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A Snake's Life #1
A Snake's Life
The afterlife isn't always what you think…
A loving father of three children, Alfred lived a life of few regrets. He served his country far from home. He outlived his soulmate. He died alone.
However, his assumptions about a peaceful eternity, reunited with his wife, are thrown out the window when a meddling god digs his fingers into Albert’s afterlife.
The positive? He will have a chance to see his wife again.
The negative? He has to survive the dangers of the legendary World Tree for the next three hundred years. He’s been reincarnated into a world full of magical evolutions, monstrous deer, sassy ten-year-old elves, and untold hidden dangers. It won’t be easy, but if life has taught Albert anything it’s this: If something is worth having, it's worth fighting for. And he intends to fight.
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First published March 31, 2020
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 77 reviews
June 29, 2020
I normally pride myself on spoiler-free reviews, but this book disappointment me so much that I can't help but to quite some examples of exactly where and why it did.
First off, you have the classic "fear the wife" trope:
And this supposedly insulting speech from the main character:
There is so, so much both wrong and cringy with this monologue. I first checked the publishing date, hoping that it would be old enough to exuse this, but it's from 2020... so there goes that.
And without giving you more quotes, this book did something rather impressive. For a book about traveling different worlds and meeting so many new races, species, etc... It felt like culture was lacking everywhere. Everyone seemed to have the same past experiences, save for some golbins in the second half of the book. Besides some basic personality and goal differences, just about everyone felt like the author. With all the variety being shown, I didn't expect everyone to sound like a white guy playing different roles to varying degrees. I expected actual variety. One where I could tell that different beings came from different cultures, valued different things, and such. Not this poorly done excuse for diversity.
Oh, and sexual assault is mentioned in this novel a couple times. The r word and all, one I can't personally handle. Two female characters get kidnapped to become sex slaves, and are sexually assaulted to different levels. It doesn't go into much detail, only enough so you know exactly what happened to them. And both of those females? Well, seemingly trauma free and unaffected after a bit time of being stone faced. So.. what the fuck was up with that?? It wasn't even treated seriously. The mental trauma wasn't addressed properly. It was just some disgusting fucking plot point to show how bad the bad guys are.
Sorry, I normally never swear, but that bit pissed me off the most.
I should have DNFed this book.
First off, you have the classic "fear the wife" trope:
And this supposedly insulting speech from the main character:
There is so, so much both wrong and cringy with this monologue. I first checked the publishing date, hoping that it would be old enough to exuse this, but it's from 2020... so there goes that.
And without giving you more quotes, this book did something rather impressive. For a book about traveling different worlds and meeting so many new races, species, etc... It felt like culture was lacking everywhere. Everyone seemed to have the same past experiences, save for some golbins in the second half of the book. Besides some basic personality and goal differences, just about everyone felt like the author. With all the variety being shown, I didn't expect everyone to sound like a white guy playing different roles to varying degrees. I expected actual variety. One where I could tell that different beings came from different cultures, valued different things, and such. Not this poorly done excuse for diversity.
Oh, and sexual assault is mentioned in this novel a couple times. The r word and all, one I can't personally handle. Two female characters get kidnapped to become sex slaves, and are sexually assaulted to different levels. It doesn't go into much detail, only enough so you know exactly what happened to them. And both of those females? Well, seemingly trauma free and unaffected after a bit time of being stone faced. So.. what the fuck was up with that?? It wasn't even treated seriously. The mental trauma wasn't addressed properly. It was just some disgusting fucking plot point to show how bad the bad guys are.
Sorry, I normally never swear, but that bit pissed me off the most.
I should have DNFed this book.
July 11, 2020
This book appears to be based on the game ‘snake’, which is mildly amusing for a few chapters. Unfortunately the snake in question is a huge asshole and the novelty rapidly wears off. I hope he gets made into boots for a hair metal band.
May 23, 2020
A fun and interesting take, I'm worried that too much has taken place and the pacing of the story will be an issue as the story continues.
Nonetheless, with so much of the mythos of the world building being around the Norse mythology, I wonder if we're reading about the birth of Níðhöggr. Nonetheless, it will be entertaining to read where this story goes.
Nonetheless, with so much of the mythos of the world building being around the Norse mythology, I wonder if we're reading about the birth of Níðhöggr. Nonetheless, it will be entertaining to read where this story goes.
