<i>Netgalley provided me with a complimentary ARC of this book in exchange for a fair review.</i>

"It's Rabbits. I'm Carly Parker."

A few years ago, flush with the discovery of the Limetown podcast and desperately looking for anything else in that vein, I fell down the (cough) rabbit hole of Public Radio Alliance pods such as The Black Tapes, Tanis, and yes, Rabbits. I honestly couldn't tell you much about the Rabbits podcast, except it involved a missing girl, her best friend (who happened to be an investigative reporter for a radio podcast collective, how convenient), and a mysterious game that spanned continents and had something to do with recognizing patterns in the real world.

Near as I can tell the podcast never got extended past an initial season, but the creator went on to spin out the theme in a new novel. The game is the same, but it's a different "iteration," and with new characters. Carly Parker I suppose is a casualty.

"Rabbits" as a concept should appeal to people like me who were entranced by mystery box shows like LOST or things like lost legends and grand conspiracies. And it does, for the most part. It's a pretty engaging idea -- a mysterious, secret society like "game" that has perhaps gone back decades and has a nebulous point or way of "winning" and may, or may not involve alternate dimensions.

But that nebulosity is part of the problem with "Rabbits" -- there's just not enough <i>there</i> there. K, our protagonist, is a Rabbits devotee who somehow starts the novel giving lectures on various aspects of the game without actually playing it due to exposure to a mysterious circumstance when he was a child, and then through a series of events that seem to happen beyond his control ends up enmeshed in the new "iteration" which begins over the course of the novel.

What happens? I can't tell you. Not just because doing so would provide spoilers but also because I don't have the foggiest idea of what this book was really trying to accomplish. The book seemed less like a puzzle box of enmeshed storylines and conspiracies, and more like a sequence of set pieces: K. and his friend, who also is (and isn't) playing the game encounter something weird, see a pattern in something that reveals a secret, leading them to a new location and a new clue, or a new character that's involved in some way.

The point of Rabbits? Man, I couldn't begin to tell you. Stuff just HAPPENS to K., and then more stuff happens, and then... everything kind of ends. It was a frustrating read, because I wanted it to be so much more than what it actually was or ended up being.

"Rabbits" feels like it needed a few more years in the oven, along with a really, REALLY good editor to tie all the threads together into something a lot more coherent. There were genuine moments of tension and some scenes of actual horror that kept me turning the pages, but in the end I felt like I finished it more out of inertia than anything else.

Or maybe this would've been better as a serialized podcast (though considering how the Black Tapes ended I have my doubts about that too).

I wish I enjoyed this book a lot more than I actually did.

RABBITS, by Terry Miles, is about a game nicknamed "Rabbits" that is shrouded in mystery and there seems to be a never ending supply of clues everywhere, The trick is to find those clues through patterns and hints that are discreetly hidden all around us. As K, who is an obsessive follower of "Rabbits", starts to see clues at an accelerated pace, he becomes both excited and nervous that he is now a part of the next round of "Rabbits". Or is he?
This is a conspiracy thriller like no other. There are dozens of nostalgic references that will make the reader smile like early home gaming, retro arcades, movies that everyone knows, and books we have all read. The reader is forced to rethink their past and whether they remember this nostalgia like it really was or whether false connections and hidden imagery were present and their memories were imprinted incorrectly. There is a franticness to the style of writing that starts slowly, but as the stakes of the story increase, the pace and the need to get to the next clue becomes faster and faster. It starts to feel like there is a chance that if the book doesn't keep up with the story, the reader will be left behind and lost forever, if that makes any sense. I found myself have to backtrack and reread sections to be sure I wasn't missing anything because just like K in the story is trying to do, I wanted to make sure I wasn't missing any information relevant to the plot moving forward.
RABBITS is exciting and completely unpredictable and I loved it. I kind of want to read it again to find any clues I missed the first time. Maybe I didn't miss anything, but the nature of the story compels me to wonder what is hidden out there that I don't see.

Some books are the kind that you can put down and come back to. Those are fine, just like grazing at a buffet. But then there's "Rabbits", which is the sort of story that demands your attention throughout, the sort of book you have to keep reading even while sipping on a cup of tea (Darjeeling, by the way.)

