sci fi. His Way of the Shaman series took Russian literature by storm in 2012.
Vasily dipped into his college-days insider knowledge as a hardcore gamer in order to create a believable world of the virtual-reality MMO game. His bestselling series combines fiction and video games, telling the story of Shaman and his friends stuck in the ruthless reality of Barliona. He used his more than ten years' experience as an ERP implementation project manager to approach his writing in a well-organized manner, working to a strict schedule, a set of deadlines and even a budget. At the moment, the series boasts six novels with the seventh one in the works - this time the author expands on stories of Shaman's companions and those who helped and supported him in his trials and tribulations.
The first book of the series has already been translated into English, with more translations to follow, aiming to make the Way of the Shaman series available to the English-language reader in its entirety.
Vasily's other passion is space exploration which is why he now works on a follow-up series entitled Galaktiona. Set in a space-simulator based world, the first book of the series in already finished while Vasily works on its sequel.
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
October 20, 2019
It is incredibly odd to read a book that is in the same game world that I loved but it contains none of the charm.
What makes no sense to me is that Mahanenko is talented his Way of the Shaman series was my first litRPG series and it remains a standard for what a game world can be. I don't know if something happened to him personally but the way he portrayed women has had a 180 turn.
This also happened in the last book of the Way of Shaman where he creates a younger woman character that is attracted to the MC and even though the MC rejects them its a weird way to say "Hey look I can have a younger more attractive woman. I just don't want them."
Also he created a Wife monster and her attacks were I want one, Come here we need to talk, and Call mother - Honestly it wasn't even clever just sad
What makes no sense to me is that Mahanenko is talented his Way of the Shaman series was my first litRPG series and it remains a standard for what a game world can be. I don't know if something happened to him personally but the way he portrayed women has had a 180 turn.
This also happened in the last book of the Way of Shaman where he creates a younger woman character that is attracted to the MC and even though the MC rejects them its a weird way to say "Hey look I can have a younger more attractive woman. I just don't want them."
Also he created a Wife monster and her attacks were I want one, Come here we need to talk, and Call mother - Honestly it wasn't even clever just sad
March 2, 2020
If Way of the Shaman was a 4/5* average, this is a 2. I stopped reading about 1/3 of the way through, not at all engaging or interesting. I REALLY want to glean some insights of how things turned out with Mahan after Vasily left Way of the Shaman HORRIBLY incomplete, but it's just not worth it. After 4 pages of exposition at the end of book 7 completely ruined the entire Way of the Shaman series, I'm losing hope in Vasily's writing entirely. This feels like uninspired "let's try to milk my readers for another one!" drivel.
September 27, 2019
Enjoyable
I enjoyed this book almost as much as I enjoyed the way of the shaman first book. Some of the translation work in the book is a bit sketchy but it’s passable. Looking forward to book 2
I enjoyed this book almost as much as I enjoyed the way of the shaman first book. Some of the translation work in the book is a bit sketchy but it’s passable. Looking forward to book 2
November 29, 2019
Read the opening chapters here - *magicdomebooks.blogspot.com/2019/05/i... *
More Barliona adventures from the bestselling author of The Way of the Shaman LitRPG series!
Reality is cruel. The rising level of technological development has led to a rising level of unemployment. They're laying off everybody, from teachers to technical servicemen. What's the point of holding onto a person if they can be replaced by an advanced mechanism?
But what are the people to do? How are they to live? Where are they to get money from? There is only one answer – Barliona. The official government project is gathering steam, luring more and more people into its net. Who knows how people will behave when they lose everything?
Brody West is one such person. Unlike most, he doesn't lose heart. A professional project manager with thirty years in the business simply cannot do that. He has a goal, and a clear understanding of how to achieve it. Nobody can get in his way – not the new class, not the strange friend, and not the unexpected foes.
December 26, 2020
This is a decent book without standing out. It has very similar strengths and weaknesses to most of Vasily's other books (especially the Way of the Shaman series which is based in the same game). Survival Quest (the first book in that series) is better than this book so start there and come here if you want more of the same.
Common to Vasily's books:
Reasonable writing (strong for the genre), good characters, a lot of ambition in the settings a lot going on.
The games really suck (They are all about random chance, repetition, hard real-world skills such as dance or Chess mastery, and crafting ). It also seems to be a profession rather than being played for fun by far too many.
