OK as an intro to LitRPG’s, but not much else

I’ll start off by saying I received this book for free. That said, it’s one I would have returned had I bought it. I listen to a fair amount of LitRpg’s, looking for series that stand out. Unfortunately this is not one of the for me

The story is very… generic. It’s shares much of it’s story with Ready Player One, but lacks the charm and detail of the world(s). For me, a few things that pull me out of a litrpg story: overuse of luck/convenience, lack of world building, and lack of urgency/consequences.
I understand in this genre there has to be a certain amount of luck for the main character, but in contrast there has to be a certain amount that feels earned. The vast majority of things the main character comes across, from spells he finds to his love interest who likes him from moment 1, is conveniently placed and leads to an unearned feeling for the reader.
Bless the author for not including 10 minutes of stat pages, but that lack of detail falls across many areas in the book. The worlds themselves blend together, as do most of the characters and they’re actions. For example, the antagonist is only the big bad because of a chance run in with the main character, he uses zombie magic, and because he’s the favorite to win the tournament. He doesn’t outright have an issue with the main character until the end of round 2? He’s also *spoiler* defeated with little issue or fanfare once the main character uses his trump card. I had to rewind because it was over so quickly.

Overall, it’s an ok story for new readers to the genre, but know that there are other stories that will stand out even more. Experienced readers to the genre will want to look elsewhere for more details worlds and those sweet sweet stats.