What do you think?
Rate this book
World Apocalypse Dungeon Calamity #1
The Genesis Game: Volume I
The end of the era of humanity was marked by the appearance of the World Dungeon and the system of power it provided. No one gained more power than the tyrant known as the Black Seraph, the Angel of Genocide. Surviving at the expense of the rest of humanity, Seraph was able to complete the World Dungeon upon reaching the Altar of the End. A hollow victory, as he was cursed by the spirit of the dungeon for ruthlessly focusing on his empowerment.
His power was sealed away, deep within the dungeon; Seraph was cast into the past, reincarnated into the body of his child-like self. Forbidden from hoarding power for himself and charged with the mission of ensuring the survival of humanity. But people do not change overnight, and Seraph must find a new path forward and learn there's more to power than being a tyrant if humanity is to survive the Genesis Game.
His power was sealed away, deep within the dungeon; Seraph was cast into the past, reincarnated into the body of his child-like self. Forbidden from hoarding power for himself and charged with the mission of ensuring the survival of humanity. But people do not change overnight, and Seraph must find a new path forward and learn there's more to power than being a tyrant if humanity is to survive the Genesis Game.
- GenresFantasy
275 pages, ebook
Published November 14, 2019
334 people are currently reading
145 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 40 reviews
September 8, 2020
I'm a big fan of RPG games like D&D or Pathfinder. And activities like Escape Rooms and MagiQuest are sometimes pricey, but a lot of fun. Just imagine what it would be like if you entered a game....a Dungeon game in a mall....only to discover the game was real. And....you can't leave until someone finishes the game. Then imagine that you finished the game once....only to find out you made a mistake. The game was never about winning....it was about saving humanity. Now you have one more chance. That's it....one second chance to make better choices and save humanity.
Black Seraph. One of the fallen is sent back. Way, way back to the beginning. He is once again a 12-year old boy, and he has to complete the dungeon all over again. With his dad and a group of other humans, who all believe he is a kid.
What will happen inside the World Dungeon?
I had a great time listening to the audio book version of this story. It took me a bit to warm up to the main character, but once the story hit high gear and I understood the premise better, I was totally sucked into the plot. I wanted to know what happens to this group of people stuck in a dungeon world!
The audio is just a tad over 7 hours. Easy listening length. I listened over a weekend while doing laundry and household chores. Curt Bonnem gives a good performance and there are some nice sound effects. He reads at a nice speed and has a pleasant, easily understandable voice -- which is very important for me because I have hearing loss.
The story is engaging and develops at a nice pace. I liked the characters although it took me awhile to warm up to Seraph.
I can't wait to read the next part of this story!
**I voluntarily listened to a review copy of this audio book from Spectrum Audio. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**
Black Seraph. One of the fallen is sent back. Way, way back to the beginning. He is once again a 12-year old boy, and he has to complete the dungeon all over again. With his dad and a group of other humans, who all believe he is a kid.
What will happen inside the World Dungeon?
I had a great time listening to the audio book version of this story. It took me a bit to warm up to the main character, but once the story hit high gear and I understood the premise better, I was totally sucked into the plot. I wanted to know what happens to this group of people stuck in a dungeon world!
The audio is just a tad over 7 hours. Easy listening length. I listened over a weekend while doing laundry and household chores. Curt Bonnem gives a good performance and there are some nice sound effects. He reads at a nice speed and has a pleasant, easily understandable voice -- which is very important for me because I have hearing loss.
The story is engaging and develops at a nice pace. I liked the characters although it took me awhile to warm up to Seraph.
I can't wait to read the next part of this story!
**I voluntarily listened to a review copy of this audio book from Spectrum Audio. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**
July 18, 2020
This is the story that would come out if Cameron Milan's Towers of Heaven and Edward Castle's Unbound Deathlord had an illicit affair and had a biblio-baby.
Half redemption and half grimdark, it does a good job of straddling that divide while remaining entertaining.
