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Unorthodox Farming #1
Oh Great! I was Reincarnated as a Farmer
What do you have when you blend a pinch of litrpg, a touch of farming simulator, a sprinkle of epic fantasy, a whole cup of Isekai, and a dash of Home Alone?
You have Arnold’s life.
Accidentally murdered by a cleric in another universe during a botched resurrection, Arnold, a semi-pro gamer, wakes upon an altar to find himself incarnated into the overweight body of a farmer who could have been his fatter twin. He’s not the hero. He’s not the villain. He’s certainly not the chosen one who is there to save the world. He’s a clerical error.
It could be a bad joke, but apparently, it happens so often that they have a standard procedure for returning you. That standard procedure doesn't apply to Arnold.
Now stuck on a new earth, in a new universe, with no way home, Arnold must use his gaming skills to figure out how to level his farmer class to 100 and gain a second class which doesn't make him want to beat his head against the wall. There is just one small problem: farmers don't gain experience from killing monsters. Like at all.
Follow Arnold on his hilarious journey as he stubbornly comes to grips with his new reality and tries to change his destiny from that of your typical farmer.
You have Arnold’s life.
Accidentally murdered by a cleric in another universe during a botched resurrection, Arnold, a semi-pro gamer, wakes upon an altar to find himself incarnated into the overweight body of a farmer who could have been his fatter twin. He’s not the hero. He’s not the villain. He’s certainly not the chosen one who is there to save the world. He’s a clerical error.
It could be a bad joke, but apparently, it happens so often that they have a standard procedure for returning you. That standard procedure doesn't apply to Arnold.
Now stuck on a new earth, in a new universe, with no way home, Arnold must use his gaming skills to figure out how to level his farmer class to 100 and gain a second class which doesn't make him want to beat his head against the wall. There is just one small problem: farmers don't gain experience from killing monsters. Like at all.
Follow Arnold on his hilarious journey as he stubbornly comes to grips with his new reality and tries to change his destiny from that of your typical farmer.
620 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 14, 2021
1152 people are currently reading
1635 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 476 reviews
June 2, 2021
Terrible.
I stopped reading before the story even reallky picked up. Several things that I didn't like. Starts off with a disclaimer that gives away too much. Then the MC gets mad and beats a child with a cane. Supposed justification being that the MC was just so mad. Makes me wonder if the author is an abuser.
I stopped reading before the story even reallky picked up. Several things that I didn't like. Starts off with a disclaimer that gives away too much. Then the MC gets mad and beats a child with a cane. Supposed justification being that the MC was just so mad. Makes me wonder if the author is an abuser.
June 4, 2021
The review isn't hidden because of spoilers, although I guess I'll include some, but because there was 1 part that really ruined the book for me that was very distasteful which I'll discuss. If you don't wanna read about it don't continue this review.
Even though I enjoyed this book, I have to give it 2 stars for a few reasons.
1. It was mess overall. They started out fast and got straight to the point, which I appreciate in a litrpg, but ultimately there were several plot threads that just didn't go anywhere at all and were pointless, including the ghost which is on the freaking cover, his quest for a guitar, and the mystery of whoever is after his familiar. I do understand that this is the first book in the series, but some of those things could have been incorporated or called back to near the end to make it feel like you were at least reading a somewhat finished work. (For example, the whole time I kept expecting the ghost to take at least some part in the climax or in the defense of the farm... No, it was literally in there to be a throwaway joke about a ghost trying to molest him. Gross.)
2. My biggest problem with this book was definitely his description of the charisma stat. Charisma is supposed to increase your attractiveness and past a certain point you're so irresistible people will literally rape you. Since that has no bearing on the plot, I don't know why the author chose to include it. I especially don't know why the character that he chose to introduce this concept with was a literal child. They make a point to say that the main character wouldn't do that, of course, but the literal child has to have guards with her all the time because her charisma stat is so high she'll just get raped. Ok so why did you bring it up then? You want an award for not raping a kid???? Like, this had no bearing on any plot that continued and was just gross to read about and utterly unnecessary. Also, the main character is pumping his charisma stat, but nobody tries to rape him (except the ghost.. that was weird too), so just the kid is vulnerable to that??? What?? Like not only is this pointless, it's a minor character so it didn't even have to be a kid. You nasty.
3. The lack of plots emphasizes the self-insert main character to an obnoxious degree. I get that this is a common thing in all litrpgs. But when the main character spends a good amount of time trying to find an acoustic guitar so he can shittily do covers of country, musical and 80s songs that make everyone cry because of the depth of their emotion, holy shit guy keep your wonderwall to yourself.
Good ideas baaad execution.
Even though I enjoyed this book, I have to give it 2 stars for a few reasons.
1. It was mess overall. They started out fast and got straight to the point, which I appreciate in a litrpg, but ultimately there were several plot threads that just didn't go anywhere at all and were pointless, including the ghost which is on the freaking cover, his quest for a guitar, and the mystery of whoever is after his familiar. I do understand that this is the first book in the series, but some of those things could have been incorporated or called back to near the end to make it feel like you were at least reading a somewhat finished work. (For example, the whole time I kept expecting the ghost to take at least some part in the climax or in the defense of the farm... No, it was literally in there to be a throwaway joke about a ghost trying to molest him. Gross.)
2. My biggest problem with this book was definitely his description of the charisma stat. Charisma is supposed to increase your attractiveness and past a certain point you're so irresistible people will literally rape you. Since that has no bearing on the plot, I don't know why the author chose to include it. I especially don't know why the character that he chose to introduce this concept with was a literal child. They make a point to say that the main character wouldn't do that, of course, but the literal child has to have guards with her all the time because her charisma stat is so high she'll just get raped. Ok so why did you bring it up then? You want an award for not raping a kid???? Like, this had no bearing on any plot that continued and was just gross to read about and utterly unnecessary. Also, the main character is pumping his charisma stat, but nobody tries to rape him (except the ghost.. that was weird too), so just the kid is vulnerable to that??? What?? Like not only is this pointless, it's a minor character so it didn't even have to be a kid. You nasty.
