Head of the Bloodline (Living Ice Book 5): A Portal Progression Fantasy Series

Living Ice #5

by Dmitry Sheleg

The next books of the series!
A True Prince (Living Ice Book 6):
Master of Circumstance (Living Ice Book 7):
Power Speaks Loudest (Living Ice Book 8):

Battles with demons, intrigue, duels, honey traps, and no shortage of adventure in general… the heir of a noble lineage certainly leads an eventful life. We wonder what will change once he becomes a prince?

Will his troubles multiply exponentially? Will enemies try to smear the good name of the Morozovs? Or will circumstances inexorably make Ivan march off to war?

Genres: Fantasy, Litrpg, Urban Fantasy

331 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 27, 2025

Reviews

[Akshay · Rating 3 out of 5]

Head of the Bloodline (Living Ice #5) by Dmitry Sheleg

Rating: ★★★☆☆ (3.0)

Progression fantasy | Portal fantasy | Noble intrigue | War arc | Political fantasy

If you’ve been waiting for Ivan to stop being a promising heir and start becoming a dangerous political force, this is the book where it happens.

Head of the Bloodline is messy, ambitious, and relentlessly plot-heavy. The academy phase is over. Now it’s aristocratic power struggles, wartime paranoia, foreign factions, and enough scheming nobles to destabilize a kingdom. This isn’t a training arc anymore — it’s a national survival arc.

Summary

Ivan begins the book having survived his father’s murder attempt and graduated from the academy, only to discover that being a powerful young noble is more dangerous than being a student ever was.

His family name now attracts political opportunists, marriage schemers, assassins, and foreign agents. He rescues vulnerable children, strengthens his claim as the de facto Morozov heir, and is pulled into widening geopolitical conflicts involving the Atkuvians and foreign powers.

The military arc delivers the book’s most tense development: the army is riddled with spies and traitors. The enemy isn’t just across the battlefield — it’s inside the command structure. By the end, Ivan is stronger but surrounded by even more enemies, and the book closes on a semi-cliffhanger clearly designed to launch Book 6.

What Worked

Ivan Steps Into Power

This is where Ivan stops reacting and starts shaping events. Nobles circle him strategically — some trying to manipulate him, others trying to seduce or eliminate him. The political tension finally matches the series’ growing scope.

War and Espionage Paranoia

The revelation of how deeply compromised the wartime military is adds a strong layer of tension. The battlefield becomes psychological as much as physical.

Expanding Cosmology

The Atkuvian plotlines and off-world elements continue to hint at a much larger conflict beyond capital court drama, reinforcing that this is no longer just noble politics — it’s inter-civilizational maneuvering.

Strategic Problem-Solving

Even with faster pacing, we still get flashes of the resource management and logistical thinking that define strong progression fantasy.

What Didn’t Work for Me

Heavy Time Jumps

The first half often feels like a highlight reel instead of a fully immersive narrative. Emotional beats don’t always get room to breathe.

Underdeveloped Subplots

The slaver storyline and parts of the Svetlana arc feel more functional than meaningful — pressure generators rather than character deepeners.

Spy Saturation

The sheer density of traitors strains plausibility at times. Yes, it raises stakes, but it occasionally feels like narrative stacking.

Semi-Cliffhanger Structure

At 331 pages, this installment feels more like an episode in a serialized saga than a fully resolved arc. Readers wanting a contained narrative payoff may feel unsatisfied.

Themes and Direction

This volume doubles down on:

Aristocratic power as corrosive inheritance
The burden of bloodline legacy
The danger of becoming a political asset

Ivan’s father remains the series’ most toxic presence — a living embodiment of how a bloodline can be both blessing and curse. The tension between legacy and autonomy continues to anchor the story.

Final Verdict

Head of the Bloodline is a momentum-heavy escalation book. It sacrifices some depth and smooth structural flow for scale, paranoia, and political expansion.

If you’re already invested in Ivan’s transformation from nearly murdered heir to geopolitical force, you’ll want to keep going — even if the constant sense of to be continued is starting to test your patience.

Recommended for committed series readers.

Newcomers should absolutely start with Book 1.

[Johnny · Rating 4 out of 5]

I know, this one is very late as well. I just finished the arc and I do wish I had gotten to it sooner. hopefully they found the majority of the mistakes before publication. I did send a list of what I found so those will be corrected. this is a little bit of political maneuvering and some business Empire building and combat. I'm waiting to see what book 6 will bring, then as soon as I finish this review I plan to start reading it and get caught up on this series. so without further ado,

7/10 this one seemed to sort of jump from scenario to scenario. so well it's a good book I can only give it 7 out of 10.

[Queen Suga · Rating 5 out of 5]

awesome book 5

Ivan is alive! And growing up right before our eyes! He’s saved a bunch of kids, graduated from the academy and the vultures of circling. He’s survived having his father trying to kill him and now he has enemies on an international scale. From other aristocrats to women trying to baby trap him. He needs to keep his wits about him if he wants to survive long. Book 5 was a tollercoaster and I can’t wait for book 6

[Mariana Valdoleiros · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoy this series , the characters actually make sense and don’t feel dumb just to move the plot along, which is something I’ve seen a lot in other Russian LitRPGs. That said, it still has that unmistakable Russian LitRPG vibe , there's just a certain je ne sais quoi to it.

There are a few things that bug me, though. One recurring issue throughout the series is how characters are referred to. On the same page, a character might be called “John” in one sentence and “Smith” in the next. I barely remember their first names, let alone family names, so that just adds confusion. It's the first time I’ve actually had this problem in a book.
Also, the random time jumps can be a bit jarring, but I’ve learned to just roll with it.
The biggest issue for me is how the author ends each book — it absolutely drives me up the wall. I’ve decided to wait until the entire series is finished before continuing, because my poor heart can't take these kinda-cliffhangers anymore.

That said, for me ,this still stands out as one of the best-written series in the genre. I'm definitely looking forward to the rest , and seriously, someone please unalive that asshole father already.

[Travis · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received a review copy of this book.

Lots of interesting information about the war is revealed in this book, although some of it was gathered by a most unusual method. Certainly not the recommended method, but hey, if it works.
This book was pretty good, and although it didn't advance the main character's personal story all that much, it did show us much about the world, and the way things are laid out in this world. Looking forward to the next one.

[Murphies_law · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was just okay

About half of the book consists of short episodes with a lot of time jumping, most likely to make the scenes more thrilling.

I found the intrigue parts only mildly interesting, but loved the parts that involved the Atkuvians. I was no big fan of the Svetlana plot either. The slaver plot seemed really contrived. The plot of the second half of the book was just okay.

[Jason W · Rating 4 out of 5]

Felt rushed

Tye last book had a great ending so I was excited to read this one. Unfortunately, this one felt very rushed. The transitioned from one part to another were pretty clunky and there seemed to be a lot of fluff for a short book. I’d give it 3 stars but the ending was very strong.

[Tony Hinde · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this episode. While the story skipped ahead a couple of times without warning, it served to focus on the main plot elements without the pace dragging.

My credulity was strained when the war-time military, that Ivan joined, was so riddled with spies and turncoats. However, it did serve as a near impossible challenge for our hero, so... yay?

I can't wait for the next book.

[Ron McCollum · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoy the series priced too high

While I really enjoy this and other series the pricing is out of control and this will be my last purchase of this series and others that have sky rocketed in price.......
$8.99 JUST SAY NO!

[Darrell Cook · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lots of plotting!

No one plots like a bunch of royals trying to retain power unearned. Yup, lots of fun to watch as the fools try to outdo each other with convoluted plots the defeat themselves.

[Cody Harlow · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great overall story

I'm not sure if it the translation be the last two books changed the rank level of one of the main characters went from top rank warrion to a rank below. Overall, the story is really good, like it will continue to read.

[Michael Burnett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book

Great book I can't wait to read the next book in the series I would recommend this author to anyone

[Dantegideon · Rating 3 out of 5]

I quite enjoyed this, but things happen very abruptly and that spoils the feeling somewhat.