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rainsynch's review against another edition
2.0
Another one of those books where I adored the premise but felt the execution fell a little flat at times. It was a fun read, but was a little like fast food: just something to pass the time, not an actual sit-down meal. There were a lot of characters but most of them didn't get that fleshed out, and there were a lot of weird plot holes or jumps. I still might eventually pick up future ones to see how it is resolved, but it's not top-priority.
anastasiarozova's review against another edition
5.0
4.5/5
"Every locked door has a key. Every problem has a solution."
Wow.
Yes, it was cliche in some moments, and even had the stupid "I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding" phrase three goddamn times! But I LOVED IT. I certainly didn't expect to, cause I've never read anything by Marie Lu. Plus, initially this book was on my "maybe" shelf. I wasn't even going to read it any time soon. And then I had a sudden urge, and thank the gods I did. So glad I picked it up and read it.
I love virtual realities, it's one of my favourite plot lines in books, movies, anime, etc. When I was adding the book to my "maybe" shelf, I didn't really know what it was about. So when I heard my buzz words, I decided to pick it up, even though I was hesitant. So, so happy I did.
I adored the plot, it hooked me from the very beginning. Maybe it wasn't the most innovative plot, had a lot of YA cliches, it worked for this book. Plus the writing style made it very easy to read.
Characters. First of all, I liked the realness. Like we had characters from different countries, with different backgrounds, sexualities, we had a disabled character, a traumatized one (although this one is arguable). And what I loved the most that none of it was emphasised that much? I mean, they were all just there, without making a big deal out of it, cause the novel had different intentions.
I loved our main protagonist Emika, even though I can't say she was all that original. But she was smart, strong-willed, never whined much. She was just generally appealing and I enjoyed reading about her a lot. I loved the info about her family, her dad. That was interesting.
Also loved her teammates, too bad we didn't get to know much about them, I hope it's gonna change in the next book.
I loved Hideo. Interesting, how his story is gonna continue.
Zero. I mean. Yeah. I mean. If you read it, you know. I have my theories about him:
we've seen Hideo alter his memories. And I know, he was a child. But what if Sasuke's disappearance really was his fault in some ways? And he just altered his memories, hid them in his subconscious. It's a wild theory, but who knows.
The relationship felt a bit insta-lovey for me, but not annoyingly so? I still shipped them. A lot.
A LOT.
Oh, we had some plot twist, but I totally called one. AND THEN WAS COMPLETELY TAKEN ABACK BY THE OTHER ONE. WTF? I loved this feeling. I hate it when I'm guessing the twists, cause I'm usually bad at it. So when I've seen one from a mile away, that means it was way too transparent. But the second one took me by surprised.
Thanks, Marie. Thanks for another favourite.
"Every locked door has a key. Every problem has a solution."
Wow.
Yes, it was cliche in some moments, and even had the stupid "I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding" phrase three goddamn times! But I LOVED IT. I certainly didn't expect to, cause I've never read anything by Marie Lu. Plus, initially this book was on my "maybe" shelf. I wasn't even going to read it any time soon. And then I had a sudden urge, and thank the gods I did. So glad I picked it up and read it.
I love virtual realities, it's one of my favourite plot lines in books, movies, anime, etc. When I was adding the book to my "maybe" shelf, I didn't really know what it was about. So when I heard my buzz words, I decided to pick it up, even though I was hesitant. So, so happy I did.
I adored the plot, it hooked me from the very beginning. Maybe it wasn't the most innovative plot, had a lot of YA cliches, it worked for this book. Plus the writing style made it very easy to read.
Characters. First of all, I liked the realness. Like we had characters from different countries, with different backgrounds, sexualities, we had a disabled character, a traumatized one (although this one is arguable). And what I loved the most that none of it was emphasised that much? I mean, they were all just there, without making a big deal out of it, cause the novel had different intentions.
I loved our main protagonist Emika, even though I can't say she was all that original. But she was smart, strong-willed, never whined much. She was just generally appealing and I enjoyed reading about her a lot. I loved the info about her family, her dad. That was interesting.
Also loved her teammates, too bad we didn't get to know much about them, I hope it's gonna change in the next book.