3. The lack of plots emphasizes the self-insert main character to an obnoxious degree. I get that this is a common thing in all litrpgs. But when the main character spends a good amount of time trying to find an acoustic guitar so he can shittily do covers of country, musical and 80s songs that make everyone cry because of the depth of their emotion, holy shit guy keep your wonderwall to yourself.
Good ideas baaad execution.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 13, 2022
03/13/2022 Notes: Audiobook Re-Read
I went ahead and bought the audiobook in the latest Audible Sale.
- I didn't like Travis Baldree's accent for the MC. It was an odd country pseudeo southern accent that did not fit the character. The MC is from Houston, Texas. A light drawl would have made sense and maybe the accent was supposed to be that, but it didn't sound like that for me. Plus, it made Arnold sound kind of dumb, and he's not dumb. He's sort of lazy, has tunnel vision, stubborn and other stuff. Dumb is not one of his issues. lol Intentionally ignorant? Definitely an issue.
- I'd say I enjoyed the story more when I read it vs listening to it. The game mechanics were more interesting and the rough transitions are less noticeable when I read it vs listening.
I enjoyed my re-read and look forward to the next book. =)
05/17/2021 Notes:
KU
Good humor, okay characters and lots of ridiculous power ups, but that's the point of the strategy for this story. It was interesting to read a mix of trap & town building story. Can't think too hard because it's too easy to poke holes. Good popcorn.
I went ahead and bought the audiobook in the latest Audible Sale.
- I didn't like Travis Baldree's accent for the MC. It was an odd country pseudeo southern accent that did not fit the character. The MC is from Houston, Texas. A light drawl would have made sense and maybe the accent was supposed to be that, but it didn't sound like that for me. Plus, it made Arnold sound kind of dumb, and he's not dumb. He's sort of lazy, has tunnel vision, stubborn and other stuff. Dumb is not one of his issues. lol Intentionally ignorant? Definitely an issue.
- I'd say I enjoyed the story more when I read it vs listening to it. The game mechanics were more interesting and the rough transitions are less noticeable when I read it vs listening.
I enjoyed my re-read and look forward to the next book. =)
05/17/2021 Notes:
KU
Good humor, okay characters and lots of ridiculous power ups, but that's the point of the strategy for this story. It was interesting to read a mix of trap & town building story. Can't think too hard because it's too easy to poke holes. Good popcorn.
June 29, 2021
This is the kind of book I hope to come across more often as I continue to scratch my incessant itch for Litrpg. The funniest thing to me is how so many below-average stories in this genre get smothered by 5-star, glowing reviews and a well-written and fun story like this has numerous low ratings on the front page.
Character 8/10, Plot 9/10, Game Mechanics 10/10, Writing 8/10, Enjoyment 10/10
I was initially rolling my eyes a bit at the typical gamer MC since a gamer MC is as prevalent in Litrpg as a writer MC is in general fiction. But, despite that, I was treated to a unicorn sighting within the genre: a character that actually behaved like a real person with flaws and all. I also got to see this character change and grow, not just from their experiences, but also from the addition of stat points. And the character didn't even have to start off as a complete moron to make it happen like other stories tend to do.
The plot was great for me because it went in a different direction than most Litrpg. I enjoyed the settlement-building aspects of the story and it was refreshing to see a gamelit story covering some strategy game aspects as a focal point of the story rather than feeling tacked on just to check some boxes.
The mechanics were fantastic. Things were fairly crunchy without feeling like they were there to pad the word count. Stats were shown when they were relevant and the overall game world was fun, interesting, and I could tell a lot of thought went into it.
The writing had a few grammar errors here and there, the types of things that basic editing software tends to miss, like homophones. There was also the inconsistent use of British-English spelling for some things (defence) but not others. It always seems weird to me when that happens, granted I have no idea where the author is from other than that I assumed they were American because of the references.
Overall, this was a fun book that was well written and it definitely stands apart from the genre, not just from the quality of the writing, but also the direction of the plot and type of mechanics employed. If you enjoy Litrpg, you need to read this book.
Character 8/10, Plot 9/10, Game Mechanics 10/10, Writing 8/10, Enjoyment 10/10
I was initially rolling my eyes a bit at the typical gamer MC since a gamer MC is as prevalent in Litrpg as a writer MC is in general fiction. But, despite that, I was treated to a unicorn sighting within the genre: a character that actually behaved like a real person with flaws and all. I also got to see this character change and grow, not just from their experiences, but also from the addition of stat points. And the character didn't even have to start off as a complete moron to make it happen like other stories tend to do.
The plot was great for me because it went in a different direction than most Litrpg. I enjoyed the settlement-building aspects of the story and it was refreshing to see a gamelit story covering some strategy game aspects as a focal point of the story rather than feeling tacked on just to check some boxes.
The mechanics were fantastic. Things were fairly crunchy without feeling like they were there to pad the word count. Stats were shown when they were relevant and the overall game world was fun, interesting, and I could tell a lot of thought went into it.
The writing had a few grammar errors here and there, the types of things that basic editing software tends to miss, like homophones. There was also the inconsistent use of British-English spelling for some things (defence) but not others. It always seems weird to me when that happens, granted I have no idea where the author is from other than that I assumed they were American because of the references.
Overall, this was a fun book that was well written and it definitely stands apart from the genre, not just from the quality of the writing, but also the direction of the plot and type of mechanics employed. If you enjoy Litrpg, you need to read this book.
June 29, 2023
This has a rocky start getting to the place where Arnold has impetus and goals. And it doesn't help that he's manipulated in his grief to take part in caning the girl responsible for his death and subsequent isekai.
Once it gets started and we have Arnold bending his exploit seeking skills from professional gaming to dodging his mandated class of "Farmer" it gets much better. Arnold's irrational moments (only partially explained by the grief of lost opportunities and never seeing his family again) last long enough to be uncomfortable, but once he starts looking at things rationally, the story picks up a lot. And I kind of like the twist of people in a LitRPG world being active seekers of exploits and tricks to advance faster than the setup would suggest. And I like even more that the story isn't a long string of dozens of exploits but instead concentrate on his management of just a couple.
And the book wouldn't be half as good without the strong cast of secondary characters. Arnold makes some good friends and helps people and I liked that more than a little. I'm not as happy with the main antagonist as .