March 29, 2020
A different LitRPG novel in that the main character is a reincarnated human, who a God had reached an agreement with, to give him a chance for an afterlife, but he reincarnated as a snake. Albert wanted this chance upon being told that his long lost wife had also been chosen to reincarnate, but that she would reincarnate as a hero, to represent another God, and because Albert had never gotten over her premature death he jumped at the chance to meet her once again. Not once ever dreaming of what life on such a different planet as a snake would be like. I really enjoyed the humorous way this novel is told, the snake though quite ruthless as a gluttonous ever growing monster, is quite charming with those he takes a shine to. He befriends a few humans but his main trait is that of defending the children and saving his friends. He starts to take on quests in order to evolve until he becomes this massive snake who managed to eat his way through a leviathan, a giant and so much more. The Gods play a very important part in all of this as Albert is the representative of Niabus, the God of destruction whilst Sarah was to become the hero representative of Forna, Niablus sibling and a life Goddess. As usual through all their bickering and fight for power they used humans as their pawns in the game. The adventure is non-stop and the world building of the various planets he manages to visit by travelling through the bifrost, a portal on the branches of the world tree, Yggdrasil is wondrous and beautifully detailed. I also enjoyed the fact that Albert retained his human memories and sarcastic sense of humour. I look forward to reading the next book in the series.
November 22, 2020
What is this nonsense?
So you've lived with a woman for ~40 years, and when you're so hung up on her that you're willing to live a +thousand+ years as a snake, just for the chance to see her pass by? What part of this story actually computes?
Then we get dropped to the actual "new world" and I realize that "Oh, this is a book about every creature but the MC being stupid, so the MC can shine no matter what they do". And I don't do well with that kind of story.
So I dropped it.
Maybe you'll like it though... What do I know.
So you've lived with a woman for ~40 years, and when you're so hung up on her that you're willing to live a +thousand+ years as a snake, just for the chance to see her pass by? What part of this story actually computes?
Then we get dropped to the actual "new world" and I realize that "Oh, this is a book about every creature but the MC being stupid, so the MC can shine no matter what they do". And I don't do well with that kind of story.
So I dropped it.
Maybe you'll like it though... What do I know.
April 9, 2020
I love it!! One of the best I have read this year. Can't wait for the next one
March 8, 2022
DNF @ 30%
I can't. Truly I can't keep going with this book. When there are seven chapters dedicated to just eating everything and being an awesome snake despite never having been a snake before, I'm done. I did try to continue on more, but I found myself rolling my eyes and wanting desperately to be in the later chapters so the book would just end. That's when I knew I had to pull the plug.
Infallibility is one of the greatest story killers that a main character can have, and boy does this character have it in droves. Being reincarnated into a completely new species is only a slight problem for about a chapter at the very beginning. After that, he is the best snake ever, eating everything that comes across his path. There were moments where I had hoped that we would be getting some interesting development, like when the character (who was previously human), eats a human for the first time. But nope. Nothing. The book treats it like it might be a big deal, but the character informs us that he doesn't care and moves on. Every fight that takes place, the character has the upper hand every single time. He's so cool and awesome. The best snake.
I tried to continue on past the first seven chapters where I'd decided I had enough, but it didn't get better. We moved past the eat everything stage and into actually talking to other creatures, but he never ceases to be the best and coolest snake around. The fact that he is going to be waiting around for hundreds of years for his wife to show up just tells me that the plot is going to continue to be a slog and I will not make it through this.
I also can't help but think that his wife's story would have been way more interesting.
I can't. Truly I can't keep going with this book. When there are seven chapters dedicated to just eating everything and being an awesome snake despite never having been a snake before, I'm done. I did try to continue on more, but I found myself rolling my eyes and wanting desperately to be in the later chapters so the book would just end. That's when I knew I had to pull the plug.
Infallibility is one of the greatest story killers that a main character can have, and boy does this character have it in droves. Being reincarnated into a completely new species is only a slight problem for about a chapter at the very beginning. After that, he is the best snake ever, eating everything that comes across his path. There were moments where I had hoped that we would be getting some interesting development, like when the character (who was previously human), eats a human for the first time. But nope. Nothing. The book treats it like it might be a big deal, but the character informs us that he doesn't care and moves on. Every fight that takes place, the character has the upper hand every single time. He's so cool and awesome. The best snake.
I tried to continue on past the first seven chapters where I'd decided I had enough, but it didn't get better. We moved past the eat everything stage and into actually talking to other creatures, but he never ceases to be the best and coolest snake around. The fact that he is going to be waiting around for hundreds of years for his wife to show up just tells me that the plot is going to continue to be a slog and I will not make it through this.
I also can't help but think that his wife's story would have been way more interesting.
July 17, 2020
I have honestly been disappointed in the lack of good books in the last few months. Thankfully this is a hidden gem! Do not be fooled by the bad reviews. Story is an beast evolution type litrpg. Guy gets reincarnated and keeps his old mentality no wishy washy this is a new world I'll forget everything I have learned story. Characters are believable and honestly I kept hoping some would reappear in the plot because I enjoyed them so much. World building is fluid and natural. Overall we need more good books like this! Thank you author for finally producing something I can't put down and had to read in one go. I wish you the best of luck in the next release and hope it comes soon!