I loved Hideo.
Spoiler
AND THEN HE BROKE MY HEART.Zero. I mean. Yeah. I mean. If you read it, you know. I have my theories about him:
Spoiler
like,we've seen Hideo alter his memories. And I know, he was a child. But what if Sasuke's disappearance really was his fault in some ways? And he just altered his memories, hid them in his subconscious. It's a wild theory, but who knows.
The relationship felt a bit insta-lovey for me, but not annoyingly so? I still shipped them. A lot.
A LOT.
Spoiler
AND THEN IT BROKE MY HEART AGAIN.Oh, we had some plot twist, but I totally called one.
Spoiler
Like I knew that Hideo's brother is gonna be Zero from the moment we got a second mention of him. I just knew.Thanks, Marie. Thanks for another favourite.
queer_bookwyrm's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
fast-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? No
5.0
5 ⭐ CW: death of a parent mention, bullying mentions
Warcross by Marie Lu is book one in the Warcross duology. Marie Lu's books have been pretty hit or miss for me, but this one definitely hit! This is in my top two of her books I've read so far. This was a great fast paced scifi read, perfect for the gamers out there.
We follow Emika Chen, an 18 year old girl living in NYC trying to make ends meet and not get evicted by being a bounty hunter. Emika hunts people illegally gambling on the worldwide popular virtual game, Warcross. Emika is a talented hacker, and when she tries to hack into one of the official Warcross games to steal a power up, she glitches into the game for everyone to see, causing her a lot of unexpected attention.
She is invited to Tokyo by Warcross creator Hideo Tanaka, who wants to hire her for her hacking and bounty hunting skills. Oh and she also gets to be in the official world championships. She is tasked with finding out who another hacker is that is causing Hideo problems. Things get wild when Emiko realizes the stakes are much higher than she thought.
This was a great story about virtual reality and what you would be willing to give up to keep it. I guessed one of the twists, but not the second one! I'm definitely interested in finding out what happens next!
Warcross by Marie Lu is book one in the Warcross duology. Marie Lu's books have been pretty hit or miss for me, but this one definitely hit! This is in my top two of her books I've read so far. This was a great fast paced scifi read, perfect for the gamers out there.
We follow Emika Chen, an 18 year old girl living in NYC trying to make ends meet and not get evicted by being a bounty hunter. Emika hunts people illegally gambling on the worldwide popular virtual game, Warcross. Emika is a talented hacker, and when she tries to hack into one of the official Warcross games to steal a power up, she glitches into the game for everyone to see, causing her a lot of unexpected attention.
She is invited to Tokyo by Warcross creator Hideo Tanaka, who wants to hire her for her hacking and bounty hunting skills. Oh and she also gets to be in the official world championships. She is tasked with finding out who another hacker is that is causing Hideo problems. Things get wild when Emiko realizes the stakes are much higher than she thought.
This was a great story about virtual reality and what you would be willing to give up to keep it. I guessed one of the twists, but not the second one! I'm definitely interested in finding out what happens next!
Content Warnings
Minor: Bullying and Death of parent
magsisreading's review against another edition
3.0
i enjoyed this book. i had been kind of spoiled about one of the major twists in the end, which i think hindered my enjoyment a little. nonetheless, i like emika and hideo and also just the world of warcross in general it’s so cool
prested's review against another edition
4.0
Desperate and in-debt Emika Chen, teenage hacker/bounty hunter, is offered a chance of a lifetime to pay off all of her debts.
Emika accepts the offer and heads off to Tokyo where she is planted as a spy in the Warcross Championship tournaments, where all the top players of Warcross compete to be the winning team.
During the games, she discovers that there's more going on then she thought and she slowly becomes unsure who to trust.
------------------------------------
This isn't my strongest synopsis but I think it gets the point across!
I really enjoyed this book so I bought the boxset off of Amazon (It was on sale).
Is this my favorite work of Marie Lu?
No, the Young Elites series has my heart and soul but this book was so good!
I loved Emika and the way she interacted with the world. I thought it was cute how Lu had a fangirl protagonist. Her characterization was nice and I enjoyed her POV.
I enjoyed the worldbuilding and the world of Warcross is fascinating.
