Street Cultivation is my xianxia/cultivation serial, originally available for free on RoyalRoad. The trilogy is now complete and available on Amazon in three books.
Completed Book 1: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07W9J75R3
Completed Book 2: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B086Q8ZGTD
Completed Book 3: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08NFJWWBF
Audiobook 1: https://www.audible.com/pd/Street-Cultivation-Audiobook/1541438299
Audiobook 2: https://www.audible.com/pd/Street-Cultivation-2-Audiobook/1541438302
Description: In the modern world, qi is money.
The days of traveling martial artists and mountaintop masters are over. Power is controlled by corporations, modernized martial arts sects, and governments. Those at the bottom of society struggle as second class citizens in a world in which power is a commodity.
Rick is a young fighter in this world. He doesn't dream of immortality or becoming the strongest, just of building a better life for himself and his sister, who suffers from a spiritual illness. Unfortunately, life isn't that easy...
Frequently Asked Question: Will you return to the Street Cultivation series?
The answer I always give is that while it's not impossible, the trilogy is what I originally planned and promised. I certainly have ideas for the lives of Rick and Melissa after the third book, and characters like Emily or Damian obviously have their own stories to tell. But one of my goals with the series was to do something a little different, presenting a milieu of events and beliefs that didn't receive any tidy conclusions.
So, for now, the answer must be that while I don't rule it out, I don't have immediate plans to write another. For the time being, I'll be focused on fulfilling the promises in my two ongoing series.
I read this book and quite enjoyed it. I've posted a review for in on amazon. Thanks for writing. I'll look forward to the next book if and when it happens...
ReplyDeleteI'm glad to hear that you enjoyed the book, and authors are always grateful for reviews! A sequel is confirmed and will begin posting on Patreon this month.
DeleteJust finished reading Street Cultivation--I give it a ten out of ten!
ReplyDeleteThe author did very well to establish the setting, present the characters, introduce conflict, and give the main character a believable goal! Besides that technical story-telling stuff, the novel is written incredibly well and didn't ever leave me feeling bored.
I highly recommend this to anyone who wants a stand-alone story (though I don't know if the author plans to continue the story in later books) where conflicts are introduced and concluded in a satisfactory manor.
Thank you for the kind words! If you haven't said as much in a review, I would appreciate it. ^-^
DeleteI can also tell you that there will be future books in the series. The second novel (which will also try to cover a complete arc) will begin posting on my Patreon this month.
I just finished reading your Book and wrote following Review on Amazon in Germany.
ReplyDelete"The Pros of this Story are the very well developed Characters and the believing World. I found the Cultivation Powers aka Magic Pretty Amazing. It is well thought out with lots of room for growth. I don't think that we will be bored in the following Books.
The Character I liked most in the Book is actually Granny Whitney, who is a Side Character, but a very important one. I just found it funny how she yanks everybody's chain, especially the MC's one.
The MC himself is very believable. He is hard working and caring. Sadly, he is dealt a Pretty bleak Hand in life. How he deals with this Situation is the Main Focus of the Book. What I don't like is the MC's thinking, that because he has it bad, he is entitled to free stuff. We see this best in his relationship with Granny Whitney. But I also feel that this is a very common attitude, especially in the Young."
Naturally I gave it 5 Stars.
What I wanted to ask you is the following. Does we see Granny Whitney in the following Books? It is funny how she yanks Rick's chain :).
Thank you for leaving a review! I'm glad you enjoyed the book, and reviews really help authors out.
DeleteGranny Whitney is too fun of a character not to include. ^-^ She won't play a major role in every book, but she'll always be around.
I just bought this on Oct 25, and I read it ALL on the same day! I just could NOT put it down! Very much looking forward to the second installment!
ReplyDeleteGreat to hear you enjoyed it so much! Please leave a review if you haven't already. ^-^
DeleteThe sequel is posting now, so please look forward to its release in a few months.
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ReplyDeleteGreatly enjoyed the first book in this series. However, I cannot stand the royalroad/patreon format. I know it pays the bills, and I promote whatever process keeps you writing, but I'd like more information about upcoming releases to Amazon.