Which came first, the podcast or the book? Either way, I reckon I'll be listening to the podcast next, but I'm glad I had a chance to read the story too. It's a unique and original tale, one which threads the fate of the world--or Fate of the World, if you will--into a peculiar "game" of coincidences and patterns noticed, studied, and hunted by the players. Win, and chances are you're set for life. Fail, and life as we know it might just end. It's occasionally confusing and philosophically fascinating--there are some positively unholy google searches you could do that will lead you into all sorts of (pardon me!) rabbit holes about 'serpentine rivers and thought' and I just WILL. NOT. GO. THERE. My life is already too complicated, thank you.

But never mind. "Rabbits" kept me hopping throughout, and while I cannot help but wonder the ultimate fate of Emily, it's still loads and loads of fun. It's a game you'll want to play over and over, because you're liable to discover more clues with each reading.

Recommended!

There is a podcast called Rabbits that preceded the writing of this book. I haven't listened to the podcast (yet) but I bet it would have made this story even more assessible to me. I've loved RPGs over the years although I'm not all that familiar with the early games. Still, I understood most of what was going on in this book although I'd probably fail at describing it very well. I won't even try to describe much of this story because it would give things away. And anyway, no one is supposed to talk about the game. Doing so could lead to injury, death, or disappearing forever!

The game is Rabbits (you didn't hear me say that). If I were in the book, I'd be among most of the world who never noticed Rabbits or the things that could lead some special folks to nosing around and getting addicted and enmeshed in the game. K has always been different. He's been aware of patterns and connections in all parts of life and his parents even fostered that talent in him. He also had eidetic memory, which allows him to see past what might seem like coincidences in the sights, sounds, and happenings around us. Because of his talents, he's hardwired to find his way into Rabbits and the more he's warned off the game the more he wants to know about it. 

K's has friends who are trying to figure out this game too but a few of them drop by the way side one way or another. At times his friend Chloe wants him to quit having anything to do with the game but then something will happen and she's as hot on the trail of it again...making it easy for K to not give up the chase. There is a lot of mention of old songs, old computers, old games, old movies, and old books but getting close to the game seems to cause an alternate reality and what K once knew as fact becomes fuzzy or just plain wrong.

This story will take you down a deep rabbit hole...ha ha...and there is a chance no one will make it out. All of existence may be at stake if K can't fix what is wrong with this game that might not even exist. Is K crazy or is reality changing right in front of him?

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine/Del Rey and NetGalley for this ARC.

Rabbits

[Blurb goes here]

This book stayed with me long enough to make me read it again. So I though it was only fair to rewrite my previous review accordingly.

I have no idea why is this books compared to Ready Player One. But for arguments sake, if you like comparisons, then think about this read as a very gritty and obscure version of the after mentioned book. I liked this book, I was drawn to it from the first few pages.

The Game, as K, the main protagonist calls it, takes place in the real world, where clues abound. You just have to look for discrepancies, coincidences and patterns. But you have to be careful, though. Rumor has it that some people have died playing 'Rabbits'.

K has an interesting backstory, one that even him doesn't fully know, one that will be revealed as the story progresses.

Still it seems that while K is noticing really weird things going on around him, after telling his best friend Chloe about it, she seems intent on ignoring whatever is happening to him, even though both are playing The Game and both are looking for the same clues she's dismissing.

The story becomes a bit repetitive at some point. K meets someone, that someone doesn't have time to explain everything and goes away. The enter someone new, same interaction.

While the setting is dark and dirty, which I truly liked, the characters surrounding our main protagonists come and go without leaving anything interesting behind. Still, people playing the game are dying left and right, K and Chloe might be next.

I'm giving the book 4 stars. Why, you ask? because it's very original, and I can willfully ignore the fact that it has some issues, because I had fun reading it.

Thank you for the advanced copy.

Woah.

First, I would like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for access to this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Woah. I went into this book completely blind. I have not listened to the podcast or consumed any other media related to this story. I’m kind of glad I didn’t. The best way I could tell someone about this story is that it’s like if “Ready Player One” was set in real life, and scarier, and slightly magical.

This book follows K, whose life obsession has been playing a game called Rabbits, where the goal and instructions for the game are covered in mystery, and you’re not supposed to talk about it. He follows patterns and connections in everyday life, trying to find out information about the game. When he is confronted by an unexpected visitor about the game, his entire life is flipped on its head. Between missing chunks of memory and weird things existing where they won’t before, K has to confront the concept of reality and what is and isn’t real in his world.