I liked the side characters and they were interesting but the book didn't spend too much time with them? Honestly I wish the romance side plot didn't take up as much time as it did.
The romance was the one thing I didn't enjoy? I just didn't feel the chemistry between them?
That's why Hideo fell in love with Emika because she constantly was willing to help others.
Emika fell in love with Hideo because she was inspired by him and was a fangirl.
I get that but I just didn't feel chemistry and at times they're late night meetups took away time spent with the other side characters. I wish more time was spent on characterizing them. I don't know anything about them and I wish more time was spent on them instead of this romance.
I didn't really care about their romance and I wish it was more of a background thing and not a major side plot.
It's a really fun quick read and I'll be reading the next one.
Emika accepts the offer and heads off to Tokyo where she is planted as a spy in the Warcross Championship tournaments, where all the top players of Warcross compete to be the winning team.
During the games, she discovers that there's more going on then she thought and she slowly becomes unsure who to trust.
------------------------------------
This isn't my strongest synopsis but I think it gets the point across!
I really enjoyed this book so I bought the boxset off of Amazon (It was on sale).
Is this my favorite work of Marie Lu?
No, the Young Elites series has my heart and soul but this book was so good!
I loved Emika and the way she interacted with the world. I thought it was cute how Lu had a fangirl protagonist. Her characterization was nice and I enjoyed her POV.
I enjoyed the worldbuilding and the world of Warcross is fascinating.
I liked the side characters and they were interesting but the book didn't spend too much time with them? Honestly I wish the romance side plot didn't take up as much time as it did.
The romance was the one thing I didn't enjoy? I just didn't feel the chemistry between them?
Spoiler
I get why they became involved with each other, because they both can't stand injustice and are willing to risk themselves to help someone else.That's why Hideo fell in love with Emika because she constantly was willing to help others.
Emika fell in love with Hideo because she was inspired by him and was a fangirl.
I get that but I just didn't feel chemistry and at times they're late night meetups took away time spent with the other side characters. I wish more time was spent on characterizing them. I don't know anything about them and I wish more time was spent on them instead of this romance.
I didn't really care about their romance and I wish it was more of a background thing and not a major side plot.
It's a really fun quick read and I'll be reading the next one.
bookishpositivitea's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
tense
fast-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? No
4.0
pagesofmaria's review against another edition
4.0
Compared to Legend, Marie Lu’s writing has really improved. I thoroughly enjoyed the story and the romance is tolerable at most. However, I was hoping that the sci-fi aspect of the book will be more elaborate in the next book. I wanted it to be a little heavy on the sci-fi aspect considering that the main character is a hacker. But still, I like this book. I kinda predicted who the enemy is but I am excited to read Wildcard because I want to know what happened.
nhi_nguyen's review against another edition
5.0
AH!
While rereading this book, all of I could think of was:
"How the heck did I forget this?"
and
"OMG, no wonder I loved this book!"
It's absolute SCARY how much I forgot of the book, but that's the whole point of me rereading this. I remembered loving this book when it first came out. Marie Lu is an amazing fantasy author. And Warcross was such a fun read.
I loved the world-building. It was exactly what I would imagine future Tokyo would look like. There were all of these techy stuff that wasn't explained too complicatedly. Marie Lu weaved the story so beautifully and I had no trouble picturing the story in my mind. The mystery surrounding Zero and the game had me hooked...even though I sorta knew what was going on. When I first read the book, the plot twist at the end made me want to read the second book so bad. And rereading it now, it's not so different. I got to read about the actual Warcross game itself and it was so action-packed! That particular element of the book really made it more enjoyable.
*dinosaur noise* THE ROMANCE! It's soooo cute and steamy and I think I found my new OTP. It wasn't love at first sight or instant love. The romantic relationship between Hideo and Emika developed pretty quickly but it wasn't too quick to the point of it being unbelievable. Nor was it dragged out too long and made me lose interest. I already know what happened at the end of Wildcard between Emika and Hideo, but I can't help feeling utterly devasted at how they left their relationship at the end of this book.
Ultimately...this was a great, amazing, fantastic, excellent, and I most ardently LOVE it!