What do you think?
Rate this book
The Nova Project #1
Gamescape: Overworld
The planet is dying. Centuries of abuse have damaged the earth beyond repair, and now all the authorities can do is polish the surface, make the landscape look pretty to hide the disease within. Two prominent yet mysterious businessmen couldn’t fix it, either, but they did something even better. Together, they invented Chimera, the most complex and immersive virtual reality video game the world has ever known. The Cubes in which Chimera is played quickly became a fixture of this landscape: part distraction, part hospital, and almost wholly responsible for holding up the failing world economy.
Miguel Anderson is also dying. He isn’t the only one who plays the game–everybody does–but Miguel has more reason than most: When players leave their Cubes for the day, the upgrades and enhancements they’ve earned for their virtual characters leave with them. New lungs to breathe poisoned air, skin that won’t burn under the sun are great and everything… but Miguel, born as broken as the earth, needs a new heart–and soon–if he wants any hope of surviving just a little longer.
Then the two Gamerunners announce a competition, with greater rewards and faster progression than ever before, and Miguel thinks his prayers have been answered. All he needs to do is get picked to lead a team, play the game he’s spent years getting good at, and ask for his prize when he wins. Simple, really.
At first, things seem to go according to plan. Mostly, anyway. Inside his Cube, with his new team–including his best friend–at his back, Miguel begins his quest. He plays recklessly, even dangerously, for someone whose most vital organ could give up at any moment, but his desperation makes him play better than ever. The eyes of the world are on him, watching through status updates and live feeds, betting on his chances. With greater rewards, though, come greater risks, and the Gamerunners seem to delight at surprising the competitors at every turn. As he ventures deeper into a world that blends the virtual and the real to an unsettling degree, Miguel begins to wonder just why the game was invented at all, and whether its stakes could be even higher than life and death.
Miguel Anderson is also dying. He isn’t the only one who plays the game–everybody does–but Miguel has more reason than most: When players leave their Cubes for the day, the upgrades and enhancements they’ve earned for their virtual characters leave with them. New lungs to breathe poisoned air, skin that won’t burn under the sun are great and everything… but Miguel, born as broken as the earth, needs a new heart–and soon–if he wants any hope of surviving just a little longer.
Then the two Gamerunners announce a competition, with greater rewards and faster progression than ever before, and Miguel thinks his prayers have been answered. All he needs to do is get picked to lead a team, play the game he’s spent years getting good at, and ask for his prize when he wins. Simple, really.
At first, things seem to go according to plan. Mostly, anyway. Inside his Cube, with his new team–including his best friend–at his back, Miguel begins his quest. He plays recklessly, even dangerously, for someone whose most vital organ could give up at any moment, but his desperation makes him play better than ever. The eyes of the world are on him, watching through status updates and live feeds, betting on his chances. With greater rewards, though, come greater risks, and the Gamerunners seem to delight at surprising the competitors at every turn. As he ventures deeper into a world that blends the virtual and the real to an unsettling degree, Miguel begins to wonder just why the game was invented at all, and whether its stakes could be even higher than life and death.
416 pages, Hardcover
First published September 13, 2016
14 people are currently reading
1736 people want to read
About the author
Emma Trevayne
11 books212 followersScience fiction and fantasy author of novels for kids and teens.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 46 reviews
September 2, 2016
(Source: I received a digital copy of this book for free on a read-to-review basis. Thanks to HarperCollins and Edelweiss.)
This was a sci-fi story about a game in which you could earn biomechanical body parts.
Mig was an okay character, and it was sad that his heart was failing on him at such a young age. I did think that he should have been a bit more honest with his friends though, especially about his heart condition.
The storyline in this was about a game called Chimera, in which biomechanical body parts could be earned. There was a new challenge announced in which you could win even more prizes, and Mig felt like that was his only hope of getting a new heart, even though his doctors didn’t want him to play. I did find the storyline a bit jumpy though, and I felt like I kept missing things, although this may well have just been me not following things correctly.
The ending to this was okay, although I found the explanation as to what the ideas behind Chimera were to be a bit weird.
6 out of 10
“Win, and he gets anything he wants. The Gamerunners’ promise.
Win, and he gets to live. What could any of them need that compares?”
This was a sci-fi story about a game in which you could earn biomechanical body parts.
Mig was an okay character, and it was sad that his heart was failing on him at such a young age. I did think that he should have been a bit more honest with his friends though, especially about his heart condition.
The storyline in this was about a game called Chimera, in which biomechanical body parts could be earned. There was a new challenge announced in which you could win even more prizes, and Mig felt like that was his only hope of getting a new heart, even though his doctors didn’t want him to play. I did find the storyline a bit jumpy though, and I felt like I kept missing things, although this may well have just been me not following things correctly.
The ending to this was okay, although I found the explanation as to what the ideas behind Chimera were to be a bit weird.
6 out of 10
June 18, 2017
This is a wonderful book. The sci-fi ideas are out of this world. ((Is that a pun?)) And I love Chimera. There are two maybe three things that I did not like about this book. One is that there is way too much cussing. I am usually fine with it but the F words need to appear less. A lot less. Two: I am having a hard time picturing the Gamerunners, The Horsemen, and the monsters in the game. Okay, scratch that, I am having a hard time picturing everyone. The details on the places are pretty good, needs some work, but the details on each person is just not good at all. I like details, helps me to imagine each person and see the book play in my head like a movie but since the lack of detail, I had a harder time.
I am looking forward to the next book and might even pre-order it but there is another thing I am worried about. I am worried that two characters might have sex *cough*Miguel and Leah*cough*. I have read too many books with that and you don't need that to make a good book. Please Ms. Trevayne, don't include that.
Go Miguel! ((Don't hate me for this.)) Go Blake!
I am looking forward to the next book and might even pre-order it but there is another thing I am worried about. I am worried that two characters might have sex *cough*Miguel and Leah*cough*. I have read too many books with that and you don't need that to make a good book. Please Ms. Trevayne, don't include that.
Go Miguel! ((Don't hate me for this.)) Go Blake!
September 16, 2016
5/5 for plot, 4/5 for sass and 2/5 for emotions
4 stars
My thoughts kinda progressed from “did I make a bad decision signing onto this blog tour” to “wait I think this is getting somewhere” and finally “oh this is pretty damn good”.
The summary is quite long so let me (attempt to) summarise it for you: The Earth is dying. Two people decided to invent Chimera, a virtual reality video game that rewards you with biomechanical parts with every level completed. Miguel was born with a weak heart. Weak heart = Early death. He has to earn a new heart through the game. He’s running out of time. A faster solution is presented to him, in the form of a competition. He joins it. Things get intense. Questions are asked. Secrets are uncovered.
Despite the story being set in the future, it draws inspiration from ancient myths, specifically Greek and Christian ones. Maybe I should have gotten the hint from the fact that the game is named Chimera but I didn’t expect more mythology references. There were also several aspects of our modern world integrated with it, for example, the prevalence of social media in our daily lives and the significance of digital footprints.
I actually really enjoyed this book, because it’s not what I had expected. Actually, I’m not sure what my expectations were. Maybe an over-powered character like Kirito from Sword Art Online? But Miguel is nothing like that. He’s good at Chimera, not because he’s strong, but because he understands the game better than anyone else, causing him to be able to progress through the game faster than the average player. He isn’t invincible. For one, his health is weak. He also understands that he can’t complete the game alone, that he must work with his teammates and work towards the end goal together.
