Warcross

I just finished this and I'm like:


HOLY MOLY what an ending
I'm officially hooked
Marie Lu wHAT hAVE yOU dONE!

The geek in me fell in love with this book from the moment it mentioned AR and VR and NeuroLink and all those stuff -Funnily enough I've done a presentation about VR,AR and DR not long ago-, then the bookworm in me started falling in love with the characters, the plot, the storytelling and the writing style.
By the time I reached the middle of the book I was forcing myself to put it down in order to study.
I was addicted.

Though I have to admit, the whole romance between Hideo and Emika felt very insta-lovey, but hey a genius billionaire gotta do what a genius billionaire gotta do right? So I shipped it.

Chapter 29 was so intense I show more LOVED IT
But then I reached the last line and I was like


HOLY SHIT I DID NOT SEE THAT COMING AT ALL

I suspected everything but Zero being the one who's trying to stop the screwed up plans of Hideo.
Though to be completely honest, I cannot bring myself to hate him. In some ways, I actually understand where he's coming from. The guy was traumatized at such a young age and he doesn't want anyone else to go through that too.
My heart breaks for him.
But that doesn't give you the right to control people's minds you twisted freak!

By the time Emika discovered that Zero was actually Sasuke I was like


As if the book didn't need more complications!!

I need the next book like RIGHT NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!! show less

Maybe I'm really grasping at straws but I feel like this is Marie Lu's best book yet. *coughs then whispers*: I still haven't finished The Young Elites trilogy...ooops. But it's how my brain works for some reason. I didn't finish the Prodigy trilogy until a few months leading up to the release of the first book for Young Elites so...

Warcross follows Emika Chen, 18 year old bounty hunter, brilliant hacker, orphan, Potterhead and Warcross enthusiast. From the age of 11, an interview with then 13 year old Hideo Tanaka changed Emika's life forever. Since then she's admired the rich billionaire from afar even though her life since her father's death has been a hard one. After missing out on five bounties in a row, short on cash, she does a show more thing that glitches her into the most important Warcross game of the year earning her the attention of the creator whom she's basically fangirled over for years. When he offers a job to hunt down another hacker that wants to take down the virtual world he's created with a crazy high amount of money Emika finds herself immersed officially and now legally into a game that has influenced her life in more ways than one. Set in a futuristic Tokyo where, if you have the goggles or lenses to view the virtual reality, there are billboards on buildings playing ads to your specific interests, the name and level of WC on the tops of everyone's heads, and cute robots that learn your specific tastes in order to cater to you your favorite foods. God I loved this book.

It could be that I've been influenced by the binge I've been on watching a ton of anime shows but it almost played out like an anime in my head. I was reminded of Sword Art Online, .hack, Log Horizon, but what was nice that even though they all have the same RPG driven story they all have such originality that kept me engaged. Warcross took Emika to crazy places that I would never have thought about (I'm such a n00b) so I tend to forget about the darknet. She wasn't a special snowflake that just knew how to hack overnight it took time and practice to get to where she was at. When she entered the Warcross Wild Card draft to enter a roster Emi wasn't the best player on the team, she still had to train just as hard and diligently as the seasoned players. Almost all the side characters held my attention no matter how small. Ash was a great captain and despite his IRL circumstance in a wheelchair he still gets a firecracker like Hammie to really like him. Roshan is the best, I would be honored to have him on my gaming team. Hideo is the typical you don't realize how much of a bae he is until he opens up about his past, and we get more than one shirtless scene *evil laughter*. Plus Lu created such a relatable villain to the point that when his intentions are revealed you are left in a grey area confused on what side you would be on. In the end, there was not a single character I actively disliked.

This book has such great elements it blows my mind how much I liked it. I'm not a potterhead but it had nice nods for the fangirls. It also caters to Mario Kart enthusiasts (I mean "Link edition" I would LOVE to play as Sheik and use a blue shell on Ganondorf haha). I'm a forever n00b because I never get too deep into a single video game, I just learn how to win then drop it. I don't like RPG games but I do like watching them and have an appreciation for the game tournaments. Reading this book was just fun in general. Also is Ash's brother's name a nod to Prodigy's Day? I mean, Marie Lu used the same freaking name unless I already forgot :P

Now one thing that really made me connect this story to anime is because of the romantic aspect of it all. I may be doing some spoiling but in anime, especially the romance genre it starts out with the main characters meeting each other in an unconventional circumstance or something that makes it seem like the two don't like each other. Then slowly as time goes by you catch glimpses of one or the other or even both sometimes making googly eyes at each other until something makes the cold and condescending one open up about his feelings making the girl dream and fantasize about kissing his problems away. Now normally I wouldn't mind this because I am a sucker for romantic animes but when you're reading page after page about how deep Emika is getting into what she's doing for Hideo it's kind of annoying how many blinders she put on herself.

