Armored Souls: The Complete Collection: Books 1-3

By: Xavier P. Hunter

Narrated by: Mikael Naramore

Length: 29 hrs and 5 mins

Publisher's summary

100 tons of walking steel. One human heart.

Sgt. Reggie King wakes up from a battlefield injury to find himself physically intact. But the hospital staff insist he’s not fit to return to duty. As part of his psychological recovery, they introduce him to a game.

Armored Souls is a tank game on steroids. Giant walking mechs called juggernauts engage in interplanetary wars as noble houses and mercenary factions wage endless battles for supremacy. For the pilots of these juggernauts, the rewards are glory, cash, and XP.

What follows is an epic struggle against the forces arrayed against him, from rival gamers to entire factions looking, to crush Reggie underfoot. To survive will take all his military leadership, perseverance, and maybe a little help from some new friends.

The Armored Souls series is perfect for listeners looking for a combination of The Matrix and Battletech. If you enjoy giant robots blasting at each other and swinging 20-ton swords, you’ll love these books.

Log out of your life and into Armored Souls.

©2017 Xavier P. Hunter (P)2022 Xavier P. Hunter

Good value for a single credit but mediocre in terms of actual story

In a simulated world our characters fight for no stakes because why not? The main characters are a fairly bland group playing a video game more out of habit than desire and they usually only seem to marginally even enjoy it.

A solid and fun tactical LitRPG series.

As a fan of Battletech, Armored Core, etc., I enjoyed this series. The dynamic was interesting, the characters were fun, and each book’s central theme kept me engaged through to the end.

There are a LOT of battles. And some really don’t matter or contribute much to the story progressing. But overall I enjoyed feeling a sense of being on the ground, in the mech with King. The story outside of Armored Souls is pretty solid too, if a bit nonsensical sometimes.

Some minor gripes include the main characters not switching their mechs out almost at all over the series, and a lot of number fluff to pad pages. I could have done with less “Chance to hit”, “Eliminate Enemy Juggernauts: X/XX”, countdowns, and so on. I know it’s a LitRPG, but I would have preferred the UI talk be toned down as series went on. Otherwise, it was a fun read.

Fun, exciting and overall enjoyable

I enjoyed the story, the characters and the concepts. And the final 5 minutes of the third book left me wanting more!!

Not for someone who’s easily offended by a little adult language and serious topics along the way.

I liked it.

Bought Armored Souls, on a whim, It was on sale. Excellent voice work. Good storyline. It made me think.

Too much drama, no stakes…

The narrator is fantastic! The story, not so much… It’s really JUST a video game, no chance of dying, no real investment in the “game”. Meh.

Great LitGame

Awesome mecha, was surprised they put in a PTSD element but glad it wasn’t the focus. Was half expecting the tournament arc and faction arc to be switched. Totally could’ve took this series into a more moral dilemma in corporate ethics. The narrator kept mispronouncing the Japanese words. But overall enjoyed this series.

I've made it through the first 51 chapters

Trying my best to keep this spoiler-free.

- Initial feel for the first dozen or so chapters is you get pretty much what you pay for, and very little else. An adequate protagonist in a very typical meh miltary-first mindset with no nuance (ofc, most people buying this book arent looking for nuance) nor any apparent build to a wider story or world to engage with, but it's fine. Pretty standard opening for a litRPG-esque entry.

- Things improve somewhat in the next couple dozen chapters as the protagonist remains proactive and relatable in that he is at least somewhat cerebral and introspective, and hints towards a wider story.

- The last dozen or so chapters = a slow descent into the very opposite of character growth, but more of a regression. Repeated actions expecting different outcomes, most of that mental aptitude making him stand out a bit has gone, Response to antagonist now comes across as an infuriating cycle of events that makes me as the reader, divest more and more with every chapter.

Will update this review if I stick it out for many more chapters than first 8 hours i've put in. So far, mostly regret at this purchase.

excellent tale of how AI might develpp

I enjoyed the storyline, characters and the plot line. However, to me the most compelling parts of the entire series are the discussions sprinkled throughput the narrative about AI and how it could get used. I simply loved the ending, the last 7 or 8 minutes make this quite a human tale of AI and how we should think to interact with it eventually

Great story’s are forged.

I’m happy that these titles were sold as one credit. I would have paid three just to finish. Great story, interesting characters, and a narrator just plain killin it. The story is no revelation… just plain fun. Please make more.

A decent ending

A solid armored souls book, but I wish there had been at least two more books if not five more books in between book 2, and book 3. In the last chapter there is at least an opening for a potential spin off into a new series