DIE. RESPAWN. REPEAT.

Blurb

Every time Ethan dies, he gains a little more power.

Earth was chosen for Integration, but Ethan Hill knows from the second his Trial begins that the Integration is a lie. The beings giving Earth the ‘honor’ of access to their System Interface want something from Earth—he just doesn’t know what.

Now he’s trapped on an alien planet and lost in a time loop, fighting for strength and for his own humanity.

One thing’s for sure: He’ll die as many times as it takes to tear it all down.

Don’t miss the start of this action-packed LitRPG Apocalypse Progression Fantasy which seamlessly merges aspects from LitRPG Apocalypse’s like He Who Fights with Monsters and Defiance of the Fall, with time-loop stories like Mother of Learning and Apocalypse Redux.

Thoughts

As of the time of writing this review, I’ve read the kindle book and extra chapters on Royal Road.

I thought I’d finish out 2024 with some of the classic tropes. Self-insertable MC from Earth chosen when the planet is integrated and taken to a trial or tutorial? Check. This tutorial is hard. Check. MC gets buckets of skills they can use to get stronger quickly. Check. There’s a fun (mantis) companion? Check. The MC grows to ascend to godhood and stomps the nasty aliens? Unsure - it’s still early days for DRR and who knows where it’s going. Apart from the author, that is.

This is a fun read, less popcorn than those like Defiance of the Fall, with a few more conversational sections and extra care given to dialogue between characters and exploring their personality and cultures than a pure hack-and-slash novel. The main gimmick is, of course, the time looping, and how Ethan is able to use this. Rather than being able to do his own thing forever, exploitation is quickly curtailed by challenges granted down from on high (ie the integrators watching the test) such that consequences (like someone dying) have a chance to persist through the loops, which helps keep the stakes in the story high.

The power system isn’t the norm, but a variation where credits are gained based on ones actions, and they can be banked to grant specific skill choices. The more credits you bank at once, of course, the better the skill. Then you can add on inspirations, upgrades, and skill fusions—which was the most fun and something I wish was explored more. It probably will be, I just need to keep reading!

In terms of the characters, Ethan isn’t your bloothirtst and ruthless MC. As expected from the author of Edge Cases and other works, our MC here is caring and empathetic, while still being focused on his goals. But will he drop-kick a child to get another credit in Strength? No, of course not. Not even in a time loop!

Ethan’s primary conversational partner in the series is his mantis companion. No, its a smaller, spectral thing, not the giant monster on the first book’s cover. I mean… the two are related, of course, but not identical. Instead of just being a yes-man for Ethan’s ideas, Ahkelios (the mantis) is a prior participant in the trial. He, like all others, failed, but his spirit lives on to make puns, offer moral support, and ponder existential questions like “What even am I now?”

The interactions between Ethan, Ahkelios, Tarin, and the other reoccuring characters keep the time loop from getting stale, and allow clearer character development outside of “Look at all these skills I have!”

Even though this is ostensibly a solo MC book, I think those who enjoy party dynamics would still enjoy it more than the lone-wolf readers, so if that’s you, then give DRR a shot.