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A review by peneloperea
Firebreak by Nicole Kornher-Stace
3.0
Thank you, NetGalley and Gallery Books for providing the arc of Firebreak by Nicole Kornher-Stace in exchange for my honest review.
In Firebreak, we follow Mal, Mallory, through a dystopian world where major corporations are battling for control and destroying everyone around them. When Mal was 8, her home was destroyed in an airstrike killing her entire family, along with many others. Mal was taken in by Stellaxis (one of the corporations) and send to a camp to live with other kids until she was old enough to be put into a converted hotel room living with 8 other young adults in 1 room.
The best part about this new world for Mal is the VR war game she plays with her BFF Jessa. It’s not the killing that Mal likes, it’s the chance to get close to the SpecOps operatives (superhero-like supersoldiers created and owned by Stellaxis).
I’m not a gamer, but I do love a gamer’s world and I thought the gaming aspect of Firebreak was very well done. We get to see two female gamers who know what they are doing and kick some butt doing it. Unfortunately, I had a tough time with the MC. Mal is a flawed character. She’s an introvert, which isn’t a bad thing and when done right, can be fun to read, but her snark and rudeness to those around her gnawed at me. She’s protective of strangers but rude to the people she’s closest to. Most importantly there is no character growth. She is the same person from start to finish, which doesn’t make sense given all she goes through.
The story itself gave off a YA vibe that I found interesting, however, there were a lot of swear words that felt out of place. Almost like a young kid swearing just for the sake of swearing and not because they need or want to swear.
Overall I would say it was a fun-ish read. I had moments when I really enjoyed the world and I have no problem suggesting this book for fans of dystopian and sci-fi gaming stories. It just didn’t blow my mind the way I had hoped it would.
In Firebreak, we follow Mal, Mallory, through a dystopian world where major corporations are battling for control and destroying everyone around them. When Mal was 8, her home was destroyed in an airstrike killing her entire family, along with many others. Mal was taken in by Stellaxis (one of the corporations) and send to a camp to live with other kids until she was old enough to be put into a converted hotel room living with 8 other young adults in 1 room.
The best part about this new world for Mal is the VR war game she plays with her BFF Jessa. It’s not the killing that Mal likes, it’s the chance to get close to the SpecOps operatives (superhero-like supersoldiers created and owned by Stellaxis).
I’m not a gamer, but I do love a gamer’s world and I thought the gaming aspect of Firebreak was very well done. We get to see two female gamers who know what they are doing and kick some butt doing it. Unfortunately, I had a tough time with the MC. Mal is a flawed character. She’s an introvert, which isn’t a bad thing and when done right, can be fun to read, but her snark and rudeness to those around her gnawed at me. She’s protective of strangers but rude to the people she’s closest to. Most importantly there is no character growth. She is the same person from start to finish, which doesn’t make sense given all she goes through.
The story itself gave off a YA vibe that I found interesting, however, there were a lot of swear words that felt out of place. Almost like a young kid swearing just for the sake of swearing and not because they need or want to swear.
Overall I would say it was a fun-ish read. I had moments when I really enjoyed the world and I have no problem suggesting this book for fans of dystopian and sci-fi gaming stories. It just didn’t blow my mind the way I had hoped it would.