The characters are generally unpleasant and most feel likely to betray the main character at some point (both a strength and a weakness)
In a Second Chance, the protagonist randomly gets given an experimental race 3 months early that appears underpowered but... Soon after this, he discovers a hard to control but crazily powerful demon companion... Then he unlocks crazy bonuses in the newbie zone by dancing... This sounds dire but he and the team he builds do demonstrate a lot of skill to go with their luck.
Common to Vasily's books:
Reasonable writing (strong for the genre), good characters, a lot of ambition in the settings a lot going on.
The games really suck (They are all about random chance, repetition, hard real-world skills such as dance or Chess mastery, and crafting ). It also seems to be a profession rather than being played for fun by far too many.
The characters are generally unpleasant and most feel likely to betray the main character at some point (both a strength and a weakness)
In a Second Chance, the protagonist randomly gets given an experimental race 3 months early that appears underpowered but... Soon after this, he discovers a hard to control but crazily powerful demon companion... Then he unlocks crazy bonuses in the newbie zone by dancing... This sounds dire but he and the team he builds do demonstrate a lot of skill to go with their luck.
August 14, 2019
Alert
I hate trying to write reviews because there are really only pass/fail results for me. Did I make it all the way through? Yes? 5 stars. No? There would be nothing here to read. In all fairness, if an author holds my attention from page one to the end, they’ve done their job. Anything less than 5 stars is petty criticism from someone incapable of even doing the job let alone doing a better one.
So in respect for the author and their work, I am going to start pasting this along with a generic review I found somewhere. “This was a fun book. I am glad that I read it. You should try it too.”
Cheers
I hate trying to write reviews because there are really only pass/fail results for me. Did I make it all the way through? Yes? 5 stars. No? There would be nothing here to read. In all fairness, if an author holds my attention from page one to the end, they’ve done their job. Anything less than 5 stars is petty criticism from someone incapable of even doing the job let alone doing a better one.
So in respect for the author and their work, I am going to start pasting this along with a generic review I found somewhere. “This was a fun book. I am glad that I read it. You should try it too.”
Cheers
February 10, 2020
A Second Chance is the 7th book that I have read by this author and by far the poorest of his work so far. The translation to English seems to have been done by someone not quite fluent so many of the points that the author attempts to make is literally lost in translation. With so many promising reads out there and with many of the other books that Vasily Mahanenko has written, like the Shaman series, I would skip this one. Its not worth your time. I would add that if you are thinking of picking up the audio book; don't, the artist that reads it and the rendering of the book is very far from great.
February 23, 2020
I’m not sure if this stands up as a work by itself. Fans of the world of Barliona will find it an interesting story that adds to the universe; people who are uninitiated will probably not find the story extremely compelling.
There are some figures of speech and sentiments that are fairly common in Eastern Europe but not very progressive. Prepare to take offense if you are a person who is focused on PC, but also understand that it’s a reflection of a character and not necessarily the author’s point of view.
I’ll be curious of the future storyline.
There are some figures of speech and sentiments that are fairly common in Eastern Europe but not very progressive. Prepare to take offense if you are a person who is focused on PC, but also understand that it’s a reflection of a character and not necessarily the author’s point of view.
I’ll be curious of the future storyline.
October 24, 2025
Demon main character- Sure why not
Book 1 of the Invasion series. This was the first LitRPG that had what I considered the best reason for the game system to exist. I love the corporate greed built into the system. Overall, I really enjoyed this one and am excited to see where their story will go from here. This is the same game universe as Way of the Shaman. I like the approach of this one being as a game of business rather than the normal survival or end of the universe threat. Warning: Contains explicit language.
Book 1 of the Invasion series. This was the first LitRPG that had what I considered the best reason for the game system to exist. I love the corporate greed built into the system. Overall, I really enjoyed this one and am excited to see where their story will go from here. This is the same game universe as Way of the Shaman. I like the approach of this one being as a game of business rather than the normal survival or end of the universe threat. Warning: Contains explicit language.
August 12, 2019
It was Okay
The story was entertaining fast paced action packed. I don’t like reluctant main characters. Give me a balls to the wall people who live for the loot and leveling. A rich guy losing his job and being forced to play by his new prospective employer is not a great MC. But this story grows better.