In the end, I was quite engaged, it had a strong plot and good pace, and the characters were interesting. So I'm going to go with four stars.
A note about Chaste: The system in this world has sex start with a prompt "do you want to enable pregnancy". So there is definitely sex happening, including with Arnold. But it's all behind closed doors, so I still consider it chaste. It's not even close as there's not even much lead-in. There is a bunch of joking/chiding about him creating a sex dungeon when Arnold orders paraphernalia for traps but again, nothing explicit. Anyway, while I consider it pretty chaste, you may weigh that differently.
Once it gets started and we have Arnold bending his exploit seeking skills from professional gaming to dodging his mandated class of "Farmer" it gets much better. Arnold's irrational moments (only partially explained by the grief of lost opportunities and never seeing his family again) last long enough to be uncomfortable, but once he starts looking at things rationally, the story picks up a lot. And I kind of like the twist of people in a LitRPG world being active seekers of exploits and tricks to advance faster than the setup would suggest. And I like even more that the story isn't a long string of dozens of exploits but instead concentrate on his management of just a couple.
And the book wouldn't be half as good without the strong cast of secondary characters. Arnold makes some good friends and helps people and I liked that more than a little. I'm not as happy with the main antagonist as .
In the end, I was quite engaged, it had a strong plot and good pace, and the characters were interesting. So I'm going to go with four stars.
A note about Chaste: The system in this world has sex start with a prompt "do you want to enable pregnancy". So there is definitely sex happening, including with Arnold. But it's all behind closed doors, so I still consider it chaste. It's not even close as there's not even much lead-in. There is a bunch of joking/chiding about him creating a sex dungeon when Arnold orders paraphernalia for traps but again, nothing explicit. Anyway, while I consider it pretty chaste, you may weigh that differently.
September 27, 2021
I probably should have quit when the protagonist starts the book by beating a young girl. Sure, he had a reason. Still fucked up. While he didn't do anything that vile again, and the book halfassed an excuse for him doing that later on (though no consequences, and is in fact ), that started him off as a thoroughly unlikeable protagonist and he never really got out of it. His intense resentment of farming means Wow, such growth.
The tricks he uses to grow are flimsy enough to not withstand more than a second's thought. To be fair, I do think it would be legitimately difficult to craft world building solely for a munchkin to exploit without it being a little too obvious that that's what is being done, but it didn't really feel satisfying? It was a bit too much rule of cool vs crunchy, and that really doesn't work for a character whose entire point is exploiting loopholes in the system. Nor does it help an already unlikeable protagonist to mostly feel like he's reliant on authorial handouts rather than it really feeling earned.
The book also just stops. And rationally, it stops at a place that could easily have worked as a natural place for the book to end, but the way it was written didn't have that buildup/release that worked for it to have ended there. Pacing wise...I don't want to criticize it too deeply for being badly paced and much too long for the story it has, because it is the kind of self-indulgent wish fulfillment book that if I had liked it overall I would have realized it would be a stronger book at like half the length but not really wanted that to happen because I enjoy the length. But seriously, it would be a much stronger book if it had been firmly edited with an eye towards pacing.
I don't want to be entirely negative! It's a fun idea, the side characters are better than the protagonist, it's readable enough. I've certainly read worse. But damn, I did not like the protagonist.
The tricks he uses to grow are flimsy enough to not withstand more than a second's thought. To be fair, I do think it would be legitimately difficult to craft world building solely for a munchkin to exploit without it being a little too obvious that that's what is being done, but it didn't really feel satisfying? It was a bit too much rule of cool vs crunchy, and that really doesn't work for a character whose entire point is exploiting loopholes in the system. Nor does it help an already unlikeable protagonist to mostly feel like he's reliant on authorial handouts rather than it really feeling earned.
The book also just stops. And rationally, it stops at a place that could easily have worked as a natural place for the book to end, but the way it was written didn't have that buildup/release that worked for it to have ended there. Pacing wise...I don't want to criticize it too deeply for being badly paced and much too long for the story it has, because it is the kind of self-indulgent wish fulfillment book that if I had liked it overall I would have realized it would be a stronger book at like half the length but not really wanted that to happen because I enjoy the length. But seriously, it would be a much stronger book if it had been firmly edited with an eye towards pacing.
I don't want to be entirely negative! It's a fun idea, the side characters are better than the protagonist, it's readable enough. I've certainly read worse. But damn, I did not like the protagonist.
May 29, 2021
difficult to get in to so lost interest
June 25, 2021
Man oh man what a rollercoaster of entertainment.
If you are looking for a story where the MC is abusing the rules of the system, then look no further. Is the character a big Marty Stu? Absolutely! But sometimes it's really fun to read this kind of story.
Awesome job for a first time author.
If you are looking for a story where the MC is abusing the rules of the system, then look no further. Is the character a big Marty Stu? Absolutely! But sometimes it's really fun to read this kind of story.
Awesome job for a first time author.
June 16, 2021
I enjoyed this book overall, but it is deeply flawed. There were several unnecessary details added that did not do much to advance the plot. More egregious, the author's plot is very thin as are some of the explanations. We have an author creating a so-called brilliant and creative strategist MC who learned it all from gaming. However, Arnold does not do much that comes off as creative or brilliant to a reader who has ever played games.
The story is different enough from most litrpg tropes that it can be enjoyable if you suspend any critical thinking and take it for what it is. Children playing Minecraft can contrive how to setup xp farms, but we are supposed to believe Arnold has brought this novel idea to this world. Oh, ok then...
The author created a level 99 familiar that gets given to MC at the beginning of the novel. However, once MC leaves the village the familiar is basically never used again in a significant way. The cat serves as an info dump for the world's rules and a plot device to do things Arnold could not do alone. There is no character development involving the familiar even though their bond "levels up" later. Actually, Arnold leaves the cat behind for most of the story while under the care of the regent. What gamer would split the party and ignore their most valuable companion? We are told it's because demons are after the familiar, so I guess that explains why the author introduced and abandoned the familiar for most of the story. Book 2?