Rating 9.5/10
Rating 9.5/10
January 16, 2024
A Struggle for Engagement - "A Snake's Life" (A Snake's Life, #1) by Kenneth Arant
Rating: ⭐ (1/5)
In Brief: Kenneth Arant's "A Snake's Life" fails to captivate with a lackluster narrative and unremarkable characters. The promise of an unconventional perspective through the eyes of a snake falls flat, bogged down by tedious world-building and uninspired storytelling. The potential for intrigue dissipates quickly, leaving readers grappling with a tale that slithers into mediocrity.
Shortcomings:
The unique perspective of a snake's life is squandered on mundane events, failing to capitalize on the inherent intrigue.
The attempt to construct a compelling fantasy realm lacks depth, resulting in a bland backdrop that fails to immerse the reader.
Protagonists lack the charisma or complexity needed to elicit genuine interest. Supporting characters are forgettable at best.
The narrative slithers at a sluggish pace, hindering any potential excitement or momentum.
The storyline lacks direction, meandering without purpose and leaving readers questioning the relevance of various events.
Conclusion: "A Snake's Life" fails to shed its uninspired trappings, offering a narrative that struggles to enthrall or engage. While the concept had potential, Arant's execution falls prey to monotony, resulting in a forgettable experience.
September 29, 2024
The leveling and pacing for this was all over the place. That, paired with how it seems like this is a comedy, is the reason I put it down. At one point the man who is a snake seems to become infatuated with this pirate lady only to find out she has a husband. The husband . He becomes jealous of the husband and throws him in the water. I couldn't go on.
March 7, 2021
Well that was different. For some reason I thought it was a kids book. It wasn’t
I listened to it in audio and it was entertaining to listen to while I was working but I think if I had read it it would have been slow going.
The more he evolves the more interesting the story gets for sure.
I listened to it in audio and it was entertaining to listen to while I was working but I think if I had read it it would have been slow going.
The more he evolves the more interesting the story gets for sure.
June 4, 2021
Note: I listened to an audiobook but as that edition is not currently listed on Goodreads.com I am placing my review here.
By LitRPG standards this book is exceptional for one reason: It covers a lot of ground and ends on a major accomplishment so it doesn't lack resolution even though the MC's main goal is still far off.
So the MC dies and is reincarnated by a god as a snake named Torga. This is done for reasons relating to conflicts between the gods (something the author handled well as it informs the story without distracting). Torga, however, knows nothing of the godly conflict. All Torga knows is he still misses his wife who died before him and reincarnation will allow Torga to meet his wife's reincarnation. However, Torga arrives several years ahead of his wife and, given the violent nature of the world, Torga decides to get as strong as possible before his wife arrives.
To do this Torga must progress up the world tree. Torga begins on a small forest planet with murderous deer where he meets and befriends a young druid and her druid grandmother. Next Torga goes to world that is all water except for three islands. Here Torga meets and eventually befriends Fenris, his druid wife, warrior-in-training son and druid-in-training daughter. Torga also encounters and must spend much time fleeing from a leviathan. Eventually Torga and co. find one of the few ports on the planet. Unfortunately this port is run by a man who believes he can take anything he wants, including Fenris' wife and daughter. When Torga discovers this he essentially rips the town apart to free the family.
Next Torga and co. make their way to the island with the world tree portal. The island has steep cliffs on all sides but Torga has the ability to eat anything, including stone, so he and Fenris begin the laborious task of tunneling upwards. A task that takes two years. During this time Torga gains an ability which allows him to kill his leviathan tormentor. Upon reaching the world tree portal Fenris & co. head to their home on the druid home world whereas Torga heads to a fire world.
On the fire world Torga encounters a giant mettle tortoise whose metal is highly magical. Then Torga encounters Kobolds who attack him, in part because one of them is a god's champion and so super tough. Torga is still able to win and pretty much eats all the kobolds. The neighboring goblins see this and so seek to appease Torga when he visits them next. This results in the goblins promising to mine a bunch of the turtle's magical metal for Torga and giving Torga several goblins to aid him in his travels. Torga also gains the ability to possess a body so now, by possessing a goblin, Torga can again have access to a humanoid form.
Torga & co. head to the world tree portal. Torga is ready to head to the druid home world but, as there is no direct connection, must first go to an inhabited world and travel to a second world tree portal on that world. While crossing an ocean on this world Torga & co. encounter a sea battle and join in as this is just free food for a leviathan sized Torga. This results in Torga meeting an extremely powerful couple of beings sharing one body: Prudence can tell virtually everything about a humanoid and Gore can do the same for beasts. Since all that happens here is a relatively short conversation, primarily between Prudence and Torga, it seems likely Prucence/Gore will be encountered again.
Next Torga and co. make their way to druid world where Torga reunites with all his old friend only to discover that the druid leader has become controlled by a dragon more powerful than Torga. And this is where I'll end my summary of the story since more details would only raise the prospect of spoiling the story.
Bottom line: I can see how this story might not be for everyone, but for me it was quite enjoyable and easily worth the time it took to read it.
By LitRPG standards this book is exceptional for one reason: It covers a lot of ground and ends on a major accomplishment so it doesn't lack resolution even though the MC's main goal is still far off.
