Scan barcode
wordnerdy's review
4.0
https://wordnerdy.blogspot.com/2021/01/2021-book-3.html
I am not sure where to even START with this book, because there is SO MUCH going on! OK, it's set in the near-ish future, when the world has gotten its act together and started fixing all the crap that's currently wrong (ie climate change), and also lots of things are digital or whatever (I find a lot of this very plausible even if "McDiznazon" makes me die a little inside). And there is a large cast of characters: a young woman, who's famous for gaming and also is training to be a lawyer; her famous father, a mentally ill musician with a sideline in conspiracy theories; her gaming archnemesis-cum-crush, who is having family issues (and their nine year old daughter, who works for the government); her legal client, who interpol thinks is a sentient AI--or something else??; several actual sentient AIs (which is MY JAM); an interpol agent who fancies himself a hero, etc etc you get it. It's pretty busy but it all works somehow! Super compelling plots, layers of stuff being revealed, a cute lil romance unfolding, and most of all a really fascinating possible future. Very enjoyable. A-.
__
Content warning for mention of rape.
I am not sure where to even START with this book, because there is SO MUCH going on! OK, it's set in the near-ish future, when the world has gotten its act together and started fixing all the crap that's currently wrong (ie climate change), and also lots of things are digital or whatever (I find a lot of this very plausible even if "McDiznazon" makes me die a little inside). And there is a large cast of characters: a young woman, who's famous for gaming and also is training to be a lawyer; her famous father, a mentally ill musician with a sideline in conspiracy theories; her gaming archnemesis-cum-crush, who is having family issues (and their nine year old daughter, who works for the government); her legal client, who interpol thinks is a sentient AI--or something else??; several actual sentient AIs (which is MY JAM); an interpol agent who fancies himself a hero, etc etc you get it. It's pretty busy but it all works somehow! Super compelling plots, layers of stuff being revealed, a cute lil romance unfolding, and most of all a really fascinating possible future. Very enjoyable. A-.
__
Content warning for mention of rape.
e_flah's review
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Gamechanger was an immersive book that grabbed me from the very first chapter. Beckett crafted a wonderfully intricate world that was both reminiscent of ours and yet very different. I really enjoyed seeing the world-building unspool over the course of Gamechanger. Beckett nailed one of my favorite feats of world-building -- I finished the booking feeling like I knew more about how the setting works but left with enough fascinating questions that I can't wait to return to this setting in book 2.
Gamechanger is a largely character-driven story with a host of compelling, three-dimensional characters. I loved Crane and Happ along with the many, varied examples of A.I. Rubi's "archnemesis" Gimlet and their child, Frankie, were two of my favorite characters of the bunch. Both are trying to care for their family in their own ways, which was a plot arc I really liked.
If character-driven science fiction is your cup of tea, I'd definitely recommend picking up Gamechanger.
Gamechanger is a largely character-driven story with a host of compelling, three-dimensional characters. I loved Crane and Happ along with the many, varied examples of A.I. Rubi's "archnemesis" Gimlet and their child, Frankie, were two of my favorite characters of the bunch. Both are trying to care for their family in their own ways, which was a plot arc I really liked.
If character-driven science fiction is your cup of tea, I'd definitely recommend picking up Gamechanger.
Content Warnings
Minor: Kidnapping and Body horror
elvenno's review
5.0
Gamechanger is an absolute treat to read- the thoroughness with which the author answers, "What if the world ends, and we figure out a new way to survive?" is very satisfying. I stayed up all night to finish it, and I cannot wait for the sequel so I can get back into this universe!
The book switches between different character perspectives, and the differences can be jarring- I'd hate to try to listen to this book on audio-book, honestly, as I think it'd be very difficult to follow. However, as the written word, it works- giving the reader a multitude of ways to see this new world (how would people live, eat, play, find purpose?) I just kept wanting to know more about this world- it's one of the few books I could not put down- it had that wonderful Neal Stephenson "Snow Crash" kind of feel.
The plot is ambitious and I think it may test some people's suspension of disbelief, especially if you don't have a "liberal" bent. Both the reasons for the world as we know it ending and how we end up clawing it back from the ashes feel like a sharpened variation of what could happen, but your mileage may vary.
I do hope that the future doesn't use hashtags quite as much as is in the book though. #LetItDieWithTheSetBack.
The book switches between different character perspectives, and the differences can be jarring- I'd hate to try to listen to this book on audio-book, honestly, as I think it'd be very difficult to follow. However, as the written word, it works- giving the reader a multitude of ways to see this new world (how would people live, eat, play, find purpose?) I just kept wanting to know more about this world- it's one of the few books I could not put down- it had that wonderful Neal Stephenson "Snow Crash" kind of feel.
The plot is ambitious and I think it may test some people's suspension of disbelief, especially if you don't have a "liberal" bent. Both the reasons for the world as we know it ending and how we end up clawing it back from the ashes feel like a sharpened variation of what could happen, but your mileage may vary.
I do hope that the future doesn't use hashtags quite as much as is in the book though. #LetItDieWithTheSetBack.
navik's review
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
frasersimons's review
4.0
3.5 rounded up
The communication of worldbuilding feels a bit expository sometimes but that’s science fiction, especially when it’s so radically different than today, as this is. The setting is absolutely the star of the show for me with this. Queer normalization, cli-fi /solarpunk underpinnings - it’s feels very innovative and fresh/ different.
