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4.0 AVERAGE
4.0 AVERAGE
Wow. An unexpectedly thrilling read. As Nick is pulled into Erebos, I felt pulled into its universe. The authenticity of the universe of Nick's London and of Erebos were seamlessly created. The unexpected villains and how they turned out was a fantastic end to the book.
Erebos is a mysterious computer game that very secretly is passed around. There are rules-do not talk about the game, do not give other people the game, and only play alone. The consequence of breaking the rules is getting kicked out of Erebos, and you can not get back in. Nick Dunmore desperately wants to play and win the game, but when it seems that Erebos is watching his every move, a more sinister objective is revealed.
The book was originally written in German, by Ursula Poznanski an Austrian woman with a fantastic imagination.
Erebos is a mysterious computer game that very secretly is passed around. There are rules-do not talk about the game, do not give other people the game, and only play alone. The consequence of breaking the rules is getting kicked out of Erebos, and you can not get back in. Nick Dunmore desperately wants to play and win the game, but when it seems that Erebos is watching his every move, a more sinister objective is revealed.
The book was originally written in German, by Ursula Poznanski an Austrian woman with a fantastic imagination.
Thank you to Annick Press (via NetGalley) for the ARC e-book of Erebos.
I was surprised at just how much I liked this book, considering I am not exactly in its target audience. The story is about Nick, who is a popular high school jock, who starts noticing that his classmates are acting strangely; they're skipping school, acting secretive, and are passing around a DVD of something that Nick desperately wants to know what it is. He's finally invited to give it a try, and finds that the DVD is a computer game called Erebos, which is an incredibly realistic role-playing game. There's a catch, though, in that players of the game must adhere to some pretty strict rules, including not talking about the game with anyone else and playing the game alone. Nick soon becomes hooked, and, as with any addiction, struggles to continue to function in the real world, becoming so obsessed with leveling up his character that he fails to realize just how dangerous this game is and how it's affecting him.
As someone who is neither a teenage boy (who is definitely this book's target audience) nor a hardcore gamer, I was surprised at just how gripping I found this story. Nick's addiction to the game, including the way he loses his sense of self while playing, referring to himself only by his character name, was amazingly compelling. I think any avid reader knows what it's like to lose themselves in the narrative and look up hours later to find that an enormous amount of time has passed (I know I've definitely done this), so in that respect this book was very realistic. The catch with this game is that the tasks the players have to carry out take place in the real world, and definitely stretch their morality. Thankfully Nick has enough sense to realize that he can't carry out his final orders, although I was surprised to see just how upset he was that he DIDN'T go through with it when it results in his getting kicked out of the game. It's scary to think that there are people in the world, however, that would go ahead and do anything to make sure the game didn't stop (just like with any addiction). The whole "I have to do this" desperation was very accurate in terms of how addicts often talk.
However, Nick is not a terribly sympathetic character at first; he's a bully, calling those who aren't terribly attractive and/or rather nerdy "freaks", referring to others as "overweight", and generally throwing temper tantrums when people start pointing out just how much the game has affected him. I didn't think there were enough consequences for his attitudes towards those other characters, even if he does sort of redeem himself in the end. I also really disliked the fact that the author had one of the characters claim to be sexually assaulted, and then focus mostly on the fact that such a claim has an adverse effect on the guy, especially considering that so many women don't report when they're victimized for fear of being branded or having people think they're lying. I also think that something was perhaps lost in the translation from German to English, because there were some definite choices of words that were distinctly not British (this version is set in London). They don't call their secondary schools "high schools", for one, and they live in flats, not apartments, etc. But for the most part I was able to over look those.
This book would be a definite hit with the teenage boy and/or gamers. I can say that the adventure and suspense was first-rate, and I was wholly engaged the entire time I was reading. I would definitely recommend it.
I was surprised at just how much I liked this book, considering I am not exactly in its target audience. The story is about Nick, who is a popular high school jock, who starts noticing that his classmates are acting strangely; they're skipping school, acting secretive, and are passing around a DVD of something that Nick desperately wants to know what it is. He's finally invited to give it a try, and finds that the DVD is a computer game called Erebos, which is an incredibly realistic role-playing game. There's a catch, though, in that players of the game must adhere to some pretty strict rules, including not talking about the game with anyone else and playing the game alone. Nick soon becomes hooked, and, as with any addiction, struggles to continue to function in the real world, becoming so obsessed with leveling up his character that he fails to realize just how dangerous this game is and how it's affecting him.
As someone who is neither a teenage boy (who is definitely this book's target audience) nor a hardcore gamer, I was surprised at just how gripping I found this story. Nick's addiction to the game, including the way he loses his sense of self while playing, referring to himself only by his character name, was amazingly compelling. I think any avid reader knows what it's like to lose themselves in the narrative and look up hours later to find that an enormous amount of time has passed (I know I've definitely done this), so in that respect this book was very realistic. The catch with this game is that the tasks the players have to carry out take place in the real world, and definitely stretch their morality. Thankfully Nick has enough sense to realize that he can't carry out his final orders, although I was surprised to see just how upset he was that he DIDN'T go through with it when it results in his getting kicked out of the game. It's scary to think that there are people in the world, however, that would go ahead and do anything to make sure the game didn't stop (just like with any addiction). The whole "I have to do this" desperation was very accurate in terms of how addicts often talk.