The author is pretty good at character building. We get introduced to a lot of unique, well-defined characters. Unfortunately, the author is very poor at character development. He creates so many different characters and discards them that we see little character growth over the course of the novel for the MC let alone the rest. Maybe the author confuses character development with stats development. This is a litrpg novel, but the reader deserves more than numbers going up. We are supposed to believe Arnold wants to help people, but we don't get people in this novel. We get straw men that get built up for Arnold to knock down.
Moreover, the author sets up opportunities for character development and fails to see them through. For example, Arnold learns near the end that Ranic is angry at him for not caring about farming. This could have served as a stumbling block for their grand plans to defeat the giants. Oh--wait, a few pages later everyone caves to Arnold's wishes. It was made clear when Arnold first met the scholar that he never wanted to farm. Why is this a problem now?
It comes off as lazy writing, but maybe it is a problem with having its origins as a web novel on royalroad. Perhaps the author has a patreon or needs to fill a word count per post. I don't mind a bit of filler, but when it comes to word soup this book is mostly broth, little meat. Less than a page gets devoted to vaguely explaining why Arnold's xp farm has never been done before. Oddly, trapsmiths exist, but there is a brief, contrived explanation for why Arnold acquired trapsmithing on his own when no farmer had ever done so before.
I am not sure why such an important plot point gets short shrift while the author spends multiple chapters describing details of the charisma stat. High charisma in music causes mind control (charm) and physical beauty due to charisma is purportedly enough to make normal people want to rape kids such that the young princess needs guards at all times to prevent it. I guess we know what interests the author. For the rest of the story the MC dumps every free point he gets into charisma after learning this...
The story is different enough from most litrpg tropes that it can be enjoyable if you suspend any critical thinking and take it for what it is. Children playing Minecraft can contrive how to setup xp farms, but we are supposed to believe Arnold has brought this novel idea to this world. Oh, ok then...
The author created a level 99 familiar that gets given to MC at the beginning of the novel. However, once MC leaves the village the familiar is basically never used again in a significant way. The cat serves as an info dump for the world's rules and a plot device to do things Arnold could not do alone. There is no character development involving the familiar even though their bond "levels up" later. Actually, Arnold leaves the cat behind for most of the story while under the care of the regent. What gamer would split the party and ignore their most valuable companion? We are told it's because demons are after the familiar, so I guess that explains why the author introduced and abandoned the familiar for most of the story. Book 2?
The author is pretty good at character building. We get introduced to a lot of unique, well-defined characters. Unfortunately, the author is very poor at character development. He creates so many different characters and discards them that we see little character growth over the course of the novel for the MC let alone the rest. Maybe the author confuses character development with stats development. This is a litrpg novel, but the reader deserves more than numbers going up. We are supposed to believe Arnold wants to help people, but we don't get people in this novel. We get straw men that get built up for Arnold to knock down.
Moreover, the author sets up opportunities for character development and fails to see them through. For example, Arnold learns near the end that Ranic is angry at him for not caring about farming. This could have served as a stumbling block for their grand plans to defeat the giants. Oh--wait, a few pages later everyone caves to Arnold's wishes. It was made clear when Arnold first met the scholar that he never wanted to farm. Why is this a problem now?
It comes off as lazy writing, but maybe it is a problem with having its origins as a web novel on royalroad. Perhaps the author has a patreon or needs to fill a word count per post. I don't mind a bit of filler, but when it comes to word soup this book is mostly broth, little meat. Less than a page gets devoted to vaguely explaining why Arnold's xp farm has never been done before. Oddly, trapsmiths exist, but there is a brief, contrived explanation for why Arnold acquired trapsmithing on his own when no farmer had ever done so before.
I am not sure why such an important plot point gets short shrift while the author spends multiple chapters describing details of the charisma stat. High charisma in music causes mind control (charm) and physical beauty due to charisma is purportedly enough to make normal people want to rape kids such that the young princess needs guards at all times to prevent it. I guess we know what interests the author. For the rest of the story the MC dumps every free point he gets into charisma after learning this...
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 27, 2023
Rating 4.5 stars
- Re-listened. Feb 2022. Initial review below. Sometimes when I am bored I remember sections of a book or certain scenes that put a smile to my face. Even If they are only small sections of the book I tend to want to relive that experience. I tend to like books and movies where a character is very passionate about something. It doesn't matter what that something is, only that the passion comes through to the reader. In this one the MC, Arnold had a passion for music. Even though this was such a small part of the story it left an impression on me and that is why I wanted to listen to this book again. All the other parts were really good but that one thing is what drove me to want to experience this book again. The scene in question
Initial review below:
This was much better than I thought it would be. I looked at the title and the picture on the cover and initially rejected the idea that this could be good. I saw a couple of good reviews so I decided to give it a chance. I am glad I did.
The story follows Arnold. He is the coach, tactical leader of a young group of gamers. Their group is semi pro and he is in the finals of a tournament. He can use the money he wins to live for a year while he finishes college. Then something weird happens. He gets hit in the chest by a girl he thinks is in an anime costume and wakes up on another world. Turns out she was trying to perform a resurrection on another world and messed it up. She succeeded in the resurrection by placing Arthur in his doubles body. Unfortunately this killed Arnold's body on his world. So now he has no way to get back home. He is upset for a while until he learns that there is magic and game like mechanics on this world. Then he learns that he has a farmers class and there is no way to change it. All he can do is try and reach level 100 and pick a second class. This is something that is almost impossible. All he can do it try and use his experience with games to try and find loopholes in the system.
The story isn't original but has its own gimmick that makes it interesting. The MC is likeable and I could easily put myself in his place and understand his decision making process. The story was interesting, I liked the characters, there was good humor without it being too cheesy. There was a decent amount of emotion and the world building was good. Overall I really like the story and can't wait for the next one.
- Re-listened. Feb 2022. Initial review below. Sometimes when I am bored I remember sections of a book or certain scenes that put a smile to my face. Even If they are only small sections of the book I tend to want to relive that experience. I tend to like books and movies where a character is very passionate about something. It doesn't matter what that something is, only that the passion comes through to the reader. In this one the MC, Arnold had a passion for music. Even though this was such a small part of the story it left an impression on me and that is why I wanted to listen to this book again. All the other parts were really good but that one thing is what drove me to want to experience this book again. The scene in question
Initial review below:
This was much better than I thought it would be. I looked at the title and the picture on the cover and initially rejected the idea that this could be good. I saw a couple of good reviews so I decided to give it a chance. I am glad I did.
