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okto's review against another edition
3.75
I was enjoying this book a lot at beginning but started to lose interest in the last third. I found the start to be engaging but as the plot progressed I found it more and more unbelievable.
crimsoncor's review against another edition
4.0
This book suffers from traditional sequalitis. It has to be all the things the first book was, but turned up to eleven; doesn't feel like it breaks any new ground. That isn't necessarily a bad thing. I still really enjoyed reading it and spending time with the characters (both old and new). It just felt a little forced all the time.
sunshine169's review against another edition
4.0
No longer on the run, Steph and her mom adjust to having a sedentary routine. Steph starts a new school where she will be staying and meets a new friend Nell who is also new. Our new point of view character, Nell, is living with her father and his wife and both of their girlfriends. The LGBT+ representation in this book is amazing. The world they live in is very accepting of all kinds of situation as it should be! Except the religious cult Nell is originally from until her mom disappears. Her calling all the women in the house Thing 1, 2, and 3, did get annoying after a while but I understand she was adjusting to the non-cult life.
The quiet life is cut short by another A.I. There is a new social media game that has its players doing questionable things in real life in order to get points. With the help of CheshireCat, Nell, and her friends in the clowder, Steph sets off to uncover who is behind the new A.I and its why its purpose is causing destruction.
This was just as engrossing as the first installment. Super quick read and very relevant to our digital everything world.
Thank you Netgalley for an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review. I recommend reading Catfishing on CatNet first!
The quiet life is cut short by another A.I. There is a new social media game that has its players doing questionable things in real life in order to get points. With the help of CheshireCat, Nell, and her friends in the clowder, Steph sets off to uncover who is behind the new A.I and its why its purpose is causing destruction.
This was just as engrossing as the first installment. Super quick read and very relevant to our digital everything world.
Thank you Netgalley for an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review. I recommend reading Catfishing on CatNet first!
cythera15's review against another edition
fast-paced
4.0
I love Krizer’s series for its diversity and a deep trust in technology’s neutrality. It is not that technology is inherently good or bad, but it becomes what people around it use it to be. In the second book, we are introduced to Boom Storm, a copy of CheshireCat who shares the same code as him but not the same experience. Boom Storm is used by religious fanatics to bring forth social chaos (“The Tribulation”) as well as a secular social app called the Mischief Elves. The novel is an exciting and rare example of how AI can be “good” and autonomous at the same time. CheshireCat chooses to be good, independent of their creator’s intended purpose for them.
thewallflower00's review against another edition
3.0
Much of my review of the first one stands for the second. It picks up where the last one left off, but in this one, they’re exploring a few new social issues. (Which is already a mark in the plus column. A lot of sequels just repeat the same thing as if the hero didn’t learn anything in the first one.) In the first, we had this YA girl having to move towns a lot because her father was stalking her and her mom. That’s done, but now we’re exploring how the girl lives her new life. Plus we have a new character who’s part of a cult. Haven’t seen that old chestnut for a long time–cults kinda went out of fashion in the nineties where instead of the funny Hari Krishna banging tambourines at the airport they turned out to be Waco and Heaven’s Gate and sexual/child abuse colonies.
Much like the first, it’s an action ride, but more people are holding the idiot ball in this one to drive the plot forward. For instance, as soon as it’s discovered that the new friend’s other friend has been kidnapped and locked in a cabin with no food NO ONE CALLS THE POLICE. Instead, the kids handle everything because that keeps the plot moving. Even the most independent child would say “we need to call the cops so we can get all these people arrested and thrown in jail.” I don’t care if “time is of the essence”–this is not the time to be a superhero. Even Batman would call the GCPD once in a while.
Another thing is that everyone’s sexuality is full and forefront. For some reason, the author seems to think that I need to know if every character is a lesbian or ace-aro or still questioning. And stuff that SHOULD be explored more fully, like the fact that the new friend’s father is part of a polyamorous unit (read one male and three females), which SHOULD have some issues of jealousy and negotiation come up, doesn’t. This is what conservatives point to when they say everything is “woke”. It feels like the author posted up flags that said “this is a progressive book because I have representation” even if it has nothing to do with the story.
So bottom line, I didn’t like this one as much as the first. Whether I read the third (if there’s a third) probably depends on what the given plotline for that one is, whether it contains any tropes that I find interesting, if they concentrate more on the AI character and less on the YA part.
Much like the first, it’s an action ride, but more people are holding the idiot ball in this one to drive the plot forward. For instance, as soon as it’s discovered that the new friend’s other friend has been kidnapped and locked in a cabin with no food NO ONE CALLS THE POLICE. Instead, the kids handle everything because that keeps the plot moving. Even the most independent child would say “we need to call the cops so we can get all these people arrested and thrown in jail.” I don’t care if “time is of the essence”–this is not the time to be a superhero. Even Batman would call the GCPD once in a while.
Another thing is that everyone’s sexuality is full and forefront. For some reason, the author seems to think that I need to know if every character is a lesbian or ace-aro or still questioning. And stuff that SHOULD be explored more fully, like the fact that the new friend’s father is part of a polyamorous unit (read one male and three females), which SHOULD have some issues of jealousy and negotiation come up, doesn’t. This is what conservatives point to when they say everything is “woke”. It feels like the author posted up flags that said “this is a progressive book because I have representation” even if it has nothing to do with the story.
So bottom line, I didn’t like this one as much as the first. Whether I read the third (if there’s a third) probably depends on what the given plotline for that one is, whether it contains any tropes that I find interesting, if they concentrate more on the AI character and less on the YA part.
boggremlin's review against another edition
4.0
I loved this sequel to [b:Catfishing on CatNet|41556068|Catfishing on CatNet (CatNet, #1)|Naomi Kritzer|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1568119890l/41556068._SY75_.jpg|64836558]. Set in a near-future version of Minneapolis, Steph's life is beginning to look something like normal after years on the run. At the same time, CheshireCat, the AI who loves looking at cat pictures more than anything, is contacted by a mysterious and possibly malevolent stranger, who may be an AI as well. Add Nell, a teenager living with her father's polycule after she's expelled from the fundamentalist cult where she lived with her mother, and it's pretty clear that life in Minneapolis is not going to be normal at all. Kritzer has continued the high stakes, fast-paced drama present in the first CatNet book, and I was absolutely hooked by this one. It's exciting and full of technology, relearning family relationships, young queer love, and -- my favorite -- the power of problem solving (with friends).
tani's review against another edition
4.0
A clear case of 'if you liked the first one, you'll probably like the second one.' I found this one a bit more engaging because I liked the whole cult angle, but also a bit more unbelievable, because the ending felt a little too pat. Still, highly enjoyed as a light read.
taeli's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
fiddlak's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0