Black Sand Baron
The Ripple System • Book 2
by Kyle Kirrin
Why You'll Love This
Ned is being hunted by a god-backed holy war and his best asset is a talking axe named Frank who thinks there isn't enough blood.
- Great if you want: LitRPG with genuine wit and escalating high-stakes conflict
- The experience: fast, chaotic, and laugh-out-loud funny without losing tension
- The writing: Kirrin balances absurdist comedy and real threat with sharp timing
- Skip if: you haven't read book one — context matters here
About This Book
Being the target of a game-wide Holy War was never part of Ned's plan. Now, with a fanatical religion spreading across EBO like fire through dry grass and a divine enemy days away from stepping into the world, Ned is running out of time, allies, and options. What follows is the kind of story where the stakes keep climbing and the odds stay entertainingly, brutally terrible — a man against an army, a rogue against a god, and somehow, Frank the talking axe along for the ride.
Kyle Kirrin writes LitRPG with a sharper comic sensibility than most authors bring to the genre, threading genuine wit through high-stakes action without letting either undercut the other. At 835 pages, Black Sand Baron earns its length — the world of EBO keeps expanding, the systems deepening, and the character dynamics growing more satisfying with every chapter. Kirrin has a gift for pacing a long book so it never drags, balancing absurdist humor with moments of real tension. Readers who love progression fantasy done with personality will find a lot to enjoy here.
