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Tower Climber #1
Tower Climber
They say only fools enter the tower…
All Max wants is to become a climber and search for his long lost sister.
But citizens aren’t allowed to climb, they aren’t even allowed remotely in the vicinity of the mysterious and magical tower. Plus, even if citizens could enter, it didn’t change the fact that Max’s body is paralyzed from the waist down, confined to a wheelchair. No way would anyone let him enter the tower. Ever.
Yet one night everything changes and Max’s world is thrown upside down. He suddenly gains an ultra rare ability and the chance to train and climb the tower.
But being a climber isn’t as easy as it sounds. Each floor of the tower contains vast worlds and deadly magical monsters.
While Max may want to ascend to the top of the tower, there are plenty of others who want to as well, many who won’t blink an eye at removing anyone who stands in their way…
All Max wants is to become a climber and search for his long lost sister.
But citizens aren’t allowed to climb, they aren’t even allowed remotely in the vicinity of the mysterious and magical tower. Plus, even if citizens could enter, it didn’t change the fact that Max’s body is paralyzed from the waist down, confined to a wheelchair. No way would anyone let him enter the tower. Ever.
Yet one night everything changes and Max’s world is thrown upside down. He suddenly gains an ultra rare ability and the chance to train and climb the tower.
But being a climber isn’t as easy as it sounds. Each floor of the tower contains vast worlds and deadly magical monsters.
While Max may want to ascend to the top of the tower, there are plenty of others who want to as well, many who won’t blink an eye at removing anyone who stands in their way…
584 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 26, 2020
945 people are currently reading
369 people want to read
About the author
Jakob Tanner
20 books175 followersJakob Tanner is the author of three LitRPG series: Arcane Kingdom Online, Tower Climber, and Second Chance Swordsman. His books were inspired by the Final Fantasy video game series, Dungeons and Dragons, and all the MMORPGs that have taken over his life at one point or another.
He likes playing board games, binging anime, and eating yummy food. To keep up to date with his shenanigans (as well as the status of his next book) consider signing up to his mailing list here:
https://www.jakobtanner.com/dungeondi...
Beyond that, Jakob can be found at all the usual places:
Facebook (Reader Group):
https://www.facebook.com/groups/19953...
Facebook (Author Page): @jakobtannerwriter
Twitter: @jakobtanner
Website: www.jakobtanner.com
He likes playing board games, binging anime, and eating yummy food. To keep up to date with his shenanigans (as well as the status of his next book) consider signing up to his mailing list here:
https://www.jakobtanner.com/dungeondi...
Beyond that, Jakob can be found at all the usual places:
Facebook (Reader Group):
https://www.facebook.com/groups/19953...
Facebook (Author Page): @jakobtannerwriter
Twitter: @jakobtanner
Website: www.jakobtanner.com
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 136 reviews
November 11, 2020
Rating 2.5 stars
The biggest problem that I had with this book is that it was too simple. The premise was interesting but the execution was not. It had a lot of familiar tropes and a lot of the standard plot lines but they weren't written very well. The story follows Max, a boy in a wheelchair. He gets bullied. That is pretty standard, except that he constantly gets his ass kicked, everyone sees it happen and nobody does anything. He is an orphan and doesn't have any money so I have to ask "Why is he being bullied?" That is a question I asked myself a lot in this book. Why? Who beats up a kid in a wheelchair? Something happens and Max is left for dead during a monster horde event and ends up finding that has a unique trait and might be able to climb the tower and find his sister There were so many problems with the story that I had a hard time finishing it. I skipped a lot of internal monologuing and exposition in the last 1/2 of the book.
This was a bittersweet moment too as this is the 1000th book I posted on Goodreads. I was hoping for a better book to commemorate this moment, alas it was not to be.
The biggest problem that I had with this book is that it was too simple. The premise was interesting but the execution was not. It had a lot of familiar tropes and a lot of the standard plot lines but they weren't written very well. The story follows Max, a boy in a wheelchair. He gets bullied. That is pretty standard, except that he constantly gets his ass kicked, everyone sees it happen and nobody does anything. He is an orphan and doesn't have any money so I have to ask "Why is he being bullied?" That is a question I asked myself a lot in this book. Why? Who beats up a kid in a wheelchair? Something happens and Max is left for dead during a monster horde event and ends up finding that has a unique trait and might be able to climb the tower and find his sister There were so many problems with the story that I had a hard time finishing it. I skipped a lot of internal monologuing and exposition in the last 1/2 of the book.
This was a bittersweet moment too as this is the 1000th book I posted on Goodreads. I was hoping for a better book to commemorate this moment, alas it was not to be.
October 29, 2020
Rating this two star ("It was okay"). A middle school adventure story although the characters are nominally high school age. The writing was okay but the plotting was weak and the characters were awful.
All the villains are evil because they're sadists, without a hint of real motivation. The author indulges in victimization porn so the MC at the start of the story is not only paraplegic, but is forced to do manual labor like scrubbing shower floors because that's how nasty the head of the orphanage is. Then magically he can walk and fight despite years where his muscles would have atrophied.
There are hints throughout the book that the author has more potential than this book suggests, although since this is by far not his first book, perhaps that growth is not being explored. I liked the short character backflashes and the tower itself (little of it is actually explored). The magical "academy" consists of nothing but a few pointlessly mean meetings combined with "now go train yourself" for weeks or months, after which are trials by combat, where the audience isn't even human enough to invest itself emotionally into the participants to care if one is a sadistic fiend.
So...what you get here is potential. Yes, most of that is potential wasted. If the ages were adjusted and some of the cruelty rolled back, it could be a successful 5th grade reader. That's not what the author clearly was aiming for (mainstream litrpg adults) and the book is jarring as a result.
All the villains are evil because they're sadists, without a hint of real motivation. The author indulges in victimization porn so the MC at the start of the story is not only paraplegic, but is forced to do manual labor like scrubbing shower floors because that's how nasty the head of the orphanage is. Then magically he can walk and fight despite years where his muscles would have atrophied.
There are hints throughout the book that the author has more potential than this book suggests, although since this is by far not his first book, perhaps that growth is not being explored. I liked the short character backflashes and the tower itself (little of it is actually explored). The magical "academy" consists of nothing but a few pointlessly mean meetings combined with "now go train yourself" for weeks or months, after which are trials by combat, where the audience isn't even human enough to invest itself emotionally into the participants to care if one is a sadistic fiend.
So...what you get here is potential. Yes, most of that is potential wasted. If the ages were adjusted and some of the cruelty rolled back, it could be a successful 5th grade reader. That's not what the author clearly was aiming for (mainstream litrpg adults) and the book is jarring as a result.
