The Game of Lives by James Dashner

Series: The Mortality Doctrine (bk. 3)

Genera(s): Dystopian Sci-fi/Action-Adventure

Subjects: action, adventure, artificial intelligence, gamers, games, hackers, technology, thriller, video games, virtual reality

Setting: The VirtNet, Atlanta, Georgia

POV/Tense: Limited 3rd person POV, past tense: Michael

Age/Grade Level: Teen

Length: 336 pgs.

HC/PB: Hardcover

List Price: $18.99

Publisher: Random House: Delacorte Press

Summary/ product description: “Michael used to live to game, but the games he was playing have become all too real. Only weeks ago, sinking into the Sleep was fun. The VirtNet combined the most cutting-edge technology and the most sophisticated gaming for a full mind-body experience. And it was Michael’s passion. But now every time Michael sinks, he risks his life.

The games are over. The VirtNet has become a world of deadly consequences, and Kaine grows stronger by the day. The Mortality Doctrine—Kaine’s master plan—has nearly been realized, and little by little the line separating the virtual from the real is blurring. If Kaine succeeds, it will mean worldwide cyber domination. And it looks like Michael and his friends are the only ones who can put the monster back in the box—if Michael can figure out who his friends really are.”

My Review:  It may be just me, but I enjoyed this final book less than the previous 2. There were not as many crazy mid-blowing twists are part of the reason. It could be that I’ve had a stressful past week and instead of reading the book consistently, I had to work of projects. Still, I love the idea of this series. It’s so creative. It kind of make me think of the Matrix because the VirtNet’s life-like virtual reality. If you haven’t read the previous two books, you shouldn’t read this review because. (SPOILERS FROM PREVIOUS TWO BOOKS AHEAD).

As a review, Michael is a Tangent and he’s in the body of Jackson Porter. Michael and his friends are trying to stop VNS and Kaine’s enactment of the Mortality Doctrine. Tangents are continuing to be downloaded into people’s bodies, possessing them and creating chaos around the world. Michael’s nanny appears to him in a real body and she and other have a plan to fix the situation.

They’re going to an embassy to virtually witness a UE meeting (Like the UN). They get side tracked and end up meeting other tangents that want Michael to join them. Bad stuff happened along the way. Some die, some live. Michael finds out there’s a lot more to what’s going on, and he doesn’t know whom to trust. His greatest enemy might just be his greatest ally. 

I did enjoy the action and all the stuff about coding and the VirtNet. The characters still feel a bit flat personality-wise, but the dialogue is good. I like Bryson’s sense of humor, and Sarah’s okay. I really liked the funny possibly connection of this series to The Maze Runner. Bryson says he has Griever nightmare, supposedly from a game, and “Flare-infested Crank” is mentioned near the end. Also, in The Kill Order, the VirtNet is mentioned.

Overall, it’s a good finale. I might not have read it at the right time. I hope James Dashner continues to write fun action-packed book series like this one. I’m sure I’ll read it. I recommend this to fans of James Dashner. Also people who enjoyed these books: Elusion by Claudia Gabel and Cheryl Klam, Insignia by S.J. Kincaid, and Mila 2.0 by Debra Driza. Fans of the Matrix movies, and Transendence and any sci-fi movie about technology will enjoy this.

Cover Art Review: It fits the book, but it’s kind of boring. I wish the title wasn’t so big and centered.

The Tattooed Heart by Michael Grant

Series: Messenger of Fear (bk. 2)

Genera(s): Paranormal/Horror

Subjects: supernatural, good vs. evil, apprentices, games, death, fear, bullying

Setting: Various places, including Iowa and Nashville, TN

POV/Tense: 1st person POV, past tense: Mara

Age/Grade Level: Teen

Length: 389 pgs.

HC/PB: Hardcover

List Price: $17.99

Publisher: HarperTeen: Katherine Tegan

Summary/ product description: “Mara has already witnessed more evil as the Messenger’s apprentice than most people do in their lifetime, but the games continue.

The Messenger leads Mara to the funeral of a Muslim boy named Aimal, who died standing up for his people, and then to an abandoned store, where they discover Graciella, a girl battling addiction. The all-knowing Messenger recognizes that they are victims of heinous crimes. Mara and Messenger will find the wicked—those who act out of selfishness and greed, and others who become violent because of prejudice and hate.

But Mara and Messenger pay a price too. For every person who is offered justice, they will wear a tattoo that symbolizes the heart of the crime. And as Mara delves deeper into her harsh reality, she is suprirsed to realize that part of her is drawn to the sometimes compassionate Messenger. In spite of all the terror she and Messenger inflict, Mara will discover that caring in this world is the hardest part of all.