The story follows Arnold. He is the coach, tactical leader of a young group of gamers. Their group is semi pro and he is in the finals of a tournament. He can use the money he wins to live for a year while he finishes college. Then something weird happens. He gets hit in the chest by a girl he thinks is in an anime costume and wakes up on another world. Turns out she was trying to perform a resurrection on another world and messed it up. She succeeded in the resurrection by placing Arthur in his doubles body. Unfortunately this killed Arnold's body on his world. So now he has no way to get back home. He is upset for a while until he learns that there is magic and game like mechanics on this world. Then he learns that he has a farmers class and there is no way to change it. All he can do is try and reach level 100 and pick a second class. This is something that is almost impossible. All he can do it try and use his experience with games to try and find loopholes in the system.
The story isn't original but has its own gimmick that makes it interesting. The MC is likeable and I could easily put myself in his place and understand his decision making process. The story was interesting, I liked the characters, there was good humor without it being too cheesy. There was a decent amount of emotion and the world building was good. Overall I really like the story and can't wait for the next one.
October 9, 2025
Fan-fraking-tastic
I had a few complaints at the start of this book, all of them were washed away long before the end. If you are bothered by the sarcastic talking cat (chapters 1 -5) keep going, He gets toned way down.
This is one of those books where you feel like the author knows just what the hell he's talking about. It drives me crazy when some one writes a book about a truck driver or a doctor and I know more about their job than they do. Well not here.
This is a Transported to another world, fish out of water, character is born into the wrong player class, character uses game mechanics to beat the impossible, story. yeah so obviously LitRPG.
So how is it? It's really good, very well done. It starts a little rough, but finds it's feet quickly and it's off to the races from there. and yeah, it's pretty funny too.
From my point of view this book has not been over hyped. (then again I don't know what level of hype you've been exposed to so mileage may vary)
I really hope the rest are a good as this one is.
I had a few complaints at the start of this book, all of them were washed away long before the end. If you are bothered by the sarcastic talking cat (chapters 1 -5) keep going, He gets toned way down.
This is one of those books where you feel like the author knows just what the hell he's talking about. It drives me crazy when some one writes a book about a truck driver or a doctor and I know more about their job than they do. Well not here.
This is a Transported to another world, fish out of water, character is born into the wrong player class, character uses game mechanics to beat the impossible, story. yeah so obviously LitRPG.
So how is it? It's really good, very well done. It starts a little rough, but finds it's feet quickly and it's off to the races from there. and yeah, it's pretty funny too.
From my point of view this book has not been over hyped. (then again I don't know what level of hype you've been exposed to so mileage may vary)
I really hope the rest are a good as this one is.
October 7, 2021
4.5 stars rounded up.
No murder, no romance—just an insane ride (actually there was maybe one accidental murder…).
If the next book was out already, I might have given it 5 stars, but as a stand-alone it gets 4.5 rounded up.
No murder, no romance—just an insane ride (actually there was maybe one accidental murder…).
If the next book was out already, I might have given it 5 stars, but as a stand-alone it gets 4.5 rounded up.
May 15, 2021
Dragged out
Incredibly dragged out, could cut more than half of it and would lose nothing. Feels like a lot of filler to make more from KU.
Incredibly dragged out, could cut more than half of it and would lose nothing. Feels like a lot of filler to make more from KU.
November 10, 2021
HOW DOES THIS HAVE 4.5 STARS???? The MC is too stupid to live- MC arrives in a new world with magic and INSTEAD OF ASKING QUESTIONS, just starts trying crap out to his detriment resulting in MC loosing 8 weeks of time to "fast travel'. Then this happens:
Wise and knowledgeable character: You are a farmer so you level up by farming.
MC: I'm going to get a weapon and kill stuff to level.
WaKC: You can't level that way. You are a farmer.
MC: I don't believe you and I'm doing it anyway.
I stopped reading at this point time as the MC IS TOO STUPIP TO LIVE.
Wise and knowledgeable character: You are a farmer so you level up by farming.
MC: I'm going to get a weapon and kill stuff to level.
WaKC: You can't level that way. You are a farmer.
MC: I don't believe you and I'm doing it anyway.
I stopped reading at this point time as the MC IS TOO STUPIP TO LIVE.
June 22, 2021
Was an ok read but one of main things that ruined this story for me was way did stat sheet could not see on my kindle device unless zoomed in hugely then was just a pain.
December 28, 2021
Beating a thirteen-year-old girl is not entertainment.
No matter what world you're in, it's child abuse.
No matter what world you're in, it's child abuse.
October 1, 2021
4.5 This Isn't An Attempt To Marry You Stars
Oh, Great! I Was Reincarnated As A Farmer: A LitRPG Adventure is the first book in the Unorthodox Farming series by Benjamin Kerei.
I honestly took one look at the cover and title for this book and immediately wrote it off as a poor imitation. Until the moment I stumbled upon another fan of the genre on a GameLit page lamenting their own poor misjudgment. So, thankfully, I decided to give this book and Kerei the opportunity to surprise me. And I am so grateful I did!
It's nothing so long-winded, yet still fascinatingly technical and detailed. However, you will still manage to find yourself encamped in a myriad of asinine and immature activities and responses. It was the main factor of enjoyment for me: The ridiculousness of our MC not accepting his new lot in life and how far he would go to exemplify our reality (and version of human) is a master of procrastination and objective listening.
The wide cast of characters definitely filled out this enlightening tale. From Salem the poor misfortunate familiar trapped to be the know-it-all sidekick of th aforementioned naive and bullheaded protagonist. Rantic the eccentric old coot farming scholar locked into raise Arnold beyond the stagnation that the first 100 levels in his forced class represents. The way he plays off of the common disputes carried between himself and the trapsmith scholar Adoya is at least mildly hilarious. But my absolute favorite, is the way his relationship with Emily is shaping up: based off the number of times they both absolutely deny the necessity of a betrothal or any desire for each other leads me to assume she may just be the wife mentioned in the beginning of the book so far in the future. And all this characters hold nothing to absolutely enjoyable friendship that Jeric and Arnold have crafted and I can't wait to see how this relationship of equal benefit will shape their future and the village beside them, maybe the kingdom as well.