October 29, 2020
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Read the full review at my blog
tl;dr: Tower Climber is an entertaining Young Adult LitRPG with satisfying world-building.
'Tower Climber' is set sometime in the latter half of the 21st century. A mysterious tower appeared about 40 years ago in the USA. The Tower and its immediate environments are separate from the rest of the world. This independent city-state has its own President, police and other civic agencies. The city-state focuses on "Tower Climbers" - i.e. gifted people who traverse the tower floor by floor and have magic at their disposal.
The story begins with Max, our teenage protagonist, bullied in his school. He is orphaned and has lost the use of his legs in an accident in his childhood. His sister has somehow been lost in the Tower for years, and he is single-minded in his purpose to find out her fate. He is abducted and left to die within the tower city. He not only survives but also discovers that he has a unique talent. The story focuses on his time in the Tower Academy, his growing knowledge of what the Tower is and his growth as an aspiring tower climber and as a person. (The full review is available at my blog)
Watch the review on Youtube
Listen to it on this podcast
Read the full review at my blog
Listen to it on this podcast
Read the full review at my blog
tl;dr: Tower Climber is an entertaining Young Adult LitRPG with satisfying world-building.
'Tower Climber' is set sometime in the latter half of the 21st century. A mysterious tower appeared about 40 years ago in the USA. The Tower and its immediate environments are separate from the rest of the world. This independent city-state has its own President, police and other civic agencies. The city-state focuses on "Tower Climbers" - i.e. gifted people who traverse the tower floor by floor and have magic at their disposal.
The story begins with Max, our teenage protagonist, bullied in his school. He is orphaned and has lost the use of his legs in an accident in his childhood. His sister has somehow been lost in the Tower for years, and he is single-minded in his purpose to find out her fate. He is abducted and left to die within the tower city. He not only survives but also discovers that he has a unique talent. The story focuses on his time in the Tower Academy, his growing knowledge of what the Tower is and his growth as an aspiring tower climber and as a person. (The full review is available at my blog)
Watch the review on Youtube
Listen to it on this podcast
Read the full review at my blog
December 17, 2020
I'll keep this short, the villains are cartoonish and imbecilic, the characters are shallow and inconsistent ( a character risks prison time for someone they meet twice) and the entire story is bare bones at best. The only good thing is the world but its underutilized and a little irrelevant because of it. I was drawn in because of the art and premise of the story and was completely disappointed by the latter.
April 3, 2021
This is one of the worst books that I have ever managed to make it to the end of. That I did finish it at all is down to my love of the litRPG genre and sheer stubbornness, with a dash of sunk cost fallacy when the book's quality really took a nose dive around 60%.
There are good ideas here, but the writing is so incompetent on so many basic levels that I sincerely wonder whether the author is fluent in English. There are many instances of missing or inaccurate punctation, to/two/too confusion, and other misspellings ("waved" when the author meant "waived", for instance). If this novel was ever subjected to any sort of editing process, it was thoroughly ineffective.
Given the above, it's no surprise that the characters are one-dimensional cardboard cutouts. Max is the boring invincible hero to whom nothing bad ever happens (unless it's ultimately going to make him twice as strong) and who always saves the day thanks to the perfect conflux of circumstances. Casey is a cross between Hermione and a manic pixie dream girl (she's even this world's version of a "Mudblood"). Sakura is a badass veteran with a chip on her shoulder and a squeeing love of romance novels and ramen. All of the villains are sadistic, cackling fountains of "behold my evil plan" monologues. One quite important secondary character doesn't even get a name, being referred to for nearly 30% of the novel as "the climber president".
While the litRPG elements are the best part of the book by far, they're not anything to write home about. I felt that the author was making things up as he went along a lot of the time, especially when it came to certain powers, as well as the rankings and how they relate to power levels (basically, who beats whom). It seemed particularly redundant and confusing to have two ranking systems, one going from E to S and the other from copper to diamond. Also, there are way too many scenes that are simply information dumps for the system, which would have derailed any flow that the story might have managed to build up, and yet the novel still manages to have important elements, like the existence of (de)buffers, just pop out of nowhere when they become necessary.
Quite simply, this book is not fit for professional publication. There are bits of it that might be developed into something fascinating, but in its current form, it is not worth a moment of your time or a cent of your money.
There are good ideas here, but the writing is so incompetent on so many basic levels that I sincerely wonder whether the author is fluent in English. There are many instances of missing or inaccurate punctation, to/two/too confusion, and other misspellings ("waved" when the author meant "waived", for instance). If this novel was ever subjected to any sort of editing process, it was thoroughly ineffective.
Given the above, it's no surprise that the characters are one-dimensional cardboard cutouts. Max is the boring invincible hero to whom nothing bad ever happens (unless it's ultimately going to make him twice as strong) and who always saves the day thanks to the perfect conflux of circumstances. Casey is a cross between Hermione and a manic pixie dream girl (she's even this world's version of a "Mudblood"). Sakura is a badass veteran with a chip on her shoulder and a squeeing love of romance novels and ramen. All of the villains are sadistic, cackling fountains of "behold my evil plan" monologues. One quite important secondary character doesn't even get a name, being referred to for nearly 30% of the novel as "the climber president".
While the litRPG elements are the best part of the book by far, they're not anything to write home about. I felt that the author was making things up as he went along a lot of the time, especially when it came to certain powers, as well as the rankings and how they relate to power levels (basically, who beats whom). It seemed particularly redundant and confusing to have two ranking systems, one going from E to S and the other from copper to diamond. Also, there are way too many scenes that are simply information dumps for the system, which would have derailed any flow that the story might have managed to build up, and yet the novel still manages to have important elements, like the existence of (de)buffers, just pop out of nowhere when they become necessary.
Quite simply, this book is not fit for professional publication. There are bits of it that might be developed into something fascinating, but in its current form, it is not worth a moment of your time or a cent of your money.
January 19, 2021
Reads like bad anime fanfiction
Very disappointed. This book started off really well, the overall idea and I'll say most of the plot kept me interested until approximately the 50% mark.
However things aren't amazing up to that point by far, and steadily devolved as I kept reading; from the one dimensional support characters (some of whom remain unnamed for the entire book, which caused its own issue of referring to them by title repeatedly) to paper thin antagonist motivation, plot holes, pacing, repetition, villain monologues... the list goes on.
There's a specific point where the protagonist decides that killing and not looking back is the way forward and the suspension of disbelief was impossible for me. Here is this 16 year old, bit of resentment and anger issues from early life sure, but for the most part a good guy with a goal. Then he just decides to be "anyone against me I'll take them out" (not literally stated like that but thats how he behaves) while also sticking the lovable geek fascinated by the super powered people. There's no real thought from the character, no follow up, no guilt, no acknowledgement that he feels no guilt. You're just expected to go with this huge turn with very little run up or fanfare. And things carry on as normal after that.