The story was a bit dry at the start but it starts to pick up somewhere after the 25% mark, especially when the competition started. I loved reading about the interactions between Miguel and his teammates, the obstacles they faced, and how they progressed through the game as a team. The fact that Chimera is a game that combines both puzzles and fight bosses together also ensures that there is never a dull moment when we’re reading about the team’s adventures in the game. The puzzles the team had to solve at each level never failed to amaze me.
One thing that might put readers off is the writing ― it is passive, maybe even lacking in emotions at times. It’s like the story is told from a third party’s point of view who has access to Miguel’s thoughts, and decided to narrate them. There’s quite a lot of telling, instead of showing.
For the most part, once I had gotten used to the writing, I found that I actually liked it. It was something different. It made me think about what I had just read. There were all these subtle details added in here and there and the rich description really helped bring Chimera to life, easily helping readers immerse themselves into the game.
While I’m a tad bit disappointed by the last chapter, overall, this was an enjoyable read for me. If the summary interests you, I think you should totally give it a go. You may like it, you may not, you may DNF it in the end, but it is worth your time.
Blog | Twitter | Tumblr | Instagram
4 stars
My thoughts kinda progressed from “did I make a bad decision signing onto this blog tour” to “wait I think this is getting somewhere” and finally “oh this is pretty damn good”.
The summary is quite long so let me (attempt to) summarise it for you: The Earth is dying. Two people decided to invent Chimera, a virtual reality video game that rewards you with biomechanical parts with every level completed. Miguel was born with a weak heart. Weak heart = Early death. He has to earn a new heart through the game. He’s running out of time. A faster solution is presented to him, in the form of a competition. He joins it. Things get intense. Questions are asked. Secrets are uncovered.
Despite the story being set in the future, it draws inspiration from ancient myths, specifically Greek and Christian ones. Maybe I should have gotten the hint from the fact that the game is named Chimera but I didn’t expect more mythology references. There were also several aspects of our modern world integrated with it, for example, the prevalence of social media in our daily lives and the significance of digital footprints.
I actually really enjoyed this book, because it’s not what I had expected. Actually, I’m not sure what my expectations were. Maybe an over-powered character like Kirito from Sword Art Online? But Miguel is nothing like that. He’s good at Chimera, not because he’s strong, but because he understands the game better than anyone else, causing him to be able to progress through the game faster than the average player. He isn’t invincible. For one, his health is weak. He also understands that he can’t complete the game alone, that he must work with his teammates and work towards the end goal together.
The story was a bit dry at the start but it starts to pick up somewhere after the 25% mark, especially when the competition started. I loved reading about the interactions between Miguel and his teammates, the obstacles they faced, and how they progressed through the game as a team. The fact that Chimera is a game that combines both puzzles and fight bosses together also ensures that there is never a dull moment when we’re reading about the team’s adventures in the game. The puzzles the team had to solve at each level never failed to amaze me.
One thing that might put readers off is the writing ― it is passive, maybe even lacking in emotions at times. It’s like the story is told from a third party’s point of view who has access to Miguel’s thoughts, and decided to narrate them. There’s quite a lot of telling, instead of showing.
He gets the distinct impression that it’s a good thing the gaming room is empty, their visors and sensors locked in their cabinets, because there’s nothing handy to throw at him. But he also doesn’t think she’d throw anything that’d hurt too much.
For the most part, once I had gotten used to the writing, I found that I actually liked it. It was something different. It made me think about what I had just read. There were all these subtle details added in here and there and the rich description really helped bring Chimera to life, easily helping readers immerse themselves into the game.
The sun isn’t the only problem, but it’s one of them, the biggest, and during the day it illuminates all the others.
While I’m a tad bit disappointed by the last chapter, overall, this was an enjoyable read for me. If the summary interests you, I think you should totally give it a go. You may like it, you may not, you may DNF it in the end, but it is worth your time.
Blog | Twitter | Tumblr | Instagram
June 9, 2016
Gamescape: Overworld turned out to be much more than just a walkthrough of some people playing a virtual reality game. First, the stakes are high--the winner can choose any bio-mech body part they want to enhance their chance of survival on a poisoned planet, and our hero Miguel needs a heart before his gives out. In fact, he might not even make it through the levels he needs to earn it. It's taken him his whole life just to get where he is and he needs to win at least three more levels which could take years--years he doesn't have.
Then the Gamerunners announce a new competition and the Cubes are retrofitted for team play and only the world's best players will be chosen to beta-test twenty levels before a global roll-out. It will take a summer to complete and there will only be one Chimera team on top. The players, some friends, some not so much, each have their own secret motivations. This is Mig's opportunity to get his heart replacement and get his life back.
This first book in a series is filled with explosive action, rich with descriptive virtual worlds, and characters you can't help but embrace, working as well in the real world as it does when following the gamer team deep inside the Cube. And the suspense and mystery surrounding the Gamerunners' motives are brilliantly trickled out--we know something the players don't. Will Miguel and his team live to discover the game behind the game?
Well plotted--and thankfully works as both a standalone and series teaser. This is a book I plan to share with my best friends.
I received this book in exchange for my honest review.
Then the Gamerunners announce a new competition and the Cubes are retrofitted for team play and only the world's best players will be chosen to beta-test twenty levels before a global roll-out. It will take a summer to complete and there will only be one Chimera team on top. The players, some friends, some not so much, each have their own secret motivations. This is Mig's opportunity to get his heart replacement and get his life back.
This first book in a series is filled with explosive action, rich with descriptive virtual worlds, and characters you can't help but embrace, working as well in the real world as it does when following the gamer team deep inside the Cube. And the suspense and mystery surrounding the Gamerunners' motives are brilliantly trickled out--we know something the players don't. Will Miguel and his team live to discover the game behind the game?
Well plotted--and thankfully works as both a standalone and series teaser. This is a book I plan to share with my best friends.
I received this book in exchange for my honest review.
September 19, 2016
You can find a longer review on my blog: Raquel Gabrielle's Blog
It was not all about the game play. I of course expected that but I didn't expect how it went, I was thinking more of dystopia and not apocalyptic. I would have loved to read more about the real world the one that is dying the one they will have to put up with no matter if they can go into a virtual world to escape it or not.
I liked the characters, especially the mysterious Gamerunners, they definitely kept the players on their toes and the reader guessing for more. Miguel had some tough decisions to make because of one of those Gamerunners.
Perhaps in the next one we will get to see a bit more of the real world dystopia aspect instead of the virtual reality.
It was not all about the game play. I of course expected that but I didn't expect how it went, I was thinking more of dystopia and not apocalyptic. I would have loved to read more about the real world the one that is dying the one they will have to put up with no matter if they can go into a virtual world to escape it or not.
I liked the characters, especially the mysterious Gamerunners, they definitely kept the players on their toes and the reader guessing for more. Miguel had some tough decisions to make because of one of those Gamerunners.
Perhaps in the next one we will get to see a bit more of the real world dystopia aspect instead of the virtual reality.