I absolutely cannot wait for the author to present us with the full song that brings him such consternation!
Oh, Great! I Was Reincarnated As A Farmer: A LitRPG Adventure is the first book in the Unorthodox Farming series by Benjamin Kerei.
I honestly took one look at the cover and title for this book and immediately wrote it off as a poor imitation. Until the moment I stumbled upon another fan of the genre on a GameLit page lamenting their own poor misjudgment. So, thankfully, I decided to give this book and Kerei the opportunity to surprise me. And I am so grateful I did!
It's nothing so long-winded, yet still fascinatingly technical and detailed. However, you will still manage to find yourself encamped in a myriad of asinine and immature activities and responses. It was the main factor of enjoyment for me: The ridiculousness of our MC not accepting his new lot in life and how far he would go to exemplify our reality (and version of human) is a master of procrastination and objective listening.
The wide cast of characters definitely filled out this enlightening tale. From Salem the poor misfortunate familiar trapped to be the know-it-all sidekick of th aforementioned naive and bullheaded protagonist. Rantic the eccentric old coot farming scholar locked into raise Arnold beyond the stagnation that the first 100 levels in his forced class represents. The way he plays off of the common disputes carried between himself and the trapsmith scholar Adoya is at least mildly hilarious. But my absolute favorite, is the way his relationship with Emily is shaping up: based off the number of times they both absolutely deny the necessity of a betrothal or any desire for each other leads me to assume she may just be the wife mentioned in the beginning of the book so far in the future. And all this characters hold nothing to absolutely enjoyable friendship that Jeric and Arnold have crafted and I can't wait to see how this relationship of equal benefit will shape their future and the village beside them, maybe the kingdom as well.
I absolutely cannot wait for the author to present us with the full song that brings him such consternation!
December 30, 2021
Oh, look, it’s 6 am
I started reading rather late in the evening. That was my first mistake.
Purposely targeting an exploit, then doubling down…usually when you find yourself in a hole, the best advice as to what you should do is stop digging. This novel became a situation where that advice is wrong.
It’s not laughing funny, it’s absurd funny and whimsical funny.
A few typos, but nothing that destroys your reading experience. Family-friendly, as nothing adult oriented happens ‘on-screen’, though there is some risqué innuendo.
I am eager to see what happens next.
I started reading rather late in the evening. That was my first mistake.
Purposely targeting an exploit, then doubling down…usually when you find yourself in a hole, the best advice as to what you should do is stop digging. This novel became a situation where that advice is wrong.
It’s not laughing funny, it’s absurd funny and whimsical funny.
A few typos, but nothing that destroys your reading experience. Family-friendly, as nothing adult oriented happens ‘on-screen’, though there is some risqué innuendo.
I am eager to see what happens next.
October 12, 2021
I had a lot of fun reading this book. My biggest gripe would be the handful of references to real world things such as Skyrim. That's mostly just me being picky though so I can't fault the author for that. There was clearly a lot of thinking put into this book, so many intricate details, and plots I didn't see coming. It was a wild and exciting ride reading through this. Loved it, and I can only hope there will be a sequel so I know what happens next.
June 5, 2021
What happens if you get sent to a world where you have no other choice but to be the one thing you hate? You game the system, of course. This is a really great read about a gamer who gets dealt a rough hand and makes the most of it. It's a little weird just how against farming the gamer is, but I guess I can think of a few things I would do EVERYTHING to avoid doing too.
October 10, 2021
The name and the cover of the book should be changed. They were the reason I didn't read it until now. I wasn't expecting much when I saw those. But I read it in a single day. Didn't sleep. I just couldn't stop.
November 7, 2021
Recently I have been hunting Goodreads bookshelves for something “different.” I have read so many fantasy stories over the years that they are all getting a little samey, which is reducing my enthusiasm for new books. This is a shame because I believe fantasy is a genre with infinite possibilities that aren’t getting explored because every new book focuses on the action sub-genre.
Therefore, when I saw this title, I was more excited than you might expect for a book about farming, as it offered something I haven’t seen before. And, for the most part, I can give it credit for delivering on that promise, though not quite in the way I imagined.
This is the story of a man who is transported to another world/reality where magic exists in the form of LitRPG gamer mechanics. Where this differs from the usual LitRPG isekai novels, though, is that this time the main character (a semi-pro gamer in our world) has his class locked as a farmer and he has no way of changing it until he reaches level 100. The problem is that getting to level 100 is almost impossible when the only way for him to gain experience is through farming related activities.
I think this is an interesting premise, and I hoped the author was going to explore magical farming and somehow weave an interesting story of how you can achieve a good life through means you never expected. Therefore, I was a little disappointed to see that the author continued down the action road by having the protagonist find some loopholes to exploit so he can be the adventurer class he always wanted to be since he found himself in this new reality.
Truth be told, this new direction isn’t a bad one. The concept of someone who specialises in finding exploits and using those exploits to game the system is a pretty unique concept and I enjoyed reading about it. My only frustration is that the protagonist is doing so to achieve a goal I don’t want him to achieve, to leave the farming life behind and become just another bog standard LitRPG protagonist adventurer.
However, I can recognise that this is personal taste and therefore I won’t mark this book down for that. Instead, this book gets almost full marks for coming up with a creative story that I haven’t read before. The book is light-hearted fun that manages to separate itself from the rest of the pack with its unique premise and interesting world building.
The reason it loses a star is because the author had a habit of glossing over important things and expecting you to understand it straight away. On the one hand, I applaud the author for not thinking his readers are idiots and over explaining concepts, but in this case he went a touch too far.
A good example of this is the main exploit that the protagonists finds which drives the plot. This key element of this exploit is explained in just a few sentences and only once. From that point on, it is only ever referred to as the exploit. When I was first reading the book, this information seemed no more important than a hundred other world building facts that were thrown at the reader and therefore I didn’t pay as much attention to it as was needed. Considering how important this exploit becomes to driving the story, it made the rest of the book confusing and hard to follow, to the point where I had to start over again to figure out what I had missed.