Oh and the sound effects. Immersion breaking to the extreme like 80s era Batman. I had to skim read the last 15%-18% which is mostly combat because the sound effects, monologues and bad dialogue got soo bad, but barely missed any details.
I'm glad I finished it, I really hope the writing and character development/investment improves as the ideas are good. It was just tough to get through.
Very disappointed. This book started off really well, the overall idea and I'll say most of the plot kept me interested until approximately the 50% mark.
However things aren't amazing up to that point by far, and steadily devolved as I kept reading; from the one dimensional support characters (some of whom remain unnamed for the entire book, which caused its own issue of referring to them by title repeatedly) to paper thin antagonist motivation, plot holes, pacing, repetition, villain monologues... the list goes on.
There's a specific point where the protagonist decides that killing and not looking back is the way forward and the suspension of disbelief was impossible for me. Here is this 16 year old, bit of resentment and anger issues from early life sure, but for the most part a good guy with a goal. Then he just decides to be "anyone against me I'll take them out" (not literally stated like that but thats how he behaves) while also sticking the lovable geek fascinated by the super powered people. There's no real thought from the character, no follow up, no guilt, no acknowledgement that he feels no guilt. You're just expected to go with this huge turn with very little run up or fanfare. And things carry on as normal after that.
Oh and the sound effects. Immersion breaking to the extreme like 80s era Batman. I had to skim read the last 15%-18% which is mostly combat because the sound effects, monologues and bad dialogue got soo bad, but barely missed any details.
I'm glad I finished it, I really hope the writing and character development/investment improves as the ideas are good. It was just tough to get through.
January 11, 2021
Forced narrative
So it starts off pretty good seems to be developing character although it is a little dark. I mean, having a kid beat up another kid who’s in a wheelchair at school and no one does anything to stop it not even the teachers is a little edgy. But the characters and the motivation, everything runs pretty consistent. Then things change.
Just because one character knows something does not mean that another character also knows that thing. There has to be support for things that happen in the text. If a character is going to a bedroom to sleep and he wakes up on the couch there needs to be something in the text that tells you why he was not in the bedroom. That is a minor example but it happens repeatedly.
Then it just gets awful. A grown man taunts a teenager, because... and the MC somehow knows the different badge ranks, even though he’s never been taught any of the lore. Why would the ‘test’ be to fight a monster if there are so many other things people can do?
I’m only 15% in and it’s barely readable. Every element is forced into the story and made to ‘fit’.
I will try to continue, but save your time and money for better novels.
So it starts off pretty good seems to be developing character although it is a little dark. I mean, having a kid beat up another kid who’s in a wheelchair at school and no one does anything to stop it not even the teachers is a little edgy. But the characters and the motivation, everything runs pretty consistent. Then things change.
Just because one character knows something does not mean that another character also knows that thing. There has to be support for things that happen in the text. If a character is going to a bedroom to sleep and he wakes up on the couch there needs to be something in the text that tells you why he was not in the bedroom. That is a minor example but it happens repeatedly.
Then it just gets awful. A grown man taunts a teenager, because... and the MC somehow knows the different badge ranks, even though he’s never been taught any of the lore. Why would the ‘test’ be to fight a monster if there are so many other things people can do?
I’m only 15% in and it’s barely readable. Every element is forced into the story and made to ‘fit’.
I will try to continue, but save your time and money for better novels.
November 16, 2020
Book one
Mistakes: The book is well edited, but there are serious plot holes in this story.
If you are laying on the ground unable to use your legs you will be unable to reach high enough to punch anything hard enough to send it flying, maybe break it's leg due to magical force.
Plot: I found it a bit silly. A kid with a powerful ability thinks he is paralyzed from about the waist down, but it's really just a curse. He is dumped inside the tower zone by the evil headmaster of the orphanage who is abusive and a pedophile because out hero is noisy.
Characters: Everyone monologues to much. The MC does this when he goes to rescue his best friend and again when he fights an assassin.
This book has a lot of problems like those listed above. Others might find the story enjoyable, I found it simplistic and silly.
3/10
Mistakes: The book is well edited, but there are serious plot holes in this story.
If you are laying on the ground unable to use your legs you will be unable to reach high enough to punch anything hard enough to send it flying, maybe break it's leg due to magical force.
Plot: I found it a bit silly. A kid with a powerful ability thinks he is paralyzed from about the waist down, but it's really just a curse. He is dumped inside the tower zone by the evil headmaster of the orphanage who is abusive and a pedophile because out hero is noisy.
Characters: Everyone monologues to much. The MC does this when he goes to rescue his best friend and again when he fights an assassin.
This book has a lot of problems like those listed above. Others might find the story enjoyable, I found it simplistic and silly.
3/10
October 30, 2020
This was everything that I expect in a LitRPG book! I loved that even when Max had no hope, he still refused to give up. I found it interesting how his moral compass took a couple of wild swings as he settled into his place in the tower-side world.
I also loved this idea of the source of the tower. It was unique and such a fascinating conundrum. Does the tower have some kind of guidance - was it's appearance on Earth a matter of chance, or was it put there to destroy?
I am excited to see where this goes. As Sakura works to rebuild the city, Max will be searching for his sister, and we're sure to see the upper levels get involved with all of that. It will be interesting to see Max grow in his abilities, and see if he will continue to be underestimated by his enemies even if/when they know what his talent is. And as he levels up, what new aspects of his talent will he develop?
I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book.
I also loved this idea of the source of the tower. It was unique and such a fascinating conundrum. Does the tower have some kind of guidance - was it's appearance on Earth a matter of chance, or was it put there to destroy?
I am excited to see where this goes. As Sakura works to rebuild the city, Max will be searching for his sister, and we're sure to see the upper levels get involved with all of that. It will be interesting to see Max grow in his abilities, and see if he will continue to be underestimated by his enemies even if/when they know what his talent is. And as he levels up, what new aspects of his talent will he develop?
I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book.
May 16, 2021
Dumb Juvenile book with lots of problems. But was fun enough to read.
June 16, 2021
This book has the feel of a shounen anime aimed at a younger audience, but with violence that feels aimed at an older audience. (After looking at other reviews I see that I’m not the only one who thinks that.)The narration exacerbates this issue too. I can’t say that is necessarily the fault of the narrator because the text comes off this way, but I feel like the narrator could have toned it down. The narrator was consistent though and his reading speed was good though.
The villains are fairly one-dimensional. Nuanced villains that are more subtle are just more interesting. From the get-go it is so intense that the evil behavior of the antagonists is cringey. Because of how heavy handed they are I’m left thinking how do folks not know this is going on when they clearly behave poorly. Is everyone stupid?
