A talented Artificer who helped Peter the Great solidify his empire and then gave his life in a final stand against an arcane enemy finds their soul in the body of a young Russian noble three hundred years later. The good news is it seems that the reincarnating aspect of his last Artifact worked and even made him a Universalist able to channel all types of magic energy, the bad news is his new identity, Aleksander, is a well known party boy who bankrupted his family. His first challenge is to save his new grandfather from debtors prison. The obvious solution is to craft an amazing Artifact and sell it, but with his reputation it's going to a be hard to convince anyone to hire him. Throw in a death-mage for hire, scheming nobles, plots against the Czar, and hints that their old enemy is back and you have an entertaining yet somewhat cozy fantasy with rare elements of LitRPG progression. I say somewhat cozy because Aleksander has a tendency to deal with his enemies in creatively violent ways without a qualm thanks to his battlefield experience in his past life. 

I admit that I was hesitant about this book because it was labeled as a Portal Progression fantasy, which is my least favorite type of LitRPG despite still reading the soap opera that is The Wandering Inn. However, the Progression element here is little more than Aleksander deciding each book which pair of opposing forms of magic he will advance. While the first book spends a lot of time introducing the characters and setting, a sort of magic-industrial alternate Earth, the books generally follow a simple outline. At the end of the previous book someone asks for Aleksander to make an Artifact to solve their problem. So the books start with his investigating the problem and what magics he will need to use in the crafting. The middle of the book involves deciding the best way to advance those magics to the first "level" and sourcing the exotic materials needed for the Artifact. It usually ends with a big confrontation, an Artifact far beyond what modern Artificers produce, and a celebratory party where someone has a problem for the next book.

So far four books have been released, only three are on Audible so far, and I like the mix of a cozy fantasy with a found family and crafting but some action. The world building extends beyond the immediate surroundings and one of the best running story lines involves the Ottoman Embassy. The actual time period is a little vague, on purpose I think, and they have "ether" powered phones and cars but the political history is very different. Obviously, modern Russia does not have a Czar and the Ottoman Empire is long gone. Overall, I find the series to be relaxing entertainment and each book is better than the last.