Cherry Mischievous: THE FUSIONIST

Wednesday, 14 October 2026

THE FUSIONIST

The Fusionist by Jonathan Brooks
Book 1 in the Magical Fusion series
Narrated by Miles Meili
Genre: LitRPG fantasy
Format: ebook & audiobook

About The Fusionist:

A young man and his axe, along with a magical life he never asked for…

Larek Holsten is different from most people, living in the Kingdom of Androthe where his 7-foot-tall frame is looked at with suspicion and anger from its shorter residents; but as long as it helps him become the best Logger he can be, he doesn’t let it bother him all that much. He and his best friend, an axe with a powerful Fusion that causes it to become sharper and stronger than a normal tool, are feared by the trees in the magical forest north of his home, as he can fell the quickly growing monoliths faster than anyone else in the community.

Unfortunately, after visiting the local village, a deliberate misunderstanding lands Larek in trouble; as a result, he is taken away from his family and the only home he has ever known. Along the way, his dormant magical potential is discovered by those more knowledgeable than him, and he is ordered to attend some sort of academy for Mages.

The problem? Contrary to many who might jump at the chance of wielding powerful magic to fight the monsters that threaten the towns and cities around the Kingdom, Larek has absolutely no desire to become a Mage, especially when he has no choice in the matter. All he wants is to be allowed to return home to his family and to chop down the trees in the Rushwood Forest.

But once he discovers a unique talent that stems from his newly unlocked latent power, he might just have to stick around to see what he can do…

Source: Info in the "About The Fusionist" was taken from amazon on 21/09/2026.

Buy Link(s):

My Thoughts:

First chunk of a bigger book.

I like the way the author slowly introduced the world building and first explains what the intitals are, i.e., AP means Advamncement Points, before furhter using the initials in the book. A few LitRPG I've read just dropped these initials without explaination or anything, assuming that the reader is also a gamer. I am not a gamer so I struggle to understand what these initals are. When I do not understand something in the book, it makes it a lot less interesting to me.

I also like the way the author explained the magic system and the origins/nature of the Scissions. It made the world building more believable. It makes it easier to suspend disbelief.

This is my first Miles Meili auidobook listen and I like the way he makes Larek's voice different from everyone else. However, he also reads with a tiny bit of a singsong which I am not very fond of.

Quantitative Evaluation:

Story telling quality = 4.5
Character development = 4.5
Story itself = 3
Writing Style = 4
Ending = 2
World building = 5
Cover art = 4.5
Pace = (16 hours and 58 minutes listening time)
Plot = 2
Narration = 4.5

Overall Rating: 3.5 out of 5 cherries

Books In The Magical Fusion Series:

Meet The Author

About Jonathan Brooks:

Jonathan Brooks had worked in retail for most of his life but have been an avid reader of fantasy books since around age 12. In addition, he has been playing videogames since he got an Atari 2600 when he was 5 years old. Consequently, he fell in love with the LitRPG, GameLit, and Dungeon Core genres when he first learned about them. Currently, he has 86 books published and more on the way!

The Narrator

About Miles Meili:

Miles Meili is an actor and voice actor (ACTRA and SAG/AFTRA member) based in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

Miles Meili was born in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan. He has been an audiobook enthusiast since they were called "books on tape". He started his career as a performer in Halifax, Nova Scotia, then moved to Seoul, South Korea where he lived for 10 years. There, he recorded audiobooks, e-learning, video games, cartoons, documentary voice over, commercials and more. He also appeared in Korean films and television shows, expat films, and on stage. He now lives in Toronto, Ontario with his wife, Kate, and daughter, Piper.