However, despite this, it is worth noting that I did want to start over again because the book was good enough that it was worth taking that extra time. The story draws you in as I like the protagonist and the cast of characters he meets along the way, and I am enjoying this world building. Despite being confused at times (even after I re-read the early chapters), I still enjoyed where this story went and the journey along the way, and I look forward to reading the next one.
So overall this is an enjoyable book that offers something new to a very crowded genre, so I can recommend it and eagerly look forward to more to come.
Therefore, when I saw this title, I was more excited than you might expect for a book about farming, as it offered something I haven’t seen before. And, for the most part, I can give it credit for delivering on that promise, though not quite in the way I imagined.
This is the story of a man who is transported to another world/reality where magic exists in the form of LitRPG gamer mechanics. Where this differs from the usual LitRPG isekai novels, though, is that this time the main character (a semi-pro gamer in our world) has his class locked as a farmer and he has no way of changing it until he reaches level 100. The problem is that getting to level 100 is almost impossible when the only way for him to gain experience is through farming related activities.
I think this is an interesting premise, and I hoped the author was going to explore magical farming and somehow weave an interesting story of how you can achieve a good life through means you never expected. Therefore, I was a little disappointed to see that the author continued down the action road by having the protagonist find some loopholes to exploit so he can be the adventurer class he always wanted to be since he found himself in this new reality.
Truth be told, this new direction isn’t a bad one. The concept of someone who specialises in finding exploits and using those exploits to game the system is a pretty unique concept and I enjoyed reading about it. My only frustration is that the protagonist is doing so to achieve a goal I don’t want him to achieve, to leave the farming life behind and become just another bog standard LitRPG protagonist adventurer.
However, I can recognise that this is personal taste and therefore I won’t mark this book down for that. Instead, this book gets almost full marks for coming up with a creative story that I haven’t read before. The book is light-hearted fun that manages to separate itself from the rest of the pack with its unique premise and interesting world building.
The reason it loses a star is because the author had a habit of glossing over important things and expecting you to understand it straight away. On the one hand, I applaud the author for not thinking his readers are idiots and over explaining concepts, but in this case he went a touch too far.
A good example of this is the main exploit that the protagonists finds which drives the plot. This key element of this exploit is explained in just a few sentences and only once. From that point on, it is only ever referred to as the exploit. When I was first reading the book, this information seemed no more important than a hundred other world building facts that were thrown at the reader and therefore I didn’t pay as much attention to it as was needed. Considering how important this exploit becomes to driving the story, it made the rest of the book confusing and hard to follow, to the point where I had to start over again to figure out what I had missed.
However, despite this, it is worth noting that I did want to start over again because the book was good enough that it was worth taking that extra time. The story draws you in as I like the protagonist and the cast of characters he meets along the way, and I am enjoying this world building. Despite being confused at times (even after I re-read the early chapters), I still enjoyed where this story went and the journey along the way, and I look forward to reading the next one.
So overall this is an enjoyable book that offers something new to a very crowded genre, so I can recommend it and eagerly look forward to more to come.
July 12, 2023
Was on the fence about this one (pun intended), but my god was it worth it.
May 21, 2021
It is worth it.
So this book is so much better than it has any right to be! But.. it has a rough start. There are a coup questionable literary / humor choices early on. Don't let those stop you from enjoy what escalates to a truly epic story. It (mostly) deftly walks the razors edge of being very funny, without being a spoof or "humor" story. Real page turner and very fun read.
You could see the author's skill grow as the book progressed, so I have high hopes for a sequel.
For a book with a title that includes "Farmer" in the title, there is very little farming... of vegetables. There is quite a bit of base defense, rules shenanigans, intrigue, and rooting for the underdog. Fun times.
So this book is so much better than it has any right to be! But.. it has a rough start. There are a coup questionable literary / humor choices early on. Don't let those stop you from enjoy what escalates to a truly epic story. It (mostly) deftly walks the razors edge of being very funny, without being a spoof or "humor" story. Real page turner and very fun read.
You could see the author's skill grow as the book progressed, so I have high hopes for a sequel.
For a book with a title that includes "Farmer" in the title, there is very little farming... of vegetables. There is quite a bit of base defense, rules shenanigans, intrigue, and rooting for the underdog. Fun times.
October 2, 2021
This review is for the audiobook version. I definitely enjoyed this book. 5/5
For the first few chapters, I wasn’t really sure what direction the story was heading. I mean sure, we had the typical isekai scenario with a LitRPG-esque world system but with a twist of being limited to the farmer class and with the help of a familiar. What really brought the story to life was a combination of the amazing narrative performance by Travis Baldree mixed with impressive world building and character interactions. The main character’s dogged determination to use any means necessary to avoid actually farming never really changed, however, it was great to see his growth in character as he realised the full implications his actions could have on the growing village. I didn’t really like the cat at first, I felt he had too much snark and disregard for the MC’s situation, but in the end it had actually made me laugh a few times. As I kept on listening the story just got better with each chapter. I can’t wait for the next instalment!
For the first few chapters, I wasn’t really sure what direction the story was heading. I mean sure, we had the typical isekai scenario with a LitRPG-esque world system but with a twist of being limited to the farmer class and with the help of a familiar. What really brought the story to life was a combination of the amazing narrative performance by Travis Baldree mixed with impressive world building and character interactions. The main character’s dogged determination to use any means necessary to avoid actually farming never really changed, however, it was great to see his growth in character as he realised the full implications his actions could have on the growing village. I didn’t really like the cat at first, I felt he had too much snark and disregard for the MC’s situation, but in the end it had actually made me laugh a few times. As I kept on listening the story just got better with each chapter. I can’t wait for the next instalment!
December 4, 2021
I love portal fantasy, Travis Baldree, and OP MCs, so this one was in the bag. The content was excellent though. The story flowed well, there were lots of funny moments and plenty of progress. It was a long book and it was a complete thought, even though it is intended to be the first in a series. The MC wasn't perfect, but didn't need to be for the story, he wasn't stupid like some of the MCs in this genre. The decisions made sense for the most part and the results also made sense. The rewards were excessive, but not unheard of. Overall it was very enjoyable. Of course Travis had an amazing voice with most of the narration performed in a country accent. Listening to stat sheets isn't the best though, lucky there were not an excessive amount. Overall it was a fun and entertaining book, I am glad I read it.
