Thanks to the author, the publisher and NetGalley for proving this free eARC to read. I really enjoyed this novel, deep thought, plenty of action and some Trump zingers (always welcome). Highly recommended.

I’m not sure how I feel about this one still. I liked it while I was reading it but I found it very forgettable. I did really like the characters and the story line.

| BOOK REVIEW |

Title: The God Game
Author: Danny Tobey
Format: 🎧 (Originally received ARC from @stmartinspress)
Rating: ✩ ✩ ✩

I saw a lot of people describe this novel as similar to Ready Player One, but I think it's better described as a mix of Black Mirror and Nerve.

While it started as a light, fun read, The God Game actually dove pretty deep into some philosophical discussions, which were awesome and I really enjoyed. The question of AI, human morality, reality, and more all appear in the novel and I loved diving into those ideas.

The pace was fast and I actually didn't feel that the novel felt too long. I did get a little confused about two thirds in and I still can't tell if it was me losing attention or if the writing became a little sloppy.

There were a ton of characters and sometimes I became confused or felt that they became a little flat.

It was a fun read, but had a couple of flaws that I think will make it less memorable for me in the long run.

Key Points:
• YA characters but with big, dark problems (CWs abound)
• Philosophical ideas
• Requires some suspension of disbelief

This was such a good book. I had it downloaded for a while and finally got around to reading it (sorry for the late review) and LOVED it.

It has kinda everything I needed with the sci-fi aspect.

Well written story about a group of kids in High School that are coders. They get drawn into a virtual reality game. Though this starts out pretty innocent, things change dramatically as time goes on. This starts a cycle of bullying, mind control, both physical and mental abuse and murder. And, thats not everything that happens.
There are so many characters to keep track of
I like short chapters and this book gave me that.
Wasn’t a read I overly enjoyed.
A friend gave me this book to read and she liked it a lot.

It's been quite a bit since I read this book and I'm late giving my review, but I do remember this book and that it was really engrossing and very well executed! I read it over a weekend and I couldn't put it down. I strongly suggested it to a lot of my friends and it was a hit by all. I would say to pick up this read and give it a try- it won't disappoint!

The God Game was an interesting departure from my regular historical fiction novels, but it had an edge of psychological thriller that initially drew me to its description. As I read The God Game, it was really like a spin on Pretty Little Liars for the computer science set.

Centered around main character Charlie and his small group of friends, the high schoolers were targeted through their mutual love of video games and enticed to enter a virtual reality game that quickly takes over their lives, forcing them to complete missions that get increasingly dangerous and cruel until they have no way to back out.

While I may not fully relate to or understand the allure of computer games, this was definitely an intense and engaging story that delved beyond the superficial high school issues teens deal with. The group was diverse and all had a variety of life experiences and issues they were confronting in their personal lives. Charlie, for instance, was still grieving the loss of his mom with a largely absent father, while another of his friends worried about her parents’ citizenship status.

The perspective switched back and forth as the different characters were given their missions in the game which made the story pretty fast-paced and engaging. I wouldn’t say it was entirely shocking since I kind of figured who was behind the game from the beginning, but that didn’t take away from the end (or the final twist). As a fan of Pretty Little Liars, I definitely think other PLL fans would enjoy The God Game.

This book reminded me a lot of Black Mirror. I was sucked into this story immediately and loved the unique concept! Great for Ready Player One fans!

I just want to start off by noting that Sci-Fi is not my genre at all, I rarely if ever read it. That being said, I have had this book to read for a while now, and what do you know, I actually quite liked it very much. For the most part, I find Sci-Fi to be over my head, but I didn't think that was the case here, it did get a little tech-y when Charlie and his friends were trying to figure out how to beat the game, but I was able to hang in there and stay with them. I am not a gamer but was around it a bit in a previous time of my life so I understood the concepts, although I don't think you need to be versed in it to understand this book.

