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Clan Dominance: The Sleepless Ones #1

Clan Dominance: The Sleepless Ones 1

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The legendary cult saga of the World of Valdira by one of the founding fathers of LitRPG - now in a brand new error-free translation from Magic Dome Books!

Rostislav Grokhotov, an ordinary clerk working for a privately-owned company, just wanted to earn some extra money in the game. He had no specific plans for his new character. Little did he know that his new nickname Rosgard would become the game's next greatest legend.

Even the game's Crèche zone may contain items of interest if you're observant enough. Rosgard's find didn't just change his own life drastically — it enveloped an entire game world in a turmoil to boot! The adventuring player becomes a valued prize for Waldyra's leading clans. Our hero has to conceal his real name, since he's in danger in real world as well, and that's no game anymore. There are millions at stake — and the currency in question isn't Monopoly money. Rosgard holds the key to wealth and power in both worlds.

Should you play your own game or throw in your lot with the strongest? This is the question that needs to be answered by the protagonist, whose luck is incredible. Whose side does one take without becoming a pawn in anyone's game?

Clan Dominance: The Sleepless Ones is a perfect example of a classical LitRPG novel. The events in the virtual world and the events in the real world mesh closely together as the plot thickens and becomes more and more dynamic from one book to another. The series has thousands of diehard fans in Russia! Now in English — for every true fan of the genre!

645 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 28, 2020

337 people are currently reading
214 people want to read

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Dem Mikhailov

61 books49 followers

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5 stars
263 (44%)
4 stars
206 (35%)
3 stars
86 (14%)
2 stars
15 (2%)
1 star
17 (2%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews
Profile Image for Clint Young.
849 reviews
March 10, 2020
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.”

Now, since I have to keep explaining myself to people who don't like my reviews, I guess some clarification is in order.

1. I am 100% against criticism for works of art. Art is subjective, meaning reviews are irrelevant. The observer's opinion is only relevant to the observer. It is my belief that regardless of what others might say, I have to experience the art for myself.

2. I read upwards of 20 books a month. The $10/month I spend on K U, feels like I am cheating the authors. But since I can't afford 20 books a month if I were to purchase them directly, all I can offer is a positive review. That leads us to the final point.

3. If I get to the end of a book, then it was worth my time. I give those books 5 stars because it helps the author get exposure. That is the only reason I write reviews at all.

I understand that people are people and they are going to do what they do regardless of my stance. I know the way that I review books upsets some people. I am sorry they feel that way but as many have said, they will just ignore my review going forward. In fact, if you made it this far through my review, you should definitely read the book and completely ignore all of the reviews here. You are a much better judge of what you will like than anyone here.

Cheers
Profile Image for Soo.
2,928 reviews346 followers
March 9, 2021
Notes:

Yay for Libraries!

Only downside is that my library only had the first book. I got it because Phil Thron was the narrator. He made the story better! The series is on KU. I may try to read the other books. Not sure if I would enjoy reading ebook vs listening to audio.

Story was okay. Nothing really stood out as amazing. It's about an average gamer that gets lucky a lot and will probably end up being Over Powered. lol It's mildly balanced by the MC not wanting to crap on NPC's & tries to be nice or make his own way to getting stronger.
Profile Image for GaiusPrimus.
870 reviews97 followers
March 16, 2020
Way better nostalgic translation

This was one of the first series I read in the genre. It stands the test of time and the cornucopia of western competition.

There's still a ton of "russsianisms" in here which is fine, but considering that the translation is being made specifically for this side of the world, more care could've been taken with colloquialisms and word choice.