Even those not dubbed evil by the story often act like jerks. The story goes out of the way to be like our MC is so nice when most climbers are jerks. Basic human decency from a climber is so unexpected a librarian is just like WOW can’t believe you are a climber because he has a very mundane interaction with her without what? calling her traitless or some other rude behavior. Later on, when he asks for some basic information the librarian again is astonished because nobody ever asks for information like that. Which is bizarre because again it is something that a climber would probably want to know and the fact that everyone else is too arrogant (?) to ask is dumb. In fact, making people stupid appears to be the way the story wants to make the MC look brilliant.
So, I expected a tower climbing story, but didn’t get it. I decided to settle for a magical academy story instead because the story implies that is what it will actually be about, but then it doesn’t deliver there either. Where is the teaching? The characters themselves even call it out, “Are they ever actually going to teach us anything? Or is it all tests, all the time!?” (pg. 204). This academy seems to rely on self-study/training and tests and that is it.
I think there are good things in this story, but I doubt I’ll continue it because of the issues it has. I think the MCs power is used in unique ways and the tower itself has some compelling worldbuilding (can’t go into it due to spoilers). The story certainly had a lot of potential, but just didn't meet my expectations.
The villains are fairly one-dimensional. Nuanced villains that are more subtle are just more interesting. From the get-go it is so intense that the evil behavior of the antagonists is cringey. Because of how heavy handed they are I’m left thinking how do folks not know this is going on when they clearly behave poorly. Is everyone stupid?
Even those not dubbed evil by the story often act like jerks. The story goes out of the way to be like our MC is so nice when most climbers are jerks. Basic human decency from a climber is so unexpected a librarian is just like WOW can’t believe you are a climber because he has a very mundane interaction with her without what? calling her traitless or some other rude behavior. Later on, when he asks for some basic information the librarian again is astonished because nobody ever asks for information like that. Which is bizarre because again it is something that a climber would probably want to know and the fact that everyone else is too arrogant (?) to ask is dumb. In fact, making people stupid appears to be the way the story wants to make the MC look brilliant.
So, I expected a tower climbing story, but didn’t get it. I decided to settle for a magical academy story instead because the story implies that is what it will actually be about, but then it doesn’t deliver there either. Where is the teaching? The characters themselves even call it out, “Are they ever actually going to teach us anything? Or is it all tests, all the time!?” (pg. 204). This academy seems to rely on self-study/training and tests and that is it.
I think there are good things in this story, but I doubt I’ll continue it because of the issues it has. I think the MCs power is used in unique ways and the tower itself has some compelling worldbuilding (can’t go into it due to spoilers). The story certainly had a lot of potential, but just didn't meet my expectations.
June 26, 2022
Homo homini lupus. Man is the wolf of man, and in this specific fantasy novel series, the author is the wolf and predator of his book characters. Torture, gore, violence, statutory rape, physical and emotional abuse to handicapped minors, this author has no limits to the amount of horror and hell he has given to all of the minors, his created characters. The author probably doesn't know that to promote crimes to minors who are readers of those crimes done to minors, is a crime in the U.S., Canada, Japan, and all of Latin America. This author is a sadist and probably a psychopath. The author enjoys page after page, chapter after chapter of cruelty, abuse, violence, assassinations, gore done to underage characters. What I do not understand is what kind of reader can “enjoy” reading a book filled to the brim with murder, abuse, horror, violence, gore and rape.
The climbers are supposed to be the elites and the very best, of this alternate reality hell. If the worst murderers, the worst serial killers and torturers are the only ones that “graduate as climbers”, then what is the point of this fantasy-hell novel series? All of the animals and monsters that they hunt, do not f*ck each other over or cannibalize each other, and yet, these evil and depraved people written by the author, that live close to the tower have no ethics, live and thrive in total impunity in a Hell world.
The only responsible person for all of this evil, is the author. Having an infinite possibility to create alternate reality worlds, to create the worst possible world, with people that act worse than monsters, is just possible in the head and lack of imagination of this author. Who needs enemies and difficulties, when the author becomes the biggest antagonist of his created characters? Max, Casey and Sarah are the underage victims of this tragedy. Max should just get the hell out of this tower area, the heck out of this novel series…
How depraved and corrupted, does a mind need to be to “create” a story like this one? How unfair is the author, that pretends that this impossible hell of a world is to be overcome/conquered/improved by the main characters? When has the author contributed to society to ask his imagined characters to accomplish something the author will never compare?
Max wants to climb the tower because he believes that he can save his sister (supposedly lost in the upper floors of the tower). Max is weak, not that bright and one of the least strong and incapable students at the Climber Academy. Max can't protect the other orphans or Casey, or much less himself and yet, the author makes him write checks that Max is unable to cash, unable to accomplish. Who is more delusional? The author or the main character written by the author?
The climbers are supposed to be the elites and the very best, of this alternate reality hell. If the worst murderers, the worst serial killers and torturers are the only ones that “graduate as climbers”, then what is the point of this fantasy-hell novel series? All of the animals and monsters that they hunt, do not f*ck each other over or cannibalize each other, and yet, these evil and depraved people written by the author, that live close to the tower have no ethics, live and thrive in total impunity in a Hell world.
The only responsible person for all of this evil, is the author. Having an infinite possibility to create alternate reality worlds, to create the worst possible world, with people that act worse than monsters, is just possible in the head and lack of imagination of this author. Who needs enemies and difficulties, when the author becomes the biggest antagonist of his created characters? Max, Casey and Sarah are the underage victims of this tragedy. Max should just get the hell out of this tower area, the heck out of this novel series…
How depraved and corrupted, does a mind need to be to “create” a story like this one? How unfair is the author, that pretends that this impossible hell of a world is to be overcome/conquered/improved by the main characters? When has the author contributed to society to ask his imagined characters to accomplish something the author will never compare?
Max wants to climb the tower because he believes that he can save his sister (supposedly lost in the upper floors of the tower). Max is weak, not that bright and one of the least strong and incapable students at the Climber Academy. Max can't protect the other orphans or Casey, or much less himself and yet, the author makes him write checks that Max is unable to cash, unable to accomplish. Who is more delusional? The author or the main character written by the author?
March 18, 2021
The other low reviews have basically said it all. It starts as a fun and interesting...well, no it doesn't, it starts with overall abuse of the MC (who is in a wheelchair) by classmates, adults, and basically everyone. It really stretches the suspension of disbelief. But once he hits the tower zone it gets interesting for a while. But as others have said everything is just far too two dimensional. The academy instructor is only referred to as the academy instructor. The Climber President, who has a very long fight scene towards the end of the book is only ever referred to as the Climber President. I think a name may have been used at some point in the book but I don't recall as it was rarely used. These are two semi-important characters and they only existed as titles.
