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Tim Kaiver
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Cipher's Quest: A Sci-fi Fantasy LitRPG (Ciphercraft Book 1) Kindle Edition

by Tim Kaiver (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.0 out of 5 stars 108 ratings

When the system that time forgot suddenly shows back up...

The Cipher ran the universe with its game-like rules, and it has chosen Cullen, an exiled bounty hunter, to be the method of its return.

He's given a quest to free a telepathic mother and son from wrongful imprisonment. If he can break his targets out of prison, they'll have to level up, learn new skills, and hunt down the prophecy's clues. All while facing down berserkers and EMP-hurling tigers, in a jungle that offers no succor.

The promised reward is that the Cipher will grant access and the associated power to all of his embattled people, turning the tide in the galactic war that's ravaging the cosmos.

Cipher's Quest is a LitRPG Science-Fantasy mashup that answers the question, "What if we took Stargate and added Final Fantasy and Age of Empires?"

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  1. Book 1 of 4
    Ciphercraft
  2. Print length
    352 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Publication date
    July 21, 2020
  5. Reading age
    13 - 18 years
  6. File size
    2.1 MB
  7. Page Flip
    Enabled
  8. Word Wise
    Enabled
  9. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
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There are 4 books in this series.

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Editorial Reviews

Review

"It's not virtual... it's not apocalyptic... it's ancient wonder brought back to life. The Cipher system itself is insanely unique and well thought out... Overall Cipher's Quest is a fun read and a great addition to sci-fi LitRPG." - Stephen Landry, author of Star Divers and editor of Rise and Rescue: A Gamelit Anthology

"Fell in head first. The world is deep and kept building. Some readers in this genre light less world building, but I'm crazy for it. Had a Dune like feel to it, pushing sci fi and fantasy together. The LitRPG/Gamelit elements are light, but were essential to the story and added another level I appreciated. Will read book 2!" - TJ Reynolds, author of Eternal Online

"As a new reader to the LitRPG genre, I must say that Cipher's Quest made an addictive and entertaining read..." - A. Lynnette

From the Author

About the series: Ciphercraft is influenced by party-building, multi-class RPG games like Final Fantasy, town builders like Age of Empires, and a mashup of classic novels like Dune and Dragonlance. Inside you'll experience a story of hope-filled, dog-tough adventurers gaining extraordinary powers right when their people need them the most.

If you'd like to read the first chapter for free, head over to timkaiver.com. Sign up for my newsletter and receive a FREE novelette, "Apocalypse Archer," a side quest about a character you'll meet in book two. Enjoy! And if you do, please leave a review.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B08D6VR918
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Spike Publishing
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ July 21, 2020
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 2.1 MB
  • Simultaneous device usage ‏ : ‎ Unlimited
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 352 pages
  • Page Flip ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Book 1 of 4 ‏ : ‎ Ciphercraft
  • Reading age ‏ : ‎ 13 - 18 years
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.0 out of 5 stars 108 ratings

About the author

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Tim Kaiver

Tim Kaiver

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Tim Kaiver is an old-school gamer who writes Sci-Fi/Fantasy LitRPG. His Ciphercraft series starts out as a mix of Stargate and Final Fantasy and gets crunchier with LitRPG goodness as the series evolves into city-building and planetary defense.

His next series, Badges of Dorkdom, was published through Aethon Books under his pen name, Theo Hodges. Book one, Dreadlord Wizard is a humorous dark fantasy ode to his love of Raistlin in Dragonlance, if Raistlin was an 18-year-old dork who got sucked into a real MMORPG with the fate of worlds in the balance. You know, almost exactly like Dragonlance, lol.

Sign up for his newsletter at https://sendfox.com/timkaiver and receive the novelette, "Apocalypse Archer".

For more sci-fi, check out his Scavenger: Evolution and Scavenger: A.I. Or apocalyptic fantasy in his novel, Godsknife: Revolt.

Customer reviews

4 out of 5 stars
108 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find the book's story engaging with an exciting blend of sci-fi and fantasy elements. Moreover, the pacing receives positive feedback, with one customer noting how it immerses readers in the rich world. Additionally, customers appreciate the character development and consider it a great start to the series.

