The Fusionist

A Fantasy LitRPG Academy Adventure (Magical Fusion, Book 1)

By: Jonathan Brooks

Narrated by: Miles Meili

Length: 16 hrs and 58 mins

Publisher's summary

A young man and his axe, along with a magical life he never asked for....

Larek Holsten is different from most people living in the Kingdom of Androthe, where his seven-foot-tall frame is looked at with suspicion and anger from its shorter residents; but as long as it helps him become the best Logger he can be, he doesn’t let it bother him all that much. He and his best friend, an axe with a powerful Fusion that causes it to become sharper and stronger than a normal tool, are feared by the trees in the magical forest north of his home, as he can fell the quickly growing monoliths faster than anyone else in the community.

Unfortunately, after visiting the local village, a deliberate misunderstanding lands Larek in trouble; as a result, he is taken away from his family and the only home he has ever known. Along the way, his dormant magical potential is discovered by those more knowledgeable than him, and he is ordered to attend some sort of academy for Mages.

The problem? Contrary to many who might jump at the chance of wielding powerful magic to fight the monsters that threaten the towns and cities around the Kingdom, Larek has absolutely no desire to become a Mage, especially when he has no choice in the matter. All he wants is to be allowed to return home to his family and to chop down the trees in the Rushwood Forest.

But once he discovers a unique talent that stems from his newly unlocked latent power, he might just have to stick around to see what he can do....

This weak-to-strong MC story contains LitRPG elements such as character progression and statistics, as well as a heavy crafting emphasis. No explicit sexual content or harems.

©2023 Jonathan Brooks (P)2023 Jonathan Brooks

Great book, as expected.

I have listened to over 30 book by Jonathan Brooks and they are all great. While this book IS different than the rest (not a dungeon core book), it is the same great writing as the rest. If anything, this book may be his most engaging yet, with me spending more time listening to it than not (I finished it a day earlier than I expected due to not wanted to hit the pause button on the book).
If I had to critique anything (minor spoiler ahead), I would say the MC, Larek, is a bit over paranoid, but also a little dumb with the way he goes about some things. That being said, he is young, so I would be more surprised if he wasn't dumb about some things. I also think that many of the other kids act well beyond their age, such that the age difference that is present is not apparent in the story, but this does not detract from the story.
All in all, I am really looking forward to the rest of the series.

Ready for number 2!

Sadly I have finished it…I NEED NUMBER 2! can’t wait to see what happens next

different style

fun book, new enchanting style info, less dungeons more learning, kept me entertained even with slightly less fighting action

crafting academy with hidden powers

first the major gripe is that the narrators voice for the MC made the MC seem like a moron. that sort of played into who the character was, sort of quiet ostracized giant people mistake for an oaf, but it was still annoying to me. MC has an interesting mix of powers that he has to keep quiet, world is neat, magic system is decent. goes to magic academy, is discriminated against, has a small group of friends with pretty good social dynamics and growth. MC just starting to hit power spike by end of first book, will get sequel

Awesome Sauce!

Absolutely loved it! Love how he overcame his need to self seclude himself! Hope he overcomes his inability to do spells!

Different. Good. Imaginative.

Just keep listening. Takes a while to get into, but worth it.
Great book. Looking forward to book 2.

I am a fan of this author/narrator combo, but...

Racist children are hard to read about or listen to. Cuz real prejudice is based on experience n kids lack experience, so they don't know any better ...that leaves them pure, n open to everyone n everything
...so yeah, hearing the kiddies act like bigotted assholes was the opposite of fun for me

As a large black man, ppl (not just white ppl) sometimes act weird around me for no reason. So elements of the story resonate with me.

As a fan, I want to say this to Mr. Brooks, societal prejudice doesn't make ppl meek and confused ...it makes ppl angry and motivated.
I feel like (maybe without meaning to) u r making light of something that affects real ppl every day ...I can tell from ur writing that u don't have a full appreciation of what it is like to be ostracized by society as a whole, cuz this MC is waaaaaaaaaaaaaaay off at least in terms of how he developed in response to the discrimination

>>>>More generally,

Miles makes the MC sound "slow" and honestly the MC often doesn't know seemingly obvious things, like he did'n know what a sword was ...which blasted me out of immersion, cuz how cud any sensible person living in a world of swords n sorcery not know about swords to the point where he thinks its "a big knife"
...n If he's in a class full of children y is he self-conscious about what his classmates say, think, or do ...kids r dumb

I'm sure it's all intentional n done to give MC room to grow, but MC for sure starts off as an unlikable dickless buffoon

If author cud make the MC a little more self-assured, then I think the story wud be a lot more enjoyable

really interesting crafting series

this is from the dungeon core superstar Jonathan Brooks. he wrote a solid non dungeon core book and it is fantastic. I want more

Wow this is going to make you want book 2

between the awesome narration and the story you will be wanting to punch somebody by the end. A true underdog story that will leave you wanting more.

Great story

I loved this book. it was a nice fresh take on systems with solid character building. Thanks for a great story @Jonathan Brooks and great narration @Miles Mieli