
Player Manager: A Sports Progression Fantasy
Player Manager, Book 1
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Buy Now for $33.99
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Narrated by:
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Luke Francis
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By:
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Ted Steel
About this listen
Could a seemingly average Premier League fan oversee a football club better than a top manager? Max is starting to think so . . .
Max Best is not living his—ahem—best life. His job's a drag, his home's a shooting gallery, his hopes are nil, and lately, even his beloved game of football has devolved from a chaotic, ecstatic delight into a cold, calculating equation complete with stats, tech terms, and mindless lingo. But then Max rescues a mysterious old man from a mugging. "Nick" seems friendly enough . . . until he innocently asks his savior, "Would you sell your soul to be a top football manager?"
Naturally, Max says yes, and in that instant, everything changes. Suddenly, whenever he watches a footie match, the skills and attributes of every player are visible to him within an eyes-only display. While he's terrified at first, he quickly learns to appreciate his abilities—even embracing them to gain his own level-ups and experience. And he's going to need them.
Because his otherworldly talent is about to have a massive effect on his real-world existence, catapulting him from small local matches to the insanity of top-tier football. But the more he succeeds, the more he's torn between the simple, happy fanatic he once was and the master of the pitch he's becoming. Soon Max will have to ask himself: Is football really a matter of life or death? Or is there something more important worth fighting for?
The first volume of the hit progression-fantasy series—with more than 700,000 views on Royal Road—now available on Kindle, Kindle Unlimited, and Audible!
©2023 Ted Steel (P)2023 Podium AudioLoved it.
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Main character is funny and endearing.
The narrator makes me feel I am in London.
The Idea
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As the title says, I have zero interest in football and yet I found the premise of this game lit story interesting and boy am I happy I tried it.
Things of note:
- If you don’t understand football it is very good at explaining it. (Actually watched some football after listening to book 3)
- Amazing narration and overall storytelling. The way the story is told feels constantly fresh and entertaining. Cant recall any part of it that was slow or boring even though it is slice of life.
- The humour is actually funny. MC is cheeky but good natured.
- The progression feels meaningful and while there are moments when MC feels overpowered there comes challenges that don’t feel contrived by the author just to tap down on excessive power creep. Rather those challenges actually make sense and progress the story.
- MC actually has to learn about the system and tactics which helps with explaining things to non football fans while entertaining football fans enough through explaining the system.
- perfect mix of small and big goals for the MC
- MC is flawed enough to allow character growth and makes believable mistakes while not feeling contrived by author.
Cant wait for the 5th audiobook to come out as I flew through the first 4 available!
Literal only critism would be the relationship between MC and GF being somewhat mercurial seeming but maybe that’s what it is like in football circles. It does become more deep and meaningful later on so don’t let that put you off. Nothing explicit.
0 interest in football but loved this!
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Great performance for a great story!
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It has just the right amount of every element that's needed for a successful sports fiction.
Sports? Check (I don't mean sports like those shitty romance novels with a sports background. I mean proper, unadulterated sports)
Slice of Life? Check (I also don't mean sports like a sports documentary that's only about sports. The author has an excellent sense of where the balance lies. I would recommend it even to those that abhor the word 'sports'. The author assumes you know absolutely nothing about football and sprinkles bits and pieces of game knowledge here and there, but not in a way that makes it obvious. There are a lot of characters. Each and every one of them feels alive and natural. There's also a lot of character development for the MC.)
Romance? Check (As much as I may shit on romance novels, sports and romance in the right balance is a combination made in heaven. Unlike so many others, the author seems to understand where the balance lies.)
Honestly, what more do you need? It's probably in there, too. Maybe I just didn't pick up on it.
Anyway, 10/10, been waiting for a story like this for a loooong time.
This is what a Sports fiction should be like!
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criminal
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