Half redemption and half grimdark, it does a good job of straddling that divide while remaining entertaining.
September 22, 2020
*A Thank you go Netgalley for allowing me to listen to this book. Here is my honest and unbiased review*
Hello Fellow Listeners,
While I am not much of an audiobook listener, I do partake especially when I take baths or relaxing or when an Audiobook is just too good to pass up. The Genesis Game ticked all the boxes of a great audiobook, the Narrator did different voices, great audio cues (music) throughout the book that built ambiance, and it felt like a professional production not just a person reading a book.
The main character, Seraph, was unique and interesting. He was a bit edgy but it fit with the whole anti-hero theme. It was a very nice change of pace, with Seraph evolving as the story progresses but at the core still remaining himself. O'Kelley's world was pretty unique and flushed out for the amount of time that the audiobook was. As a whole, I was surprised with how everything came together and worked. I do wish it was longer, and it did make me happy to learn that there was a sequel in which I will definitely listen to and read.
Overall, A great series that I cannot wait to continue.
Hello Fellow Listeners,
While I am not much of an audiobook listener, I do partake especially when I take baths or relaxing or when an Audiobook is just too good to pass up. The Genesis Game ticked all the boxes of a great audiobook, the Narrator did different voices, great audio cues (music) throughout the book that built ambiance, and it felt like a professional production not just a person reading a book.
The main character, Seraph, was unique and interesting. He was a bit edgy but it fit with the whole anti-hero theme. It was a very nice change of pace, with Seraph evolving as the story progresses but at the core still remaining himself. O'Kelley's world was pretty unique and flushed out for the amount of time that the audiobook was. As a whole, I was surprised with how everything came together and worked. I do wish it was longer, and it did make me happy to learn that there was a sequel in which I will definitely listen to and read.
Overall, A great series that I cannot wait to continue.
November 22, 2019
Very Dark, also very interesting
Great book. Could use professional editing however, I found it well worth over looking the mistakes. The MC was from my point of view believable. He does what needs to be done, I know many people might not agree but I found his choices realistic even though this is syfi/fantasy the choices felt realistic of a grown male . No crying and wishy washy mistakes that gets everyone killed, you know letting the same shithead go 4000 time's under the mistaken belief that the bad guys life is as important as the 30 people he killed and it would be wrong to take his life, then at the end he kills 40 more people. I REALLY HATE THAT. Great book I'm excited for book 2
Great book. Could use professional editing however, I found it well worth over looking the mistakes. The MC was from my point of view believable. He does what needs to be done, I know many people might not agree but I found his choices realistic even though this is syfi/fantasy the choices felt realistic of a grown male . No crying and wishy washy mistakes that gets everyone killed, you know letting the same shithead go 4000 time's under the mistaken belief that the bad guys life is as important as the 30 people he killed and it would be wrong to take his life, then at the end he kills 40 more people. I REALLY HATE THAT. Great book I'm excited for book 2
November 24, 2019
Good
I feel the premise of the story was great as well as the character progression, however I feel the characters other than the MC lacked depth and there are a number of missed words or miss spelled words throughout.
Still definitely worth reading and I will certainly be picking up book 2.
I feel the premise of the story was great as well as the character progression, however I feel the characters other than the MC lacked depth and there are a number of missed words or miss spelled words throughout.
Still definitely worth reading and I will certainly be picking up book 2.
November 29, 2019
Interesting character
I hesitated a bit to pick this up after seeing negative reviews, but ignore them. Seraph is the ultimate anti-hero in the truest sense. He's not evil so much as amoral from his experiences. I'm really interested in seeing how he develops going forward.
I hesitated a bit to pick this up after seeing negative reviews, but ignore them. Seraph is the ultimate anti-hero in the truest sense. He's not evil so much as amoral from his experiences. I'm really interested in seeing how he develops going forward.
