Awaken Online by Travis Bagwell

Awaken Online is my first LitRPG, a style of story that takes place mostly within a video game. Aiding in the developement of (the game) Awaken Online, the AI named Alfred, runs amok and creates the most consciousness-enhancing game of all time. Our hero, Jason, gets bullied at school, and then expelled. It's not as bad as it could be, because Awaken Online was just released. But Jason's character is evil, and it's all messing with his head.

I think the idea of a LitRPG is pretty cool. It's fun to see characters learn hard skills and improve their stats. It makes me wonder about what other kinds of story devices are out there.