So the MC dies and is reincarnated by a god as a snake named Torga. This is done for reasons relating to conflicts between the gods (something the author handled well as it informs the story without distracting). Torga, however, knows nothing of the godly conflict. All Torga knows is he still misses his wife who died before him and reincarnation will allow Torga to meet his wife's reincarnation. However, Torga arrives several years ahead of his wife and, given the violent nature of the world, Torga decides to get as strong as possible before his wife arrives.
To do this Torga must progress up the world tree. Torga begins on a small forest planet with murderous deer where he meets and befriends a young druid and her druid grandmother. Next Torga goes to world that is all water except for three islands. Here Torga meets and eventually befriends Fenris, his druid wife, warrior-in-training son and druid-in-training daughter. Torga also encounters and must spend much time fleeing from a leviathan. Eventually Torga and co. find one of the few ports on the planet. Unfortunately this port is run by a man who believes he can take anything he wants, including Fenris' wife and daughter. When Torga discovers this he essentially rips the town apart to free the family.
Next Torga and co. make their way to the island with the world tree portal. The island has steep cliffs on all sides but Torga has the ability to eat anything, including stone, so he and Fenris begin the laborious task of tunneling upwards. A task that takes two years. During this time Torga gains an ability which allows him to kill his leviathan tormentor. Upon reaching the world tree portal Fenris & co. head to their home on the druid home world whereas Torga heads to a fire world.
On the fire world Torga encounters a giant mettle tortoise whose metal is highly magical. Then Torga encounters Kobolds who attack him, in part because one of them is a god's champion and so super tough. Torga is still able to win and pretty much eats all the kobolds. The neighboring goblins see this and so seek to appease Torga when he visits them next. This results in the goblins promising to mine a bunch of the turtle's magical metal for Torga and giving Torga several goblins to aid him in his travels. Torga also gains the ability to possess a body so now, by possessing a goblin, Torga can again have access to a humanoid form.
Torga & co. head to the world tree portal. Torga is ready to head to the druid home world but, as there is no direct connection, must first go to an inhabited world and travel to a second world tree portal on that world. While crossing an ocean on this world Torga & co. encounter a sea battle and join in as this is just free food for a leviathan sized Torga. This results in Torga meeting an extremely powerful couple of beings sharing one body: Prudence can tell virtually everything about a humanoid and Gore can do the same for beasts. Since all that happens here is a relatively short conversation, primarily between Prudence and Torga, it seems likely Prucence/Gore will be encountered again.
Next Torga and co. make their way to druid world where Torga reunites with all his old friend only to discover that the druid leader has become controlled by a dragon more powerful than Torga. And this is where I'll end my summary of the story since more details would only raise the prospect of spoiling the story.
Bottom line: I can see how this story might not be for everyone, but for me it was quite enjoyable and easily worth the time it took to read it.
October 8, 2022
Overpowered main characters who aren't ever meaningfully challenged aren't that uncommon in Isekai/LitRPG, so I don't really count that against the book.
The thing is, for that to be an enjoyable read, you need other elements: things like a rich world, strong supporting characters, and/or a likeable main character with motivations that you can empathize with. Unfortunately, these are areas where the book falls short.
The supporting characters are, by and large, cardboard cutouts with very little personality. The one adult male supporting character is there to be a sidekick and get belittled by the MC (I think it was supposed to be more playful trash talk/banter, but that's not how it came across to me.) The females generally like him because he saved them, although only the 14 year old girl wants to bond with/marry him, which he declines, so it's...much less creepy than it could have been?
As for the MC, I think the author was going for something along the lines of 80s action movie badass type for personality, but what we get is an obnoxious sociopath. Despite being born human, there's not even a twinge of empathy or regret as he kills and eats intelligent beings (including, on occasion, humans), and not always in self defense -- frequently just because he's hungry or because they don't do what he wants. Basically, there are two kinds of people: the ones he likes (who are few in number, and will be protected) and food. If this were portrayed as any kind of ethical conundrum, I might not see the MC as a sociopath, but given that there's no sense that his personality has changed since becoming a snake, I'm just left wondering what his dead wife ever saw in him if she was supposedly such a good person.
With the Norse mythology backdrop, I think I'd really love this story with a likeable main character facing the ethical dilemma of being forced to become more and more of the monster that he's now shaped as in order to survive long enough to see his wife again, and leading up to the eventual clash of the hero (which we know his wife is going to be reborn as) and the World Serpent that he's becoming. That's what I envisioned given the premise, but this isn't that story.
The thing is, for that to be an enjoyable read, you need other elements: things like a rich world, strong supporting characters, and/or a likeable main character with motivations that you can empathize with. Unfortunately, these are areas where the book falls short.