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13 customers mention "Story quality"12 positive1 negative

Customers find the book's story engaging with an exciting blend of sci-fi and fantasy elements, and one customer describes it as an enjoyable battle against time and the odds.

"...An enjoyable battle against time and the odds as the MC must race to find a key to the Cipher, and unlocking the game-like interface to give them a..." Read more

"...The story is engaging and creative. It's a really fun book. I just had some trouble getting traction with it early on...." Read more

"...The story itself is fine and eventually, around the 15-20% mark, I understood the goals of the story, the stakes, and a little bit of the world..." Read more

"...Great pacing, characters, and a fun blend of sci-fi and fantasy that is well balanced and immerses you in this rich world...." Read more

8 customers mention "Readability"8 positive0 negative

Customers find the book to be a great read, with one describing it as an awesome LitRPG.

"...Definitely worth checking out and excited for book 2!" Read more

"...The story is engaging and creative. It's a really fun book. I just had some trouble getting traction with it early on...." Read more

"This book was a great read! It took till the end to get to more GameLit/RPG and stats, but there is some sprinkled throughout...." Read more

"Great book . New take on a lot things. The story was good and the way the characters progress is very interesting. Can't wait to read book 2." Read more

5 customers mention "Character development"5 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the character development in the book.

"...A unique group of characters with unique classes including psychics, bounty hunters, and rare classes I haven't seen in a LitRPG before...." Read more

"...There was some good world building and decent character development, but it wasn’t enough to keep me engaged with the story...." Read more

"...Great pacing, characters, and a fun blend of sci-fi and fantasy that is well balanced and immerses you in this rich world...." Read more

"...The story was good and the way the characters progress is very interesting. Can't wait to read book 2." Read more

3 customers mention "Start"3 positive0 negative

Customers find the book to be a great start to the series, with one customer expressing excitement for book 2.

"...Definitely worth checking out and excited for book 2!" Read more

"Good start to a series. Want to see more." Read more

"Great start to a series!..." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

  • Ouroboros 9
    5.0 out of 5 stars Loved the blend of elements
    Reviewed in the United States on November 27, 2020
    Verified Purchase
    This book contains both science-fiction and fantasy elements. Some aspects gave me a big cyberpunk vibe, which I've been into lately.

    An enjoyable battle against time and the odds as the MC must race to find a key to the Cipher, and unlocking the game-like interface to give them a chance to defeating a ruthless empire intent on genocide. A unique group of characters with unique classes including psychics, bounty hunters, and rare classes I haven't seen in a LitRPG before.

    Definitely worth checking out and excited for book 2!
    2 people found this helpful
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  • David J Bushman
    4.0 out of 5 stars A Great Example of Sci-Fi Gamelit
    Reviewed in the United States on December 30, 2020
    Verified Purchase
    I really enjoyed this book but I am having a hard time reviewing it. When I picked up the book I was expecting a LitRPG and I think that threw me a little. I would classify this more as GameLit. That's not a bad thing. Just something different than what I was expecting. The system is consistent and present throughout and it is very lightly used. So don't go into this expecting a super crunchy LitRPG in the traditional sense. Once you get a handle on what Tim is going for you will see he does it very well.

    Initially, I was lost with the characters and remembering who was who. There were a lot of them all at once some with similar names. This is my only real gripe and it is a minor one. In some respects, it is very much like the series Malazan Book of the Fallen. You are just kinda tossed into the action with a bunch of people you don't know. Once I was able to learn who was who things really picked up for me. The story is engaging and creative. It's a really fun book. I just had some trouble getting traction with it early on. I think if I were to go back and read it again I would appreciate it more. I look forward to more books in the future.
    2 people found this helpful
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  • LitRPGPodcast
    3.0 out of 5 stars Didn't scratch that LitRPG itch
    Reviewed in the United States on July 21, 2020
    Verified Purchase
    The story is not a VR story, or a transported to a game world story. It takes place in an alternate universe where there was once an ancient lost technology that we’d describe as an RPG interface.

    I was so confused by the beginning of this novel. The reader is just dropped into the story and I kept going back and re-reading sections trying to understand what was happening, who these characters were, and how this was a LitRPG story. I came to understand that three of these characters had access to an RPG interface and system so they could fulfill some forced quest to unlock Cipher for everyone. But the details of what that meant were a mystery, even to the characters. Beyond that the story felt a bit more like sci-fi or sci-fantasy.