The story was entertaining fast paced action packed. I don’t like reluctant main characters. Give me a balls to the wall people who live for the loot and leveling. A rich guy losing his job and being forced to play by his new prospective employer is not a great MC. But this story grows better.
December 9, 2020
Eh
Good book just didn’t like one part of it. He gave away a item that would bring an invasion force on the world exchange for a pet. Most likely causing the NPCs to hate him and rightly so. Just feel like there were more cons then pros with the exchange and find it very stupid that he did it.
Good book just didn’t like one part of it. He gave away a item that would bring an invasion force on the world exchange for a pet. Most likely causing the NPCs to hate him and rightly so. Just feel like there were more cons then pros with the exchange and find it very stupid that he did it.
August 9, 2019
I love this book
Once again an epic book in an epic world that I get to visit. I really enjoy this author I love all the books he's written I wish they'd be translated into English as fast as day get here I will read them I think you should read this book 2.
Once again an epic book in an epic world that I get to visit. I really enjoy this author I love all the books he's written I wish they'd be translated into English as fast as day get here I will read them I think you should read this book 2.
September 3, 2019
Good Read.
A new class and character are played. Taking place mostly in game, but there is real work plot that happens. In game, the main character goes through training, but has some issues. Will pickup the next book when it comes out.
A new class and character are played. Taking place mostly in game, but there is real work plot that happens. In game, the main character goes through training, but has some issues. Will pickup the next book when it comes out.
October 5, 2020
One of the best LitRPG authors
An enjoyable read, I really like how the main character uses clever tactics to get out of sticky situations. Plenty of twists keep the plotline interesting.
An enjoyable read, I really like how the main character uses clever tactics to get out of sticky situations. Plenty of twists keep the plotline interesting.
June 21, 2024
nice quick read
Set in Barliona, (spoiler) this book involves giving a hardcore race to an experienced project manager who teams up in the training camp with Victor, Mayan’s father in law, who is now serving a prison sentence.
Set in Barliona, (spoiler) this book involves giving a hardcore race to an experienced project manager who teams up in the training camp with Victor, Mayan’s father in law, who is now serving a prison sentence.
November 14, 2025
Veľmi nudné. Žiadne smerovanie, zápletka, len kópia iných šablón LitRPG s hlavnou postavnou včlenenou do nejakej akože hry. Nezmyselný rozbeh, takmer žiadna logika vývoja postavy, takmer žiadne prepojenie s reálnym životom.
August 14, 2019
A new “hero” arises in this great setting.
Once again I am thrilled to read a book by this author. It was fun, quick, humorous. I just love the game world and watching it advance.
Once again I am thrilled to read a book by this author. It was fun, quick, humorous. I just love the game world and watching it advance.
September 29, 2019
3.5 stars
Pretty good but not got the best flow to it. Didn't feel like I cared too much about the characters. I'd probably read the next one to see where it goes.
Pretty good but not got the best flow to it. Didn't feel like I cared too much about the characters. I'd probably read the next one to see where it goes.
March 31, 2021
Project Managers Rule!
Yes, I have spent time as a project manager. What a refreshing LitRPG adventure. I can emphasize a lot with the main character.
Yes, I have spent time as a project manager. What a refreshing LitRPG adventure. I can emphasize a lot with the main character.
Read
October 1, 2024dont recall, but vaguely think dnf
October 29, 2023
I want to like this book. It describes a dystopia that is extremely imaginative. I'm having trouble with his writing. I don't want to be to negative. I just wish there was some extra editing. Another of his series that I read seemed to have some stylized writing that took me out of the story. With this particular book I'm left confused... The introduction says he's got 30 years of experience working as a manager. But, early on in the book, he's asked to describe himself and he says he's 35. Wait, what? Did he start working at 5 years old? And there seems to be some misogyny that's hard to get past. The protagonist assumes all secretaries are women and he denigrates the HR person that is hiring him. For me I'd be willing to read on to see if the protagonist is cured of his ill thinking but the writing style is taking me out of the story. I never write reviews like this. I either just 1 or 5 star it. But this universe seems so fascinating and the protagonist seems interesting. But there is just to many problems for me to get past. If this book ever gets a revision I will pick it up and try it again.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews