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Way of the Immortals #2
Divine Madness
Things are only starting to heat up for Nick Barnette.
Upon escaping the city of Nagchu, Nick and his companions barely manage to survive a surprise attack from an incredibly powerful being, one clearly not of their world.
And that isn’t the only thing after them.
With Lhandon’s monastery under siege, Nick’s group must head toward the Darkhan Mountains, to the snow lion village of Dornod, in search of training and to officially reset of the Path of the Divine. Through meditation, combat, and study, Nick and his companions continue to cultivate their powers while in the village of Dornod. Their ultimate goal is to reach the Island Kingdom of Jonang, where Nick hopes to find his Marine friend Hugo, and Lhandon hopes to locate the reincarnation of the Exonerated One.
But their enemies are also growing stronger.
And it is through sheer treachery that Nick and Lhandon find themselves in a life or death situation, one that could end their epic saga before it has a chance to even start.
Way of the Immortals Book Two: Divine Madness is a western cultivation series weaving Bhutanese and Tibetan lore into a fast-paced action novel that xianxia, wuxia, LitRPG, and progression fantasy readers will love. Way of the Immortals is a portal fantasy written by Harmon Cooper, bestselling GameLit author of Death’s Mantle, House of Dolls, Cherry Blossom Girls, the Feedback Loop and Monster Hunt NYC. A portion of the sales of this series will go to Tibet House.
Upon escaping the city of Nagchu, Nick and his companions barely manage to survive a surprise attack from an incredibly powerful being, one clearly not of their world.
And that isn’t the only thing after them.
With Lhandon’s monastery under siege, Nick’s group must head toward the Darkhan Mountains, to the snow lion village of Dornod, in search of training and to officially reset of the Path of the Divine. Through meditation, combat, and study, Nick and his companions continue to cultivate their powers while in the village of Dornod. Their ultimate goal is to reach the Island Kingdom of Jonang, where Nick hopes to find his Marine friend Hugo, and Lhandon hopes to locate the reincarnation of the Exonerated One.
But their enemies are also growing stronger.
And it is through sheer treachery that Nick and Lhandon find themselves in a life or death situation, one that could end their epic saga before it has a chance to even start.
Way of the Immortals Book Two: Divine Madness is a western cultivation series weaving Bhutanese and Tibetan lore into a fast-paced action novel that xianxia, wuxia, LitRPG, and progression fantasy readers will love. Way of the Immortals is a portal fantasy written by Harmon Cooper, bestselling GameLit author of Death’s Mantle, House of Dolls, Cherry Blossom Girls, the Feedback Loop and Monster Hunt NYC. A portion of the sales of this series will go to Tibet House.
- GenresFantasy
509 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 21, 2019
187 people are currently reading
50 people want to read
About the author
Harmon Cooper
143 books367 followersHarmon Cooper is the author of over sixty fantasy works. His bestselling series include Pilgrim, War Priest, Cowboy Necromancer, and Tokens and Towers.
His series, The Feedback Loop, is one of the earlier GameLit works first published in 2015. An earphone award winner for the series Death's Mantle, Harmon won the LitRPG/GameLit Audiobook of the Year award for Sacred Cat Island, narrated by Legends and Lattes author Travis Baldree.
Harmon write progression fantasy, cultivation fantasy, and LitRPG/GameLit.
His series, The Feedback Loop, is one of the earlier GameLit works first published in 2015. An earphone award winner for the series Death's Mantle, Harmon won the LitRPG/GameLit Audiobook of the Year award for Sacred Cat Island, narrated by Legends and Lattes author Travis Baldree.
Harmon write progression fantasy, cultivation fantasy, and LitRPG/GameLit.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
January 27, 2021
Not a fan. I wasn’t thrilled with book one but decided to give this a try anyway. Got a third of the way through the book and decided to quit waiting for something that wasn’t going to happen.