I'm getting tired of this one little thing I've been noticing more and more frequently: I've been saying this for a while butif there's no body then it's usually because the presumed deceased family member is not dead. Sasuke was kidnapped but never found there has to be a reason he keeps being brought up. But good on Lu for not bringing him up for almost half the book letting me enjoy a little suspense as to the identity of Zero. I almost thought it was Ken or Hideo himself lol. But I also wasn't too keen on the romance either. I mean, if I met Namjoon Kim I would totally declare my love for him within weeks but for him to reciprocate and have me meet his parents that soon? HA. I know why Emika was in wuv with Hideo but I never got a sense as to why he liked her so much. I like figuring out what the ending of a story is going to be before getting there but once the trace of a trope is found I can easily lose interest but luckily this story kept me engaged especially with the growth Emika showed from being a loner that doesn't take orders into a girl who becomes a team player. show less

I went into this hoping it would be good, but not expecting a lot and it blew me away. This is one of those books that I couldn't even stop to take notes during because I was so enthralled. I had to put it down a few times just to breathe. I adored this story every step of the way, but the end wrecked me. I had predicted half of the twist, but didn't see the other half coming. I'm really intrigued to see how Lu continues this series!

The hype is real, folks. Warcross really is as good as its rabid publicity campaign makes it out to be. The story is fantastic. Our heroine, Emika, kicks ass. The world-building is excellent, with a Ready Player One vibe that is exciting and fresh. It is as engaging a story as you will ever read and worth every second spent reading. The only problem is that it is over too soon, and you are left waiting for the next book.

In Emika, Ms. Lu creates a character behind whom girls of all ages can rally and from whom they can take inspiration. She is fiercely independent, capable, and hard-working. She does what she has to do to survive but maintains a code of ethics while doing so. Plus, she is brilliant and is not afraid to show it. She knows show more what her strengths are and plays to them through her work as a bounty hunter. Lastly, do I have to mention the fact that she is a hacker/coder? It is as if Ms. Lu took every single frustrating behavior and habit women tend to adopt in order to survive in a male-dominated society and used that to create the perfect female role model, for that is what Emika is.

Don’t get me wrong. Emika is not perfect. She admits to flouting the law at times (see the glitch that drew international fame to her doorstep), and in spite of her efforts, she is barely surviving. She is quick to judge, quick to jump to conclusions, and inclined to work hard by herself rather than work smart with the help of others. Yet, the fact that she is not perfect only enhances her attraction as a role model as she reminds us to take the good with the bad, that life is not a fairy tale, and that all the hard work in the world may not mean easy living. What she does tell us is that it is only when we give up do we lose.

As fabulous as Emika is, with her mad gaming skills and eager bravado, it is the game of Warcross itself that makes the book come alive. The story takes place just far enough in the future to accommodate the newer VR technology which makes playing Warcross believable, but it remains current enough in everything else to create a world in which all readers will feel comfortable. Moreover, Ms. Lu excels at capturing not just the feel of the Warcross Championships but also the games themselves. Her descriptions make it easy to understand exactly what is happening at any given time, no matter how chaotic the scene. She provides a great example of effective scene building that allows readers to be right alongside Emika during the action.

The only disappointment I felt with Warcross is that I was able to predict the big secret well in advance, but I suspect that Ms. Lu made it an obvious choice for a reason. After all, once you understand and know all of the key players in the drama, it changes the dynamic of the group as well as the individual characters’ motivations. Such is the case here. In fact, the dynamic changes in such a way that the idea of bad and good gets turned on its head with no easy answers. Ultimately, Emika must decide for herself which side she wants to take and her reasons for doing so.

Warcross is an impressive story with plenty of girl power to attract even the most jaded of feminists. There is a slight romance story included alongside the action, but it does not detract from the overarching mystery or general adrenaline rush of the story. And what an adrenaline rush it is! Warcross is one of those novels you read quickly the first time because you cannot wait to know what happens but then go back and read it again more slowly to pick up all of the nuggets of insight or just writerly goodness Ms. Lu leaves for you. Plus, reading it multiple times is about the only way to make the wait for the second book more palatable. show less

I went into this with a bunch of skepticism ... I used to be a huge gamer (until my brother moved out - and took all his consoles with him, rip), but I didn't know if I'd enjoy a book laden with current gamer lingo, attitudes, etc. I should've known better, since this is written by Marie Lu! It's packed with diversity and free of heavy gamer misogyny and any nazism/racism.

Book content warnings:
(it took a bit till I had time to write this review, so I might have forgotten some of the content warnings; I'm sorry!)
- manipulation (involved in the romance)
- unbalanced boss and employee relationship

The next Big Thing in technology (not JUST game technology) is WarCross -- and its creator, Hideo Tanaka. WarCross itself is a virtual reality show more game kind of like capture the flag, of course with a lot more rules. The WarCross glasses do a lot more outside of the actual game, though, until nearly everybody on Earth owns a pair. They virtually light up stores, spiff up homes, give people virtual pets, show people's WarCross levels publicly, etc. (reminds me a bit of that Black Mirror episode where people had social media points for doing just about anything, because in the book, too, people got WarCross points for walking their dog, doing other chores, buying things, leveling up, etc.). Kind of a nightmare when you think about it. A late-stage capitalism horror story ... but that's just me, I guess.

Anyway, that's all setup, because our protagonist, Emika Chen, is about to be evicted from her apartment, and her work as a bounty hunter tracking down people illegally betting on players in WarCross isn't quite enough. In a last attempt for rent money, Emika tries to steal on a national game ... and accidentally glitches herself inside the game itself. Oops. Instead of being arrested, Hideo Tanaka hires her to be a player for the games (as a cover). He actually hires her to be a bounty hunter to find someone who's been messing with his games' security. But when she digs further, and as she and Hideo grow closer, she discovers something that could tear everything apart.

Whew, the story is actually a bit more difficult to describe than I thought. But it isn't convoluted, really. The flow is fast-paced, and the book is incredibly readable. So much so I went way too far into the night reading it.

All characters were well-rounded, even the secondary characters on Emika's team (and even some on the other's team!). And I was so happy to see a disabled character I nearly started crying. I mean, it was the standard white guy in a wheelchair, but HE WAS THERE. I can't wait to see where they go from here - so yes, I'll be reading the rest in the trilogy.

The only way the book failed for me was that cringy romance between the main protagonists. Things like trying to make your SO jealous to see how they'd react, a boss + his employee unbalanced relationship, further unbalanced because she idol-worships him until the end, at least.

But that's the only real reason to mark this down to 4 stars. It really is a fun book with fantastic characters and teamwork. Plus a great atmosphere. And surprisingly, it has AMAZING character backstory and motivation. I actually ... understand why the villain's doing what they're doing and it ... makes sense? I love these villains, and to make them really REAL is tough to do. I don't want to spill anything, so sorry for this vagueness.

For sure, though, I'm reading on. show less

It's a good, high-energy quick read and Emika is an awesome protagonist, but it feels cobbled together from a lot of other things—The Hunger Games, Ready Player One and even the Wachowskis' Speed Racer movie (and probably a zillion things I'm too old or uncool to recognize)—and never quite comes into its own. The "twist" at the end was so obvious that I was disappointed when it happened. However, all that being said, there is a scene at the very end of Emika wrestling with her internal conflict that made me excited to read the second book. Marie Lu has a talent for writing compelling characters who do the wrong things for the right reasons and making readers understand an empathize with their choices. She has left Emika facing a show more dilemma where either choice she makes is going to have some long-reaching negative repercussions and that, that is the story I'm looking forward to reading. show less

I was incredibly hyped for this novel — I love Marie Lu and when I heard the main character was a crazy smart hacker girl, it was a no-brainer. Absolutely, yes, I need this book. Luckily, even though I was super excited and really expecting it to be great, it didn’t let me down. This is a WONDERFUL book.

Warcross is about Emika, an impoverished bounty hunter/hacker who finds herself working for the billionaire creator of the augmented reality system everyone now uses. He’s worried about the security of his Warcross system, so he employs her to find the person responsible, and has a hefty prize reward for her as well. So, she joins a professional team that plays the game associated with the augmented reality system and has to try show more look like she’s good enough for the pro teams while also catching the person trying to hack into Warcross.

The beginning starts off a bit slow, but I liked that we were able to get a glimpse of Emika’s life and her personality before delving into the good stuff. I like that she’s smart and observant and isn’t one of those too-stupid-to-live characters that I had to groan about the whole time — she’s actually super smart and makes good choices based on her situation and the information she’s given, which is awesome. I also love her for her complexity; she clearly has a strict moral code and plays by her own rules for what is right and what is wrong, but is okay breaking rules to be able to help her and her roommate survive in a world that doesn’t give them any breaks, regardless of their financial situations and lack of opportunities.

The world Marie Lu created for this book is also fun; while it is futuristic, it doesn’t feel otherworldly. It’s basically the world we live in now if an augmented reality system became popular and feasible for everyone to be involved in. I also like how realistic the world is in that the augmented reality has solved a lot of problems for people, yet created unintentional problems. For example, Emika is able to speak with people from other countries because the translation system in the augmented reality technology is incredibly accurate, so languages are no longer a barrier to communication. Also, one of the professional Warcross members in Emika’s group is in a wheelchair, and because he’s able to walk in the Warcross game, that’s no longer a barrier for him to be able to be a leader in a somewhat physically-centered game. However, on the other hand, there’s a whole underworld system created under Warcross that has illegal betting, people putting out hits on others, etc. So, while this fixed a lot of problems, like anything else, there are problems and issues surrounding it as well.

Overall, this story is a page-turner. It’s fast-paced and like Emika, I was constantly second-guessing her observations and my theories as I went through the story. It has some nice bits of romance too, but they don’t overpower the main plot line. Now, it does have a bit of a cliffhanger, so if you don’t like those, maybe wait until the sequel comes out to get started on this series. But I definitely recommend this for YA fans, science fiction fans, fans of good stories, Marie Lu fans, etc. Just read it. It’s entertaining, interesting, well-written, and has a great main character. I’m already dying to read the sequel.

Also posted on Purple People Readers. show less