I liked the characters and the plot, though the pacing felt a bit uneven, because the author really knows how to paint a scene. I didn’t really pay attention to the pacing much, which is when you know the things the author decides to be specific about were interesting to you.
The only thing consistently annoying is weird to talk about because it’s also fascinating. Social media becomes sort-of social capital, so how people communicate and how the slang/jargon isn’t serious, like in most SF with those elements. It feels childish and weird, yet is clearly present for a reason. There’s So many hashtag whatevers that I rolled my eyes, but yet currency is social capital and evolved from social media, so it IS how people would actually talk, I just don’t like it, and I’m not sure how fair that is? It bugged me a fair amount though, can’t disregard it. It’s a part of the prose and it’s prevalent, so keep that in mind. Maybe it’s your thing, maybe it’s not.
Otherwise I found this to be smart, interesting, inclusive, and fun. Plenty of subversions and, as I said, feels like it’s helping to pioneer a different kind of cli-fi, which I’m all for. I do not like the term Hopepunk, because it doesn’t mean anything substantial in the mission statement imo, but cli-fi should be more than one-note dystopias, and this feels like a direct response to that.
The communication of worldbuilding feels a bit expository sometimes but that’s science fiction, especially when it’s so radically different than today, as this is. The setting is absolutely the star of the show for me with this. Queer normalization, cli-fi /solarpunk underpinnings - it’s feels very innovative and fresh/ different.
I liked the characters and the plot, though the pacing felt a bit uneven, because the author really knows how to paint a scene. I didn’t really pay attention to the pacing much, which is when you know the things the author decides to be specific about were interesting to you.
The only thing consistently annoying is weird to talk about because it’s also fascinating. Social media becomes sort-of social capital, so how people communicate and how the slang/jargon isn’t serious, like in most SF with those elements. It feels childish and weird, yet is clearly present for a reason. There’s So many hashtag whatevers that I rolled my eyes, but yet currency is social capital and evolved from social media, so it IS how people would actually talk, I just don’t like it, and I’m not sure how fair that is? It bugged me a fair amount though, can’t disregard it. It’s a part of the prose and it’s prevalent, so keep that in mind. Maybe it’s your thing, maybe it’s not.
Otherwise I found this to be smart, interesting, inclusive, and fun. Plenty of subversions and, as I said, feels like it’s helping to pioneer a different kind of cli-fi, which I’m all for. I do not like the term Hopepunk, because it doesn’t mean anything substantial in the mission statement imo, but cli-fi should be more than one-note dystopias, and this feels like a direct response to that.
meghan_is_reading's review
Bounceback! I love the bootstrappers. Ubi, rationing and all.
kmj91's review
2.0
2 stars, a bit of a noble failure
Noble failure is my way of saying that this book has many admirable qualities, one that I still kind of want to like even though it failed to win me over. I guess I'll start by saying what I liked because I do think this is a book worth checking out and others might enjoy it more than I did. The worldbuilding is wide-reaching and pretty good at projecting to what a near future world dominated by social media might look like. I also really like this book's optimism at how the future will turn out. The world has suffered from climate change but it's been largely salvaged and people are getting along rather well. It's nice to see new angles on classic stories like this. I imagine the uses of things like hashtags and @s everywhere may infuriate some people but I found myself thinking they worked and helped to organically make this world feel like a realistic outgrowth from our own.
So what lost me then? Well, it was the basics. The story failed to grip me and I wasn't all that interested in the characters. There were many characters (including a main character at one point) who I just completely forgot about every time they briefly left the narrative. Not every character can be memorable, of course, but when barely any characters are, it becomes a real problem in getting invested. It's also weird to think "world renowned hacker turns out to be an alien spy and a gaming lawyer and Interpol have to team up to uncover his plan" could be dull but sadly it all felt a bit distant. I can't fault the author for coming up with some high stakes and figuring out an interesting story angle to approach them from but I simply wasn't enjoying it.
Noble failure is my way of saying that this book has many admirable qualities, one that I still kind of want to like even though it failed to win me over. I guess I'll start by saying what I liked because I do think this is a book worth checking out and others might enjoy it more than I did. The worldbuilding is wide-reaching and pretty good at projecting to what a near future world dominated by social media might look like. I also really like this book's optimism at how the future will turn out. The world has suffered from climate change but it's been largely salvaged and people are getting along rather well. It's nice to see new angles on classic stories like this. I imagine the uses of things like hashtags and @s everywhere may infuriate some people but I found myself thinking they worked and helped to organically make this world feel like a realistic outgrowth from our own.
So what lost me then? Well, it was the basics. The story failed to grip me and I wasn't all that interested in the characters. There were many characters (including a main character at one point) who I just completely forgot about every time they briefly left the narrative. Not every character can be memorable, of course, but when barely any characters are, it becomes a real problem in getting invested. It's also weird to think "world renowned hacker turns out to be an alien spy and a gaming lawyer and Interpol have to team up to uncover his plan" could be dull but sadly it all felt a bit distant. I can't fault the author for coming up with some high stakes and figuring out an interesting story angle to approach them from but I simply wasn't enjoying it.