One of the many reasons why we read books is for us to travel without leaving our seats. Books let readers fight aliens, defeat monsters, seek the truth, and most importantly, go on adventures. That's particularly true in literary role-playing games (LitRPGs), a subgenre that combines sci-fi, fantasy, and the conventions of role-playing games.
When you want to go on an adventure, these 18 litRPG books are the best place to start.
Ready Player One
A coming of age story, Ready Player One is dystopian fiction with a mix of adventure that tells the story of James Halliday, the creator of a virtual world called the OASIS. The story follows Wade and his friends as they go on a hunt to inherit Halliday’s fortune after his death.
The book takes readers to different places in OASIS, teaches trust, and is highly engaging.
Dungeon Born
This book follows Cal, a dungeonhart who slowly grows his dungeon, makes friends, and defends his domain.
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Dodge Tank
With a lot of game strategizing, this book follows Ryan, a teenager in a dystopian world who works to earn money to take care of his family. In the book, we get to follow Ryan as he uncovers secrets that will change how power works in his world forever.
Alterworld: Play to Win
Max has terminal cancer, and is desperate to secure an afterlife in the virtual world, Alterworld, where you can upload your consciousness. But even in the VR world, life isn't without danger.
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Survival Quest
Daniel Mahan is imprisoned for eight years, and in the near future, the sentence is carried out in a virtual world: Barliona.
Awaken Online: Catharsis by Travis Bagwell.
On the surface, Jason lives a great life: His parents are wealthy, and he has a prestigious place at a boarding school. But Jason misses his parents, and is bullied by his peers. Trying to escape from reality, he logs into Awaken Online. This book follows Jason as he finally gets to experience the freedom he has been seeking all his life.
The Trapped Mind Project
Austin seeks to escape his workaholic life by joining the virtual reality game, Emerilia. Along the way, he uncovers the lie hidden beneath all of society.
Epic
On New Earth, Erik Haraldson tries to subvert the rules of the game called Epic, in which virtual reality imitates real life, and forever changes the people who play it.
Sector Eight
Ruslan signed an agreement without reading it. Now, he's in a game that he can’t quit until his contract expires, in a world with powerful enemies, and in a body that refuses to obey him. Ruslan will have to rely on all his strategical tricks to survive inside the game for six months.
Ascend Online
Marcus escapes a dormant community, entering into a world that he could never have dreamed of. He doesn’t go alone, but with his friends.
Yet as soon as they enter this fantasy realm, Marcus and his companions from home are separated, and Marcus must recruit the strange locals if he wants to stay alive.
Life Reset
Oren must pull through after being betrayed and cursed by a rare spell into assuming a monster's form in the immersive game New Era Online.
The System Apocalypse
This science fantasy book follows John, who awakes during a camping trip to find the world irrevocably changed by a magical system. Now that everything is a game, how can John level up to stay alive?
Advent
Drew was working in information security when the world abruptly changed. Now, technology doesn't work, but everyone can use magic. Drew attempts to use his newfound spellcasting abilities to escape. But when the whole world has been reshaped by the Advent, where can he escape to?
Reborn Apocalypse
After a battle, the last humans are wiped out. But Micheal is able to return to the start of the apocalypse with the use of a magical artifact. Can one man reshape the end of the world?
Noobtown
The primary goal of the mayor of Noobtown is to figure out the new world he is living in, and how he fits into it. Now, he just has to survive monster attacks long enough to graduate from Noob-dom...
Cradle
Lindon forges his own path when he is faced with something he cannot ignore, and learns secrets that were previously withheld from him.
Ninetoes
Ninetoes is an NPC hobgoblin with unusual talents. In the game world of Andrenon, Ninetoes is made an adventurer. With his new power, he must master the art of magic, and also overcome the danger that accompanies his new status as a hero.
The Dark Champion
The seal holding back the horsemen of the apocalypse has been defeated, and Sergei must travel across the remains of the planet to prepare for the battle to end all battles.