Nonetheless, a remastered classic that I highly recommend.
Profile Image for John #Audible.
368 reviews
July 8, 2020
Sorry but this is some bullllshit republish from the Way of the Clan Litrpg books. I am like, why in the hell does this sound so familiar! OH yeah because I listened to it already!!!
Profile Image for Pablo García.
858 reviews22 followers
March 26, 2024
Don't think it's a good example of LitRPG. Don't consider the author a LitRPG representative. Maybe all of it is "Lost in Translation", like for example the title of the game-like series, the title of this particular book, etc. It doesn't cover clans (legions/clubs within the game)(until the tournament is won, does the reader find out that it was a clan that hired the main character into going into this new game). But this clan is so important to the author and to the game, that it has no name (given/written). The only other clan is a PK (player killer) clan (also without a name). When one reads, "sleepless ones" the first thing one thinks of are zombies, so title doesn't make sense either. If it's supposed to portray people, like the main character that play "all of the time", it doesn't make sense "either" because regular MMORPG's (Massively Multi-player Online Role Playing Games) Have days and nights (within their games) and just like real-life there is not much you can do in the games at night (or questing, adventuring is harder at night, bigger monsters more complicated quests, that is not seen here at all). (other games place limits to the amount of time a player is online: so that they can rest, eat, go to the bathroom, and in fact, this main player logs out (but then no information about what this person does while logged out (except sometimes eat, etc) is written.
So, the game, in the story and series, is not sold (written well), no company information, little forum posts (just about quests) not about social media, mass-media, brand-name sponsors, professional players, etc. player rankings, players from around the world, players streaming their online play, etc....
There is little to no World-Building explaining the (geographical, economic, social, religious, political) systems in place in the life of the main characters and within the game. There are no character summaries, (sometimes author publishes abilities, skills and upgrades). There are no inside illustrations, no maps. Most story arcs are not resolved in this book one, I do not know if they are ever resolved. Everything just takes too darn long in this first book. Main character is waiting for someone to do a game tournament, that turns out to be trivial, takes four or more game days to wait for, and then finishes in less than a chapter. Main character is jobless, but doesn't really start "making a living" playing this new video game. Maybe just like some Russian Classical authors that write thousands of pages in their books, all of these plot holes, will be resolved, but in this first book, at least, everything seems to be in the air.
I do not recommend this book or the series. The video game does not sound real, the characters created by the author do not feel real. Again it could all be bad translation, or idioms that are lost, ideas that are never completed. etc. But, why on Earth would one enjoy reading something that has so much missing in it?? It doesn't make sense, it lacks cohesion, it doesn't get to the point, and sometimes when it does reach the point, it turns out to be pointless, senseless, contradictory.
Profile Image for William Howe.
1,802 reviews89 followers
March 10, 2021
Frustratingly stupid!!!

There is a major plot flaw.

For the most part, this is a modestly enjoyable tale. Likable MC who works hard to level and earns what he gets.

Some grammatical errors (it is a translation) and maybe typos. You can read past them pretty well.

But the flaw: a certain item has in its description quite clearly -“cannot be stolen”. Yet the MC worried on a number of occasions about it being stolen. Even left it in his ‘safe’ area. When it was definitely useful and could have pushed him forward.

I’m underselling it...every time he thought about wearing/using the item he would get worried about ‘someone will PK me and steal it!’ Every. Time. Meanwhile, right there in the item description *that he read so we could see it* it said ‘cannot be stolen’. Are you kidding me?!?

I don’t know if it was a mistake or just a world-building flaw. But it drove me nuts when he would think about it being stolen. Especially because it is a major quest line driving the narrative.

So easy to fix. Erase a few words on *ONE* page. Problem solved.

I will likely continue reading. I *do* like the MC. And the world is fairly decent.
Profile Image for Danae.
615 reviews6 followers
April 13, 2023
This was really fun. A standard LitRPG but the writing is good.
The MC gets an offer from an old associate that leads to him starting a new character in the starting area and following a few restrictions (he cannot group, he must not die etc. ) and wait for another character to join him for a special quest.
The book is a new translation of "the way of the clan #1" and i only read the first 5 pages of that and still i can assure you - the new translation is really worth the money.
Some people will nag about the typical mysogonist way we see in so many russian litRPG books - i still wonder if it is a russian thing or if it is just the russian litRPG authors.
Anyway it is only annoying in the real world parts and not so prominent in the game world parts.
The game world is fun, the quests distinct and unique, some restrictions the MC gets make it more interesting.
Good book and i am curious how it will continue - too bad i am not patient enough to wait for the next translation and will probably read the old translation - but you shouldn't do that.
Profile Image for Fred.
594 reviews
September 30, 2022
Audiobook of the English translation.
A great entry in LitRPG which I came across after going through Dem's nullform series. After some reading up on Dem, while writing this review, I've come to find out he's considered one of the earliest entrants into LitRPG. I can see why folks were inspired by his work with the immersion.