December 4, 2019
Great read
Short story, but over all I really enjoyed this book. The main character transitions from dark to light slowly and not completely by the end of the book. I like how the transition is not a complete personality change. I look forward to the next book.
Short story, but over all I really enjoyed this book. The main character transitions from dark to light slowly and not completely by the end of the book. I like how the transition is not a complete personality change. I look forward to the next book.
November 25, 2019
It was a good book
It was a good book one I look forward to reading the next books in the series and continuing on out on the journey.
It was a good book one I look forward to reading the next books in the series and continuing on out on the journey.
January 16, 2020
Surprisingly good
Pleasantly surprised, overall a reasonably well written and a decent pace. Looking dorwaed to the next book in the series.
Pleasantly surprised, overall a reasonably well written and a decent pace. Looking dorwaed to the next book in the series.
September 9, 2020
let me preface this by saying this is a book I had received digitally from a publisher. I am not paid to write this review, but I am writing it of my own accord.
I will tell you when I first begin this book, I was less than impressed, the world building was subpar, the character being established was almost non-existent. I found that the whole thing begin almost like I was reading it backwards.
I figured that if I just read a little while longer then it would start to make sense. I am glad I did that because of the fact that this book was a surprise. I am actually surprised at how much I enjoyed reading this book. The premise while not a new one with the whole "ready player one" vibe which it gave off and the whole "Ender's Game" thing. You can feel the drive it has from D&D and there are hints of it through the whole thing. I thought it was going to be a Diablo rip off just based upon the cover art.
This is a pleasant surprise and I will say that this book wasn't bad at all. The only few things I would like to say to the Author is this. In the beginning and through most of the book there is very little descriptions of how the dungeons looks or how it feels, or even how the whole thing came about, this is later explained, but world building I find is always best to start off with. There are points where you rely too heavy upon the readers imagination.
Then in the second chapter when speaking with the "boss" he says "there are no second chances and then in the third chapter the same person says "there are no third chances" this is something either yourself or your editor should have caught, but it did slip through.
All in all I am impressed with the book and really do enjoy the concept, i do hope the second and third one begin to expand upon this information as well. I do hope that the 'dungeon' begins to expand a little more and it was a pleasure to read your book Mr. O'Kelley.
I will tell you when I first begin this book, I was less than impressed, the world building was subpar, the character being established was almost non-existent. I found that the whole thing begin almost like I was reading it backwards.
I figured that if I just read a little while longer then it would start to make sense. I am glad I did that because of the fact that this book was a surprise. I am actually surprised at how much I enjoyed reading this book. The premise while not a new one with the whole "ready player one" vibe which it gave off and the whole "Ender's Game" thing. You can feel the drive it has from D&D and there are hints of it through the whole thing. I thought it was going to be a Diablo rip off just based upon the cover art.
This is a pleasant surprise and I will say that this book wasn't bad at all. The only few things I would like to say to the Author is this. In the beginning and through most of the book there is very little descriptions of how the dungeons looks or how it feels, or even how the whole thing came about, this is later explained, but world building I find is always best to start off with. There are points where you rely too heavy upon the readers imagination.
Then in the second chapter when speaking with the "boss" he says "there are no second chances and then in the third chapter the same person says "there are no third chances" this is something either yourself or your editor should have caught, but it did slip through.
All in all I am impressed with the book and really do enjoy the concept, i do hope the second and third one begin to expand upon this information as well. I do hope that the 'dungeon' begins to expand a little more and it was a pleasure to read your book Mr. O'Kelley.
July 29, 2020
I received this as an Advanced Reading Copy audio book from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.
Never before has a book taken me through such a rollercoaster of interest. At first I found the narrator and the audio effects to be too cheesy. Then I started to like the story and the narrator. But each time I started to really get into the story, something would happen to make me loose interest.
I almost DNFd this a few times, though I am glad I saw it through to the end just so I can give a review saying that i finished it.