May 3, 2025
INSANE BOOK. Took me a little bit to get into the format and style of it, but once I did, this book captivated me. The concept of the game levels, human biotech advancements, and player relationships and competitions were fascinating. The ending revelations really threw me off though, so part of me wished the book had ended when the competition did. I don’t really feel inclined to read the second book after the ending, but I did love and am so glad I read the first book! However, it was crazy how the ending flipped everything on its head and made me reconsider actions from the entire rest of the novel. Fascinating with so many twists and turns and the use of futuristic technology to address the world ending while referencing everything in Earth’s history, myths, and present that we know so well.
October 9, 2024
I fear there will not be a sequel after all these years but this was still an amazing book. Loved it and if she ever gets around to publishing the second one I’ll buy it the second it drops
September 19, 2016
I received this book for free from Fantastic Flying Book Club in exchange for an honest review.
This was one of the most interesting stories that I have had the pleasure of reading. Gamescape: Overworld displays science fiction in such an interesting way!
The most amazing thing about this book is that it surprises you. Going into it, I was expecting a hardcore gaming story with a science fiction baseline. What I got was so much more enticing! The plot is wholly original and very exciting! I loved the mythology and religious references in the book. (But don't be worried if you aren't into things with religious overtones, because this book is not one of those.) I was truly not expecting the plot to go in the direction that it did.
I really loved reading about Miguel and his team inside the game. The game time was a delight to read. I loved how the characters interacted during the game time, and I also liked the action scenes.
The book has some diverse characters, and I love that!
I enjoyed the look at social media and its relevance to individuals. People having a digital thumbprint is a big part of this story.
I felt that the characters had a nice start to them, but I felt that they needed more development. It felt like the author only scratched the surface with them. What I read of the characters I liked, but I felt like there was just so much missing from their personalities. They needed more depth.
The romance was hardly there at all, and it felt rushed. The romance needed more build up, and just plain more romance in general.
I would have liked more detailed information about this dystopian world. We get a little information about it, but it just isn't detailed enough.
I felt the story drag on a bit towards the end. I felt bored reading the second half. It didn't really go out with a bang. It just sort of lulled at the end.
Overall, this is a great story! It is a one of a kind story that explores an interesting premise. I would most definitely recommend reading this one!
More reviews on my blog: The Alchemy of Ink
This was one of the most interesting stories that I have had the pleasure of reading. Gamescape: Overworld displays science fiction in such an interesting way!
The most amazing thing about this book is that it surprises you. Going into it, I was expecting a hardcore gaming story with a science fiction baseline. What I got was so much more enticing! The plot is wholly original and very exciting! I loved the mythology and religious references in the book. (But don't be worried if you aren't into things with religious overtones, because this book is not one of those.) I was truly not expecting the plot to go in the direction that it did.
I really loved reading about Miguel and his team inside the game. The game time was a delight to read. I loved how the characters interacted during the game time, and I also liked the action scenes.
The book has some diverse characters, and I love that!
I enjoyed the look at social media and its relevance to individuals. People having a digital thumbprint is a big part of this story.
I felt that the characters had a nice start to them, but I felt that they needed more development. It felt like the author only scratched the surface with them. What I read of the characters I liked, but I felt like there was just so much missing from their personalities. They needed more depth.
The romance was hardly there at all, and it felt rushed. The romance needed more build up, and just plain more romance in general.
I would have liked more detailed information about this dystopian world. We get a little information about it, but it just isn't detailed enough.
I felt the story drag on a bit towards the end. I felt bored reading the second half. It didn't really go out with a bang. It just sort of lulled at the end.
Overall, this is a great story! It is a one of a kind story that explores an interesting premise. I would most definitely recommend reading this one!
More reviews on my blog: The Alchemy of Ink
November 7, 2016
The style of writing she used took me a while to understand, but other than that the plot, characters, and structure was great. Throughout this novel all I could think of were books such as Eye of Minds and movies such as The Matrix. I thought similarities such as having to believe that the game is real to actually die from it were extremely similar to The Matrix. The end half of the book seemed a bit rushed, but the ending made up for this factor. The fact that they had replaced the brains of real live people and that the real world was not the real world, but could be the real world made the whole universe not trustable. I never knew when they were in the game or in the real world.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 18, 2023
The planet is beyond saving but the virtual reality game Chimera lets players use the enhancements they earn in the game in real life, upgrading your sight, vision, even your skin, to help you survive on the poisoned planet for longer. Game Cube buildings are everywhere-book some time in a gaming room and perfect your skills, win points for enhancements of your own body, operations carried out by the world's best medical people. Miguel fears his defective heart might fail before he can get to the level he needs to gain a new heart, but he plays on anyway, oblivious like everyone else to the real reason that Chimera has been invented.
A special two month competition to beta test a new version of Chimera is the answer Miguel needs. Win the competition and any prize is yours. This time, his fate would also lie in the hands of the other four team members and whatever agenda they have. Harness your team skills to win big but injuries you sustain in the game will follow you back to real life just as the enhancements will. The game is more dangerous and devious than ever but Miguel feels he has little choice but to try, if there is even a slight chance that he could win.
I went into this book thinking it was going to be more like a Hunger Games, The Testing kind of thing with a dangerous game killing off the competitors in the teams at regular intervals. In fact the death and injury count is fairly low for the most part, as the challenges seem to be more about solving puzzles and riddles, along with long spells where they are walking and exploring, looking for clues and objects. I'm not saying it's boring as I enjoyed the book, just don't go into it expecting all out action & death, as you won't find that. These tests are specific to test character as much as intelligence and skill.
There are several hints about who the two Gamerunners are and I clicked on that in decent time. I also knew instantly who their creations were the first time they were mentioned but it doesn't in any way spoil the plot. I was wondering all the time what the purpose of this new game was, and that is revealed towards the end of the book, making an interesting twist from where you thought the book was going to go. The game is merely the start of something much bigger. These two characters were interesting in a don't-like-you-guys-at-all way.
I liked the characters for the most part. Miguel's friend Nick and on-off girlfriend Anna are introduced in the early stages and established before the game begins. I also liked Leah, and mostly liked Jake. I never liked Grace but she isn't really there to be liked, just like Zach. I did still find them interesting in their roles. We spend our whole time with Group 18...might have been interesting to see a bit more of Zach's group in the competition or hear a few more updates on what everyone else was doing.
This book had mixed reviews but I'm glad I read it. I enjoyed it and it was a fairly quick read for 4oo pages. The writing style was good, you cared about the characters and it has good plot twists. I'm used to more action, death and tension in my books but I still found this a good read as the characters were all interesting and not childish morons for a change. It's a solid dystopian book and the way it finished left me curious about the sequel. Sadly, it's not available on Amazon so whether I ever get to read it remains to be seen.
3.5 stars.
A special two month competition to beta test a new version of Chimera is the answer Miguel needs. Win the competition and any prize is yours. This time, his fate would also lie in the hands of the other four team members and whatever agenda they have. Harness your team skills to win big but injuries you sustain in the game will follow you back to real life just as the enhancements will. The game is more dangerous and devious than ever but Miguel feels he has little choice but to try, if there is even a slight chance that he could win.
I went into this book thinking it was going to be more like a Hunger Games, The Testing kind of thing with a dangerous game killing off the competitors in the teams at regular intervals. In fact the death and injury count is fairly low for the most part, as the challenges seem to be more about solving puzzles and riddles, along with long spells where they are walking and exploring, looking for clues and objects. I'm not saying it's boring as I enjoyed the book, just don't go into it expecting all out action & death, as you won't find that. These tests are specific to test character as much as intelligence and skill.