Max spent his life in a wheelchair until he was 16. Once he gets out of it it is rarely ever mentioned or thought of again. Barely any time is used to show him enjoying doing things he couldn't do before, like walk, run, whatever. It's just "Well, I was in a wheelchair, now I'm not. Cool" and then totally forgotten.
All this said, I still had fun reading the first, oh let's say 60% of the book. But then things just got more and more two dimensional in service of getting to the climax the author was building to, which turned out to be very anticlimactic.
Max spent his life in a wheelchair until he was 16. Once he gets out of it it is rarely ever mentioned or thought of again. Barely any time is used to show him enjoying doing things he couldn't do before, like walk, run, whatever. It's just "Well, I was in a wheelchair, now I'm not. Cool" and then totally forgotten.
All this said, I still had fun reading the first, oh let's say 60% of the book. But then things just got more and more two dimensional in service of getting to the climax the author was building to, which turned out to be very anticlimactic.
December 16, 2020
Do not pay for this! Wow when I read the reviews about how awful this was... It lives up to that expectation. Awful. Those rating this 5 stars must have never read a book before!
Aside from this being a total rip off of other people’s work and ideas for which mass plagiarism comes to mind. The bare plot line is quite good. The problem is it is bare. This is more of a draft where none of the detail were ever added in. It felt like it was cooked up in a couple of days. The characters even the main character make illogical out of character decisions. People go along with him defying common sense making what takes place unbelievable. I made it to 374 when the librarian gave up her future for someone she met twice. When you’re asking a reader to believe in magic and other worlds... everything else needs extra attention. I really hope this is some early work and where later on something original is created and executed better, as this is just bad. 2 stars for plot and execution, but down rated due to it being a rip of if better people’s work.
Aside from this being a total rip off of other people’s work and ideas for which mass plagiarism comes to mind. The bare plot line is quite good. The problem is it is bare. This is more of a draft where none of the detail were ever added in. It felt like it was cooked up in a couple of days. The characters even the main character make illogical out of character decisions. People go along with him defying common sense making what takes place unbelievable. I made it to 374 when the librarian gave up her future for someone she met twice. When you’re asking a reader to believe in magic and other worlds... everything else needs extra attention. I really hope this is some early work and where later on something original is created and executed better, as this is just bad. 2 stars for plot and execution, but down rated due to it being a rip of if better people’s work.
November 9, 2020
Seriously?
I couldn't get beyond the first chapter of this drivel for lack of trying. The abuses piled upon the MC, an orphan in a wheelchair, by fellow students and the director of the orphanage-to the extent of kidnapping with an intent to kill-when the setting is supposed to be some point in the near future of the USA? Nope, that just pushes the believability too far out there to accept as plausible. The best stories are always going to be those with at least the hope of being likely. And this one shoves the concept of verisimilitude onto a school hallway devoid of teachers and students only moments after class, beats it up only to steal it's meager wealth, subjects it to a drunken sexual predator in charge of children only to be kidnapped and dumped in an highly dangerous area . . . all within the first 5 pages . . . get real. Do better.
I couldn't get beyond the first chapter of this drivel for lack of trying. The abuses piled upon the MC, an orphan in a wheelchair, by fellow students and the director of the orphanage-to the extent of kidnapping with an intent to kill-when the setting is supposed to be some point in the near future of the USA? Nope, that just pushes the believability too far out there to accept as plausible. The best stories are always going to be those with at least the hope of being likely. And this one shoves the concept of verisimilitude onto a school hallway devoid of teachers and students only moments after class, beats it up only to steal it's meager wealth, subjects it to a drunken sexual predator in charge of children only to be kidnapped and dumped in an highly dangerous area . . . all within the first 5 pages . . . get real. Do better.
December 18, 2020
Knowing Jakob Tanner from his other series, I was expecting something pretty epic.
I'm glad I wasn't disappointed. It's a great concept, a great story and the surprises!!!
Get it!
I'm glad I wasn't disappointed. It's a great concept, a great story and the surprises!!!
Get it!
August 4, 2021
DNF
Don’t know, got about 17% through and I gave up on this. Just wasn’t for me.
Don’t know, got about 17% through and I gave up on this. Just wasn’t for me.
July 27, 2024
Not sure how this can have any ratings with more than one star.
First of all, despite the book being called "Tower Climber", the only climbing done in this book was by a guy that climbed a wall to break into a window.
When the MC enters the tower, it always ends up being about interpersonal drama. There was a single instance that did not end up with the MC killing other people, but the author quickly dealt with this by method of time skip. MC enters tower, kills one monster, skip, MC leaves tower with increased stats. Because we can't have tower climbing in a book called Tower Climber.
Characters have about as much depth as a thin sheet of paper and all act like malfunctioning robots.
This happens very early in the book (chapter 3 or so), so I don't consider it a spoiler: MC was bound to a wheelchair for a few years after a car crash. Then some magic happens and he can walk again. And his reaction? "Oh, I can walk again" - that's it. He then goes about his business and the wheelchair isn't mentioned again. Wtf?
Absolutely nothing in this book makes any sense. There's an academy that seems to be very hard to get into, but they don't offer any lessons. Instead, they schedule a number of death matches between students, call those "exams", and then the rest of the year is "self-study".
No one in this book uses weapons. The MC is limited to using his ability 6 times a day. If he gets into a fight after that, I guess he would just die?
As for a story, there is no story. Everyone wants to kill the MC, but the MC just kills all the professional assassins and teams of mercenaries that were hired to kill him. Why? Well, because he's the MC, and after just a few days of wielding magic, he's better than professional killers with years of experience and many levels on him.
I could go on with this rant for some time, but I think I've made my opinion clear.
First of all, despite the book being called "Tower Climber", the only climbing done in this book was by a guy that climbed a wall to break into a window.
When the MC enters the tower, it always ends up being about interpersonal drama. There was a single instance that did not end up with the MC killing other people, but the author quickly dealt with this by method of time skip. MC enters tower, kills one monster, skip, MC leaves tower with increased stats. Because we can't have tower climbing in a book called Tower Climber.
Characters have about as much depth as a thin sheet of paper and all act like malfunctioning robots.
This happens very early in the book (chapter 3 or so), so I don't consider it a spoiler: MC was bound to a wheelchair for a few years after a car crash. Then some magic happens and he can walk again. And his reaction? "Oh, I can walk again" - that's it. He then goes about his business and the wheelchair isn't mentioned again. Wtf?
Absolutely nothing in this book makes any sense. There's an academy that seems to be very hard to get into, but they don't offer any lessons. Instead, they schedule a number of death matches between students, call those "exams", and then the rest of the year is "self-study".
