“Machan and his clan” – review of the book “The Way of the Shaman Stage 3: The Mystery of the Dark Forest”

Shaman development

After the Gambit of Carthus is finished , Machan continues his way through the quests leading to the development of his character. The hero often finds himself in the right place and time, so the plot and action provide a lot of satisfaction, and there is basically no time for boredom. The shaman is able to find himself better and better in the virtual world of Barlion, he discovers new applications of his at first hated profession. He can surprise other players with his moves. He is also not afraid to take risky actions that can bring significant benefits. His next mission, however, may turn out to be too difficult for a single player. And the Dark Forest holds many secrets still waiting to be discovered.

I have my clan!

Machanienko narrates in a similar way as in the previous volumes, adding new threads at the same time. Machan develops his own clan, discovers more and more shamanic attributes. Once again, we are flooded with messages about the experience gained, active quests and their impact on the player and the game world, which is a typical procedure in LitRPG literature. Fortunately, it doesn’t cause unnecessary chaos. We feel as if we are growing together with Machan. The shaman has come a long way from his humble beginnings in the copper mine, and still has a lot of unknown angles to visit. The hero managed to achieve a lot from the moment he left the mine, despite the fact that only a few months have passed since then. Machan has been rooting for from the very beginning, and watching him develop as a shaman (the least popular character class in the world of Barlions) is a great pleasure. In this part, I liked the supporting characters, especially those belonging to the main character’s clan. The only thing missing from the third volume is the lack of more extensive descriptions of the world. In their place, we get a lot of dialogues that extend the plot.The mystery of the Dark Forest is not as gripping as the two previous parts, but it makes you want to return to this universe.

Summary

The Secret of the Dark Forest is a really good piece of the LitRPG genre. It is with great attention and pleasure that the actions of the main character are observed in the virtual world, which will undoubtedly surprise us with something else. I am waiting impatiently for the next volume, I hope the break will be much shorter than last time. I recommend. Not only RPG fans.