Overall, I definitely don't think this one converted me to read the genre on a regular basis, BUT I did really enjoy it and how it tied reality to AI and showing how it could be used for bad.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the digital copy to review.

This was such a fun sci-fi thriller! I thought it was dark and suspenseful, a really interesting imagination of a virtual reality game gone wrong. The story centers around teenagers so expect some YA themes, however some pretty twisted sh*t happens so be prepared!

Overall, this was a very entertaining page-turner that is different than what I usually read, but I’m so glad I did!

Thank you to #netgalley and @StMartinsPress for an advanced e-galley in exchange for an honest review.

This book definitely gives off Ready Player One and Otherworld vibes, two of my favorite books. This plot was incredible, and the characters were unique. I would have liked to see some more depth to the characters, especially when it comes to backstory plots. Other than that, I had a great time reading this.

DNF - did not finish. I tried to pick up this YA Thriller novel. I could not connect with the writing style and would not be finishing it. Thank you publisher for the early copy!

What happens when a video game turns dangerous and (maybe) deadly? Some very talented teen coders are about to find out. This is the book I would recommend to my students looking for a fast paced story that will have you yelling "Don't do it!!" over and over. It's non-stop action! Ineffectual parents and teachers, overly capable nerdy teens, bullies, mean girls, and all the stereotypical characters found in YA novels. Yet, this one is almost believable....scarily so. The science is so real, you'll believe that a video game "god" can read your texts, follow your movements, control your car, and more. Prepare to suspend your disbelief and just enjoy the ride!! But don't write this one off as just a teen horror/sci-fi tale, there are many moments of real emotion here too -- family drama, romance, abuse and mental health issues. I could not put this book down.

The premise for this novel was interesting but the execution of it was very far-fetched. It felt like the book was supposed to be a more realistic science fiction but then quickly spiraled into a very non-realistic environment.

Interesting premise, 1st time reading this author.... paced well but a bit predictable.... looking forward to more, with high hopes! Thanks to Netgalley & St Martin’s Press for this ARC.

THE GOD GAME has suspense coupled with a smartly constructed narrative. It pushes the boundaries of what we are all willing to do for rewards and what are the consequences of playing the game. If you liked READY PLAYER ONE, then this will definitely be a book you will want to pick up.

Many thanks to Netgalley and St Martin's Press for this copy.

I originally received this book over a year ago and I knew I would love it - with one problem. I would, one hundred percent love it in the right mood. So I shuffled it away temporarily, and didn't realise how much time had passed (looking at you covid 19 and lockdown) until I picked it out again from my kindle library and wished, oh I wished so much I had picked it up much, much earlier. The God Game was fantastic. It was just the right amount of everything that I needed right now. The God Game is so near perfect that the emotions I was looking for recently that I was resenting the pages before it finished, I did not want it to be over. And trust me, this book is quite a bit longer than average.

Tobey's the God Game is a exercise in human emotion. Throughout an omniscient third person pov, the God Game brings out the stories of human relationships, good and bad, and human motivation. It asks the moral questions and tests the main characters moment by moment, page by page, sentence by sentence.

The basic premise of the God Game is that our main characters enter a virtual game with an AI that takes on the persona of God. In the first instance, it reminded me of Nerve, the movie with Emma Roberts (however, I've only seen the first half of that movie, I've yet to finish it, so I can't comment on any other similarities). When I say similar, both involve a virtual game, both games require the main character to do some extreme things to be rewarded. However, in the God Game, our main characters, members of their own little clique called the Vindicators, are faced with more than extreme challenges. A warning about the game: <i>you die in the game, you die in real life</i>. If "God" is happy, he'll reward the player a wish of his, regardless of what it is. If "God" is unhappy, he punishes and punishments are always life threatening.

