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Killstream: The Arena
Ready Player One meets Rocky in this family-friendly, explosive cyberpunk LitRPG series.
Blake Barnes works a dead-end job at Galaxy Burgers to help his mom keep up with the bills. But when he loses hours at work, he only has a few months to find a solution. His best friend, Rhys, convinces him to try a competitive VR game called The Arena, and Blake's whole world is flipped upside down.
Get ready for the event of a lifetime. Do you have what it takes to reach the top?
" The Arena is jam packed with the kind of non-stop action in the digital VR Arena that drops the reader directly into the game. Kessler's sharp, vivid writing opens up a whole new (virtual) world." --Winston Crutchfield, publisher of The Starman Saga and The Intergalactic League
"It was a fun gaming adventure story, without any of the junk that is in so many books these days." --5-star Amazon review
Blake Barnes works a dead-end job at Galaxy Burgers to help his mom keep up with the bills. But when he loses hours at work, he only has a few months to find a solution. His best friend, Rhys, convinces him to try a competitive VR game called The Arena, and Blake's whole world is flipped upside down.
Get ready for the event of a lifetime. Do you have what it takes to reach the top?
" The Arena is jam packed with the kind of non-stop action in the digital VR Arena that drops the reader directly into the game. Kessler's sharp, vivid writing opens up a whole new (virtual) world." --Winston Crutchfield, publisher of The Starman Saga and The Intergalactic League
"It was a fun gaming adventure story, without any of the junk that is in so many books these days." --5-star Amazon review
343 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 30, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
April 6, 2026
4★ // 4❤︎ – Enjoyed It!!
Okay, I want to start by saying I was really surprised by how fast this book engaged me and by my overall reaction at the end. Obviously, I don't buy a book if I don't think I will like it lol...but I don't read a lot of sci-fi/futuristic books (mainly because the technology and things go way over my head :) ) and I don't play video games.
So I feel like I am a very unbiased person to review :)
Anyway....
Let's get on with the review, shall we?
BOOKISH YAYS:
*Cover Kudos! Y'all know me - I love a good cover, especially when it was designed by the author! That just makes it so much cooler in my humble opinion :)
*One of the main things I appreciated about this book was the way the story was presented. Let me explain...no there is too much...let me sum up.... :D Anyway. As I mentioned before, I am not a video game kinda girl (Wii tennis when I was a kid is my only real experience haha) So if that's you (and you're worried about being able about understanding the plot) don't worry! The main character, Blake, doesn't play video games either - his friend gets him to start playing "The Arena" (which is some kind of alternate reality game I think?) to earn money for his family...so he's basically starting at ground zero. I really appreciated this because not only did it make me relate the character (with not knowing anything) but I never felt like there was a point where there was info-dumping to slow the plot or that the narrator was talking over my head. There were still some things that I only got scenes later (like I was halfway through the book and switch flipped and I was like....HANG ON I THINK XP means extra points. And if it doesn't, don't tell me because that made it easy for me to keep track of other plot stuff haha)
*Best friends in stories - I love healthy friendships, the do-or-die best friends, the people who always have each others' backs...give me that and I will cheer for it every time! Not to say Blake and Rhys (and can we have a quick round of applause for Rhys? okay continuing with the review) didn't have their disagreements or conflicts. But that's another reason why I loved seeing this friendship - it felt realistic in it's portrayal. Friends may but heads at time to time. Misunderstandings happen. Feelings get hurt. But real friends work through it and work it out, coming back together stronger.
*healthy mother/son relationship. Blake's mom is a hero - working overtime after her job gets cut when her other work takes on more robots and cuts real people (booo!!!), striving to care for her son but also making sure he knows he can follow his own dreams and path and that he shouldn't pour so much into caring for her that he never lets himself follow his own goals - and in all that, she still has such a loving, wise, strong spirit?? I love that <3 I really did want to know more about Blake's dead and what happened to him but this is a series so my questions may get answered later.... (I am a nosy reader)
*I like that all the Arena games were different, presenting unique challenges but everything felt personal for Blake. I liked that because it kept me invested. Again, as a non-video-game girlie, I was a bit worried about if I was going to be able to read straight through the book or if I'd skim some parts (don't judge me y'all please!!)....but everything was closely related to our main character and directly impacted him enough in the game, that I kept reading and was hooked the whole time!
*RAVEN <3333 She was such a cool character. Honestly, she may have been my favorite (Sorry, Blake! You come very very close next) I look forward to seeing more of her later on!!!
*no gore/real violence. This. This was one thing that I really appreciated. I do not have a high tolerance for violence, blood, etc... I just....don't. But when players get shot or injured in "The Arena," the part that's hit (or all of them if they "die" aka get eliminated) turns into blue shards and falls on the ground which is a MUCH BETTER mental image for me.
*the value of families sticking together (and listening to your parents!!! There are times when Blake lies or tries to hide something, but he either goes to his mom later or she finds out and he apologizes and accepts the consequences. I love that!!)
*THE END Y'ALL 😭🥹 This is one of those books where I refuse to elaborate and I won't even use a spoiler tag because I am worried some of y'all are as nosy as I am and spoiler tags don't really do much to stop you sometimes...but the end ahhhhhh. I was not expecting that at all!!
BOOKISH OKAYS:
* Mentions of "he cursed" "she cursed" - that's all, no words. I appreciate that. Now, I have my own opinions on even having that in fiction, but that is me. And I appreciate writers who can say that and leave it there and move on. So not my fav, but not a super big problem :D
BOOKISH NAYS:
....uhhhhhh basically none. :) Yeah, nothing to report over here!