Dem can really make LitRPG easy to jump into even with occasional statblocks in audio form it's not too intrusive and the characters in this were definitely understandable w.r.t motivations and especially our Main characters immersion into the game world.

One thing I really enjoyed were the small bits of culture that leaked through on the translation, as well as Rosgard's tech bachelor life 😅

Would recommend for the game focused folks. (Note: there are a couple scenes that may culture clash but even those were believable)
Profile Image for David Phipps.
922 reviews1 follower
February 25, 2024
This is a LitRPG fantasy series set in near future Earth where everyone plays an advanced virtual reality MMORPG game not unlike World of Warcraft. The protagonist is not doing so well in the real world but he gets a job to start over in the online game as a character named Rosgard. He plays the game a little differently this time and inadvertently acquires something unique that rocks the online gaming community. Everyone wants to enlist the mysterious player who unlocked the thing and Rosgard has to not only progress quickly within the game but also try to keep his secret. I liked the in-game progression and all the effort Rosgard is putting into building his character and skills.

Like many LitRPG books this book does not really have a conclusion. It ends and the story just picks right up in the next book.
Profile Image for Sandra Bergman.
43 reviews
August 12, 2024
This should probably be a lower grade and is honestly getting a mid-grade for the excellent narrator.

As someone else mentioned the game makes very little sense and the world building is sub-par. Especially since this is supposed to be a MC that has a massive amount of hours in the game but still seems to know next to nothing. The super-cool high-ranked female clan member that joins the MC seems to somehow know even less.

And who do I need to bribe to get male authors to stop referring to *named* female characters as "the girl" or "the woman" instead of simply using she/her/name? I challenge anyone who hates their liver to drink every time "the girl" is used in reference to the supporting character.

The only high-score this MC would have a shot at is either based on pure luck or a misogyny-points challenge.
Profile Image for Scycer.
297 reviews8 followers
March 27, 2021
Don't you love it when the guy sweeps in to save the girl and the world. Especially when the guy in real and virtual life is a bum and all he is trying to do is live up to his addictions.

It is an interesting light read in the litRPG genre. Starting out small but aims to build up to epic proportions. After reading so many Russian/Slavic authors on litRPG, I think I automatically would get sold on a translated litRPG story apart from Korea, China Japan and US.

Tantor audio and Storytel. Good Sell.

Obviously none of this would have worked out if the story and writing was not good.

Dem Mikhailov has paced the novel well and unpackaging of the narrative and plot keeps one hooked .

Looking forward towards reading the entire series.

1,103 reviews15 followers
January 7, 2022
The book starts really slow and i was sorely tempted to stop reading. Luckily, i didn´t as i really got hooked and read the whole series in one go.

The first book was the weakest of the series for me. I didn´t really care about the setting. The MC is an isolated Russian unemployed online game addict without social life who lives in a depressing small flat. Therefore i had a hard time to be sympathetical to him.

I found it hard to believe the gaming addicted acquainted married banker guy who bribes the MC to erase his old avatar and do his bidding. The same goes for the father of the MC, the Russian admiral..

Luckily, the story itself was great and never got boring or predictable.
106 reviews2 followers
March 6, 2020
Already read as a different title and author

I've read like a 3 4 book seeries under a different name with the exact same book only a different world name. I was certain I had purchased these books before but I am unable to locate them. Amazon was unable or unwilling to tell me the names of the titles that I had read before with the same content. And I'm nearly 100% sure they used to be in my library I'll have to check an older secure Kindle library I have to verify.
Profile Image for Johnny.
2,182 reviews82 followers
March 9, 2020
Book one

Mistakes: Still a bunch, but the book is now actually readable.