There are several hints about who the two Gamerunners are and I clicked on that in decent time. I also knew instantly who their creations were the first time they were mentioned but it doesn't in any way spoil the plot. I was wondering all the time what the purpose of this new game was, and that is revealed towards the end of the book, making an interesting twist from where you thought the book was going to go. The game is merely the start of something much bigger. These two characters were interesting in a don't-like-you-guys-at-all way.
I liked the characters for the most part. Miguel's friend Nick and on-off girlfriend Anna are introduced in the early stages and established before the game begins. I also liked Leah, and mostly liked Jake. I never liked Grace but she isn't really there to be liked, just like Zach. I did still find them interesting in their roles. We spend our whole time with Group 18...might have been interesting to see a bit more of Zach's group in the competition or hear a few more updates on what everyone else was doing.
This book had mixed reviews but I'm glad I read it. I enjoyed it and it was a fairly quick read for 4oo pages. The writing style was good, you cared about the characters and it has good plot twists. I'm used to more action, death and tension in my books but I still found this a good read as the characters were all interesting and not childish morons for a change. It's a solid dystopian book and the way it finished left me curious about the sequel. Sadly, it's not available on Amazon so whether I ever get to read it remains to be seen.
3.5 stars.
January 6, 2017
Set on a just-barely-future Earth, where the problems have progressed further in the direction they're already headed (the air is a lot more polluted, the ozone layer mostly gone so the sun is more dangerous, etc), a company created a VR game. It's an escape from all the problems that people have, so "everyone" plays it, from teens to adults. (There's a minimum age, 12 I think it was, before you could play. But everyone over that spends much to most of their free time in the game.) It's the most popular thing on the planet, in part because you can earn "real life" rewards from it -- non-game item rewards.
And what prizes those are! The rewards are basically cyborg upgrades, everything from a mechanical finger to eyes that can function as cameras to engineered replacement organs. That last prize is the important one to our teenage main character, because he was born with a bad heart and is dying.
Luckily he's very good at the game, and on track to win the prize he needs...if he lives that long. Then he's tapped on the shoulder by the gamemakers to enter a special beta version of a better version of the game, one with even greater prizes, and thus an even higher chance of him living.
What made this book especially interesting were the "cutscenes" -- very short chapters about the gamemakers. Twice in the course of this book I questioned the author's decisions. The first time was during one of these cutscenes. She described the gamemakers as "basically psychopaths" and I rolled my eyes and got frowny at that. Where's the sense in that? Why would psychopaths make a game for the whole world to enjoy? But not only was that explained, the cutscenes/reasons behind the game were the best element of the whole story. They kept me guessing until the end, and I loved the twist about it!
The second time I second-guessed the author was near the end of the book. The main character and his two teenage friends successfully hacked into the computer system of the biggest company on the planet. The kids had never once hacked before. I'm SO glad I didn't stop reading at that point, because like the first example of me doubting the author, this was fully and completely explained in a 100% believable way.
It's so rare to find an author I can trust. I've read so many books where the characters do utterly unbelievable things, it's wonderful that everything in this book made sense and was realistic.
This was one of those rare times when I went offline earlier than usual at night, just so I'd have more reading time before I had to sleep.
I can't wait to find more books by her to read!
And what prizes those are! The rewards are basically cyborg upgrades, everything from a mechanical finger to eyes that can function as cameras to engineered replacement organs. That last prize is the important one to our teenage main character, because he was born with a bad heart and is dying.
Luckily he's very good at the game, and on track to win the prize he needs...if he lives that long. Then he's tapped on the shoulder by the gamemakers to enter a special beta version of a better version of the game, one with even greater prizes, and thus an even higher chance of him living.
What made this book especially interesting were the "cutscenes" -- very short chapters about the gamemakers. Twice in the course of this book I questioned the author's decisions. The first time was during one of these cutscenes. She described the gamemakers as "basically psychopaths" and I rolled my eyes and got frowny at that. Where's the sense in that? Why would psychopaths make a game for the whole world to enjoy? But not only was that explained, the cutscenes/reasons behind the game were the best element of the whole story. They kept me guessing until the end, and I loved the twist about it!
The second time I second-guessed the author was near the end of the book. The main character and his two teenage friends successfully hacked into the computer system of the biggest company on the planet. The kids had never once hacked before. I'm SO glad I didn't stop reading at that point, because like the first example of me doubting the author, this was fully and completely explained in a 100% believable way.
It's so rare to find an author I can trust. I've read so many books where the characters do utterly unbelievable things, it's wonderful that everything in this book made sense and was realistic.
This was one of those rare times when I went offline earlier than usual at night, just so I'd have more reading time before I had to sleep.
I can't wait to find more books by her to read!
December 19, 2022
Chimera is an immersive gaming company that pretty much runs the world. Everyone spends time in their gaming cubes. Leveling up is about the only way to get quality medical care any more. And given the environmental disaster that the world is, no one spends much time out in the real world any more. Miguel is trying to level up enough to get the heart replacement he very badly needs. While others play for fun and biomech that just makes it easier for them to breathe in the Earth's poor air or enhances their vision, Miguel is playing for his life. When Chimera announces a new competition that promises faster advancements and biomech perks for those who play, Miguel figures it is his last chance. But his heart may not even survive the competition. There's something off about this competition and the way the teams were put together, though, and the world may not be ready for the truth behind it.
I debated so many times giving up on this. You would think an immersive, high-stakes virtual reality quest game would be high action but this dragged. And then there was the weird twist at the end that takes this from a virtual reality competition to an Armageddon.... It was just weird, odd, slow, boring, and overall didn't work for me but I'm sure there are some who loved it.
Notes on content: 28 strong swears and 2 strong uses of profanity, plus a scattering of other milder swears throughout. No sexual content beyond a kiss. One suicide attempt almost carried out but gets interrupted in the nick of time. Two deaths in the game, one is brought back with advanced medicine and the other isn't. Video game battles.
I debated so many times giving up on this. You would think an immersive, high-stakes virtual reality quest game would be high action but this dragged. And then there was the weird twist at the end that takes this from a virtual reality competition to an Armageddon.... It was just weird, odd, slow, boring, and overall didn't work for me but I'm sure there are some who loved it.
Notes on content: 28 strong swears and 2 strong uses of profanity, plus a scattering of other milder swears throughout. No sexual content beyond a kiss. One suicide attempt almost carried out but gets interrupted in the nick of time. Two deaths in the game, one is brought back with advanced medicine and the other isn't. Video game battles.
May 10, 2017
I’ve been searching for a game based book for a while now. I thought for sure Gamescape would be the book that I was looking for. Unfortunately, it just wasn’t my cup of tea.
Gamescape revolves around a boy and his friends who play a video game to earn new and improved limbs. Though I liked the idea, I just wasn’t looking for that kind of a book.
I was very intrigued by the interface and the Storyteller. This isn’t the first video game based book that I have read. So far, from what I’ve read, the takes on the actual game were very different.
The video game world building was fantastic. I wish that was all there was. I wasn’t interested in the outside world. The reason why I picked up the book was the video game concept. As odd as it may seem, the outside world annoyed me. I didn’t care for it and nothing worthwhile ever happened.