The supporting characters are, by and large, cardboard cutouts with very little personality. The one adult male supporting character is there to be a sidekick and get belittled by the MC (I think it was supposed to be more playful trash talk/banter, but that's not how it came across to me.) The females generally like him because he saved them, although only the 14 year old girl wants to bond with/marry him, which he declines, so it's...much less creepy than it could have been?
As for the MC, I think the author was going for something along the lines of 80s action movie badass type for personality, but what we get is an obnoxious sociopath. Despite being born human, there's not even a twinge of empathy or regret as he kills and eats intelligent beings (including, on occasion, humans), and not always in self defense -- frequently just because he's hungry or because they don't do what he wants. Basically, there are two kinds of people: the ones he likes (who are few in number, and will be protected) and food. If this were portrayed as any kind of ethical conundrum, I might not see the MC as a sociopath, but given that there's no sense that his personality has changed since becoming a snake, I'm just left wondering what his dead wife ever saw in him if she was supposedly such a good person.
With the Norse mythology backdrop, I think I'd really love this story with a likeable main character facing the ethical dilemma of being forced to become more and more of the monster that he's now shaped as in order to survive long enough to see his wife again, and leading up to the eventual clash of the hero (which we know his wife is going to be reborn as) and the World Serpent that he's becoming. That's what I envisioned given the premise, but this isn't that story.
October 17, 2020
This takes the cake for the most awkward beginning to a book i've ever read, the author experiments with an awkward narrative flow which uses past tense for present action, he drops it fairly quick but it was jarring enough to almost make me drop the book.
The Negatives: The story follows the meandarring style of translated light novels with a fixed goal on the horizon and just a random assortment of actions and interactions in between, the main character is mostly bland and sometimes unlikeable, the supporting cast never trully step into their own as fully fledged characters remaining nothing more than mildly amusing motivation. Finally there was no dramatic tension in the major conflicts throughout the story, even when severly outclassed the main character remained unconcerned and so did i rendering any doubt as to outcome moot.
The Positives: The Power creep in the story was genuinely entertaining, The main character despite his flaws never takes you out of the story so much you can't commit to continuing the book, the initial blunder with past tenses aside the rest of the story flows rather well and the writing as well as editing is never aggressively unpleasant. The world building is consistent enough to picture.
Conclusion: A reasonably engaged few hours if anything else, the world doesn't draw you in and make you wish to join it, but it allows you a restful if brief visit.
The Negatives: The story follows the meandarring style of translated light novels with a fixed goal on the horizon and just a random assortment of actions and interactions in between, the main character is mostly bland and sometimes unlikeable, the supporting cast never trully step into their own as fully fledged characters remaining nothing more than mildly amusing motivation. Finally there was no dramatic tension in the major conflicts throughout the story, even when severly outclassed the main character remained unconcerned and so did i rendering any doubt as to outcome moot.
The Positives: The Power creep in the story was genuinely entertaining, The main character despite his flaws never takes you out of the story so much you can't commit to continuing the book, the initial blunder with past tenses aside the rest of the story flows rather well and the writing as well as editing is never aggressively unpleasant. The world building is consistent enough to picture.
Conclusion: A reasonably engaged few hours if anything else, the world doesn't draw you in and make you wish to join it, but it allows you a restful if brief visit.
March 23, 2022
Its a decent read if you want a fast-paced story without any details.
It's pretty much what the summary says it is, but executed terribly in my opinion. The MC is supposedly old, but comes off as juvenile in the way he speaks and acts. The story suffers from having an overpowered MC who gets everything handed to him included amazing classes. The fights are over in a few sentences with barely even a description of what the other creatures looked like. Honestly, the more I read about this character, it made me wonder whether the goddess was right in "saving his wife from him". Because he truly comes off as an evil prick and gets worse the more you read.
Oh, and there is no world-building. The plot is entirely hinged upon this guy(snake) getting powerful to protect his wife. To that end he just goes around eating literally everything. Doesn't matter if the creature is stronger than him because the author has his back, so he'll win without even a struggle.
I don't really understand the five star review because I'm really generous with my ratings and this definitely isn't 5 star material.
It's pretty much what the summary says it is, but executed terribly in my opinion. The MC is supposedly old, but comes off as juvenile in the way he speaks and acts. The story suffers from having an overpowered MC who gets everything handed to him included amazing classes. The fights are over in a few sentences with barely even a description of what the other creatures looked like. Honestly, the more I read about this character, it made me wonder whether the goddess was right in "saving his wife from him". Because he truly comes off as an evil prick and gets worse the more you read.
Oh, and there is no world-building. The plot is entirely hinged upon this guy(snake) getting powerful to protect his wife. To that end he just goes around eating literally everything. Doesn't matter if the creature is stronger than him because the author has his back, so he'll win without even a struggle.
I don't really understand the five star review because I'm really generous with my ratings and this definitely isn't 5 star material.
