Lyndsay Ely

This hovers between a 3 and 4 star read. Somewhere like a 3.2, probably. There's a particular late direct video game reference where Ashe tells B.O.B. to do something that's bumping it closer to a 4 alone, which I found rather charming. Unlike a lot of video game references you see in adapted media, it didn't feel forced, and I respect that.

The book's cover by Xiao Tong Kong is probably the best part of this, since I've been following them for years, and love their artwork. I personally find the art for this gorgeous.

I liked Frankie, I liked Cassidy, I liked the cast of outcasts Ashe hangs out with. The bike race was neat. B.O.B. was amazing as always, and Ashe's relationship with him is quite wonderful.

The writing itself was neither the worst nor the best of video game book adaptations I've read, though it does veer towards the better of them. Is it enjoyable if you haven't played the game? I mean I haven't played it and have no interest in doing so, but I'm familiar with a lot of the lore, I've watched friends play, and I've watched most of the cinematics and read a number of the comics and been a part of the fandom sort of for a while. And I've played games like it. So in a sense I'm neither an outsider nor an insider I guess, and the book is understandable enough to me that not being familiar with intricacies of playing it myself didn't seem to matter. The dialogue was okay. It was fun to see the characters interacting. The central premise was believable, and it's believably set in the video game world.

However, I wouldn't recommend this to someone who isn't already, on some level, into the franchise. It's not enjoyable on its own as a Western or a coming of age story or an adventure novel. Shockingly, I know, it's an "Overwatch" novel focused primarily on Ashe, with a bit of Cassidy (and no, the ebook has not been updated to reflect Cassidy's recent name change). It's a simple enough story with an easy premise to follow, and character archetypes you've seen before. It does a very good job of depicting the inside of a rich white woman's mindset (minus most of the racism, though it's still in there because Ashe's selfishness and colorblindness are very obvious), and a decent enough job of approaching a trope I actually like - someone who has been privileged but struggles from dealing with the privilege given to them mostly by dint of their monetary inheritance (and skin color), particularly when they lose all their money and their parents are emotionally abusive.

The hardest thing to believe in this is that the cop is corrupt by dint of being biased against rich people. You could argue he's also just sexist, but really the "anti-rich people" bias is the crux of the matter. And it's comical bordering on groan-worthy. Although it's canonical to the video game, this entire plotline could have been nixxed without a great loss, or treated with more realism. Maybe Ashe uses her allowance to bribe him. Maybe B.O.B. bribes him. I don't know. More than "the cop is somehow biased against rich people", which any real cop would laugh at. Rich people are their favorite people. But the book is almost afraid to deal with any attempts at intersectionality, whether it's confronting sexism itself as a concept, or racism, which it sometimes skates close to without truly engaging for the most part. I'm not surprised, giving Activision Blizzard King as a company and its intended audience (and Ashe as a character), but still. It's frustrating, and hurts a story that might have had neat things to say. There's a subplot where we learn what Frankie was going to use her earnings for, and Ashe's callousness in regard to this, particularly after she was truly phenomenally stupid by not making a phone call to her superhero hacker friend, was the most this book has to say about any particular topic. This was a good subplot. And Ashe doubling down on Frankie's "betrayal" because she sees Frankie's actions as the problem (notably never blaming Julian or Cassidy for being leaks, but targeting the woman of color first), is pretty accurate for the character. It's uncomfortable to read, and hard to root for Ashe in this case. I'm not sure it ever gets past that because doing so would be more than a book like this published by a company like ABK for an audience like ABK's intended audience would care for. I know plenty of folks who would have liked it in the fandom, but well, we'll never know now will we?

I dropped the book a few times for other things, and I can't say I'll ever reread it, but I'm happy this exists. I'd like them to give more opportunities to writers and artists who aren't cis men, that are mostly made as fanservicey projects (like this one clearly was). If you like Ashe or Cassidy, or them together, or B.O.B., or this corner of "Overwatch" lore, you may like this. Anyone else, probably read something else.… (lisätietoja)

The first half had normal pacing but without a clear goal or enemy to tackle. At the second part, things started picking up and the action was intense (especially if you binge the last twenty chapters in a day). Overall it was a very good story and it left me vibrant images, since the town/building/festivities descriptions were close to excellent (I would give a 9 out of 10 for description, while I would give the narrative a 6,5-7 out of 10). There were times when I thought the protagonist's decisions were so very wrong and sometimes even stupid, but I went along anyway and enjoyed her character a lot. It was a very good book for a debut.… (lisätietoja)

3.5 Stars

This book was not what I was expecting at all. And in this case, that is a good thing. Don’t judge a book by it’s cover because this is not a western. And for the most part the main character Serendipity Jones (Pity for short), is never dressed as she is on the cover. Having said that, the cover is still a good interpretation of this story. Instead of a die hard western you get a bit more West World meets Hunger Games minus the robots. The best thing to give you an idea of what to expect: think the SyFy show Defiance. It’s the future (maybe). There has been a second civil war. The winners were CONA: Confederates of North America. The opposing sides were the Patriots. Pity’s mother was a Patriot, but in order to remain alive after the war, she took a spot on a commune to live and propagate the population. It was from her mother that Pity got her gun skills.

Pity does not have an easy life. She has just a few months until she turns 18 and can head out on her own. Until her dad sells her to another commune for breading stock. This setup has been used again and again in teen lit. She escapes. Through various events Pitty comes to be in Cessation. The last outlaw town on the end of the nation. This is a land of no law, but it has its own rules. If you want to be anyone, you obey the ruler of Cessation: Selene. Pitty gets assigned to the theater to become a new act. A wiz shot with her six shooters. The theater is both show and a death spectacle. The story progresses from there. Overall I quite enjoyed the story. There are some things that are very repetitive to current YA reads such as the carnival, the romance, and the progression of the story. And while the author has stated that this is currently a stand alone book, it could use a sequel. It perfectly leaves itself open to a franchise series. And there is so much to develop. My biggest complaint is the absence of complete world building.

The world as explained is enough to get you through the story, but there are so many gaps that are never addressed. As mentioned there was a civil war (american I’m assuming). But what brought it on? What year is it? Is this alternate reality? Are we in an altered 2018, or a future 2118? This is hard to determine. They have television, or a movie channel. or something like that. But no phones. No internet. No cell service. They have high powered rifles and body armour, but the hand guns are six shot revolving pistols. Something seen out of the old west. Why? There were Pity’s mother’s gun, yes, but why this type of gun. It doesn't play. Especially when you add the technological bullet blocking wavelength screen that protects the theater patrons from flying bullets. They have cars and trains, but no planes. Fancy drugs, and better birth control than available currently, and medical healing right out of Star Trek. Stasis Pods to hold someone in a coma for medical transport, but child bearing problems. Infertility is brought up at early in the book, and woman who are fertile have a better shot of living to old age than those that are not. But no mention of why. As I said, incomplete world building. The City of Columbia (the capitol) has technological advances that rarely get to the communes, and almost never to Cessation. This is an interesting world, and one I would like to see fully developed.

I almost wish this book would have been picked up by a fantasy/science fiction publisher instead of James Patterson Presents. Someone who specializes in this type of cyber punk meets old west would have been better able to work with the author to fill the gaps in her world. Hopefully the author decides to give it another shot (pun intended) and lets reader delve more into Pity’s world and the politics that aboud.

#LitsyatoZ… (lisätietoja)