This book was honestly terrifying. I don’t know if it would be classified as fantasy, sci-fi, thriller, or horror. I guess all of the above! I really enjoyed this story and the characters. I found myself slack jawed multiple times, and confused more than once. My heart rate accelerated as the characters encountered more and more obstacles in the game, and experienced increasing amounts of life threatening events. The plot was captivating, the characters funny and relatable, and the pacing incredible.

This book is incredibly well thought out and crafted. I recommend this to anyone looking for a thrilling, thought provoking book.

TW: alcohol, anxiety, assault, Attempted murder, blood, bones, death, drugs, gore, gun, gun violence, hallucinations, murder, violence

I had no idea what to expect with this novel which is why I requested it! I'm not a gamer, nor do I listen to podcasts (just a dyed-in-the-wool reader after teaching high school English for 40 years). So it took me awhile to get used to not "getting" what was happening right away. Frustrating at first, I had to persevere but it's gotten such rave reviews, I knew I had to keep going. It really is a fascinating look at the future of gaming and the sometimes-risks associated with not understanding what you are in for! So although gaming is not for me, I appreciate the creativity and risks people take when they encounter something so unfamiliar they are willing to risk a lot for the rewards!

Rabbits is a compelling and fascinating story, regardless of if you're familiar with the PNW series of podcasts or not. For those, like me, coming from the Rabbit (and Tanis, and Black Tapes) podcasts, there's a satisfying closure here to a story we thought forgotten.

Want to participate in a game tournament that is so secret that even the past winners won’t release their names? The Rabbit is for you. The book ‘hops’ around keeping you guessing as to what’s real and what’s not. It is definitely an adventure!

This book swings wildly from way to much detail to not nearly enough. But it was fun, something I haven't found in a book in quite awhile.
The main character/narrator reminds me of main character/narrator from The Contortionist's Handbook. Don't know if that's good or bad, but I loved the pacing and jumping around topics from both books.
From the beginning, the narrator is weirdly unreliable, in the way that drug users are... they may or may not believe what they're telling you, and that belief may change over time.
The characters are fun, though weird. They do things for reasons only they understand, usually, which matches they "anything can happen" feeling of the text.
The text, speaking of, makes me think of magic.
Fantasy author Brandon Sanderson is famous for his Three Laws of Magic:
An author's ability to solve conflict with magic is DIRECTLY PROPORTIONAL to how well the reader understands said magic.
Limitations > Power
Expand on what you have already, before you add something new.
This is a book about things so far removed from the reader's normal life, they might as well be magic. These rules are meant for an author or creator, but Rule 1 feels the weakest in Rabbits.
I had no idea what was happening most of the story, in a good way. This lack of understanding set the tone, matched much of what the characters were feeling, But that means the ending left me feeling unfulfilled... since I think this was a reflection of my understanding of the story, another reader may love the ending.

**I received an advance copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

An intriguing premise that doesn't come all the way together. I was not familiar with the podcast that this book was based around (or in fact that there was a podcast) but it does stand on its own without prior knowledge. I think it will generally be compared to Ready Player One, although it is not as heavy-handed or as annoying. As the plot opened up a bit more, I just wished that there had been more to the end of the story, as I felt a bit disappointed in the ending.

Rabbits sounded interesting – technothriller with an underground alternate reality game – who wouldn’t want to check it out? Reality (mine, not Rabbits‘) is, this is a confusing read with a convoluted plot and blurred overlaps between reality and alternate-reality.

Our hero K (that’s it, just “K”) doesn’t seem to have anything to do with his time but chill, play games, and hang out at an arcade (where he sometimes imparts “wisdom”). He’s an orphan with an ability to see patterns, and there are a lot of patterns in Rabbits. Before we know it, K and his friend Chloe get sucked down a rabbit hole (pun intended) of conspiracies and rumors while trying to figure out a game that’s supposed to be getting dangerous for its players.

But who are those players, exactly? And what are they doing? The “game” seems like a lot of noticing patterns, looking for clues, then deciphering those clues to find the location of the next clue. Doesn’t sound so dangerous, right? But then shadows show up & weird things happen. Was it real? Was it not? (Some reviews mention a podcast that Rabbits is based on – maybe this wouldn’t be quite as confusing to listeners?)

I feel like my logical brain resented having to decipher everything to figure out what was “real” or not – and failing. But I kept plugging away at it anyway (I can be stubborn like that). And by the time I got to the ending, I was thoroughly confused because it was so anticlimactic I had to check to make sure it did end.