July 20, 2020
If you're looking for a slightly humorous LitRPG tale, then this one is a good choice. It's a bit unique as well, as I've seen very few stories in this genre that places the main character in the body of an actual animal (a rather large reptile in this case), so the mechinations of the main character to figure things out are rather amusing. Of course, by the end of the story, there are very few secrets left, and the character has everything well in hand, or at least he seems to think so, but we'll see how that turns out if there's additional stories in this series.
The only issue I had with this story (other than the bad grammar), was the fact that it used a *lot* of non english characters in the tex, and that caused my kindle app on my Iphone to crash whenever they were encountered. I got around this by reading it on my pc, but others may want to be aware of this in case it affects their reading similarly.
Otherwise, it was a decent story, and I will be happy to read more in the series.
The only issue I had with this story (other than the bad grammar), was the fact that it used a *lot* of non english characters in the tex, and that caused my kindle app on my Iphone to crash whenever they were encountered. I got around this by reading it on my pc, but others may want to be aware of this in case it affects their reading similarly.
Otherwise, it was a decent story, and I will be happy to read more in the series.
September 9, 2020
Alert
First, my review: “This was a fun book. I am glad that I read it. You should try it too.”
Over the past year it has become apparent that my reviews are somewhat antagonistic and I apologize to those of you that have taken offense. I think I had hoped to change peoples’ minds about reviewing works of art and that seems to have backfired spectacularly. However, I am still going to be true to myself and write what I believe.
To the author: Thank you for this chance to escape reality and enjoy the world you created! Keep up the good work.
To my fellow reviewers: Messaging me and reviewing my reviews is as productive as trying to shovel water out of the ocean. Stop. I get it. Let’s just all live peacefully.
To potential readers: Art needs to be experienced at an individual level. You are the only one that can determine what you like and don’t like. Don’t let others make that decision for you. You should definitely read the book and completely ignore all of the reviews. You are a much better judge of what you will like than anyone here.
Cheers
First, my review: “This was a fun book. I am glad that I read it. You should try it too.”
Over the past year it has become apparent that my reviews are somewhat antagonistic and I apologize to those of you that have taken offense. I think I had hoped to change peoples’ minds about reviewing works of art and that seems to have backfired spectacularly. However, I am still going to be true to myself and write what I believe.
To the author: Thank you for this chance to escape reality and enjoy the world you created! Keep up the good work.
To my fellow reviewers: Messaging me and reviewing my reviews is as productive as trying to shovel water out of the ocean. Stop. I get it. Let’s just all live peacefully.
To potential readers: Art needs to be experienced at an individual level. You are the only one that can determine what you like and don’t like. Don’t let others make that decision for you. You should definitely read the book and completely ignore all of the reviews. You are a much better judge of what you will like than anyone here.
Cheers
January 29, 2022
4 Warning Continuing On This Path May Lead To Corruption Stars
A Snake's Life, first book in the series by Kenneth Arant.
There's still a lot of ground to cover, knowledge to unearth, and mysteries to challenge. Even with all of yet unanswered questions still lurking in the back of my mind, I find I truly appreciated this work of literature. Arant takes us on an intriguing journey, not too unlike other LitRPG Sagas I've come to enjoy. "Everybody Loves Large Chests" series by Neven Iliev comes to mind. While not as dark, this work definitely has some intriguing similarities. Along with the Artorian's Archives Series, for more obvious reasons.
Outside of the unparalleled intrigue behind his still manifesting path of evolution; the gods quarrels, primarily Niabus and Forma's weird bond/relationship. I can already guess at this point that Torga is on a path to becoming his successor. Which only makes me wonder whether dear Sarah/Reina will follow a similar path and rise to manifest more life centric godly abilities and surpass her role as a hero?
A Snake's Life, first book in the series by Kenneth Arant.
There's still a lot of ground to cover, knowledge to unearth, and mysteries to challenge. Even with all of yet unanswered questions still lurking in the back of my mind, I find I truly appreciated this work of literature. Arant takes us on an intriguing journey, not too unlike other LitRPG Sagas I've come to enjoy. "Everybody Loves Large Chests" series by Neven Iliev comes to mind. While not as dark, this work definitely has some intriguing similarities. Along with the Artorian's Archives Series, for more obvious reasons.
Outside of the unparalleled intrigue behind his still manifesting path of evolution; the gods quarrels, primarily Niabus and Forma's weird bond/relationship. I can already guess at this point that Torga is on a path to becoming his successor. Which only makes me wonder whether dear Sarah/Reina will follow a similar path and rise to manifest more life centric godly abilities and surpass her role as a hero?
December 2, 2024
DNF at 80% (I tried!)
To summarize, I don't like the main character.
Dying in his sleep to be offered reincarnation in another (or multiple) world(s) in the hope of SEEING his deceased wife again...? At the cost of eternity...? Hmm? No thanks. This is an important detail. He might have the chance to see her again, but she might not even remember him. Moreover, since he has become an animal, he won't have the possibility of an afterlife like now. No, just no. Who would accept that?
