The Daily Grind: A Slice-of-Life LitRPG

The Daily Grind, Book 1

By: Argus

Narrated by: Pavi Proczko

Length: 17 hrs and 32 mins

Publisher's summary

An IT worker explores an alternate dimension in his office in the first book of a fun and fast-paced series blending cubical life and dungeon fantasy.

Working as overnight tech support, James Lyle has long said he’d do anything to escape the boredom. But his commitment to excitement is tested when a slight coincidence one shift sends him to a different part of his office building . . . and he discovers a stairwell that contains not stairs but rather a landscape of seemingly infinite cubicles against a distant horizon.

Unwilling (and unable) to stay away, James and a few of his trusted friends begin to explore this endless maze of supernatural business ennui, a few minutes in the real world turning into eight hours of encounters with strange creatures and even stranger interior design choices. But in a realm that allows them to level up in fax machine repair and provides them with enough cash to pay the rent, there are also adversaries that are quickly becoming dangerous—and potentially lethal.

As James, along with his companions, delves ever deeper into this extraordinary place, he starts to realize that animate staplers and time dilation might not be the biggest challenges they face, and those challenges might not stop at the entrance . . .

The Daily Grind is the epic beginning to a slice-of-life urban fantasy that effortlessly blends wry commentary on office life with intricate character- and world-building.

The first volume of the hit LitRPG fantasy series—with more than four million views on Royal Road—now available on Kindle, Kindle Unlimited, and Audible!

©2023 Argus (P)2023 Podium Audio

Interesting

Very real world gets weird with actual mentions of real products and services to reinforce that this is happening to people in our world (fictional). Probably will also apeal to fans of The Backrooms.

Think “The Office” remixed with “Through the Looking Glass”

Some of the story is a bit of a grind but those are framed out with some really good banter between friends, not giving out where to skip with spoilers.

Pavi did a really nice job with this one and there were very few slips between characters or monotonous grinding. Then again this is one of those stories that I know I would have trouble narrating.

Argus managed to capture a piece of my childhood with the way the main characters interact with each other and the love we had for all of the table top RPGs.

Was excited

I preordered this and it seemed like something I’d love. After a fantastic opening, the book literally became a grind. The characters have an under 24 years old feel to me. I’m older so younger generations are like aliens to me. I wasn’t interested in their extremely catty comments. They also try to put each other down and shut down avenues of exploration. It takes a long time for them to reach a milestone in the dungeon. Has no one heard of a montage. You could have cut out 10 hrs and just said, ‘they went in and got some money and skills’ before getting to the actual story.

Urban dungeon crawl litrpg

TDG is a really fun listen with dynamic characters interacting and a fun plot of what it would be like to find a dungeon in modern day times and how to exploit it for fun and profit. The characters remind me of exactly what it would be like for me and my friends to get access to an irl litrpg. 10/10

What a trip! Loved it

If you like litrpg but want something different this is it. I dont think there is anything else quite as different as this and its well done all around from story to narration.

Unexpected Office Adventures

Working as tech support for many years and part of that time was overnight, I really felt a kinship with James. I felt as if the story started a bit slow for me, but by the end, I couldn't wait to jump into the next book. The creatures in the story are pretty unique compared to other litRPGs I've experienced, as is the level up system.

Well, at least he's not terminally bored anymore.

I read this first as a web series and couldn't resist when this came out. It did not disappoint. There were moments when I worried the narrator hadn't gotten the friendly, playful insulting banter right between the characters but as the story progressed, I loved it. The way the characters talk to one another is something I heavily relate to as someone with ADHD, their interactions between one another really remind me of the way I interact with my own friends. It was interesting to hear the voices of the characters, specifically Anesh, change as the narrator became used to used to him and was overall a joy to listen to.

I can't wait for the rest of the books in the series to be released and I will definitely be picking them up. ♥

Surprisingly entertaining

Boringly mundane life meets delightfully entertaining RPG situations
The casual development a non-traditional relationship was given enough focus to enhance character development without being a distraction

Pretty good

I pre-ordered this not knowing what to expect.Starting off it was interesting but I wasn't sure how much I liked it. The further along I got the more I enjoyed the story, then the glimpses of the deeper mystery hooked me. Now I've already pre-ordered book 2 to find out more of what is going on.

more of a prequel but still good

once you get to the end, the book rightfully feels like a prequel. so can't wait till the next book. that being said, it meanders a bit in the middle but it's worth your time and credit.