Well, well... Two reviews in one day? Yeah, I was getting behind. But to be fair, it's very hard to have a career and be in grad school and make time for reading/blogging. I'm totally making it happen though. 😜
Our next book up for review is Ready Player One which I finished on Saturday during the drive back from OKC. I figured I would fly through the second half of the book and be done waaaaay before that, but that's not what happened. Read my review below to find out why.
1. Characters: Now this, I loved. Wade aka Parzival, was a great protagonist. He was clever, funny, charming, awkward and fun. His side-kicks, Aech and Art3mis, were well-developed and even held a few surprises! One very unique facet of this novel is that there are no familial relationships really. Much of the story takes place in a virtual world, so there is little interaction with "real people," including family members.
2. Setting: Here's where it gets tricky. I like a world where anything is possible, so of course I can appreciate a story set in a virtual world. However, I will say some of the descriptions of technology took away from the story (for me, at least) and I found myself skimming over those parts. Many aspects of this virtual world and the places Wade/Parzival visits within them contain nods and references to 80's pop culture- which I enjoyed! But, to my dismay, the author frequently paused the story to describe and explain what the reference was. I do understand that he was trying to make it so that anyone unfamiliar with 80's pop culture could still appreciate it, but honestly that just disrupted the story continually in my opinion.
3. Author's Writing Style: I'm a little perplexed as to what I should write here. It's been 2 full days since I finished this book, and I still am not sure what I think about the writing overall. *Shrugs* I might read another novel by this author, but the story had better reaaaaally grab me.
4. Overall Rating: 3-3.5 Stars. I did enjoy the story and would recommend it to any gamers, sci-fi fanatics, or adventurists. However, I would also express a warning about the continual pause from the story to explain references and describe the technology/virtual setting. It's definitely not a book that "just anybody" would enjoy. I am glad I read it once though, and with all that being said, I really look forward to the movie coming out in 2018. I think my issues with the writing will be resolved seeing the beauty of it all on screen and I'll grow to love it more. I did have high hopes for it, though, and I was somewhat let down.
5. Similar Reading: I've only read one similar book/series to this (meaning a virtual reality-centered story) and it was by Maze Runner author, James Dashner. I have inserted the covers for said series below and they are linked to the series page on Goodreads. I enjoyed it much more than the stand-alone Ready Player One and highly recommend it.
Our next book up for review is Ready Player One which I finished on Saturday during the drive back from OKC. I figured I would fly through the second half of the book and be done waaaaay before that, but that's not what happened. Read my review below to find out why.
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| Click to read the full synopsis on Goodreads! |
2. Setting: Here's where it gets tricky. I like a world where anything is possible, so of course I can appreciate a story set in a virtual world. However, I will say some of the descriptions of technology took away from the story (for me, at least) and I found myself skimming over those parts. Many aspects of this virtual world and the places Wade/Parzival visits within them contain nods and references to 80's pop culture- which I enjoyed! But, to my dismay, the author frequently paused the story to describe and explain what the reference was. I do understand that he was trying to make it so that anyone unfamiliar with 80's pop culture could still appreciate it, but honestly that just disrupted the story continually in my opinion.
3. Author's Writing Style: I'm a little perplexed as to what I should write here. It's been 2 full days since I finished this book, and I still am not sure what I think about the writing overall. *Shrugs* I might read another novel by this author, but the story had better reaaaaally grab me.
4. Overall Rating: 3-3.5 Stars. I did enjoy the story and would recommend it to any gamers, sci-fi fanatics, or adventurists. However, I would also express a warning about the continual pause from the story to explain references and describe the technology/virtual setting. It's definitely not a book that "just anybody" would enjoy. I am glad I read it once though, and with all that being said, I really look forward to the movie coming out in 2018. I think my issues with the writing will be resolved seeing the beauty of it all on screen and I'll grow to love it more. I did have high hopes for it, though, and I was somewhat let down.
5. Similar Reading: I've only read one similar book/series to this (meaning a virtual reality-centered story) and it was by Maze Runner author, James Dashner. I have inserted the covers for said series below and they are linked to the series page on Goodreads. I enjoyed it much more than the stand-alone Ready Player One and highly recommend it.
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