The second book in New York Times bestselling author Michael Grant’s Messenger of Fear series, The Tattooed Heart combines fantasy with real-world horror stories to create a satisfying conclusion.”

My Review:  The Tattooed Heart is the sequel to The Messenger of Fear. Mara is still the Messenger’s apprentice. She’s viewing people’s lives, finding the ones who are causing pain and punishing them. There’s a racist jerk that is mean to a Muslim girl and there’s people who screwed over a girl who writes country song and made her become a drug addict. The Messenger of Fear’s purpose is to punish those who spread hate and cause pain and get away with it.

This series has been quite unique. The Messenger is kind of like an angel or the Ghost of Christmas Past & Future in a way. He’s not the only Messenger. There’s a lot of them and they take on apprentices. He’s very mysterious and doesn’t talk about his past except the girl named Ariadne who he loved and hurt. Mara is attracted to him, but there isn’t much romance. They don’t fall in love because Ariadne had his heart.

I really enjoyed the country music drama part. It made me think of the show Nashville on ABC. Graciella is kind of like Scarlet O’Conner and gets screw over selling her songs to a singer named Nicolet, who’s like Juliet Barnes and her manager who’s like Jeff Fordam. Then Graciella ends up as a hooker and does drugs. That’s awful.

This series is really Grant’s way of trying to say that bullying and racism are bad. It’s got a great message and it’s also very dark and fantastical. This story was longer than the previous book and still felt like it was lacking some substance. I enjoyed it. It wasn’t hard or boring, but something felt missing and I guess that’s the romance. We did get to see some demons though. I’m excited for the final book. The description misled me to believe that this was the final book, but I’m glad it’s not. I want to see Mara become a Messenger herself.

Cover Art Review: Reminds me of the Grisha Trilogy cover, but different artist.

The Leveller by Julia Durango

Series: The Leveller (bk. 1)

Genera(s): Sci-fi Thriller

Subjects: virtual reality, games, action, adventure

Setting: Illinois, Florida and then a virtual Havana, Cuba and the Meep.

POV/Tense: 1^st person POV, present tense: Nixy Bauer

Age/Grade Level: Teen

Length: 245 pgs.

HC/PB: Hardcover  

List Price: $17.99

Publisher: HarperTeen

Summary/ product description: “Nixy Bauer is a self-made Leveller. Her job? Dragging kids out of virtual reality and back to their parents in the real world. It’s normally easy cash, but Nixy’s latest mission is fraught with real danger, intrigue, and romance.

Nixy Bauer is used to her classmates being very, very unhappy to see her. After all, she’s a bounty hunter in a virtual reality gaming world. Kids in the MEEP, as they call it, play entirely with their minds, while their bodies languish in a sleeplike state on the couch. Irritated parents, looking to wrench their kids back to reality, hire Nixy to jump into the game and retrieve them.

But when the game’s billionaire developer loses track of his own son in the MEEP, Nixy is in for the biggest challenge of her bounty-hunting career. Wyn Salvador isn’t some lazy kid looking to escape his homework: Wyn does not want to be found. And he’s left behind a suicide note. Nixy takes the job but quickly discovers that Wyn’s not hiding—he’s being held inside the game against his will. But who is holding him captive, and why?

Nixy and Wyn attempt to fight their way out of a mind game unlike any they’ve encountered, and the battle brings them closer than either could have imagined. But when the whole world is virtual, how can Nixy possibly know if her feelings are real?

Gamers and action fans of all types will dive straight into the MEEP, thanks to Julia Durango’s cinematic storytelling. A touch of romance adds some heart to Nixy’s vivid, multidimensional journey through Wyn’s tricked-out virtual city, and constant twists keep readers flying through to the breathtaking end.”

My Review:  I’ve been anticipating the Leveller ever since I saw the cover reveled on EpicReads. Now I finally read it and was pleased to find that it was full of awesome. It was even better than I expected. My only complaint is that it was too short. But supposedly this is a series, though thing felt pretty wrapped up at the end. I can’t imagine what a sequel might entail and how anything could possibly follow up this amazing story.

There’s this virtual reality game world called the MEEP and it only launched a year earlier on Black Friday. Nixy’s parent both work for the MEEP. Her dad’s a developmental artist and her mom write scripts for the virtual people called Meeple. Nixy is a self-made leveller. She get paid by parent to retrieve their children ages 13-17 from the MEEP. They’re usually spending time there to avoid homework, so parents pay her a hundred bucks each time she retrieves them. Her motto is: Nixy Bauer, home in an hour.