What I loved about this book?
- The writing. It's written wonderfully. Emotionally. While also quite thrilling.
- The diversity of the cast.
- The complexity of human emotion that despite the large cast, Tobey draws out quite well.
- The concept of the book. I like it even more for the ending. While some other super intelligent AI game related novels take the path of an all knowing AI, Tobey goes the other way. The God Game is about humans, what they do, why they do it, and it's moral without being preachy. So, Tobey brings the human-ness to the super intelligent AI narrative.
- The relationships. Not only between lovers, but between parent and child, friends, and frenemies.
- The moments. There are several moments that I really loved, such as when Charlie eventually gives the bracelet to Mary. In this moment, you just think, ah, so even when Charlie decided against it, when he did give it to her - as per 'God's' plan - she made her choice to do what she wanted. Nothing bad happened because Charlie did what he had to do, because he wanted to, not because God wanted him to do it - even though he did. Other moments I liked, were the Peter moments (I'll explain in a bit), the Kenny moments (he really lived up to his character), and the Charlie moments.
- Charlie. He's the main character, and I loved him. More so, I loved how he was portrayed. He might have seemed like a do-gooder, but he was just as flawed as those who thought of him as such. He gave in at times, and stood firm at others. He wasn't all good, but he grew throughout the book.
- Peter. He was an interesting character. And I think the ending didn't do him the exact justice his character deserved.
- Loved the Trump references. You can, one hundred percent, tell when then book was written. There's no outright Trump bashing, but you can feel the tension in this book that's not just caused by an AI, but by the context in which it was set. A world in which the President is Donald Trump whose rhetoric has divided rather than united.

Things that could have been better (but honestly, having just finished this, my mind is blown and I still can't get over all the things I loved that the things that did bother me are so minute in comparison):
- It's a long book, so it feels a little windy. Any other time, there's a chance I might have felt it was too long, too draggy. But right now, I was glad it was long, glad that it kept going, because the pacing and tenseness that had me all wound up kept me reading, so much that I felt lost without it as soon as I read the last page.
- Alex Dinh. Look, I think he was written well, and his descent was really sad, and I felt for his plight a lot. But I do have one nitpicky thing about him. And it's that I wished that the one chapter that was told from his father's perspective should have delved in a little more as to the deep motivations of why he's so hard on Alex, rather than the usual he has worked all his life (I felt the flashes of an immigrant story here, one as a child of an immigrant, I can understand a lot) and hopes better for his child. This would have rounded out Alex's story, his pain, and the complexity of such narratives are.
- Vanhi. I thought as a character of diverse origin (Indian and lesbian), she was another great addition. But again, there was a little bit more to the backstory than Vanhi just wanting to get into Harvard or wanting to keep her parent happy.
- Which brings me to the minor coincidence that our most diverse characters seemed to be making more devastating choices than some of our cast. Don't get me wrong, they all made good and bad choices. But some just seemed more extreme than others. Well, even more extreme than the most extreme. Nonetheless, these few points, don't change how much I loved The God Game.

<b>Overall</b>
I enjoyed the writing and plot of this so much, I'm now going to read Tobey's other book. Fingers crossed it's just as good.

What a captivating read! Very twilight-zone-esque if I do say so myself! It’s an addictive read that is also jaw-dropping. It makes you squirm. It’s an inside look at what artificial intelligence can do to us. I feel like this is more real than we may think possible, which makes it the slightest bit terrifying. It’s a great read for something out of your comfort zone. As a christian, I think I would’ve enjoyed it way more if there weren’t so many God or bible references…I get the idea but it just left me a bit uncomfortable.

This was interesting and really well written.

A group of high school seniors start playing a computer game facilitated by an AI that thinks it's God. It has a lot of moral dilemmas and ethics scenarios. The author also adds some political views and opinions on social situations (like racism and homophobia) which plague our society.

At times it made me think of an advanced version of Pokémon Go, but exchange the cute cartoons for humans and mythical and biblical characters.

If you like sci-fi novels set around video games, I definitely recommend that you give this a try.

This is not my typical genre so I had concerns, but went in with an open mind. I'm so glad that I did! It was fast paced and full of action. I enjoyed the characters and the story line. So many nights I would try and put it down, but couldn't! Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.