I wish I could’ve gotten to know the characters a little bit more. Honestly, if they were a little bit more interesting or developed I likely read the next book. Miguel is the main character, and even then we don’t know a whole lot about him besides his heart condition. I disagreed with his actions and choices quite often, which could be another reason why I’m no interested in continuing to follow their journey.
Gamescape revolves around a boy and his friends who play a video game to earn new and improved limbs. Though I liked the idea, I just wasn’t looking for that kind of a book.
I was very intrigued by the interface and the Storyteller. This isn’t the first video game based book that I have read. So far, from what I’ve read, the takes on the actual game were very different.
The video game world building was fantastic. I wish that was all there was. I wasn’t interested in the outside world. The reason why I picked up the book was the video game concept. As odd as it may seem, the outside world annoyed me. I didn’t care for it and nothing worthwhile ever happened.
I wish I could’ve gotten to know the characters a little bit more. Honestly, if they were a little bit more interesting or developed I likely read the next book. Miguel is the main character, and even then we don’t know a whole lot about him besides his heart condition. I disagreed with his actions and choices quite often, which could be another reason why I’m no interested in continuing to follow their journey.
Read
May 20, 2024The book I read is called GameScape Overworld by Emma Trevayne. In this book it talks about a dying boy named Miguel Anderson who is on a sort of futuristic earth. In the book the society that Miguel is in is mainly controlled by a company called Chimera. The company Chimera produced a video game for VR that became highly addictive to many people in this society. This game allowed people to play in order to obtain things like medical supplies, clothing, and food. Miguel’s goal was to reach level 25 in this game where he would be able to obtain anything and may be able to get a new heart.
In the book the author bases the whole setting as a video game. The world is seen to be ending due to the abuse that has happened across the years. The main objective of the book is really based off a dying boy trying to survive so, it brings out an adventurous feeling to the book. Miguel and others end up risking their lives while playing this game and,as Miguel progresses in the game he realizes that it isn’t just a game and that this whole time it has been life or death.
In the book the author bases the whole setting as a video game. The world is seen to be ending due to the abuse that has happened across the years. The main objective of the book is really based off a dying boy trying to survive so, it brings out an adventurous feeling to the book. Miguel and others end up risking their lives while playing this game and,as Miguel progresses in the game he realizes that it isn’t just a game and that this whole time it has been life or death.
July 14, 2018
Gamescape: Overworld is the first book in the Nova Project series. You can read this as a standalone, but it is clear that the story is just beginning. There is violence. Ultimately this is a story about good versus evil. About what we will each do in order to survive. I was surprised to find a decent story, though I think some of the major events were glossed over and should have been longer. I probably will read the next book to see what happens after the game is over.
July 31, 2017
After reading this book I feel like it is merely an amalgamation of works like 'Ready Player One' and ancient myths that reallly hs no solid foundation of its own. It is slow to develop in plot and takes way too long in explaining itself and revealing plot twists. This was such an excruciating read with no original thought or inspiration. Would not recommend.
October 31, 2019
Ready Player One meets Good Omens. I was pleasantly surprised by this book. I debated the nature of Blake and Lucius far longer than was probably necessary. I'm intrigued to see where this series goes... there doesn't seem to be the potential of a happy ending here... It's pretty much the apocalypse. We'll see what happens in book two I suppose.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 20, 2023
Decent book.
Good enough to borrow the second and read it as well.
EDIT-NO SECOND BOOK. NEVER GOT PUBLISHED. not disappointed
Miguel is a a gamer who is driven to win level after level in order to earn his biotech heart. You see, if he passes enough levels he can replace his heart and not worry about dying too young.
When he is chosen for the “game” he is all in, the winner gets anything thing they want.
What Miguel doesn’t know is that there is more going on. As he leads his team through the game level after level, he discovers that the game runners may have other plans in mind.
I would have been content if the book was a stand alone, but am not angry there is another.
Good enough to borrow the second and read it as well.
EDIT-NO SECOND BOOK. NEVER GOT PUBLISHED. not disappointed
Miguel is a a gamer who is driven to win level after level in order to earn his biotech heart. You see, if he passes enough levels he can replace his heart and not worry about dying too young.
When he is chosen for the “game” he is all in, the winner gets anything thing they want.
What Miguel doesn’t know is that there is more going on. As he leads his team through the game level after level, he discovers that the game runners may have other plans in mind.
I would have been content if the book was a stand alone, but am not angry there is another.
May 10, 2018
I give it 4 stars as I loved the story up until the last couple chapters. Sci-fi, end of the world is what my mind was set on. And then we randomly jumped into fantasy in the end in a way I just wasn't prepared for. Loved up until that point though
October 1, 2022
Maybe it's just not for me, but this book had a hard time keeping my attention. The main character gets their ultimate wish halfway through and from there I actually lost investment. Furthermore, the twist was... odd. I dunno. Not for me.
January 19, 2023
I enjoyed this, but I am very disappointed that the 2nd book hasn't/will not be released when it was supposed to come out years ago?
Guess I'll never see how the story actually ends lol
Guess I'll never see how the story actually ends lol
October 23, 2016
Thank you Edelweiss and HarperCollins for this copy in exchange for an honest review
**Gamescape: Overworld comes out September 13, 2016**
I'm not an avid fan of gaming like others may be, and not all stories based on virtual gaming works, but Gamescape: Overworld most definitely doesn't fit in that category and surpassed all of my expectations.
Miguel needs a heart and this game that's taken over the world seems to present that wondrous prize that just may help him live. And he's good at it. Of course, everything has its own twists. It took a while for the story to get going as the gamemakers decided on this new team-play competition with the craziest prizes. The slow pacing here bugged me a bit but Trevayne kept me very much entertained with her imaginative descriptions of each level that Miguel fought to beat. The different ways you can die and the tools collected along the way, not to mention the whole idea of gaming in these giant cube-like buildings around the city, her world building was on point.
The storyline continued to be action-packed as Miguel battled his way to team leader and gained a new team to look after. Each individual member on his team was different, with their own fears to face and baggage they carried. I thoroughly enjoyed their interactions, whether it be positive ones or arguments that arose during the stressful game play.
Emotionally, Trevayne was pretty good at bringing out the vulnerabilities in her characters. This isn't just a story about gaming or high-tech equipment. Miguel obviously dealt with a lot of stress and emotional baggage. At any moment, his heart could stop. But there was this one moment in the first half of the book that made me pause. It was beautifully sad. Our hero wasn't a shining one on some white horse. He was a broken boy that just wanted to breathe his first breath of LIFE. Without the fear of dying on his back so constantly.
As for romance, it's not such a huge part of the story. There is a love interest and she was part of Miguel's new team, but I honestly wasn't so interested in that whole aspect at all, which is pretty crazy for me to say. The story was so steeped in gaming intrigue, with the crazy "worlds" built for each level and the suspense of being the first team to win it all, that anything as trivial as a budding romance didn't register as important with me. But if you like a taste of romance in your stories (as I normally do), there's still a bit of that present.
I will conclude that what brought this whole story a higher rating was how it all tied in with the mystery of who the gamemakers were and why they created Chimera in the first place. What was its purpose? Why build a game when the world was falling apart when there could be a number of better things to do? Who were they working for?
Snippets of conversations in both the gamemakers' perspectives in between chapters were the highlight of this novel, in my opinion. As the story continued, pieces were dropping into place until everything just CLICKED. This whole thing was so much bigger than you could ever imagine. The whole GAME was more than it just looked on the surface. The ending was absolutely fantastic. It had my heart racing and wondering how they would get out of this mess. I can't give much more away, but know that it all goes way beyond the clichéd gaming storyline trope that's more commonly used in a story like this. Trust me on this, you're in for a surprise.
Overall Recommendation:
Gamescape: Overworld is levels more than what you may expect from a book about gamers. Yes, it's full of action as Miguel fights his way for the most important prize of all, but it's also about facing your fears and making the right calls in the heat of the moment. The suspense builds as Trevayne teases us with little bits about the mysterious gamemakers that started it all in between certain chapters. Who are they and what big plans did they have in store for the gamers beyond the surface level of more prizes? Even if you're not a fan of gaming, this story has something for everyone. At the heart of it, this story is about choices. Follow Miguel and you will find out just what kind of an emotional ride this will take you on.
-----------------------------------------------------
For more of my reviews, check out Down the Rabbit Hole:
**Gamescape: Overworld comes out September 13, 2016**
I'm not an avid fan of gaming like others may be, and not all stories based on virtual gaming works, but Gamescape: Overworld most definitely doesn't fit in that category and surpassed all of my expectations.
Miguel needs a heart and this game that's taken over the world seems to present that wondrous prize that just may help him live. And he's good at it. Of course, everything has its own twists. It took a while for the story to get going as the gamemakers decided on this new team-play competition with the craziest prizes. The slow pacing here bugged me a bit but Trevayne kept me very much entertained with her imaginative descriptions of each level that Miguel fought to beat. The different ways you can die and the tools collected along the way, not to mention the whole idea of gaming in these giant cube-like buildings around the city, her world building was on point.
The storyline continued to be action-packed as Miguel battled his way to team leader and gained a new team to look after. Each individual member on his team was different, with their own fears to face and baggage they carried. I thoroughly enjoyed their interactions, whether it be positive ones or arguments that arose during the stressful game play.
Emotionally, Trevayne was pretty good at bringing out the vulnerabilities in her characters. This isn't just a story about gaming or high-tech equipment. Miguel obviously dealt with a lot of stress and emotional baggage. At any moment, his heart could stop. But there was this one moment in the first half of the book that made me pause. It was beautifully sad. Our hero wasn't a shining one on some white horse. He was a broken boy that just wanted to breathe his first breath of LIFE. Without the fear of dying on his back so constantly.
As for romance, it's not such a huge part of the story. There is a love interest and she was part of Miguel's new team, but I honestly wasn't so interested in that whole aspect at all, which is pretty crazy for me to say. The story was so steeped in gaming intrigue, with the crazy "worlds" built for each level and the suspense of being the first team to win it all, that anything as trivial as a budding romance didn't register as important with me. But if you like a taste of romance in your stories (as I normally do), there's still a bit of that present.
I will conclude that what brought this whole story a higher rating was how it all tied in with the mystery of who the gamemakers were and why they created Chimera in the first place. What was its purpose? Why build a game when the world was falling apart when there could be a number of better things to do? Who were they working for?
Snippets of conversations in both the gamemakers' perspectives in between chapters were the highlight of this novel, in my opinion. As the story continued, pieces were dropping into place until everything just CLICKED. This whole thing was so much bigger than you could ever imagine. The whole GAME was more than it just looked on the surface. The ending was absolutely fantastic. It had my heart racing and wondering how they would get out of this mess. I can't give much more away, but know that it all goes way beyond the clichéd gaming storyline trope that's more commonly used in a story like this. Trust me on this, you're in for a surprise.
Overall Recommendation:
Gamescape: Overworld is levels more than what you may expect from a book about gamers. Yes, it's full of action as Miguel fights his way for the most important prize of all, but it's also about facing your fears and making the right calls in the heat of the moment. The suspense builds as Trevayne teases us with little bits about the mysterious gamemakers that started it all in between certain chapters. Who are they and what big plans did they have in store for the gamers beyond the surface level of more prizes? Even if you're not a fan of gaming, this story has something for everyone. At the heart of it, this story is about choices. Follow Miguel and you will find out just what kind of an emotional ride this will take you on.
-----------------------------------------------------
For more of my reviews, check out Down the Rabbit Hole:
March 15, 2020
Ever read ready player one? This is basically it. Ripoff plot, changing up the stakes a bit but ultimately it's just a very average teen fiction book about VR. Here's hoping she stops after the second one, Gamescape: Underworld because I don't have the mental capacity to read more than one more of this series.
September 19, 2016
I was an e-copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
I really loved the world of Chimera and the 'real world' in which the characters lived. To be honest, they were both pretty scary worlds even though one had advanced technology and one was the advanced technology. The real world in the book was very much a fake one where even the plants such as trees and grass weren't even real, only holographs and illusions made by their advanced tech. People didn't know what simple things such as wheat looked like, didn't know what it meant to grow something from the ground, and a lot of people walked around with robotic hands, fingers, arms, you name it, all earned in the game of Chimera. The game itself was complex with it's constantly changing simulations bringing the characters into a virtual version of deserts, countryside, even the city. It was really neat and easy to picture in my head which kept me hooked.
The characters were all interesting as well. Miguel is a person who doesn't give up easily and he's very much a problem solver. Sometimes he lets himself go off course but he's always quick to get back on track. Miguel has a medical condition that keeps him from living to the fullest and he's slowly dying but he doesn't let that stop him from playing Chimera since he's naturally just a driven person. I also really liked his friends both in the real world and in the game. A couple of them were slightly jerks but also had redeeming factors while playing the game. There was some nice character development that I liked and it kept me dedicated to the characters while reading.
The book is fast-paced when it comes to the game-play and full of action as the characters battle their way through Chimera. It's a lot of fun to read and I think if you like gaming or just like books about gaming, this book is something I think you should consider picking up. I especially think that this would be the perfect gift for someone who's a fan of video games even if they're not big on reading. I also really liked that it had similarities to The Maze Runner which I LOVED and reminded me a little of things such as Sword Art Online, Ender's Game, and The Giver.
The reason I didn't give this book a five-star rating is because at times the book did get a bit slow and I found myself wishing it would pick up the pace even just a tad. I also thought the ending was a little too rushed and could've used another chapter or two to wrap up the book and set up the story for the sequel.
I really loved the world of Chimera and the 'real world' in which the characters lived. To be honest, they were both pretty scary worlds even though one had advanced technology and one was the advanced technology. The real world in the book was very much a fake one where even the plants such as trees and grass weren't even real, only holographs and illusions made by their advanced tech. People didn't know what simple things such as wheat looked like, didn't know what it meant to grow something from the ground, and a lot of people walked around with robotic hands, fingers, arms, you name it, all earned in the game of Chimera. The game itself was complex with it's constantly changing simulations bringing the characters into a virtual version of deserts, countryside, even the city. It was really neat and easy to picture in my head which kept me hooked.
The characters were all interesting as well. Miguel is a person who doesn't give up easily and he's very much a problem solver. Sometimes he lets himself go off course but he's always quick to get back on track. Miguel has a medical condition that keeps him from living to the fullest and he's slowly dying but he doesn't let that stop him from playing Chimera since he's naturally just a driven person. I also really liked his friends both in the real world and in the game. A couple of them were slightly jerks but also had redeeming factors while playing the game. There was some nice character development that I liked and it kept me dedicated to the characters while reading.
