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adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gun violence
Minor: Death, Suicide, Death of parent
adventurous
dark
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book was so unmemorable I truly do not even remember what happened despite reading it only a few months ago. I don’t recall much about what I didn’t like about the novel except for the fact that it dragged and felt unoriginal. Crouch set a really high bar with his other two novels so I was bound to be disappointed at some point.
Upgrade’s plot revolves around something involving genes and a man named Logan who discovers his genome has been hacked. And there is something to do with his mother being involved in a gene editing scheme? All and all, it felt like the plot went nowhere and I was just pushing myself to finish it. I recommend reading Dark Matter and Recursion though - those are the books I have placed into the hands of a lot of library patrons time and time again.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Violence
Moderate: Suicide
Minor: Child death, Death of parent
challenging
dark
emotional
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Grief
Moderate: Genocide, Suicide, Murder
adventurous
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Violence
Moderate: Suicide, Death of parent
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I loved this book. The ending was perfect! You don't get a perfect ending with everything told to you. It doesn't end happily ever after, but that's what I love about Blake Crouch's books! I would have liked a bit more about his wife, Ava, Nadine, and Kara, but other than that perfect! It was a wild ride. I laughed, I cried, and I gasped in surprise. It was just a great book!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Cursing, Death, Gun violence, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, Toxic friendship, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Suicide, Car accident, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Drug use, Terminal illness, Torture, Fire/Fire injury
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Dark Matter and Recursion were both better than this one, but I still enjoyed it. Fast paced, interesting sci fi concepts, balanced with some philosophizing about humanity, but just a bit lacking in character development and the truly mind bending stuff of his other books.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Gun violence, Violence, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Injury/Injury detail
adventurous
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
This was a book! It was like a Bourne movie that I think would make a great movie, but otherwise it was a dud. It was action packed but the characters didn’t do anything for me and I didn’t really care about the stakes. It’s always difficult to portray super humans, especially super intelligence, just because it ended up being him saying things like “wow I wasn’t so smart now but NOW I’m very smart!” rather than seeing him just… be super intelligent. I also just don’t really care about “perfect” men saving the world, it doesn’t tread new ground or do anything meaningful. Not my favorite Blake Crouch novel (it doesn’t even kind of get close to Dark Matter or Recursion) but it was still fun I guess!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Murder, Injury/Injury detail
adventurous
challenging
informative
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Gore, Gun violence, Murder, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Child death, Suicide, Death of parent
adventurous
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Death of parent
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Upgrade by Blake Crouch lived up to my expectations and was a quick, exciting read. My first Crouch novel was back in 2017 when I read Dark Matter, and I remember loving the fast-paced science fiction mood. When I saw the plot for his latest book, I was intrigued… and when I heard from a friend that it held its own against Dark Matter, I knew I’d be buying it.
In Upgrade we meet the protagonist, Logan, in a presumably future world where genetic engineering has gone awry, and the government has put in place restrictive laws. Scientists have been jailed and remain on watch lists, artificial intelligence scans identity in the streets, and the world is recovering from a global famine.
One day Logan wakes with the feeling that he is changing. He can’t put his finger on how or why, but once he starts to understand what’s happening the pace accelerates. As Logan pieces it together, the reader does too, and it’s a battle of morality and survival for humanity.
I’m drawn to science-fiction and particularly enjoy stories that are a degree away from the current reality. This novel has fictional elements that feel both futuristic and incredibly plausible. It begs the question of whether this could be reality and as the story progresses, it pushes moral and scientific questions to the surface for consideration.
The mystery unfolds and solves itself with satisfaction, with minimal loose ends to consider, and the epilogue was my favorite part. If you enjoyed Dark Matter, this is worth the read. This reminds me of a Jason Bourne type plot with an injection (terrible pun… forgive me) of futuristic science fiction.
Content warnings: Violence, Gun violence, Death, Self-harm, Torture, Grief
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Self harm, Torture, Violence, Grief