No cultivation yet. They are barely establishing the various stage parameters which is funny it took so long for something basic. The author’s idea of player progression is a mysterious training that is unexplained. He works out during the day, and gets his ass handed to him at night. Never says what he learned or how he is changing to get better, just is leagues better each night? This is the part most people love and the author just doesn’t address it? Where’s the cultivation style Rocky IV training montage? What cool way is he utilizing the divine path to cultivate the way of the immortals? Answer is get his ass kicked and work out......
Besides his pet Roger the bird and the ice spirit who left, the other people in the story are monotone and boring. All the same person with a different name. Roger is pretty funny though.
Not going to finish and I may be done with this author. One of the worst cultivation series I have read so far.
No cultivation yet. They are barely establishing the various stage parameters which is funny it took so long for something basic. The author’s idea of player progression is a mysterious training that is unexplained. He works out during the day, and gets his ass handed to him at night. Never says what he learned or how he is changing to get better, just is leagues better each night? This is the part most people love and the author just doesn’t address it? Where’s the cultivation style Rocky IV training montage? What cool way is he utilizing the divine path to cultivate the way of the immortals? Answer is get his ass kicked and work out......
Besides his pet Roger the bird and the ice spirit who left, the other people in the story are monotone and boring. All the same person with a different name. Roger is pretty funny though.
Not going to finish and I may be done with this author. One of the worst cultivation series I have read so far.
October 26, 2019
I love the continuing karmic adventures of Nick and our friends to find the reincarnation of the Exonerated One. They feel like friends now. They do to me anyway. I also enjoyed finding out more about the 'original' Immortals, those who came through the portals first.
The author really works hard on language, runes, and ensuring that the Buddhist references are true. You can tell that a lot has come from the author's 'real life'. I particularly love the way that Llandon's confidence, use of knowledge, and even his physical stance has grown since his rise in status. You can feel it through the words, as you turn the pages. I don't want to spoil the story for anyone, however, characters are NOT to be underestimated, that means ANY of them, and a very (very!) pleasant surprise is waiting for you. The tears were welling up in my eyes...and my heart was in my mouth!
I love all the characters, yes, even the horrible ones, as they all have their place (unfortunately). They make you equate their actions with your own life and your own journey, how you treat others, and where you want to be. This second book is deeper and a wee bit slower in pace than the first, but it loses nothing for that. I can't wait to see what, and who, our friends will meet up with next and, consequently, what I will be learning from them. Love this series so much, and the fact that the author is giving a portion of the sales to Tibet House. Kudos, Mr Cooper, kudos.
I feel that not only are readers learning about the characters and the lore, we are also learning more about Harmon Cooper himself: the author, student, and teacher.
I chose this book from a larger selection, which I then voluntarily read and honestly reviewed. All opinions are my own.
The author really works hard on language, runes, and ensuring that the Buddhist references are true. You can tell that a lot has come from the author's 'real life'. I particularly love the way that Llandon's confidence, use of knowledge, and even his physical stance has grown since his rise in status. You can feel it through the words, as you turn the pages. I don't want to spoil the story for anyone, however, characters are NOT to be underestimated, that means ANY of them, and a very (very!) pleasant surprise is waiting for you. The tears were welling up in my eyes...and my heart was in my mouth!
I love all the characters, yes, even the horrible ones, as they all have their place (unfortunately). They make you equate their actions with your own life and your own journey, how you treat others, and where you want to be. This second book is deeper and a wee bit slower in pace than the first, but it loses nothing for that. I can't wait to see what, and who, our friends will meet up with next and, consequently, what I will be learning from them. Love this series so much, and the fact that the author is giving a portion of the sales to Tibet House. Kudos, Mr Cooper, kudos.
I feel that not only are readers learning about the characters and the lore, we are also learning more about Harmon Cooper himself: the author, student, and teacher.
I chose this book from a larger selection, which I then voluntarily read and honestly reviewed. All opinions are my own.
January 3, 2021
Although I had book two before I finished book one, i didn't want to jump right into this installment. No, not because I thought the first one sucked - but to just take a break from fantasy. The good news, i cranked through this continuation and didn't lose sight of the story or characters. In other words, I retained something memorable,which, sadly, isn't always the case.
The re-codification of the Path is something I gloss over and I couldn't tell you which immortals founded which kingdom (even though it is repeated a few times). Guess what? It doesn't matter - I still follow the story just fine 😉
You still have a trinity, or Heaven (enlightened, good karma), Hell (bad karma) and the middle place, i.e., us (Earth or otherwise). You also happen to have outsiders from another existence (Nick and his Massachusetts friends). I'm curious to see more about how Earth factors into the mix (why the Immortals come from here and have powers).
This installment picks up straight away and Nick hooks up with Saruul again as he trains in the village of Dornod with the snow lions. As he trains, Lhandon does his re-codification bit. But training must end and the journey takes the team toward the Kingdom of Jonang with NIck looking for a friend and Lhandon looking for the reincarnated Exonerated One.
Of course, things aren't easy. There are fight scenes, poison, torture and more. This was a fun installment and I am diving right into Book 3.
ARC Provided. Read February 2020. 4.5 of 5 stars.
The re-codification of the Path is something I gloss over and I couldn't tell you which immortals founded which kingdom (even though it is repeated a few times). Guess what? It doesn't matter - I still follow the story just fine 😉
You still have a trinity, or Heaven (enlightened, good karma), Hell (bad karma) and the middle place, i.e., us (Earth or otherwise). You also happen to have outsiders from another existence (Nick and his Massachusetts friends). I'm curious to see more about how Earth factors into the mix (why the Immortals come from here and have powers).
This installment picks up straight away and Nick hooks up with Saruul again as he trains in the village of Dornod with the snow lions. As he trains, Lhandon does his re-codification bit. But training must end and the journey takes the team toward the Kingdom of Jonang with NIck looking for a friend and Lhandon looking for the reincarnated Exonerated One.
Of course, things aren't easy. There are fight scenes, poison, torture and more. This was a fun installment and I am diving right into Book 3.
ARC Provided. Read February 2020. 4.5 of 5 stars.
October 31, 2019
The Way of the Immortals 2 is a clever “Western cultivation” book- and if you have no idea what that means, you aren’t alone. The book, second in a series, has game lit elements as well as magic, talking animals, and interspecies (alien) sex. It’s just a bit different! If you read the first book, you should have a pretty good idea what you are getting into with this one. If not, it would probably be a good idea to start with book 1.
Unfortunately while I enjoyed the first book, the second book seems to ramble and drag on in the middle, and I found myself skimming large portions of the text. Much of the book is relegated to training and explaining a strange alien belief system that is loosely based on Tibetan and Bhutanese beliefs. For those who are interested in that, this should be pretty good stuff, but I honestly was not into it.
Thankfully the book picks up considerably in the end and future installments promise to be much more fast paced.
I received a complimentary advanced copy of this book. This is my honest and voluntary review.
Unfortunately while I enjoyed the first book, the second book seems to ramble and drag on in the middle, and I found myself skimming large portions of the text. Much of the book is relegated to training and explaining a strange alien belief system that is loosely based on Tibetan and Bhutanese beliefs. For those who are interested in that, this should be pretty good stuff, but I honestly was not into it.
Thankfully the book picks up considerably in the end and future installments promise to be much more fast paced.
I received a complimentary advanced copy of this book. This is my honest and voluntary review.
December 5, 2019
Alert
I hate trying to write reviews because there are really only pass/fail results for me. Did I make it all the way through? Yes? 5 stars. No? There would be nothing here to read. In all fairness, if an author holds my attention from page one to the end, they’ve done their job. Anything less than 5 stars is petty criticism from someone incapable of even doing the job let alone doing a better one.
So in respect for the author and their work, I am going to start pasting this along with a generic review I found somewhere. “This was a fun book. I am glad that I read it. You should try it too.”
Cheers
I hate trying to write reviews because there are really only pass/fail results for me. Did I make it all the way through? Yes? 5 stars. No? There would be nothing here to read. In all fairness, if an author holds my attention from page one to the end, they’ve done their job. Anything less than 5 stars is petty criticism from someone incapable of even doing the job let alone doing a better one.