The book is fast-paced when it comes to the game-play and full of action as the characters battle their way through Chimera. It's a lot of fun to read and I think if you like gaming or just like books about gaming, this book is something I think you should consider picking up. I especially think that this would be the perfect gift for someone who's a fan of video games even if they're not big on reading. I also really liked that it had similarities to The Maze Runner which I LOVED and reminded me a little of things such as Sword Art Online, Ender's Game, and The Giver.
The reason I didn't give this book a five-star rating is because at times the book did get a bit slow and I found myself wishing it would pick up the pace even just a tad. I also thought the ending was a little too rushed and could've used another chapter or two to wrap up the book and set up the story for the sequel.
June 8, 2017
Emma Trevayne’s GAMESCAPE: Overworld is a fast paced, science fiction novel and the first installment in the Nova Project. CODA and CHORUS are the two books that started to shed light on Trevayne. Now, she has woven a virtual reality based story with dystopian aspects around every corner.
GAMESCAPE follows Miguel Anderson, a 17-year-old boy, as he plays the world-wide virtual reality game called Chimera. However, Miguel is not playing Chimera for fun like all of his friends. Miguel’s heart is failing and if he can get to level 25 he can obtain a new bio-mechanical heart. Fortunately, a better opportunity appears where the chances for Miguel to win a new heart greatly increase. Miguel must fight through the new game with a support team of four players at his side. The new version of Chimera is harder and more complicated than before, and the whole time Miguel must not only play the game but also try to understand the game maker’s motives.
This is the first book I have read that is truly dedicated to virtual reality gaming. At first I struggled getting used to Trevayne’s style of writing, but as the book progressed I found myself sinking deep into the storyline. GAMESCAPE incorporates unique details of gaming that set your mind reeling with possibilities. By far my favorite parts of GAMESCAPE were when Miguel was inside Chimera. Trevayne creates incredible landscapes and game levels with puzzles leading to rewarding boss fights. The boss fights could have been written more in depth, but they were still immensely interesting. In the beginning, I did not think I would have an emotional connection to any of Trevayne’s characters. As the book progressed, I realized I was nervous for the fate of not only Miguel but also his best friend, Nick, and fellow player, Leah. Because Miguel was always surrounded by the four other players on his team, it was really easy to get to know more than one character in the book. Another interesting thing about GAMESCAPE is that Trevayne mentions the basic balances of human interactions and personalities, which many books do not cover.
Overall, GAMESCAPE is the perfect science fiction book for avid readers or new readers who find themselves spending too much time on the old console. There is no lack of originality, and Trevayne will keep you guessing up until the very end. Fans of anime such as Sword Art Online will love GAMESCAPE. If you are looking for a science fiction or dystopian book to pick up, you’ve found it. When the next book comes out, I will be sure to read it!
Reviewed by Kaela N., Teen Board Member
GAMESCAPE follows Miguel Anderson, a 17-year-old boy, as he plays the world-wide virtual reality game called Chimera. However, Miguel is not playing Chimera for fun like all of his friends. Miguel’s heart is failing and if he can get to level 25 he can obtain a new bio-mechanical heart. Fortunately, a better opportunity appears where the chances for Miguel to win a new heart greatly increase. Miguel must fight through the new game with a support team of four players at his side. The new version of Chimera is harder and more complicated than before, and the whole time Miguel must not only play the game but also try to understand the game maker’s motives.
This is the first book I have read that is truly dedicated to virtual reality gaming. At first I struggled getting used to Trevayne’s style of writing, but as the book progressed I found myself sinking deep into the storyline. GAMESCAPE incorporates unique details of gaming that set your mind reeling with possibilities. By far my favorite parts of GAMESCAPE were when Miguel was inside Chimera. Trevayne creates incredible landscapes and game levels with puzzles leading to rewarding boss fights. The boss fights could have been written more in depth, but they were still immensely interesting. In the beginning, I did not think I would have an emotional connection to any of Trevayne’s characters. As the book progressed, I realized I was nervous for the fate of not only Miguel but also his best friend, Nick, and fellow player, Leah. Because Miguel was always surrounded by the four other players on his team, it was really easy to get to know more than one character in the book. Another interesting thing about GAMESCAPE is that Trevayne mentions the basic balances of human interactions and personalities, which many books do not cover.
Overall, GAMESCAPE is the perfect science fiction book for avid readers or new readers who find themselves spending too much time on the old console. There is no lack of originality, and Trevayne will keep you guessing up until the very end. Fans of anime such as Sword Art Online will love GAMESCAPE. If you are looking for a science fiction or dystopian book to pick up, you’ve found it. When the next book comes out, I will be sure to read it!
Reviewed by Kaela N., Teen Board Member
September 19, 2016
The major part of Gamescape:Overworld is a sci-fi adventure, but it's ending is a bit of a genre changer. The book is set in a futuristic world that is on the brink of death and humanity has abandoned all efforts to save the Earth - they are only concerned with making the ride smooth. So, in Miguel's world, humans are more focused on bio-engineering to augment their now weak bodies, to make them stronger to survive the harsh conditions as long as possible. Everything looks the same, but it is not. People are mostly cyborg, some for function, some for necessity, but all of it is carefully controlled by the makers of Overworld, as they have the best scientists. So, Miguel's primary incentive for playing the game is to gain enough levels to be able to afford a new heart. When the makers announce a new competition, he joins up despite his body not being strong enough for the challenge.
While a lot of the book takes place inside the game, the core matter of the story is about real-world consequences. Living a virtual life may be easy, but if those consequences are transferred to reality, it changes how we do things. When Miguel would play the game before, he would play to win - morality inside a game is practically non-existent when you know it is not real. But when it becomes real enough, the question is what kind of person we want to be. And continuing from this thread, is where the story flows from one genre to next, towards the ending. Because while the story was about the mystery of the Gamerunners and their objective to creating the game and the competition, it was also about human nature in part.
The writing beautifully complemented the story path, and the descriptions inside the game were rendered quite realistically. The world-building was not so strong, I feel, because the practicalities of the ideas suggested seem far-fetched; I particularly can't believe that the creators of the game had so much power that they could regulate the economics of the world. The ethical ramifications alone mean it would be a slight impossibility - people wouldn't stand for it. And while the genre changed subtly, I still feel it was added too late into the game (pun intended) and just crashed forward to an abrupt cliffhanger. Even so, I still think this was a good book in totality, and am eager for the next installment.
Received a free galley from Greenwillow Books, via Edelweiss, in exchange for an honest review.
While a lot of the book takes place inside the game, the core matter of the story is about real-world consequences. Living a virtual life may be easy, but if those consequences are transferred to reality, it changes how we do things. When Miguel would play the game before, he would play to win - morality inside a game is practically non-existent when you know it is not real. But when it becomes real enough, the question is what kind of person we want to be. And continuing from this thread, is where the story flows from one genre to next, towards the ending. Because while the story was about the mystery of the Gamerunners and their objective to creating the game and the competition, it was also about human nature in part.