Plot: After having lost his job the Mc is hired by a clan to do a quest in game.

Characters: The Mc is fun to follow and with the redo of editing he makes more sense. Still lots of stuff that can be cleaned up. Especially the parts where Mc gets angry.

7/10 due to the fact that the book is more readable than the original books that where on kindle unlimited.
94 reviews
July 3, 2022
A run of the mill generic litrpg.

Aside from how utterly generic it is it's somewhat readable: plot happens, the game seems horrible, the mc gets a super special spell to make him super duper special, there are stats, it's only slightly weird when it comes to women, and there is an utter lack of care for telling a self contained story in each book.

If you've ever read a litrpg you've already read this, so proceed at your own risk.
Profile Image for Tony Hinde.
2,155 reviews79 followers
July 6, 2024
DNF 1%

I should stop reading Russian LitRPG – There's a cultural dissonance I can't tolerate. In this case the protagonist, who has just lost his job, sells all his in-game equipment for cash and then spends every cent for an additional two weeks of gaming. That will leave him with no cash and two weeks remaining before rent is due. This is so stupid and self-destructive that I immediately stopped reading.
Profile Image for GiGi.
934 reviews7 followers
August 9, 2025
I'm missing something, right? This is one of the series most often recommended in litRPG places but it's so dull? Doesn't seem to excel at anything in particular.
Also, Phil Tron has a horrible voice for narrating females. Doesn't help that I literally just finished another series narrated by him and didn't enjoy how things turned out there either. So hearing him again so soon just rubs me the wrong way.
123 reviews3 followers
June 13, 2020
More bad Russian Litrpg

This book may have been good in its original language though I doubt it. It’s plot is uninspired and meandering making logical leaps with befuddling regularity. The translation of setting is fine but any time dialogue is involved it reads like someone fired their editor.
Profile Image for Danny Evans.
170 reviews1 follower
March 6, 2020
Fantastic book!

Great translation and the storyline is great. I love that you have both in game and out game interplay. The MC is one that you can believe in.I already Pre-ordered the next book.
Profile Image for radiathkutya.
79 reviews2 followers
July 11, 2021
Almost didn't buy it because of the cover, thought it would involve romance. But I am glad I listened to the novel. It is about a solo player doing solo things which I like the most. And Phil Thron made the story from good to awesome.
Profile Image for Ryan.
13 reviews
January 5, 2022
A great introduction to a series. I will not go into the details about the book because you can get that anywhere. This book is well written and if it interests you i would pick it up. Goodreads did me a solid by recommending it. I am already reading the 2nd book in the series.
374 reviews2 followers
July 7, 2023
Pretty good start

As an introduction to the world and characters I think this book was successful and entertaining. The plot isn't as driving or engaging as I'd like but it was enjoyable nonetheless
53 reviews
July 11, 2020
Great first book

I liked the story. You might too, if this genre appeals to you. Will now buy book two and see what happens next !
698 reviews4 followers
August 6, 2020
Spendid!

Enjoyable the hero is a good guy with a stubborn presonatily yet it's working for now but the story excellent and worth reading
2,220 reviews7 followers
September 3, 2020
Very good read

I enjoyed reading this book very much and would recommend it highly to anyone that like litRPG type of books
100 reviews1 follower
September 19, 2020
Start of a grand adventure

New litrpg world, levelling, enemies and locales. Looming threat hanging over at the horizon. Over to read the next book
139 reviews
October 28, 2020
Worth it

A book that actually lives up to the hype of the blurbs. A rare beast indeed. A very good balance of difficulty.
1,124 reviews9 followers
March 22, 2021
Classic

I got introduced into LitRPG by CJ Carella eternal journey, and i am now going back and reading the classics that started LitRPG.

Profile Image for Darren.
517 reviews11 followers
September 28, 2021
Enjoyable Litrpg

Enjoyable. Pretty good for LITRPG. Read a lot of junk lately. This was refreshing. While not the best story...It's worthy of a read.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews

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