No one in this book uses weapons. The MC is limited to using his ability 6 times a day. If he gets into a fight after that, I guess he would just die?
As for a story, there is no story. Everyone wants to kill the MC, but the MC just kills all the professional assassins and teams of mercenaries that were hired to kill him. Why? Well, because he's the MC, and after just a few days of wielding magic, he's better than professional killers with years of experience and many levels on him.
I could go on with this rant for some time, but I think I've made my opinion clear.
December 19, 2025
A dumb cliche book
It was alright-ish I guess and easy to read. And I like litrpg books about climbing towers.
But that’s all there is to it.
It has EVRY single cliche there is. It literally feels like the author has made a list of every cliche thing you can find in a book and checking ✅ the boxes.
Also, frankly, this books feels very dumb.
As if it’s written by a 12 year old.
Deus ex machina everywhere, the protagonists literally always win and quite easily (and with stupid ways and plans that are super obvious but it’s written as if they’re some great revelations) which is super unrealistic and dumb.
Over explaining everything to the point everyone sounds so stupid; Like an antagonist literally explaining his ability and his plans while attacking and thus literally exposing his weakness and the protagonist winning because of it 🤣
Then there’s the main character who knows EVERYTHING that happens behind the scenes because - reasons.
(*spoilers*)
For example, at one point an antagonist has taken control of the president of their town behind the scenes and the protagonist figures it out as soon as he looks at him even though he doesn’t even know the president almost at all and has no idea the villain even has a mind controlling ability.
He just figures it out in a single sentence 🤣
(*spoilers*)
This book is filled with details like these that make it seem super unbelievable, fake, dumb and as if it’s written for kids.
All the characters are super flat and one dimensional too. They don’t have any personality.
Not even the main character.
The villains are a joke.
The reason of the main villain’s attack is a one dimensional nonesense of the sort: “It’s time for my family to rule.! Everyone else is a weakling!”
Um.. okay?
This had potential but didn’t deliver
It was alright-ish I guess and easy to read. And I like litrpg books about climbing towers.
But that’s all there is to it.
It has EVRY single cliche there is. It literally feels like the author has made a list of every cliche thing you can find in a book and checking ✅ the boxes.
Also, frankly, this books feels very dumb.
As if it’s written by a 12 year old.
Deus ex machina everywhere, the protagonists literally always win and quite easily (and with stupid ways and plans that are super obvious but it’s written as if they’re some great revelations) which is super unrealistic and dumb.
Over explaining everything to the point everyone sounds so stupid; Like an antagonist literally explaining his ability and his plans while attacking and thus literally exposing his weakness and the protagonist winning because of it 🤣
Then there’s the main character who knows EVERYTHING that happens behind the scenes because - reasons.
(*spoilers*)
For example, at one point an antagonist has taken control of the president of their town behind the scenes and the protagonist figures it out as soon as he looks at him even though he doesn’t even know the president almost at all and has no idea the villain even has a mind controlling ability.
He just figures it out in a single sentence 🤣
(*spoilers*)
This book is filled with details like these that make it seem super unbelievable, fake, dumb and as if it’s written for kids.
All the characters are super flat and one dimensional too. They don’t have any personality.
Not even the main character.
The villains are a joke.
The reason of the main villain’s attack is a one dimensional nonesense of the sort: “It’s time for my family to rule.! Everyone else is a weakling!”
Um.. okay?
This had potential but didn’t deliver
October 29, 2020
From the author of Arcane Kingdom Online, a LitRPG series which I had really enjoyed, comes this first book in a new series of the same genre, it is a coming of age book about a very charismatic character who is an orphan, disabled and being bullied both at school and in the orphan's home. Max Rainhart dreams of becoming a climber and looking for his sister Elle, however he lives in the outer zone and didn't know how he could ever do this as citizens without power were not allowed to enter the tower zone. However, things happened and he found himself in the tower zone being attacked by a minotaur. Suddenly a woman comes to his aid and she in turn becomes his mentor and friend. He develops a unique trait and skills which make him Kokoro, the warrior spirit but best of all he is able to walk! However the competition to become a climber is full blown and their is a lot of anger and hatred amongst the students. Max knows he intends becoming a climber and he wants to climb to the top and find his sister, and he would do whatever it takes. I love the continuous fast moving, action-packed story whereby we see a total change take place in Max, who develops through sheer hard work and effort from a puny weakling to a strong athletic young climber. Courageous and never one to back down particularly when protecting those he cared for. I love the whole story line and imagery of the tower zone, it's climbers with their different abilities, it's monsters as well as the fight as usual between the forces of good and evil. I really look forward to book 2 especially as book 1 left us with such an ending!
Read
September 18, 2022When we say a book is bad it's in two categories in my opinion and experience,bad books, and lazy writers.
The difference is simple, a good or even brilliant writer can end up with a bad book, bad in terms of presentation, ideas, execution, and so forth, but the fact that the writer is good, will shine through to certain parts, and will be recognised and praised, and when compared to thise parts the book as a whole will look bad since the potential of it being a brilliant book can be seen easily.
Then there are lazy writers like this one, who can take a breathtaking and excellent premise, and through sheer laziness and lack of imagination will make it bad to the point where the tropes and formulas used in the book end up being called bad, rather than writer, who messed up the whole thing.its a sad state of affairs and as you read more books , you will soon begin to realise the differences,and through out my 13 years of reading these ki ds of books, i have slowly reached that point.
Now as for the book, most other reviewers have already said all i could ever say, and yes the book is too simple, but not in a good way, it too simple in terms of laziness, the plot is basic and presentation and characters are too cartoonish, mc is just plain stupid, when a writer uses the crippled and dejected as a core trait to force us to love the mc, then you know that it's a setup to avoid good character development, cause it simply easy that way.
A good book in this regard is game of thrones, it's so famous for a reason, and it's loved for a reason, even Harry Potter has more basic setup in it's first 10 pages, than this book in its entirety.
The difference is simple, a good or even brilliant writer can end up with a bad book, bad in terms of presentation, ideas, execution, and so forth, but the fact that the writer is good, will shine through to certain parts, and will be recognised and praised, and when compared to thise parts the book as a whole will look bad since the potential of it being a brilliant book can be seen easily.
Then there are lazy writers like this one, who can take a breathtaking and excellent premise, and through sheer laziness and lack of imagination will make it bad to the point where the tropes and formulas used in the book end up being called bad, rather than writer, who messed up the whole thing.its a sad state of affairs and as you read more books , you will soon begin to realise the differences,and through out my 13 years of reading these ki ds of books, i have slowly reached that point.