    The RPG system was light to say the least. It amounted to the characters getting classes and XP for doing mandatory quests. There are two classes, the Bounty Hunter and Ultras, but neither was really developed. They felt like general powers and less like an RPG class system. There were pretty regular notifications and the system was part of the story. However, I never got the feeling that the game system was an integral part of the story world but more like an interface or technology to advance power. Like the story about gaining freedom from the oppressive aliens would have been the same without the notifications or classes or XP and could have been replaced with just a reference to ancient tech implanted. In the novel description the author says the LitRPG crunch is a 4 out of 10, which is pretty accurate.

    The story itself is fine and eventually, around the 15-20% mark, I understood the goals of the story, the stakes, and a little bit of the world building. But honestly, by that point I was a bit checked out by the confusion of the start of the novel. Not all of that went away either, as the sci-fi elements of the story were left unexplained and new characters were introduced and dismissed without enough background to make me care about them or really even the main characters. The action in the story is neither amazing or bad, just ok. The plot was a little convoluted and the RPG stuff felt really light and a little forced for my tastes.

    Overall, the story just didn’t work for me. The threat from the aliens never came through well for me and the Cipher system didn’t feel impactful beyond directing the characters to plot points or as a way to give them power boosts. The sci-fi elements weren’t fleshed out enough to be interesting on their own either. There was some good world building and decent character development, but it wasn’t enough to keep me engaged with the story.

    Score: 6 out of 10
    16 people found this helpful
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  • A. Lynnette
    5.0 out of 5 stars My First LitRPG Read and I Am Thoroughly Entertained!
    Reviewed in the United States on July 29, 2020
    Verified Purchase
    As a new reader to the LitRPG genre, I must say that Cipher's Quest made an addictive and entertaining read. We follow Cullen's journey, with his mysterious past and the obstacles plaguing him, where he's tasked with escorting Ehli and Emmit to a planet where they could find the key to defeating the Osuna (dominating empire)--or, if they're not careful, their own destruction. Great pacing, characters, and a fun blend of sci-fi and fantasy that is well balanced and immerses you in this rich world. Definitely a recommended read.
    3 people found this helpful
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  • Amazon Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Great start to a series!
    Reviewed in the United States on September 27, 2021
    Verified Purchase
    This book was a great read! It took till the end to get to more GameLit/RPG and stats, but there is some sprinkled throughout.

    Full disclaimer, I had to push through the prologue, but once I made it, the story gripped me and kept me guessing as to what would happen next. Can’t wait to read the next one and finish out the series!
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  • vonrickstr
    4.0 out of 5 stars When love gives you advancement points
    Reviewed in the United States on May 24, 2021
    Verified Purchase
    Cipher's Quest: A Sci-fi Fantasy LitRPG (Ciphercraft Book 1) is an interesting premise and storyline. In an alternate universe, a group of people develop gamelike powers and HUD's. They need to save their people and the galaxy from evil overlords. With religious overtones, success must include love. The story progresses nicely and ends appropriately with plenty of reasons to want to read book 2.
    2 people found this helpful
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  • Reaperslayer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Awsome book!
    Reviewed in the United States on September 28, 2020
    Verified Purchase
    Great book . New take on a lot things. The story was good and the way the characters progress is very interesting. Can't wait to read book 2.
    3 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

  • All the books
    5.0 out of 5 stars Great book, quite unique for the genre.
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 25, 2020
    Verified Purchase
    Well written book which blends a few genres including LitRPG. Works really well and I can't wait for the second book.
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  • S. Reid
    4.0 out of 5 stars Might not be too every taste.
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 6, 2021
    Verified Purchase
    This one is a bit strange as the usual slow start for a first in a series ends up being a secret mission where all action/suspense goes a bit too fast i think as the middle part is a bit confusing as to who is the bad guys etc.
    This lost my interest and although it comes together towards the end for a intriguing end im in two minds if i shall rush towards book 2. About 3.5 stars as that middle part brings it down a notch.
    Some may find this quite good however and this may have been extended to give a bit less rush and help my interest
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