I think Rabbits has a targeted audience that doesn’t include me. Someone more hip with gaming or coding or AR/VR may enjoy it more than I did.

drey’s rating: Ok

Rabbits is a book that makes you think.

Known only as K, a young gamer has the ability to recognize patterns in seemingly random coincidences, which leads him to become immersed in a dangerous underground game called Rabbits. The game’s level of risk has escalated, and many players are getting killed. K secretly explores the game with the help of his friend Chloe, and after the death of some close friends, K cannot extricate himself from the game and his reality begins to collapse. Even though the plot and clues are not always simple or even elucidating, navigating the tangle of systematic coincidences and multiverse theory along with K is a fun ride.

The book raises more questions than it answers, and I’m not sure I followed the ending, but if you enjoy books with complicated quests and altered reality timelines, check this out. At the risk of sounding cheesy, the door is open.

Many thanks to Netgalley for the advance copy.

I couldn’t resist this description of an alternate reality game – and it turned out to be a mindbender of a book.

I wasn’t familiar with the Rabbits podcast created by this author, but after checking it out it seems to be pretty popular. The website states it’s a documentary/docudrama, and the show’s producers won’t admit it isn’t real. That little niggle at the back of my brain wondering if this could really happen made this story even more appealing for me. The game of Rabbits is kind of like Fight Club – you don’t talk about it, it doesn’t exist, and you tell no one you’re playing. Rumors about its purpose have surrounded the game for years, and the identities of the winners are unknown. It involves finding patterns, inconsistencies, and following clues in our everyday world, and the players seem to be pretty tech savvy and geniuses at detecting subtle irregularities.

After K is contacted by Scarpio (a former winner – maybe?) who tells him something has gone wrong with the game, things take a dark turn. Players go missing and/or turn up dead. K has had some issues in his past and at times is unsure of what’s real and what’s not – along with the reader. He loses time, encounters shadow figures, and remembers movies that don’t exist. My jaw dropped more than once at unanticipated twists, and I formed all sorts of theories.

At times, you’ll feel like you’re literally going down a rabbit hole with the characters, then look up at the clock and see you’ve also lost time because you need to know what’s happening. With quantum physics, alternate realities, false memory syndrome, and more, Rabbits is a trippy and often baffling novel I’d recommend to avid sci-fi fans. Now I’ll be looking for patterns and inconsistencies everywhere.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This book was a pure adrenaline rush. Not many authors can evoke such feelings of nostalgia and excitement. I look forward to reading his next novel!

Having never heard any of the podcasts I went in blind to read this book. Up front I will say it was one heck of a ride throughout most of the book. At times I couldn't decide if I was readng a story from the Martix( without all of the super hero action), or the X-files. The main character K kept experiencing different realities that it was hard to keep track. The last chapter did manage to tie up all the loose ends, but it seemed really rushed to me. Overall it was a fun read and one that I would read again to see what I might have missed the first time around.
Thank you to NetGalley for providing me a copy to read and enjoy.

Wow! I am impressed with this book honestly! This will go as a 5 star top book for 2021 for me!

In the book the world is in danger. K has a unique ability to spot patterns and is a bit ocd about it to be honest. He knows about a game called Rabbits where there is rumored to be a huge prize for winning but nobody but previous winners know for sure. K needs to fix the game to save the world and he has a few friends helping him along the way.

Thank you Netgalley for letting me read this early!
Now, I don't think I could really describe this book much less review it accurately so I'll just tell you how it made me feel. Crazy. Most of this book just made me feel completely crazy. Like I was going down rabbit holes I couldn't emotionally cope with. There is no way I could play this game in real life. With that it also made me look at things differently and notice parts of everyday life I wasn't paying attention to before. It was an insane ride that I ultimately enjoyed. Just make sure you have some security with your place in the universe before you start and ya know, don't forget your towel ;)

This book was an amazing thrill ride.
Kept you guessing.
I am not familiar with any of the podcasts so I have no outside influence on the material.
The last chapter seemed to tie everything up quickly, but it felt like there should still have been more to the story.
I'm hoping for a sequel that will start where the last chapter did and reveal additional details.

Rabbits is a secret, underground game. It is dangerous and people have died.

There is no easy way to describe this book. Is anything real? It was hard for me to be invested in any character since I wasn’t sure who or what was real.

It just didn’t make a lot of sense to me. That is not to say it was a bad read, it just isn’t a book I could relate to.

I can see gamers and coders liking this one.

NetGalley Review

June 8, 2021, by Macmillan