The writing beautifully complemented the story path, and the descriptions inside the game were rendered quite realistically. The world-building was not so strong, I feel, because the practicalities of the ideas suggested seem far-fetched; I particularly can't believe that the creators of the game had so much power that they could regulate the economics of the world. The ethical ramifications alone mean it would be a slight impossibility - people wouldn't stand for it. And while the genre changed subtly, I still feel it was added too late into the game (pun intended) and just crashed forward to an abrupt cliffhanger. Even so, I still think this was a good book in totality, and am eager for the next installment.
Received a free galley from Greenwillow Books, via Edelweiss, in exchange for an honest review.
February 21, 2017
This book was amazing, It really made you think and figure out what the world was like then. It takes place it the future, in a world full of animated, digital games. Everything around them is digital. Miguel, a teen needs something very badly to win and in a game, Chimera he needs to get to a certain level to earn it. But when the gamerunners release a competition to help him get what he wants sooner, will he make it in time? Is the competition a good idea? Will he get what he wants? Find out by reading this book!!!
August 19, 2016
This review can also be found at Procrastinating With Books
Thank you San Diego Comic Con and HarperCollins for the ARC
This book... was a weird one. For starters, it had a very unique feel to it and the storytelling sometimes felt like it was in second person, and then when one started to believe it was, indeed, in second person, it’d revert back to third person as if the second person bit was all part of one’s imagination. It also quite reminded me of The Maze Runner, for some reason.
Now, being a game and a huge fan of Dystopias, I loved the concept of a world where most people spend a lot of time playing a virtual reality game. After all, sometimes I think that’s where our world is heading anyways. The part that gets interesting, though, is how the reason why this society is spending so much time playing this VR game is because the world outside is not safe anymore and it’s being destroyed bit by bit and by playing this game, people earn rewards in the form of robotic parts that will help them to survive longer. Yes, that’s right, the way to save oneself in this world is by becoming a cyborg.
For the main character, Miguel, however, is about more than becoming a cyborg; it’s about survival. He has a failing heart and he needs a mechanic one to live that’s why when a competition to beta-test a new release of the game comes around, promising great rewards, Miguel is all for jumping aboard, despite his heart limitations.
The universe was amazingly built and the levels, and puzzles, and bosses, as well as items Miguel and his team had to find in each level were all brilliantly thought. If not a gamer herself, Trevayne did a wonderful job at researching video games and the way they work. I was completely enthralled with Chimera.
The part that sort of lost me, though, was the ending. I’m not going to say much because I don’t to spoil said ending, but I felt like it didn’t live up to my expectations. It went in an entirely different direction than I was expecting and it was kind of a let down.
Because of how much I enjoyed the rest of the book, however, I still think it deserves four stars, although I have yet to decide if I’m going to read the second book of the series, seeing that I’m afraid it’ll ruin the unique experience of the first one.
Thank you San Diego Comic Con and HarperCollins for the ARC
This book... was a weird one. For starters, it had a very unique feel to it and the storytelling sometimes felt like it was in second person, and then when one started to believe it was, indeed, in second person, it’d revert back to third person as if the second person bit was all part of one’s imagination. It also quite reminded me of The Maze Runner, for some reason.
Now, being a game and a huge fan of Dystopias, I loved the concept of a world where most people spend a lot of time playing a virtual reality game. After all, sometimes I think that’s where our world is heading anyways. The part that gets interesting, though, is how the reason why this society is spending so much time playing this VR game is because the world outside is not safe anymore and it’s being destroyed bit by bit and by playing this game, people earn rewards in the form of robotic parts that will help them to survive longer. Yes, that’s right, the way to save oneself in this world is by becoming a cyborg.
For the main character, Miguel, however, is about more than becoming a cyborg; it’s about survival. He has a failing heart and he needs a mechanic one to live that’s why when a competition to beta-test a new release of the game comes around, promising great rewards, Miguel is all for jumping aboard, despite his heart limitations.
The universe was amazingly built and the levels, and puzzles, and bosses, as well as items Miguel and his team had to find in each level were all brilliantly thought. If not a gamer herself, Trevayne did a wonderful job at researching video games and the way they work. I was completely enthralled with Chimera.
The part that sort of lost me, though, was the ending. I’m not going to say much because I don’t to spoil said ending, but I felt like it didn’t live up to my expectations. It went in an entirely different direction than I was expecting and it was kind of a let down.
Because of how much I enjoyed the rest of the book, however, I still think it deserves four stars, although I have yet to decide if I’m going to read the second book of the series, seeing that I’m afraid it’ll ruin the unique experience of the first one.
September 18, 2016
(I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a review).
(This review may contain spoilers).
I really liked the plot of this book. It was interesting to see a world that actually could exist in the future… not only with a video game being the obsession of everyone, but also with the world dying. I found it really intriguing to see that things like libraries, so common in the world now, were virtually non-existent by the time it got to Miguel’s time.
Speaking of Miguel… I found him a likable character, even though I did feel he made some bad choices at times… and I wasn’t sure I really trusted him by the end of the book, even though I could understand a lot of his actions. There was one particular act that I felt was really unforgivable.
I really liked the idea of humanity gradually changing to become more machine-like, although I would have liked to see a bit more in the way of the upgrades people got and how exactly they worked. They were more obvious in the new version of Chimera… though I did think that the name of the game was a really clever one.
It was interesting to see Miguel having to get used to working with real people and not computer-generated helpers, but I found the whole balance thing to be a bit confusing. It seemed a bit like the secondary characters (with the exception of Nick) didn’t really have a lot of depth to them. I would have liked more detail about what they were all hoping to get out of the game. The balance thing could have come into play a better way, I felt.
I really liked the fact that Miguel had his own goal to work towards and it it was interesting to get something of an insight into the way the Gamemakers worked and thought. However, by the end of the book, I was left with a lot of questions… and there were events that impacted the world that didn’t really seem described too well, giving it a very surreal feeling.
I did find the book interesting to read and it did engage me throughout. I was also intrigued enough to want to read the next book/s in the series.
(This review may contain spoilers).
I really liked the plot of this book. It was interesting to see a world that actually could exist in the future… not only with a video game being the obsession of everyone, but also with the world dying. I found it really intriguing to see that things like libraries, so common in the world now, were virtually non-existent by the time it got to Miguel’s time.
Speaking of Miguel… I found him a likable character, even though I did feel he made some bad choices at times… and I wasn’t sure I really trusted him by the end of the book, even though I could understand a lot of his actions. There was one particular act that I felt was really unforgivable.
I really liked the idea of humanity gradually changing to become more machine-like, although I would have liked to see a bit more in the way of the upgrades people got and how exactly they worked. They were more obvious in the new version of Chimera… though I did think that the name of the game was a really clever one.
It was interesting to see Miguel having to get used to working with real people and not computer-generated helpers, but I found the whole balance thing to be a bit confusing. It seemed a bit like the secondary characters (with the exception of Nick) didn’t really have a lot of depth to them. I would have liked more detail about what they were all hoping to get out of the game. The balance thing could have come into play a better way, I felt.
I really liked the fact that Miguel had his own goal to work towards and it it was interesting to get something of an insight into the way the Gamemakers worked and thought. However, by the end of the book, I was left with a lot of questions… and there were events that impacted the world that didn’t really seem described too well, giving it a very surreal feeling.
I did find the book interesting to read and it did engage me throughout. I was also intrigued enough to want to read the next book/s in the series.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 46 reviews