The story moves way too fast. So fast that I don't care about any of the characters. If Seraph died I would not have cared. If Seraph's dad died, I wouldn't have cared. The characters were bland and boring.
Seraph is supposed to come across as some dark and broody bad ass but he's just an a-hole. We meet his father but we get so little of their relationship that I think the Lindbergh baby would have been closer to his father than Seraph and his dad.
As a LitRPG book, it was woefully lacking. Other books like The Chaos Seeds series or The Rogue Dungeon series are better examples. At times it felt like Andrew O'Kelley forgot what his genre was and that maybe, just maybe, the rules should be explained just a little.
Despite all the negatives i still kind of enjoyed it, but not nearly enough to finish the series unless I can get it through Net Galley.
Never before has a book taken me through such a rollercoaster of interest. At first I found the narrator and the audio effects to be too cheesy. Then I started to like the story and the narrator. But each time I started to really get into the story, something would happen to make me loose interest.
I almost DNFd this a few times, though I am glad I saw it through to the end just so I can give a review saying that i finished it.
The story moves way too fast. So fast that I don't care about any of the characters. If Seraph died I would not have cared. If Seraph's dad died, I wouldn't have cared. The characters were bland and boring.
Seraph is supposed to come across as some dark and broody bad ass but he's just an a-hole. We meet his father but we get so little of their relationship that I think the Lindbergh baby would have been closer to his father than Seraph and his dad.
As a LitRPG book, it was woefully lacking. Other books like The Chaos Seeds series or The Rogue Dungeon series are better examples. At times it felt like Andrew O'Kelley forgot what his genre was and that maybe, just maybe, the rules should be explained just a little.
Despite all the negatives i still kind of enjoyed it, but not nearly enough to finish the series unless I can get it through Net Galley.
July 6, 2020
This author takes an interesting approach to the idea of a character getting sent back with a chance to redo things, in most cases when this idea is used, the protagonist tends to be more benign or positive character from the outset or becomes that way almost immediately in their second chance.
In this case, the main character was ruthless and power-hungry before the reset and starts out the same way in his second chance with the changes he makes being focused on securing his previous power that much sooner, but as the book progresses he does find himself changing in more ways than that and there is plenty of scope for more of this in subsequent books.
The narration and audio production of this book work well with the narrator's performance delivering distinctive tones for the various characters and the additional audio effects used at times are not too obtrusive and do help to set the scenes more.
Overall, a strong opener for this series and I will be interested in seeing how it progresses in future instalments.
[Note - I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.]
In this case, the main character was ruthless and power-hungry before the reset and starts out the same way in his second chance with the changes he makes being focused on securing his previous power that much sooner, but as the book progresses he does find himself changing in more ways than that and there is plenty of scope for more of this in subsequent books.
The narration and audio production of this book work well with the narrator's performance delivering distinctive tones for the various characters and the additional audio effects used at times are not too obtrusive and do help to set the scenes more.
Overall, a strong opener for this series and I will be interested in seeing how it progresses in future instalments.
[Note - I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.]
September 28, 2020
I only got 13% of the way through this book before I gave up. It starts with humanity losing the fight for continued existence in a world spanning dungeon. The most powerful human survives only to be told he is the reason for humanity’s loss. If the MC hadn’t seized control as a tyrant, only promoting the strong and eliminating the weak humanity would have worked together to make everyone stronger and survived. The dungeon then gives the MC a do over. So immediately this book makes no sense since there is no motivation for the dungeon to give a do over and, in fact, the dungeon is invalidating its very existence by doing so.
This big writing error was not balanced out by an interesting character or story. Basically the author just makes everything incredibly powerful and considers that interesting in and of itself.
Bottom line: Based on the first 13% not worth the time.
April 30, 2020
A decent enough story. It didn't grab me like some of the other LitRPG offerings did, but it's a decent enough story, and if you like second changes, you may like this one, though I'm not sure the main character has learned anything from his previous experiences, but I guess we'll find out for sure in future volumes in the series. Definitely a solid 3 stars, and one I'd have no trouble recommending to those who like time travel stories.
