Hello friends!! My Warcross review will appear shortly but first, an update on life!
Again, I have been crazy busy and gone from the blog, but I hope to change that today!
So far these past few months I got a job, we went to an anime convention, Chris lost his job, we put the house up for sale, moved in with the in-laws, and Chris found another job. However, the in-laws live thirty minutes away from my current job and that thirty minutes is through a canyon that gets pretty nasty in the winter. So I am soon to start a job in the same town and we can carpool! Yay money!
But through all this mess we both thought long and hard about what we want to do with our lives. And we both decided we wanted to go to grad school. Chris because the amount of money he can make will go up A LOT. Me because I realized I don’t want to be a professional blogger. Making it as a pro blogger as a book reviewer does not happen often. And honestly, I love having a paycheck every two weeks. So, I decided to go back and get my Master’s in Library Science. I worked at a library for five years and absolutely loved it, but I never considered having an actual career. But anyway, I’m going to try and get back to reviewing on my blog and keep updating it because I really miss the motivation to read. So fear not! I have returned!
Now for Warcross by Marie Lu!
Summary from Goodreads:
“For the millions who log in every day, Warcross isn’t just a game—it’s a way of life. The obsession started ten years ago and its fan base now spans the globe, some eager to escape from reality and others hoping to make a profit. Struggling to make ends meet, teenage hacker Emika Chen works as a bounty hunter, tracking down players who bet on the game illegally. But the bounty hunting world is a competitive one, and survival has not been easy. Needing to make some quick cash, Emika takes a risk and hacks into the opening game of the international Warcross Championships—only to accidentally glitch herself into the action and become an overnight sensation.
Convinced she’s going to be arrested, Emika is shocked when instead she gets a call from the game’s creator, the elusive young billionaire Hideo Tanaka, with an irresistible offer. He needs a spy on the inside of this year’s tournament in order to uncover a security problem . . . and he wants Emika for the job. With no time to lose, Emika’s whisked off to Tokyo and thrust into a world of fame and fortune that she’s only dreamed of. But soon her investigation uncovers a sinister plot, with major consequences for the entire Warcross empire.”
Initially I thought this was going to be a lot like Ready Player One by Ernest Cline or the Sword Art Online Anime. However, the story itself felt fresh and fun.
Plot/Writing:
While the plot was fairly predictable, it didn’t diminish the story for me. There were still a few twists that I didn’t see coming. The writing was really good. I couldn’t really get into Marie Lu’s previous books, so I was worried I would have trouble with this one. But the writing was good. I enjoyed her descriptions of the scenes, especially the game play. *Em’s hair is my one exception to this.
Characters:
I liked the variety in the characters. I especially liked the inclusion of so many unique characters. Asher being in a wheelchair and yet still be the team captain I thought was fantastic. Usually sports and video game related books usually have a pretty standard character set, and I liked that this book broke that mold.
Em is the only character I want to go into detail on. While I liked her originally. As the book went on it began to feel like her only characterization was her tragic backstory, her rainbow hair, and her tattoos. Her rainbow hair in particular was irritating. It came up at very random points and it was never described clearly. It was always ‘rainbow hair’. Was each strand a different color? Were there chunks of each color that go around her head? It would be nice to actually be able to see it. And it would’ve been nice to give Em more development.
Overall:
Definitely a great read! While I had some minor issues with it, Warcross sucked me in. I heartily enjoyed it and I will definitely be reading the next one.
Anyone else read a video game or VR based book? I have read Ready Player One and I think I need something else along these lines!