(also I forgot that I told myself when I had a physical copy of a book, I should write down the page numbers of quotes that I liked. Guess I was enjoying myself too much to remember that haha. So if you want to find some good quotes...go grab a copy and read it for yourself! XD)
Content:
mention of people's avatars being vampires, mentions of gamers using "magic abilities" (in the game), mention of a hex spell (used by gamers, specifically the "bad guys"). Not my thing, but as it's in a "game world" and those are the only mentions (that my brain recorded), it didn't significantly lower the rating for me or majorly turn me off.
Okay, I want to start by saying I was really surprised by how fast this book engaged me and by my overall reaction at the end. Obviously, I don't buy a book if I don't think I will like it lol...but I don't read a lot of sci-fi/futuristic books (mainly because the technology and things go way over my head :) ) and I don't play video games.
So I feel like I am a very unbiased person to review :)
Anyway....
Let's get on with the review, shall we?
BOOKISH YAYS:
*Cover Kudos! Y'all know me - I love a good cover, especially when it was designed by the author! That just makes it so much cooler in my humble opinion :)
*One of the main things I appreciated about this book was the way the story was presented. Let me explain...no there is too much...let me sum up.... :D Anyway. As I mentioned before, I am not a video game kinda girl (Wii tennis when I was a kid is my only real experience haha) So if that's you (and you're worried about being able about understanding the plot) don't worry! The main character, Blake, doesn't play video games either - his friend gets him to start playing "The Arena" (which is some kind of alternate reality game I think?) to earn money for his family...so he's basically starting at ground zero. I really appreciated this because not only did it make me relate the character (with not knowing anything) but I never felt like there was a point where there was info-dumping to slow the plot or that the narrator was talking over my head. There were still some things that I only got scenes later (like I was halfway through the book and switch flipped and I was like....HANG ON I THINK XP means extra points. And if it doesn't, don't tell me because that made it easy for me to keep track of other plot stuff haha)
*Best friends in stories - I love healthy friendships, the do-or-die best friends, the people who always have each others' backs...give me that and I will cheer for it every time! Not to say Blake and Rhys (and can we have a quick round of applause for Rhys? okay continuing with the review) didn't have their disagreements or conflicts. But that's another reason why I loved seeing this friendship - it felt realistic in it's portrayal. Friends may but heads at time to time. Misunderstandings happen. Feelings get hurt. But real friends work through it and work it out, coming back together stronger.
*healthy mother/son relationship. Blake's mom is a hero - working overtime after her job gets cut when her other work takes on more robots and cuts real people (booo!!!), striving to care for her son but also making sure he knows he can follow his own dreams and path and that he shouldn't pour so much into caring for her that he never lets himself follow his own goals - and in all that, she still has such a loving, wise, strong spirit?? I love that <3 I really did want to know more about Blake's dead and what happened to him but this is a series so my questions may get answered later.... (I am a nosy reader)
*I like that all the Arena games were different, presenting unique challenges but everything felt personal for Blake. I liked that because it kept me invested. Again, as a non-video-game girlie, I was a bit worried about if I was going to be able to read straight through the book or if I'd skim some parts (don't judge me y'all please!!)....but everything was closely related to our main character and directly impacted him enough in the game, that I kept reading and was hooked the whole time!
*RAVEN <3333 She was such a cool character. Honestly, she may have been my favorite (Sorry, Blake! You come very very close next) I look forward to seeing more of her later on!!!
*no gore/real violence. This. This was one thing that I really appreciated. I do not have a high tolerance for violence, blood, etc... I just....don't. But when players get shot or injured in "The Arena," the part that's hit (or all of them if they "die" aka get eliminated) turns into blue shards and falls on the ground which is a MUCH BETTER mental image for me.
*the value of families sticking together (and listening to your parents!!! There are times when Blake lies or tries to hide something, but he either goes to his mom later or she finds out and he apologizes and accepts the consequences. I love that!!)
*THE END Y'ALL 😭🥹 This is one of those books where I refuse to elaborate and I won't even use a spoiler tag because I am worried some of y'all are as nosy as I am and spoiler tags don't really do much to stop you sometimes...but the end ahhhhhh. I was not expecting that at all!!
BOOKISH OKAYS:
* Mentions of "he cursed" "she cursed" - that's all, no words. I appreciate that. Now, I have my own opinions on even having that in fiction, but that is me. And I appreciate writers who can say that and leave it there and move on. So not my fav, but not a super big problem :D
BOOKISH NAYS:
....uhhhhhh basically none. :) Yeah, nothing to report over here!
(also I forgot that I told myself when I had a physical copy of a book, I should write down the page numbers of quotes that I liked. Guess I was enjoying myself too much to remember that haha. So if you want to find some good quotes...go grab a copy and read it for yourself! XD)
Content:
mention of people's avatars being vampires, mentions of gamers using "magic abilities" (in the game), mention of a hex spell (used by gamers, specifically the "bad guys"). Not my thing, but as it's in a "game world" and those are the only mentions (that my brain recorded), it didn't significantly lower the rating for me or majorly turn me off.
November 17, 2025
When even your fast food service job gets you replaced by a robot, it's time to make a lifestyle change. Enter a world where mega-corporations dominate the world through wage-slavery and the largest commerce in the world is found in virtual space. Blake is about to get paid to play video games - if he can figure out the controls in time, if he can make it to the top tier in the Arena, and if he doesn't lose his only friend in the process. Killstream: The Arena is jam packed with the kind of non-stop action in the digital VR Arena that drops the reader directly into the game. Kessler's sharp, vivid writing opens up a whole new (virtual) world. Suitable and approachable for middle-grade readers and older, The Arena contains video game violence only, no obscene language, and no sexual content. I received an ARC from the author.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews