Awaken Online, Vol. 1 - Catharsis

Jason is a loner who feels shut out of his own life. Fed up with reality, he logs into Awaken Online, a newly released virtual reality game that promises a level of immersion no earlier game has offered. He wants an escape, and he wants the power and freedom his real life never gives him.

The game does not go the way he expects. He is pushed down a path he did not choose, and it leads away from the usual role of the hero. In this world there are no damsels waiting to be rescued and no bad guys waiting to be beaten. Jason may turn out to be the villain.

This is LitRPG fantasy, a story set inside a game with a player at its centre. The focus stays on one character who is drawn to the dark side of a virtual world, and on how far the game lets him go.

Catharsis is the first book in the Awaken Online series, which now runs to 14 novels. This edition is a hardcover.