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 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.

Etherworld by Claudia Gabel and Cheryl Klam

Series: Elusion (bk. 2, final book)

Genera(s): Dystopia Sci-fi

Subjects: virtual reality, technology, near-future, thriller, adventure

Setting: Detroit, Michigan and a virtual world called Elusion

POV/Tense: 1st person POV: Reagan Welch

Age/Grade Level: Teen

Length: 338 pgs.

HC/PB: Hardcover 

List Price: $17.99

Publisher: HarperTeen: Katherine Tegan

Summary/ product description: “In this sequel to Elusion, three teens fight a virtual reality program that threatens to destroy their minds. Dangerous secrets and lies add up to a thrilling futuristic fantasy with an Inception-inspired twist.

Elusion was hailed as an exciting leap in technology—until users began to disappear amid rumors of addiction. Regan’s search for the truth led her and her new love interest, Josh, to Etherworld. Etherworld is a dimension hidden deep beyond Elusion's firewall, where players can hide, and ultimately fight back. Regan's father and others are here working to destroy Etherworld, but the longer they stay the less likely they'll be able to return to the real world alive.

Escape means attacking Elusion from within the program. It's dangerous and it’s a puzzle. And even if they manage it, how will they be able to stop Orexis from distributing Elusion to the masses when the people who run it are corrupt?”

My Review:  Ether World is the sequel-finale to Elusion. It’s still from Reagan’s POV and centers around a plot to destroy Elusion and save people who have been trapped there. Reagan has found her dad trapped in Elusion, also and he and a group of young people are in a place called the Ether World.

The Ether World is a less developed part to Elusion that has low stimulus. Elusion itself is about excitement and having great experiences. It uses a drug called trypnosis to but the user into a hypnotized state so the virtual reality of Elusion feels more real. It’s a really interesting concept, different from other virtual reality books like Eye of Minds by James Dashner or Insignia by S.J. Kincaid. This virtual reality in less developed and focuses more on landscapes called “Escapes” and not really about gaming.

Also, outside of Elusion, this book is set in Michigan. Detroit, about 50 years in the future in a world in which Florapetro (some kind of synthetic oil) pollutes the skies around cities and people have to wear O2 oxygen masks to protect their lungs when they’re outside. There’s acid rain that actually burns somewhat and the sky’s not often blue. Elusion becomes a way to escape this miserable polluted world, and the day-to-day jobs and hardships. But is only being used so far in 3 cities: Detroit, LA, and Miami. 

This book had far less romance that I expected. I didn’t mind it. I like that it was more on the sci-fi adventure side of things this times. There was plenty of character interaction and confrontation and funny dialogue. Reagan seemed less quirky than in the previous book. I wonder if it’s because there’s two authors and maybe one wrote this book in a slightly different style than the other. Either way, this was a fun sequel and it’s too bad it had to end at two books. Duologies seem to be popular now. If you haven’t read Elusion or Ether World, then give it a try if you like sci-fi books about technology and virtual reality.

Cover Art Review: I love the colors and details. I just wish it was metallic like the previous book’s cover.