So in respect for the author and their work, I am going to start pasting this along with a generic review I found somewhere. “This was a fun book. I am glad that I read it. You should try it too.”
Cheers
February 22, 2020
Im really enjoying this mix of King Fu and Fantasy as we learn how Nick journeys along his Path brings him even more enemies and a better understanding of what is needed to succeed.
Great characters and a few surprises from rhe first that keep the brain and ears listening. Can't wait for 3 to see what happens next.
Neil does a stand up job as expected and i find it intriguing to listen to him doing the explanations.
Great characters and a few surprises from rhe first that keep the brain and ears listening. Can't wait for 3 to see what happens next.
Neil does a stand up job as expected and i find it intriguing to listen to him doing the explanations.
April 29, 2025
Divine Madness
Nick and his companions are in a lot of trouble. Still separated from all of his friends from Earth and the monastery that gave them shelter is under siege, they can only flee the area. Nick decides to travel to the village of the snow lions to get stronger in order to face these threats.
This action packed western cultivation series certainly has its charm. The world building highly detailed and I love the snow lion’s culture. I wish they could have stayed in that location more. This is part of the Way of the Immortals omnibus set. Neil Hellegers does a great job with the narration!
Content warning: language
Nick and his companions are in a lot of trouble. Still separated from all of his friends from Earth and the monastery that gave them shelter is under siege, they can only flee the area. Nick decides to travel to the village of the snow lions to get stronger in order to face these threats.
This action packed western cultivation series certainly has its charm. The world building highly detailed and I love the snow lion’s culture. I wish they could have stayed in that location more. This is part of the Way of the Immortals omnibus set. Neil Hellegers does a great job with the narration!
Content warning: language
October 26, 2019
Another Kicking Success
Im really enjoying this mix of King Fu and Fantasy as we learn how Nick journeys along his Path brings him even more enemies and a better understanding of what is needed to succeed.
Great characters and a few surprises from Book 1 that keep the pages turning. Can't wait for book 3 to see what happens next.
Im really enjoying this mix of King Fu and Fantasy as we learn how Nick journeys along his Path brings him even more enemies and a better understanding of what is needed to succeed.
Great characters and a few surprises from Book 1 that keep the pages turning. Can't wait for book 3 to see what happens next.
October 27, 2019
A good wuxia novel.
I enjoy how this series explores the idea of how karma can be accumulated over time as either positive or negative. The pacing was good and I enjoyed the secondary characters.
I enjoy how this series explores the idea of how karma can be accumulated over time as either positive or negative. The pacing was good and I enjoyed the secondary characters.
April 12, 2020
Good
This book was not as good as the first book in the series, it seemed a little rushed and chaotic. It was almost as if there was too much action and not enough character interaction, and this is honestly the first time ever that I write that sentence.
This book was not as good as the first book in the series, it seemed a little rushed and chaotic. It was almost as if there was too much action and not enough character interaction, and this is honestly the first time ever that I write that sentence.
December 7, 2019
Fun series
This is a good book. You should read it. I like the story. The characters are fun. Like the eastern influences in the book
This is a good book. You should read it. I like the story. The characters are fun. Like the eastern influences in the book
February 8, 2020
Great sequel
Follows the first book nicely, and gives the MC a hard time to experience growth needed. Plots tie up and get restarted, and the whole time it’s a great read.
Follows the first book nicely, and gives the MC a hard time to experience growth needed. Plots tie up and get restarted, and the whole time it’s a great read.
May 22, 2020
I zipped right through this book. Yet oddly, I felt like not much happened. This is more a perception problem as quite a few things happen. As such, the pace gave me the feeling that not as much was happening. The characters are all still very intriguing. Though I want a little more grey area with some of the bad guys. It is starting to feel a little too black and white, good vs evil, rather than the fun levels of karma that the world offers. Still, I do like the general way this is going. it just feels a bit drawn out as they aren't moving through the world very fast.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews