Ready Player One is a young adult SF novel, the first by this
author. Set in the future, it deals with its protagonist's efforts in
a pervasive virtual world to win a contest based in the videogaming
and related culture of the 1980s.
The good stuff: the author clearly knows his trivia, and enjoys
writing about the period. He's also effectively able to get inside the
head of his protagonist. The romance is mostly well-handled. The
villains are at least plausible in their motivations and methods.
The bad stuff: Cline's ear for language is a bit lacking at times:
"gunter" (for "[easter] egg hunter") clangs for me nearly as badly as
Attwood's "econowife". Some of the elements in the romance scream
"YOUNG ADULT NOVEL" in a way that the rest of the book doesn't. And
the ending leaves a lot of questions open; it was a bit of a let-down
in that it feels like the beginning of the real story rather than a
satisfying ending.
Overall, a cautious recommendation. I didn't rave about it, but I
certainly don't regret the time I spent reading it.
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