The big boss of the Meep contact her parent requesting Nixy to retrieve his son from the MEEP. He’s supposedly left behind a suicide note and doesn’t want to leave. He’s been in the MEEP for days. There’s a maze of horrors that Nixy must conquer to get to him, such as sharks, snakes and scorpions. The MEEP is usually a place where people go to have fun or be some one they’re not. It’s usually not so terrifying.

The characters are pretty great. Nixy is tough, funny and quirky. Reminds me of Tella from Fire & Flood by Victoria Scott, or Maximum Ride. Nixy is from Illinois (like me, and the author lives in Ottawa, IL). She flies to Florida to help Diego Salvador’s son Wyn. There’s also a virtual Havana, Cuba in here. It’s Cube 60 years ago, but it’s such a unique setting. Wyn is actually a pretty great guy and sees the beauty in the world around him and tries to recreate it. Chang and Moose are Nixy’s friends and are typical gamer guys.

It’s an exciting adventure with a lot of action and different environments. I really enjoyed all the virtual reality stuff. The other books about virtual reality that I’ve read are the Mortality Doctrine series by James Dashner and the Elusion series by Claudia Gabel Cheryl Klam, and Insignia by S.J. Kincaid. This also reminded me of Rush by Eve Silver (The Game Trilogy). I overall enjoyed this book and wonder what will happen next.

Cover Art Review: The buildings are interesting, the girl is okay. Wish there was more to the cover than being just glossy.

Crash by Eve Silver

Series: The Game Trilogy (bk. 3)

Subjects: action, adventure, aliens, extraterrestrials, fighting, games, survival

Setting: Rochester, New York

POV/Tense: 1st person POV, present tense: Miki Jones

Age/Grade Level: Teen

Length: 357 pgs.

HC/PB: Hardcover

List Price: $17.99

Publisher: HarperTeen: Katherine Tegan

Summary/ product description: “A thrilling action/suspense novel for fans of The Fifth Wave about contemporary teens pulled in and out of an alternate reality where battling aliens is more than a game—it's life and death.

Miki’s life is falling apart around her. Her dad and best friend are lying in the hospital. The Game is glitching, making missions more frequent and more deadly. And someone close to her is waiting for the right moment to betray her.

Miki feels like she’s hanging on by a thread and the only thing keeping her tethered is Jackson’s hand in hers. Yet telling him how much she needs him, how much she loves him, feels like the biggest challenge of all. And if Miki really wants the missions to end for everyone, she’ll have to let go and be ready to fight when the walls between the Game and reality come crashing down. Because if there’s one thing she’s learned, it’s that she’s got a whole lot left to lose.

Crash is the pulse-pounding conclusion to the Game trilogy fans won’t want to miss.”

My Review:  Crash is the finale to The Game Trilogy. What started in Rush, continued in Push, now end in Crash. Everything crashes together. Miki, Jackson and their team are pulled into the game once again. Things are acting strange inside the game. Lagging and pixilation and things happening out of order. Once again Miki meets with Lizzie, Jackson supposedly dead older sister. She was caught in the game when she died. Lizzie says the game isn’t what it seems. That the Committee are not who they say they are and that the Drau might not be the enemy. There’s a lot more to the game than killing aliens to save the human race. I just love the twist/truth about the game. It’s something I suspected, but it’s still interesting. To avoid spoilers, I will just say read it and find out.

I love the character still. Jackson is amazing and will be one of my favorite YA guys, along with Tuck from Unearthly and Sam from Shiver. Jackson is Mr. Sexy, smirky, cocky and truly caring even when he acts like he doesn’t care. He feels guilty for Lizzie’s death, so that’s why he acts like a a-hole sometimes. He’s sarcastic and funny and he knows how to crack Miki’s serious attitude. Miki likes to be in control all the time. She’s had a lot of grief with her mother dying, but Jackson makes her feel happy. Luka is pretty interesting in a guy-friend way, and so is Tyrone, though he and Miki only see each other in the game.

I’d put this series right up there with The 5^th Wave by Rick Yancey and The Maze Runner by James Dashner. This series in unique and you should read it if you haven’t. I love the sci-fi elements. The aliens are interesting and different. They remind me of the angels in Angele Burn by L.A. Weatherly. Also kind of like In the After by Dimitria Lunetta. There’s action and and gaming stuff, so it’s like Eye of Minds by James Dashner too. I’m going to miss this series. I hope the author has something else in the works.

Cover Art Review: Why is it not metallic like the previous books? Glossy is boring. The cover design itself is amazing as always.