Fantasia Reviews Pangea Online Book One: Death and Axes

Pangea Online Book One by S. L. Rowland

Ages 16+

Published 9/30/2017

Genre – Fantasy LitRPG

About the Book – An Online World With Consequences

“Everything has a price. Pangea Online is no different.

Esil has spent the past year toiling in the mines of Pangea while the more wealthy traverse its myriad of gameworlds. His luck changes forever when he stumbles upon a legendary Developer’s Chest, containing an invaluable Worldpass, which grants him unlimited travel to all gameworlds.

Now, Esil isn’t just stuck watching as others explore Pangea. He can finally level up.

But his in-game actions have real world consequences and failure online threatens everything he holds dear.” – Publisher’s Blurb

The Review – Pangea Online Soars Above The Rest

Well, we had to get the bad taste out of our mouths from the last review, so here is a refreshing change of pace. S. L. Rowland has given us something of a gem with Pangea Online, blending RPG elements with impressive and broad storytelling, we have a book that is not just fun to read, but a cut above the rest. Set in post-apocalyptic Atlanta, Pangea Online follows the journey of Esil as he navigates the vast and mysterious online world of Pangea. Beginning as a literal data miner, Esil lucks his way into a Worldpass which breaks him free of his meager existence and sets the stage for the events to follow.

While the details of the game itself aren’t set out in painstaking detail, you get the sense of the grandness of it all in a way that words alone cannot paint for you. S. L. Rowland has had to pull double duty, not building one world, but two, and their ability to do just that is noteworthy in and of itself. However, when coupled with a solid story and a swift but steady pace, Pangea Online makes one heck of a ride.

Pangea Online Is A Beautiful Blend Of RPG and Storytelling

While LitRPG’s should feature the elements of an RPG, we often find that storytelling takes a back seat. That doesn’t happen in Pangea Online. S. L. Rowland made a story that stands on its own, using a pair of fantastic worlds and a glimpse of what could be, the author then overlays the details of an online RPG to give us something that works on many levels, and is enjoyable from start to finish.

The Rating – Solid A

We liked Pangea Online. We would go as far to say that we loved it. Esil is memorable and easy to understand. S. L. Rowland cut no corners when crafting this work and it shows. There is a literary aspect to it, the Lit of LitRPG, that many other books of the genre seem to lack. Also, the subtitle, Death and Axes, gave us more than a couple of laughs every time we look at its cover, and that is probably worth something all on its own.

For lovers of the genre, Pangea Online: Death and Axes, definitely will hit the spot and leave you wanting more. Do you want to read Pangea Online? You can find it here.