ReplyDeleteGlad you enjoyed Street Cultivation! Serializing a story like this was actually a bit of an experiment for me, and while I'll continue that model for this series, I don't know if I'll return to it. Promoting the Patreon certainly doesn't hurt, but reviewing and recommending my books is actually more appreciated. ^-^
DeleteStreet Cultivation 2 will finish posting chapters in early March, and the complete Amazon release will be some time after. There will definitely be an announcement here and via my mailing list. Right now there are no set release dates, but I'm aiming to release The Brightest Shadow in early March and SC2 in late March or early April.
Really enjoyed Street Cultivation. Felt it worked well as a whole and am awaiting Book 2.
ReplyDeleteThanks! Book 2 is getting very close to finished on Patreon.
DeleteLove the series. I love the combination of modern day and the xianxia/Wuxia genre. Can't wait for the third book.
ReplyDeleteGreat book series! Amazing story line & great choice of performer for the audio book! When is book 4 coming out? :)
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you enjoyed it. A trilogy is what I originally planned and promised.
DeleteOk I just finished book 3, and I have to say the statement above, "the trilogy is now complete" is bittersweet. I loved this trilogy. The characters dynamics, world building, power system, all of it and I just want more. Having said all that I'm definitely looking forward to what ever sarah publishes next.
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ReplyDeleteHi Sarah,
ReplyDeleteI just finished book 3 of Street Cultivation and it floored me. This is best all time Cultivation fantasy book I have ever read. The fact Rick isn't some OP unstoppable invincible god-mode character makes this book fantastic but add in the world building, demon world, immortal politics and the banter between Rick and Melissa makes my top ten list. (My top ten authors include Raymond E feist, David Eddings and Sara Douglass)
Thank you for sharing your story with me
Thanks for the kind words! Yes, I was trying to do something a little different with Street Cultivation, so I'm happy to hear from people who enjoyed it. ^-^
DeleteI just finished the series and I so hope there will be more, it's a world I want to see more of, I want to see rick be able to confront aljor, I want to see how his relationships continue, will there be more books? A sequel to the series?
ReplyDeleteI haven't ruled it out, but I also haven't promised any sequels.
DeleteI really enjoyed these! I'd love it if the world was revisited, following the same or other characters, at some point.
ReplyDeletehello I really enjoyed the novel.
ReplyDeleteI made a fan art of Rick
https://www.instagram.com/p/COlU1vMDM-b/?igshid=l0i8lz10nyfw
Hey, thanks! It's always a pleasure to receive fanart for my books... and is that a Melissa I see too?
DeleteI try to promote fanart of my work as much as I can. I can link your Instagram, but if I can get a copy of the picture, I could post it in more places. For example, I'm trying to have all fanart linked from my small subreddit:
https://old.reddit.com/r/TheBrightestShadow/
You might also get some attention if you posted the fanart here:
https://old.reddit.com/r/ProgressionFantasy/
Anyway, I'm glad you enjoyed the novel and I'll happily highlight your work. ^-^
thank you for your compliments yes that is Melissa . i'm trying to make a comic out of the first chapters out of the novel. when I'm finish I'll surely post it there ^^
DeleteComics are always neat, and I think it would definitely get some traction posted elsewhere! I'll be linking your Instagram in my weekend posts, so everyone can see your work. ^-^
DeleteNeeds a sequel series following Luke.
ReplyDeleteJust wanted to say that I binged Street Cultivation on audible one book after another. It's really hard to frame a story like you did, especially in book 3, and have it end in such a way that the world seems like it kept going and there's more that could be said, but is left for the reader to infer. I love that Rick stayed true to who he was throughout the series despite everything thrown at him. Given how life simply shat on him for the first half of book 1...I don't recall the last time I read an MC have that much bad luck.
ReplyDeleteOkay, I'm going to stop myself or I'll gush about two dozen different things I loved and would keep finding more. Suffice to say, thank you for these amazing characters!
I'm glad to hear that you enjoyed it so much! I was definitely aiming for something a little different with the structure of the story, so it's always nice to hear from people who appreciated it. ^-^
DeleteCan we get an official lucrima portfolio for Rick as at the end of book 3 for the progression junkies among us.
ReplyDeleteHaha, I'm glad I have people interested in those detailed profiles. However, if a portfolio isn't included in the final appendix, I'll have to hold off for now. I think the epilogue works best when you see Rick in an ambiguous future position.
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