May 23, 2021
When I picked this book up I had never heard of the author, and I think this is an example of what makes LitRPG great as a genre. Despite not knowing what it was about (besides the obvious, and the obvious isn't exactly correct anyway) I was hooked.
Arnold is from Earth, and accidentally gets pulled into a new world that looks the same from a map perspective, but everything else is the same. The classes are rigid, and you can only pick a second class when you raise your first class to level 100.
I won't rehash the beginning, although I question why the wizards familiar is still there, but after that Arnold does everything in his power to be anything but a farmer. It's harder than you might think, and he becomes obstinate, coming up with a few exploits to get what he wants along the way.
The village he finds himself in is a backwater, and right next to the wild woods where the monsters roam. Discovering that he can't escape being a farmer, he finds a way to sort of be a farmer while really trapping and killing monsters.
And that's the crux of the book. There are dozens of twists and turns along the way, as Arnold brings new people in to help him trap monsters. He helps most people, but hurts some people at the same time.
For me the best part was when Arnold was working the traps himself. Later on they become automated, and that's just not as much fun.
The ghost in the cover happens to live in the house he occupies, and that's where she comes in. She's makes an excellent breakfast, but her skills don't stop there.
Overall, I had a lot of fun with this book. I'm not sure where Arnold will go now that they've progressed so far, but then again I never imagined a farmer becoming a trap smith.
Highly recommended. 5/5*
Arnold is from Earth, and accidentally gets pulled into a new world that looks the same from a map perspective, but everything else is the same. The classes are rigid, and you can only pick a second class when you raise your first class to level 100.
I won't rehash the beginning, although I question why the wizards familiar is still there, but after that Arnold does everything in his power to be anything but a farmer. It's harder than you might think, and he becomes obstinate, coming up with a few exploits to get what he wants along the way.
The village he finds himself in is a backwater, and right next to the wild woods where the monsters roam. Discovering that he can't escape being a farmer, he finds a way to sort of be a farmer while really trapping and killing monsters.
And that's the crux of the book. There are dozens of twists and turns along the way, as Arnold brings new people in to help him trap monsters. He helps most people, but hurts some people at the same time.
For me the best part was when Arnold was working the traps himself. Later on they become automated, and that's just not as much fun.
The ghost in the cover happens to live in the house he occupies, and that's where she comes in. She's makes an excellent breakfast, but her skills don't stop there.
Overall, I had a lot of fun with this book. I'm not sure where Arnold will go now that they've progressed so far, but then again I never imagined a farmer becoming a trap smith.
Highly recommended. 5/5*
June 1, 2021
Brilliantly Engaging
I'm thinking of a word that starts with F and ends with uck.
It's actually firetruck but if you were thinking something else please note that the probably isn't a good bedtime story for your wee ones.
I've read a few tens of books this last week and likely a few hundreds worth in the last six months on various sites and platforms, and This is the only one that I felt compelled to Write a review for.
While I feel that Benjamin Kerei intended to frame the tale around a specific event, he also added some additional details that fall well outside the intended frame. Drawing from context clues, and specifically calling this Book 1, I sincerely hope that he plans to share more of Arnold's exploits in future books as he has left many things unanswered.
Although the destination is well intentioned, sometimes the journey is far more rewarding. In this case, I'd personally prefer a well documented journey. However regardless of what form the future books take, I will be chomping at the bit and bracing the gate awaiting his next book.
Despite the obvious detractors I have with the giant leap leaving so much unsaid, I still feel that this book is worth a full 5 stars, and I genuinely thank Benjamin for sharing this story. I hope to have the opportunity to read more of them in the future.
I'm thinking of a word that starts with F and ends with uck.
It's actually firetruck but if you were thinking something else please note that the probably isn't a good bedtime story for your wee ones.
I've read a few tens of books this last week and likely a few hundreds worth in the last six months on various sites and platforms, and This is the only one that I felt compelled to Write a review for.
While I feel that Benjamin Kerei intended to frame the tale around a specific event, he also added some additional details that fall well outside the intended frame. Drawing from context clues, and specifically calling this Book 1, I sincerely hope that he plans to share more of Arnold's exploits in future books as he has left many things unanswered.
Although the destination is well intentioned, sometimes the journey is far more rewarding. In this case, I'd personally prefer a well documented journey. However regardless of what form the future books take, I will be chomping at the bit and bracing the gate awaiting his next book.
Despite the obvious detractors I have with the giant leap leaving so much unsaid, I still feel that this book is worth a full 5 stars, and I genuinely thank Benjamin for sharing this story. I hope to have the opportunity to read more of them in the future.
May 31, 2021
Weird book
The main character was not likable at all,the writer went in different directions so much and made the mc unlikable !!
The main character was not likable at all,the writer went in different directions so much and made the mc unlikable !!
May 30, 2021
Great for a first book, not bad for LitRPG
I didn’t know what to expect from this book when I read the description. But you know what, it was entertaining enough that I read the whole thing and don’t have any complaints, Arnold was a little whiny and I wanted to strangle him at points through the book but character flaws are room for growth right?
If you want a break from a MC who is “Awesome +1” and none stop gore, then this is a good read and there is almost no error in grammar and spelling. So if you want a book about someone class locked as a farmer until Lvl 100 but is still determined to kill monsters for exp then this will scratch that itch. And it’s an itch I didn’t even know I needed scratching!
I didn’t know what to expect from this book when I read the description. But you know what, it was entertaining enough that I read the whole thing and don’t have any complaints, Arnold was a little whiny and I wanted to strangle him at points through the book but character flaws are room for growth right?
If you want a break from a MC who is “Awesome +1” and none stop gore, then this is a good read and there is almost no error in grammar and spelling. So if you want a book about someone class locked as a farmer until Lvl 100 but is still determined to kill monsters for exp then this will scratch that itch. And it’s an itch I didn’t even know I needed scratching!
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