Now as for the book, most other reviewers have already said all i could ever say, and yes the book is too simple, but not in a good way, it too simple in terms of laziness, the plot is basic and presentation and characters are too cartoonish, mc is just plain stupid, when a writer uses the crippled and dejected as a core trait to force us to love the mc, then you know that it's a setup to avoid good character development, cause it simply easy that way.
A good book in this regard is game of thrones, it's so famous for a reason, and it's loved for a reason, even Harry Potter has more basic setup in it's first 10 pages, than this book in its entirety.
May 8, 2021
Tower climber
Written by Jacob Tanner
It started off so good.
It is rare for me to feel something from a book. The book starts with the main character being beaten up by a bully. This is a tricky start because the writer needs to make the MC believably pathetic and the reader needs to immediately sympathise with one character and absolutely hate another.
To do this in the first few pages tells me the writer has talent. They had me hooked, I was ready to buy the entire series right from the start. My blood was pumping and I was willing to follow Max’s journey into the bowls of grim-dark hell.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t finish the book. I got halfway through and wrote this while the audiobook was still fresh in my mind.
After a couple of chapters the writer drops this serious and gritty tone and decides that this should be a Narato clone.
This is a power fantasy book. There is no teenage angst, the bad guys come from the same cookie cutter mould. Even the way the characters interact with one another is unhinging. If you skipped a few pages you would swear the characters had know each other for years instead of only a few minutes.
Sakura and Max’s relationship is especially nonsensical. It goes from total strangers to a mum and son dynamic at the drop of a hat.
If you’re into the first season of Narato, you might want to pick this book up. But for me, the final nail in the coffin is when the hamster comes in out of nowhere. This is where I drew the line.
Written by Jacob Tanner
It started off so good.
It is rare for me to feel something from a book. The book starts with the main character being beaten up by a bully. This is a tricky start because the writer needs to make the MC believably pathetic and the reader needs to immediately sympathise with one character and absolutely hate another.
To do this in the first few pages tells me the writer has talent. They had me hooked, I was ready to buy the entire series right from the start. My blood was pumping and I was willing to follow Max’s journey into the bowls of grim-dark hell.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t finish the book. I got halfway through and wrote this while the audiobook was still fresh in my mind.
After a couple of chapters the writer drops this serious and gritty tone and decides that this should be a Narato clone.
This is a power fantasy book. There is no teenage angst, the bad guys come from the same cookie cutter mould. Even the way the characters interact with one another is unhinging. If you skipped a few pages you would swear the characters had know each other for years instead of only a few minutes.
Sakura and Max’s relationship is especially nonsensical. It goes from total strangers to a mum and son dynamic at the drop of a hat.
If you’re into the first season of Narato, you might want to pick this book up. But for me, the final nail in the coffin is when the hamster comes in out of nowhere. This is where I drew the line.
December 31, 2020
It's really poorly written
I gave it two stars because it is at least readable, has an actual plot, and has characters.
If it were explicitly marketed at youth, then I'd also give it a thumbs up.
However, this story is shallow to a truly impressive degree. The characters are all caricatures. Bad guys are full of "bad guy traits." Cowardly, ableist, pedophile, "slimy," constantly sweating. Etc. Two major enemies are not mere psychopaths, no - they're the full on torture and murder for less than any reason types. One literally randomly accosts a random character for no reason than he feels like torturing someone. Literally every character that's been introduced can be completely described by cliche and tropes. (I got about 70% through before quitting.)
The world is as deep and sensible as the characters. Which is to say, it isn't. At all.
The plot is pure self indulgent fantasy with no surrender to such concepts as logic, reason, or how humans actually work. For example (minor spoiler from first few pages of the book): the main character was handicapped, but no! It turns out his memories and such were wrong, he was never handicapped, but cursed! And in fact is actually, secretly, super duper special with extremely rare, fancy magic powers! (Traits, they're called here.)
At least it's free on Kindle Reading library.
I gave it two stars because it is at least readable, has an actual plot, and has characters.
If it were explicitly marketed at youth, then I'd also give it a thumbs up.
However, this story is shallow to a truly impressive degree. The characters are all caricatures. Bad guys are full of "bad guy traits." Cowardly, ableist, pedophile, "slimy," constantly sweating. Etc. Two major enemies are not mere psychopaths, no - they're the full on torture and murder for less than any reason types. One literally randomly accosts a random character for no reason than he feels like torturing someone. Literally every character that's been introduced can be completely described by cliche and tropes. (I got about 70% through before quitting.)
The world is as deep and sensible as the characters. Which is to say, it isn't. At all.
The plot is pure self indulgent fantasy with no surrender to such concepts as logic, reason, or how humans actually work. For example (minor spoiler from first few pages of the book): the main character was handicapped, but no! It turns out his memories and such were wrong, he was never handicapped, but cursed! And in fact is actually, secretly, super duper special with extremely rare, fancy magic powers! (Traits, they're called here.)
At least it's free on Kindle Reading library.
August 29, 2022
Where to begin? There are SO many problems with this book that as a whole it makes it hard to read. Problems from the start. MC is wheelchair bound but for no known cause has the enmity of THREE bullies that for no known reason yank him out of his wheelchair and pummel him. Find that hard to believe? Enter the orphanage where he does dishes and cleans bathrooms FROM his wheelchair?! Introduce the homicidal pedophile orphanage director. SUDDENLY he's healed goes back to orphanage and without any training, having just started walking after 10 years proceeds to hack his computer and give him a beat down ... and later one of the bullies who has a knife. Not satisfied with the moronic story so far? Introduce him to a preliminary to enter the academy WHERE he just decides he needs to take a test (remember, he's only been walking for just a couple of days and has no clue how to fight). AND the first thing he decides to do in the test is, get this, let the monster attack him first so he can decide what to do! It's along the lines of, "I KNOW! I'll check to see if the boiling water is hot by sticking my hand in first." What I've just mentioned is SOME of the stupidity of only the first 1/4 of the book. I'd think this would be a good read for a 6 year old, but if you're older than 9 ... you'll be annoyed.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 31, 2020
☄️☄️ONE FASCINATING JOURNEY☄️☄️
Smackdown! Jakob absolutely nailed this incredibly spun debacle, revving up the exuberance and thrill, blazing this jewel together piece by piece. A churning edy chocked-full of taxing trials and exhilarating triumphs traversing the dramatic twists and intricate turns, broken boundaries are amplified and expanded, baring the soaring ups and agonizing downs, wrapping this baby up sleek, shiny and tight. Sparks fly as drama, secrets, intrigue, escalating danger, spiraling suspense and intense situations ensue in epic proportions, launching this jewel to life flawlessly. The characters are authentic, original and realistic with relatable qualities and individual traits, blend and flow adding depth and diversity, transforming into outstanding personalities. The scenes are abundantly descriptive with colorful details that blend and flow, creating a majestic backdrop that's so rich and lively it feels as though you were transported to ground zero with them. Fantastic job Jakob, thanks for sharing this little gem with us.
Smackdown! Jakob absolutely nailed this incredibly spun debacle, revving up the exuberance and thrill, blazing this jewel together piece by piece. A churning edy chocked-full of taxing trials and exhilarating triumphs traversing the dramatic twists and intricate turns, broken boundaries are amplified and expanded, baring the soaring ups and agonizing downs, wrapping this baby up sleek, shiny and tight. Sparks fly as drama, secrets, intrigue, escalating danger, spiraling suspense and intense situations ensue in epic proportions, launching this jewel to life flawlessly. The characters are authentic, original and realistic with relatable qualities and individual traits, blend and flow adding depth and diversity, transforming into outstanding personalities. The scenes are abundantly descriptive with colorful details that blend and flow, creating a majestic backdrop that's so rich and lively it feels as though you were transported to ground zero with them. Fantastic job Jakob, thanks for sharing this little gem with us.
November 30, 2020
I'm thinking we might need to make a new category for LitRPG called tower lit or something similar. This story is very similar to Tower of Power, or Irrelevant Jack, or any number of others, only it's not really obvious until near the end that something is rather unique about this story. I won't spoil it here, but I'd have to say that for the most part, it makes this story unique in the tower climbing genre. (There is another book I can't remember the name of at the moment, where it's similar), but mostly, the way this one is layed out isn't typical of your tower climbing books. So, with that said, the story is a decent one, and I like the way the different floors present new challenges as they should, though I'm a bit disgruntled at the senseless violence perpetrated by some in the story. Toning that down a bit wouldn't hurt the story any, though it certainly makes it clear who isn't on the side of the main character. Still, that minor irritant aside, I liked the story, and will likely read more in the series, since I generally tend to like the tower climbing type books.
July 23, 2021
Where to begin? This was a horrible hot mess. To call the characters paper thin would be insulting to paper, human hairs are thicker than these characters and their motivations. The "bullies", cause I can't even call them antagonist, are cartoonishly sociopathic, and apparently only know how to call people fools, or pathetic. Imagine Draco Malfoy from book one never matured and was still the same childish level of mouthy wanker at the end of the series, and that's the "bully" characters. 16+yo kids acting like they're 11. It's obnoxious.
The "school" setting is farcical at best, non-existent at worst. The rules to the "powers" feels made up on the fly.
The MCs maguffin ability doesn't even follow its own rules by the end and it literally stops making any sense.
What kills me though is there's small moments of brilliance that would give me hope the book was getting better, and then suddenly that carpet is yanked away again.
Maybe, with a good writing group to bounce ideas off of and an editor to call him on some of the nonsensical parts, he could become a really good author.
The "school" setting is farcical at best, non-existent at worst. The rules to the "powers" feels made up on the fly.
The MCs maguffin ability doesn't even follow its own rules by the end and it literally stops making any sense.
What kills me though is there's small moments of brilliance that would give me hope the book was getting better, and then suddenly that carpet is yanked away again.
Maybe, with a good writing group to bounce ideas off of and an editor to call him on some of the nonsensical parts, he could become a really good author.
August 10, 2022
story is worth four stars.
The story is actually very good. I enjoyed the characters of Max and his sidekick. what I did not like was the writing style. The author writes the characters as 15 year olds but it seems like the actual chronological age is 10. in real life Max is sidekick should be more mature than he is. And Max himself should be acting more street wise and or hip, especially if he comes from a foster home. for example if a caretaker is probably going to rape one of his charges call it what it is instead of beating around the bush. don’t write down to kids, they do not appreciate that. Kiss the day or more switched on then a lot of people think or a lot of people give them credit for. besides that I’m going to read the next book because of the ins and outs and the manipulations and situations that are going on in the story very good I hope Max and Company improve in the next book. Worth the read.
The story is actually very good. I enjoyed the characters of Max and his sidekick. what I did not like was the writing style. The author writes the characters as 15 year olds but it seems like the actual chronological age is 10. in real life Max is sidekick should be more mature than he is. And Max himself should be acting more street wise and or hip, especially if he comes from a foster home. for example if a caretaker is probably going to rape one of his charges call it what it is instead of beating around the bush. don’t write down to kids, they do not appreciate that. Kiss the day or more switched on then a lot of people think or a lot of people give them credit for. besides that I’m going to read the next book because of the ins and outs and the manipulations and situations that are going on in the story very good I hope Max and Company improve in the next book. Worth the read.
July 24, 2023
Had to stop at page 64. The writing is just too amatuer. The characters are caricatures of tropes. The cartoonish villainy of the bullies and orphanage director is only superseded by the ridiculousness of the protagonist turning the tables on them both in a handful of pages after regaining the ability to walk.
I'm not sure what the point of the wheelchair was, as it was immediately discarded with little to no thought. Since learning to walk wasn't even an issue, the power awakening could have as easily been any picked upon kid.
Similarly the orphanage seems pointless, except for an easy place for an over the top evil person to be working in proximity to the protagonist. Which could have just as easily been a neighbor or whatnot.
There's zero nuance to the writing, the characters, the environment, or the interactions.
I searched out other reviews to see if it gets better or if I was missing anything, and that doesn't appear to be the case, so I'm dropping it now.
I'm not sure what the point of the wheelchair was, as it was immediately discarded with little to no thought. Since learning to walk wasn't even an issue, the power awakening could have as easily been any picked upon kid.
Similarly the orphanage seems pointless, except for an easy place for an over the top evil person to be working in proximity to the protagonist. Which could have just as easily been a neighbor or whatnot.
There's zero nuance to the writing, the characters, the environment, or the interactions.
I searched out other reviews to see if it gets better or if I was missing anything, and that doesn't appear to be the case, so I'm dropping it now.
October 30, 2022
Extremely disappointing....... Makes me wonder who wrote this.. Is not anywhere close to the quality of the Authors other books. Its almost like someone else wrote this.
very poor grammar and word usage .. I don't understand this because the authors other series was nowhere near as bad as this book in that regard. His other series written in 2018 Arcane Kingdom Online was far far more polished than this. The overall story though is pretty good.. If confusing as hell at times. The world the author paints ...Makes little sense in some cases. Like the
very poor grammar and word usage .. I don't understand this because the authors other series was nowhere near as bad as this book in that regard. His other series written in 2018 Arcane Kingdom Online was far far more polished than this. The overall story though is pretty good.. If confusing as hell at times. The world the author paints ...Makes little sense in some cases. Like the
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