Scan barcode
crimsoncor's review against another edition
3.0
Set in the same world as Invasive (though with only a slight connection), this isn't quite the ride the later book is. Not a bad little hacker story
ohemgeebooks's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
ryanferguson83's review
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
godzilla_halahala's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
songwind's review against another edition
5.0
This is a great book on many fronts.
First up, the characterization. Character building has been Mr. Wendig's strength in every book I've read by him, and this one is no different. The principal actors of this drama are all multifaceted people with complex motivations and messy ideas and values. Even the primary antagonists have more going for them than a twirly mustache, despite a very alien outlook.
Like in most story telling involving cybercrime, the hacking has been streamlined. In Zer0s, this is largely by speeding it up. Days or weeks of repetitive probes, decryption algorithms and the like just don't make for an entertaining read.
The narrative gives a nice blend of techno-thriller, adventure, horror and mystery.
Oh, and as with all of Wendig's adult fiction books, be prepared for a goodly amount of swearing and crudity from some of the characters.
First up, the characterization. Character building has been Mr. Wendig's strength in every book I've read by him, and this one is no different. The principal actors of this drama are all multifaceted people with complex motivations and messy ideas and values. Even the primary antagonists have more going for them than a twirly mustache, despite a very alien outlook.
Like in most story telling involving cybercrime, the hacking has been streamlined. In Zer0s, this is largely by speeding it up. Days or weeks of repetitive probes, decryption algorithms and the like just don't make for an entertaining read.
The narrative gives a nice blend of techno-thriller, adventure, horror and mystery.
Oh, and as with all of Wendig's adult fiction books, be prepared for a goodly amount of swearing and crudity from some of the characters.
aranafyre's review against another edition
4.0
I had the hardest time finishing this book. It was good but I never seemed to want to pick it back up.
texastoast42's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
geekwayne's review against another edition
3.0
'Zeroes' by Chuck Wendig was my book club's pick for November. It wasn't a bad book, but it wasn't anyone's favorite either.
A group of disparate hacker-types are captured by the government and made to hack for good in a place called The Lodge. Along the way, they uncover bigger things and inadvertently set something loose they shouldn't have. Now this group of misfits must band together and work to stop bad things from being worse.
It's a techno-thriller that moves along fairly quickly. It's hard to like the characters because some of them are pretty unlikeable, and also because there isn't much time for character development at all. There is a lot of action, then, suddenly, it's over. The ending felt abrupt to me, so while I liked parts of it, overall, I wasn't a big fan.
A group of disparate hacker-types are captured by the government and made to hack for good in a place called The Lodge. Along the way, they uncover bigger things and inadvertently set something loose they shouldn't have. Now this group of misfits must band together and work to stop bad things from being worse.
It's a techno-thriller that moves along fairly quickly. It's hard to like the characters because some of them are pretty unlikeable, and also because there isn't much time for character development at all. There is a lot of action, then, suddenly, it's over. The ending felt abrupt to me, so while I liked parts of it, overall, I wasn't a big fan.
sandygx260's review against another edition
4.0
I'm embarrassed to confess I read Chuck Wendig's blog more than his books. If you haven't checked out his blog terribleminds, do so... he's opinionated, crass, and hilarious.
Some of that style spilled over into "Zeroes". "Zeroes" is the cliche fast-paced read, populated by short chapters and zippy sentences. Not to insult it, but reading it is like devouring a bag of chips... ooo, one more chapter, aww, one more, awww, almost to the section break... you keep moving along because the plot is hyper with plenty happening all over the place. Wendig is not one to let any moss grow on his plot. He presses his writing pedal to the floor, even when he's not writing car-chase scenes, of which there are many in this novel.
Is the tech info accurate? I'm not an IT wiz, so I can't answer that question. Wendig throws around enough jargon to make the scenarios valid for the non-IT crowd. If you really understand hacking and IT, your IT mileage may vary.
Now to the nitty-gritty. The reason I scale this down to four stars is due to a few painfully simplistic characters. Their lack of depth surprises me. Three characters: gas station and ATM hacker DeAndre, Ruby Ridger Wade, and mean girl troll Reagan, come close to being serious cut-out cliches. A few action scenes where the underdog manages to fight on despite the grievous beating also made me shake my head no. The scenes veered into Cartoonville — a cartoon character runs into a wall, flattens, yet springs back again.
If this is ever made into a movie, please sign Morgan Freeman for the role of Hollis Copper. I know he's a bit old for the part, but I heard his voice when I read Copper's lines.
Some of that style spilled over into "Zeroes". "Zeroes" is the cliche fast-paced read, populated by short chapters and zippy sentences. Not to insult it, but reading it is like devouring a bag of chips... ooo, one more chapter, aww, one more, awww, almost to the section break... you keep moving along because the plot is hyper with plenty happening all over the place. Wendig is not one to let any moss grow on his plot. He presses his writing pedal to the floor, even when he's not writing car-chase scenes, of which there are many in this novel.
Is the tech info accurate? I'm not an IT wiz, so I can't answer that question. Wendig throws around enough jargon to make the scenarios valid for the non-IT crowd. If you really understand hacking and IT, your IT mileage may vary.
Now to the nitty-gritty. The reason I scale this down to four stars is due to a few painfully simplistic characters. Their lack of depth surprises me. Three characters: gas station and ATM hacker DeAndre, Ruby Ridger Wade, and mean girl troll Reagan, come close to being serious cut-out cliches. A few action scenes where the underdog manages to fight on despite the grievous beating also made me shake my head no. The scenes veered into Cartoonville — a cartoon character runs into a wall, flattens, yet springs back again.
If this is ever made into a movie, please sign Morgan Freeman for the role of Hollis Copper. I know he's a bit old for the part, but I heard his voice when I read Copper's lines.