However, Nick is not a terribly sympathetic character at first; he's a bully, calling those who aren't terribly attractive and/or rather nerdy "freaks", referring to others as "overweight", and generally throwing temper tantrums when people start pointing out just how much the game has affected him. I didn't think there were enough consequences for his attitudes towards those other characters, even if he does sort of redeem himself in the end. I also really disliked the fact that the author had one of the characters claim to be sexually assaulted, and then focus mostly on the fact that such a claim has an adverse effect on the guy, especially considering that so many women don't report when they're victimized for fear of being branded or having people think they're lying. I also think that something was perhaps lost in the translation from German to English, because there were some definite choices of words that were distinctly not British (this version is set in London). They don't call their secondary schools "high schools", for one, and they live in flats, not apartments, etc. But for the most part I was able to over look those.
This book would be a definite hit with the teenage boy and/or gamers. I can say that the adventure and suspense was first-rate, and I was wholly engaged the entire time I was reading. I would definitely recommend it.
sehr spanned aber am Beginn sehr langsam habe es aber geliebt
3,5 stars. Intriguing concept for sure. Definitely made me want to keep going on.
The book got dragged down a bit by some of its characters. Especially Nick was an annoying protagonist, he made me roll my eyes consistently. He got a bit better at the end, but by then the damage had been done. Fortunately there were some fine characters like Victor.
Overall I had a good experience most of the time.
The book got dragged down a bit by some of its characters. Especially Nick was an annoying protagonist, he made me roll my eyes consistently. He got a bit better at the end, but by then the damage had been done. Fortunately there were some fine characters like Victor.
Overall I had a good experience most of the time.
Nick get cought in a deadly computer game called Erebos, addicting and dangerous. Players can't talk to anyone else about it and the quest seems stranger and stranger and why are they in real life to. This was in fact a very thrilling read but I didn't completly get addicted to the book myself but I would pick up something else by Ursula Poznanski that isn't part of this series in the future
adventurous
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
dark
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
One of the few books about video games that capture the immersive experience. The story was truly ahead of it's time. It's well thought out and clever, without becoming absurd. The scariest thing about this is the potential for it to happen in real life.
It also touches on the topics of addiction and peer pressure and handels them well.
It also touches on the topics of addiction and peer pressure and handels them well.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction
adventurous
medium-paced
Opinião completa em: http://historiasdeelphaba.blogspot.pt/2015/04/erebos-ursula-poznanski-opiniao.html
Ora aqui está uma surpresa agradável. Confesso-vos que não sabia bem o que esperar desta história, com um género pouco definido na minha mente e direccionada para um público mais jovem mas, felizmente, esta acabou por se revelar algo viciante e original, num universo actual e que teve a capacidade de me pôr a reflectir sobre dilemas contemporâneos.
Através de um enredo que flui com naturalidade, Ursula Poznanski apresenta uma história inteligente e cativante que prende a atenção de quem lê. Apesar de utilizar diálogos mais coloquiais e descrições concisas, a sua narrativa é cuidada e nota-se a sua preocupação em dar a ver tudo o que está a acontecer, da mesma forma que trabalha, inclusive com momentos de humor entre o suspense, as relações entre personagens e a importância que os pares têm na adolescência comum.
Todo o texto gira em torno de Erebos, um jogo que, tal como é descrito na sinopse, ultrapassa e até domina a realidade. Estratégia, acção e aventura são os atractivos deste universo virtual paralelo que escoa para a realidade, acabando por viciar, manipular e subjugar centenas de miúdos que vivem em Londres. Para lá de fascinar por todas as singularidades que o próprio jogo apresenta e mostrar a forma como este altera as personagens do enredo, esta história acaba por se tornar numa perigosa caça à verdade, ao verdadeiro intuito do jogo, e sobre quem está por detrás do da ficção. Uma coisa é certa, a vida social de todos os jovens está a mudar e coisas realmente estranhas e graves começaram a acontecer, pois como explicita o título, Erebos é um jogo. Ele observa-te... e tudo pode acontecer!
(...)
Ora aqui está uma surpresa agradável. Confesso-vos que não sabia bem o que esperar desta história, com um género pouco definido na minha mente e direccionada para um público mais jovem mas, felizmente, esta acabou por se revelar algo viciante e original, num universo actual e que teve a capacidade de me pôr a reflectir sobre dilemas contemporâneos.
Através de um enredo que flui com naturalidade, Ursula Poznanski apresenta uma história inteligente e cativante que prende a atenção de quem lê. Apesar de utilizar diálogos mais coloquiais e descrições concisas, a sua narrativa é cuidada e nota-se a sua preocupação em dar a ver tudo o que está a acontecer, da mesma forma que trabalha, inclusive com momentos de humor entre o suspense, as relações entre personagens e a importância que os pares têm na adolescência comum.
Todo o texto gira em torno de Erebos, um jogo que, tal como é descrito na sinopse, ultrapassa e até domina a realidade. Estratégia, acção e aventura são os atractivos deste universo virtual paralelo que escoa para a realidade, acabando por viciar, manipular e subjugar centenas de miúdos que vivem em Londres. Para lá de fascinar por todas as singularidades que o próprio jogo apresenta e mostrar a forma como este altera as personagens do enredo, esta história acaba por se tornar numa perigosa caça à verdade, ao verdadeiro intuito do jogo, e sobre quem está por detrás do da ficção. Uma coisa é certa, a vida social de todos os jovens está a mudar e coisas realmente estranhas e graves começaram a acontecer, pois como explicita o título, Erebos é um jogo. Ele observa-te... e tudo pode acontecer!
(...)