| ISBN: 978-0399547966 | Pages: 368 |
Publication Date: September 12, 2017 | Source: Library E-book
| Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars |
★★★☆
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.
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.
"It's too damn cold to be outside functioning." - a sick and stressed college student (aka me)
I've been eyeballing the Warcross duology ever since it came out because I've heard nothing but fantastic things about Marie Lu's writing. The only thing that really kept me away was the genre - I'm not a big science-fiction fan and tend to avoid books in that realm if I can. However, my interest got to me and I fell down this wonderful rabbit hole.
“Every locked door has a key. Every problem has a solution.”
The world of Warcross is a preview into what our world could potentially look like - a world that is completely online. Human employment is now mostly replaced by robots and the newest form of fame is to be a professional gamer in Warcross. Marie Lu did a fantastic job designing this futuristic world with all the cool gadgets and internet glam. It was the perfect amount of technology new-ness and a tangible world that made the story feel more grounded.
“But beauty can make people forgive a thousand cruelties.”
I don't know it is about Emika Chen but I really liked her character. I can go into a whole spiel about how awesome it is that Marie Lu has such a diverse range of characters and that we have a kickass Chinese-American hacker as our lead. But, on a very fundamental level - I just really loved Emika. Reading from her perspective for some odd reason just felt familiar and inviting which I contribute as being an important factor in explaining why I enjoyed this story so much.
“When you refuse to ask for help, it tells others that they also shouldn't ask for help from you. That you look down on them for needing your help. That you like feeling superior to them.”
Going back to the list of characters, we have LGBTQ+ representation as well as a disabled character who doesn't let his circumstance dictate his dreams. The cast for this novel encompasses so many different aspects of our society today and transports it just to a futuristic world where everyone can connect to the web just by donning a pair of glasses or contact lenses. Also, Hideo Tanaka is A+ (I'm just saying).
“Everything's science fiction until someone makes it science fact.”
My one gripe with this book is the predictability. The story does start off in a way that's very typical YA - main character getting something she only would have dreamed of and meeting her idol who also happens to develop feelings for her - but as I got more and more invested in the characters and plot, I started seeing where Marie Lu was taking the story. It almost feels like she could have done so much better for all the depth that she went into for the initial development. However, because I am so attached to each individual character, I don't really have much of a choice but to continue reading.
0 Comments