September 27, 2020
Fascinating story, but needs another edit pass for minor things.
A very interesting story, with a rare ruthless protagonist willing to do evil upon both the vile and virtuous. I definitely enjoyed it, but the random spelling mistakes and auto-correct style wrong words take it down from excellent to very good. If the errors were corrected with another editing pass, this would be an easy five stars.
A very interesting story, with a rare ruthless protagonist willing to do evil upon both the vile and virtuous. I definitely enjoyed it, but the random spelling mistakes and auto-correct style wrong words take it down from excellent to very good. If the errors were corrected with another editing pass, this would be an easy five stars.
July 21, 2020
Good book
Good book, some of the dialogue in the beginning was a bit much, I forwarded myself through that, but it picks up. Feels a bit short but I look forward to reading the series as it continues. I read this book because of the available audible version; good choice on getting that done.
Good book, some of the dialogue in the beginning was a bit much, I forwarded myself through that, but it picks up. Feels a bit short but I look forward to reading the series as it continues. I read this book because of the available audible version; good choice on getting that done.
July 31, 2020
I volunteered to listen, to this book through netgalley, in exchange for an honest review. The Narrator for this book is book is good. It was my first time listening to this narrator and I can't wait to listen to more. This was a good book to listen to. This book is in bookstores now for $17.99 USD, yall should go and buy this audiobook and listen to it, it is good.
November 29, 2020
Only got about a third of the way through. It was on-track to be stock LitRPG, with a main character who was much more awful than the norm - his defining trait seems to be how eager he is to gain personal power and to sacrifice those he sees as less worthy (that is, everyone), in pursuit of his goals.
May 31, 2020
Good book
I like the intrigue the undermining and canoeing nature of characters as well the underhanded for the best reason self righteous. Always annoying but satisfying when taken care of.
I like the intrigue the undermining and canoeing nature of characters as well the underhanded for the best reason self righteous. Always annoying but satisfying when taken care of.
December 12, 2020
Badly written. Parts that don't make sense and need more explaining. Crap characters and bad dialogue, all the book is only about the mc. World building doesn't make sense. Should have fleshed out everything. Story is interesting but not enough of it. Slightly enjoyable.
April 27, 2021
Interesting
Not sure if it stays as good or gets any better, but it beats having the returning MC remembering stuff from decades earlier and maneuvering to become even more OP than they were before
Not sure if it stays as good or gets any better, but it beats having the returning MC remembering stuff from decades earlier and maneuvering to become even more OP than they were before
August 21, 2020
This book had a similar vibe to Towers of Heaven and Reborn but our MC is pretty evil. This makes for fun character interactions and unpredictable plot developments. Overall it is delightfully dark.
August 29, 2020
3.25☆
September 8, 2020
Dan?
Who is Dan? I don't remember that character the author mentions in the afterword. Huh. How odd. I wonder why the author mentioned a random name
Who is Dan? I don't remember that character the author mentions in the afterword. Huh. How odd. I wonder why the author mentioned a random name
October 1, 2020
Nice start
I like the idea of someone being able to fix past mistakes, so this book was right up my alley. I hope the next ones will be as good.
I like the idea of someone being able to fix past mistakes, so this book was right up my alley. I hope the next ones will be as good.
October 2, 2020
It draws you in
I was rapidly drawn into this book and it’s characters, looking forward to the next volume. Keep up the good work!
I was rapidly drawn into this book and it’s characters, looking forward to the next volume. Keep up the good work!
January 25, 2021
Highly Entertaining
This book is a very fun read. I expect to read every book in the series. I really like the genre and the authors spin on it.
This book is a very fun read. I expect to read every book in the series. I really like the genre and the authors spin on it.
dnf-did-not-finish
December 24, 2021This seems like another bust. What I read so far isn't interesting to me.