I understand why the goddess calls him a "Tormentor" now, because he must have had quite an obsession.
Additionally, the pacing didn't appeal to me either. The use of ellipses (necessary since he might wait hundreds of years to see her again) is questionable, as are the adventures where the violence he demonstrates is equally problematic.
When you see the powers he gains in the lower tiers, I will NEVER be convinced that he can handle creatures of higher tiers, especially considering the short time since his arrival. His disdain for conscious life also has no basis in my opinion.
To summarize, I don't like the main character.
Dying in his sleep to be offered reincarnation in another (or multiple) world(s) in the hope of SEEING his deceased wife again...? At the cost of eternity...? Hmm? No thanks. This is an important detail. He might have the chance to see her again, but she might not even remember him. Moreover, since he has become an animal, he won't have the possibility of an afterlife like now. No, just no. Who would accept that?
I understand why the goddess calls him a "Tormentor" now, because he must have had quite an obsession.
Additionally, the pacing didn't appeal to me either. The use of ellipses (necessary since he might wait hundreds of years to see her again) is questionable, as are the adventures where the violence he demonstrates is equally problematic.
When you see the powers he gains in the lower tiers, I will NEVER be convinced that he can handle creatures of higher tiers, especially considering the short time since his arrival. His disdain for conscious life also has no basis in my opinion.
April 15, 2020
Alfred lived a good life. Although he'd died alone, he's never forgotten about the woman he's loved from the moment he laid eyes on her. In his mind, he looks forward to the afterlife. He'll be joining his late wife soon enough. Imagine his surprise when his trip to the pearly gates is circumvented. If he's to succeed in achieving an end to his own means, he'll need to learn everything he needs to know about living life as a snake. Doing so isn't easy, however. Most especially when there are so many things working against him at every turn.
Kenneth Arant has written an interesting tale. Full of LitRPG elements, this is a book that captures the reader's attention from the moment they begin reading. Mind you, this story is nothing like what one would normally find in a usual LitRPG book. That's what makes it so appealing.
I like the fact that the author has taken risks with this story. We're thrown smack-dab in the middle of Alfred's predicament. He now has to contend with life as a reptile. It's a life where the mundane is never ordinary. There's always something new to learn around the corner. The best part? We get to learn what he learns every step of the way.
There's no telling yet if he'll ever get to see his wife again. I do so hope he does. Granted, she has no idea who or what he is yet. She will, though, when the time comes. What will happen between them once they finally come face-to-face remains to be seen. Nevertheless, it'll be a journey we'll all take together. So can't wait!
Kenneth Arant has written an interesting tale. Full of LitRPG elements, this is a book that captures the reader's attention from the moment they begin reading. Mind you, this story is nothing like what one would normally find in a usual LitRPG book. That's what makes it so appealing.
I like the fact that the author has taken risks with this story. We're thrown smack-dab in the middle of Alfred's predicament. He now has to contend with life as a reptile. It's a life where the mundane is never ordinary. There's always something new to learn around the corner. The best part? We get to learn what he learns every step of the way.
There's no telling yet if he'll ever get to see his wife again. I do so hope he does. Granted, she has no idea who or what he is yet. She will, though, when the time comes. What will happen between them once they finally come face-to-face remains to be seen. Nevertheless, it'll be a journey we'll all take together. So can't wait!
February 25, 2023
This is a fun Isekai adventure. It celebrates a snake life, just as the title suggests. I somehow expected the book to be similar to Paradox by Zendran which is about an Ouroboros, but it's not similar at all. It's not even close which makes gamelit and it's diversity, so much fun to read!
This is Albert's story, about his reincarnation, the deal he made with a god, and how he goes about powering up his new body in the hopes of the meet-up with his wife, promised to him when the deal was made. Of how his morals were tested and how he held true to them, inorder to protect innocent children. And I loved it soooooooo much.
It didn’t hurt at all that Travis Baldree narrated this book. Travis Baldree gives us an amazing performance. So what are you waiting for, go grab the audiobook.
This is Albert's story, about his reincarnation, the deal he made with a god, and how he goes about powering up his new body in the hopes of the meet-up with his wife, promised to him when the deal was made. Of how his morals were tested and how he held true to them, inorder to protect innocent children. And I loved it soooooooo much.
It didn’t hurt at all that Travis Baldree narrated this book. Travis Baldree gives us an amazing performance. So what are you waiting for, go grab the audiobook.
September 14, 2020
A great start to a different kind of LitRPG
The overview: the standard man dies, meets a god, gets an offer to make a difference instead of a normal afterlife; however, instead of a hero, he agrees to become something different for a chance to reunite with his predeceased wife (who wad selected to be a hero). It is not harem, light on stats, with a non-humanoid MC, well-written, with a good sense of humor and excellent editing. A great departure from the all too common whiny, self-absorbed MC with moral quandaries that tend to dominate this genre. If you love Fantasy and/or LitRPG and are looking for a change of pace, I strongly recommend this book.