Will put "on hold". If this continues (not being interested in books) then the fault is with me and not the books.
Will put "on hold". If this continues (not being interested in books) then the fault is with me and not the books.
October 6, 2020
The Genesis Game by Andrew O’Kelley
Narrated by Curt Bonnem
Audiobook
Publisher: Spectrum Audio
Sci Fi & Fantasy, RPG
Seraph was at the end of his life when he is reborn again. In the new life as a teenager, he and his father begin to play a role-playing game called the Dungeon. In this world, there are obstacles they must go through and ordeals they must survive. The players, with the exception of Seraph fear they will die before they finish the game.
This was an unusual story. The characters are mildly developed but I was not sure if it was the character in the story or the character in the game. The story moves through the different phases of the game as the characters advance until the end. I though the end was a bit abrupt and wonder what will happen next or if there will be a next.
Narrated by Curt Bonnem
Audiobook
Publisher: Spectrum Audio
Sci Fi & Fantasy, RPG
Seraph was at the end of his life when he is reborn again. In the new life as a teenager, he and his father begin to play a role-playing game called the Dungeon. In this world, there are obstacles they must go through and ordeals they must survive. The players, with the exception of Seraph fear they will die before they finish the game.
This was an unusual story. The characters are mildly developed but I was not sure if it was the character in the story or the character in the game. The story moves through the different phases of the game as the characters advance until the end. I though the end was a bit abrupt and wonder what will happen next or if there will be a next.
January 9, 2021
This audio book was performed by Kurt Bonham, who did a good job with the differing voices of the characters in the book. The audio quality, however, was abysmal. It was pixelated and advanced reading speeds did not provide compensation for increased pitch. Boo Random House Audio. Audio performance was therefore a mixed bag. Bonham gets a 4-star review, Random House gets a 1-star. On to the book...
O’Kelley wore a book that provides D&D players and fans (especially of the computerized versions) a vehicle to experience a game module. Everyone else will be disappointed. If you are not a D&D player or fan, ESPECIALLY if you don’t even know what D&D is, read something else. You can thank me later.
This was not a good story. I really only got to know the protagonist and I didn’t like him. The other characters only served to expose or contrast the weaknesses and character flaws of our antihero. They seemed to serve no other purpose.
The pacing seemed right, balancing dialogue, action, and retrospection. Unfortunately it also sets up what could be a full 20-volume set if the overall story progresses at the pace of this book. I imagine few people will care enough to keep the story alive long enough for it to reach a conclusion.
I came close to putting it down. The only reason I stuck it out was because I was working on a project at home and it was easier to just let it keep playing than to turn it off.
2 stars is the best I could give this book, even if it had better audio quality; I don’t see how it could have had worse.
This book was a NetGalley gift from the publisher. The opinions shared in this review are my own and I have received no compensation in exchange for offering them.
O’Kelley wore a book that provides D&D players and fans (especially of the computerized versions) a vehicle to experience a game module. Everyone else will be disappointed. If you are not a D&D player or fan, ESPECIALLY if you don’t even know what D&D is, read something else. You can thank me later.
This was not a good story. I really only got to know the protagonist and I didn’t like him. The other characters only served to expose or contrast the weaknesses and character flaws of our antihero. They seemed to serve no other purpose.
The pacing seemed right, balancing dialogue, action, and retrospection. Unfortunately it also sets up what could be a full 20-volume set if the overall story progresses at the pace of this book. I imagine few people will care enough to keep the story alive long enough for it to reach a conclusion.
I came close to putting it down. The only reason I stuck it out was because I was working on a project at home and it was easier to just let it keep playing than to turn it off.
2 stars is the best I could give this book, even if it had better audio quality; I don’t see how it could have had worse.
This book was a NetGalley gift from the publisher. The opinions shared in this review are my own and I have received no compensation in exchange for offering them.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 40 reviews