The overview: the standard man dies, meets a god, gets an offer to make a difference instead of a normal afterlife; however, instead of a hero, he agrees to become something different for a chance to reunite with his predeceased wife (who wad selected to be a hero). It is not harem, light on stats, with a non-humanoid MC, well-written, with a good sense of humor and excellent editing. A great departure from the all too common whiny, self-absorbed MC with moral quandaries that tend to dominate this genre. If you love Fantasy and/or LitRPG and are looking for a change of pace, I strongly recommend this book.
did-not-finish
November 1, 2021I liked the premise, but when the little girl came in, it kinda killed the vibe for me. He'd been ruthless and seeking to evolve (and killing lots of cool things lol), but now he's got this little girl tag along who he has to protect, and so he can't do all the things he was before and is now restraining himself and his growth.
Maybe I could have continued if I found the little girl likable, but she just annoyed me. *shrug* I probably won't pick this back up.
This book just wasn't for me, but if you don't mind kid sidekicks that are bossy and pretty helpless, then you should be able to power through that part just fine :)
Maybe I could have continued if I found the little girl likable, but she just annoyed me. *shrug* I probably won't pick this back up.
This book just wasn't for me, but if you don't mind kid sidekicks that are bossy and pretty helpless, then you should be able to power through that part just fine :)
January 27, 2021
An all night reader
If you are reading the reviews for this book then you are probably not looking for the next "Ulysses" or "Sound and the Fury". That's good because thus book is not that. What it is however is massively entertaining. It has RPG elements, but doesn't get weighed down by endless pages of the MC internally debating the merits of where to put their points. This book is pure entertainment, distilled down to under 300 pages. If you're looking for something short and fun this is it!
If you are reading the reviews for this book then you are probably not looking for the next "Ulysses" or "Sound and the Fury". That's good because thus book is not that. What it is however is massively entertaining. It has RPG elements, but doesn't get weighed down by endless pages of the MC internally debating the merits of where to put their points. This book is pure entertainment, distilled down to under 300 pages. If you're looking for something short and fun this is it!
June 30, 2020
Fun!
A very well written, fun book with an engaging giant snake for a main character! Not something I've come across before and which could have gone dreadfully wrong in another writer's hands. But Mr Arant created interesting characters, put them in an unusual world and wrote with a good grasp of the English language, easy humour and a nice balance of action and exposition. Bravo!
A very well written, fun book with an engaging giant snake for a main character! Not something I've come across before and which could have gone dreadfully wrong in another writer's hands. But Mr Arant created interesting characters, put them in an unusual world and wrote with a good grasp of the English language, easy humour and a nice balance of action and exposition. Bravo!
December 14, 2020
Thought this could be an interesting twist on the LitRPG genre. I'm Always on the lookout for person becomes an interesting species that isn't human, pointy eared human, or short human. Unfortunately Arant's writing skill isn't really up to the task on this one. Most of the book was just, and then Alfred got biggerer and more biggerest. The setting has promise but the narrative just doesn't do it for me.
March 2, 2022
I really enjoyed this book! Gives me all of the leveling and class evolving I love from the genre, but from the less-common perspective of a fantasy beast. I will admit that I am more interested in seeing how the MC will grow and change than the actual plot. Characters are pretty weak too. But there are enough hints of things to come and interesting story threads to make me excited for what's next. Not a masterpiece by any means, but a fun read for sure.
April 20, 2022
I'm a fan of the author (some of his other books are fantastic and I'm really excited for him to continue the series), but not this series I think. The main character turns into a snake-thing but loses all morals and goes around eating anything he can (sentient or not) and spends his time lording over the few beings he doesn't kill. He breaks promises, eats people he said he wouldn't and goes about living like a tyrant (and there is absolutely no internal dialogue about ethics or anything).
September 20, 2020
Truly awesome story
When I began the story of Alex A.K.A Torga the serpent. I was hesitant as to how good it could be. To my surprise it was a fantastic story. Engrossing infact. I had a hard time putting it down to sleep. The funnest part was watching Torgas evolution. As he got bigger and bigger etc. Boy did he grow. Awesome job Kenneth Arant.
When I began the story of Alex A.K.A Torga the serpent. I was hesitant as to how good it could be. To my surprise it was a fantastic story. Engrossing infact. I had a hard time putting it down to sleep. The funnest part was watching Torgas evolution. As he got bigger and bigger etc. Boy did he grow. Awesome job Kenneth Arant.
September 30, 2020
Good Book
Good twist on the standard storyline of reincarnating to another world. The writing as well done and draws you into the story. The main characters whole attitude and approach is like that of an old man, unlike so many stories nowadays with the main character is supposed to be old but acts like a teenager.
Good twist on the standard storyline of reincarnating to another world. The writing as well done and draws you into the story. The main characters whole attitude and approach is like that of an old man, unlike so many stories nowadays with the main character is supposed to be old but acts like a teenager.
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