Wow this book was so hard to put down. Everyone might wish to be better at something, being smarter, being healthier, being invincible, etc... but is it really as awesome as it seems?

2.5 stars.

I wanted to love this more than I did.

Upgrade is a near-future sci-fi novel where in vivo genetic engineering is possible through something called Scythe, which is like CRISPR but better. That's about all the detail we get in terms of actual science. The protagonist, Logan, gets "upgraded" with genetic edits that make him faster, smarter, stronger, etc. He and several other characters wrestle with how to best use this technology to help humanity.

For a setup that seems designed to explore many difficult ethical concepts - my favorite kind of sci-fi! - this fell surprisingly short. Logan doesn't actually know what he wants to do with the technology for most of the book; he just wants to stop the bad guys from doing what they want to do. Even though their idea isn't entirely without merit, if you take away the high fatality rate.

Overall this felt like a superficial thriller with a thin veneer of sci-fi. I've heard such good things about Dark Matter and Recursion, both of which I own but have yet to read; after reading Upgrade, I think I'll take a little break before I try Crouch's other books.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

As always, Blake Crouch delivers another knockout novel. Upgrade does more than just turn your brain into a pretzel like Dark Matter and Recursion. This story challenges your mind into imagining what the world might look like if we continue on our current path.

A warning to readers though - if you are anxious about the situation regarding Covid, you might want to delay on this read. I wonder if this is the book Crouch would have written regardless of whether we were in the middle of a pandemic? But pandemics are not the only crucial themes Upgrade touches on. Throw in climate change issues and gene editing gone terribly wrong to complete the apocalyptic world into which Crouch immerses us.

I do have to say that it seemed that Crouch was trying a little hard to impress us with his relevant knowledge. I don’t remember feeling that way with his other books. The story is overloaded with lots of biological jargon. It was fascinating, but at times it seemed like just too much.

While the story packs plenty of punches as a thriller, its main focus is exploring what makes us human. The main character struggles with acknowledging the importance of intelligence, logic, and reason, but finally realizing the value of feelings and compassion as well.

Crouch also accurately conveys some of the faults of our humanity that have led us into some of the circumstances in which we find our world today. In the end, Upgrade is a cautionary tale for our future.

Thanks to #NetGalley for the ARC of #Upgrade

I was thrilled to get this advanced copy from Random House - Ballantine. As always Blake Crouch is keeping us enthralled with his ability to write science fiction in the most thrilling possible way. This is a perfect addition to his already amazing books!

We follow our main character Logan Ramsey in a dystopian future. He works for the GPA (Gene Protection Agency) and lives with guilt every day. The human race has survived, barely, what is called the "Great Starvation", and science has developed to a point where anyone can try to upgrade their DNA. The government of course has put a quick stop to it, whether it be the well meaning families trying to help their children, or large scale bio-weapon labs. Logan's job is to stop them. Even when it means stopping the "good" guys who are making real and meaningful advances for the world. He goes on a raid one night and everything goes wrong... more than anyone could have guessed.

This story had me on the edge of my seat. I love the way the science is part of the story, but doesn't feel like a barrier or something you feel you need to understand before reading.

I highly recommend you pick this up in July when it is published!

I received an ARC copy of #Upgrade from #NetGalley.

This was a bit different from what I normally read. I've never ready Black Crouch before. It's definitely a hard-core science/tech novel. It reads like its part of a series, but I'm not sure if it is or not. You are just kind of dropped into the middle of a story without much set up or world building. In fact, a lot of the world building comes in about midway though the book after the time jump, which didn't make much sense to me. Because of this, it took a while for me to really get hooked into the story. I was about to give up on it when the plot finally kicked in.

There is a lot going on in this book, and most of it deals with gene editing. Essentially, the main character & his sister (both adults) have their DNA altered by their mother (already dead at this point) to make them super human. Increased brain power, speed, strength, the works. This was done in an effort to make up for a global virus/calamity she caused years before. Her idea was to enhance the entire population so that they would realized that the human race as a whole was killing the planet & find a way to fix it.. Logan is against the idea, knowing that it would only make people worse. His sister, on the other hand, goes full-tilt crazy & decides to unleash the gene-editing virus.

It was very hard to follow at times with all the science stuff constantly tossed in, and the decision to wait until the middle of the book to really world build dragged the entire plot down. Overall, not a great read but I wouldn't mind trying another of his books.

Nobody can make near-future science fiction as believable and engrossing as Blake Crouch. The extrapolations of current technologies and techniques in gene editing are so subtle that it's easy to believe the frightening world portrayed in UPGRADE is not that far away. All along the way, Crouch poses thought-provoking ethical questions about everything from genetics to global warming, wrapped in a page-turning plot that keeps you on the edge of your seat. Great read.

I just reviewed Upgrade by Blake Crouch. #Upgrade #NetGalley

Thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for my ARC in exchange for my honest review. This book will be published July 12, 2022.

This is my third book by this author and I’m a dd ores fan. (I also gave Dark Matter 5 stars).

I didn’t think I was a fan of the sci-fi genre but if it’s a compelling story based in science (in this case gene engineering) plus a great fictional plot, then I guess I am! Crouch has a way of explaining science in understandable terms.

This book started off strong and never let up. What a ride! The plot seamlessly addresses a worldwide concern while also beautifully connecting it at the family level. It was a page turner and a love story and ultimately a story about DNA.

Already looking forward to his next book.

This is clever and it's an interesting concept. But something about it felt a little flat to me. It's a thriller of sorts, but I just wasn't that engaged in the story. I would probably still recommend it to fans of the author and the genre (speculative dystopia fantasies, not thrillers), but I definitely wouldn't recommend this as somewhere to start.

When Logan Ramsey - the son of a brilliant but disgraced geneticist, falls prey to a gene-altering virus, he must surpass his brilliant mother's research in order to change the course of the world. A fantastic look at what it means to be human and what it truly takes to change society and save the planet -- and it's not the genes they think it is!

Thank you Net Galley for providing an ARC.

Wow. Where to begin?! “Upgrade” is the latest offering from the brilliant mind of Blake Crouch. “Upgrade” hits the ground running, and is so action packed, I read most of it from the edge of my seat!

Set in the not too distant future, we begin in the aftermath of an experiment gone wrong. A gene-editing program called Scythe was implemented to save dying crops. It went horribly awry and inadvertently wreaked havoc on the earth’s eco-system, causing a mass loss of life and a resounding domino effect. As a result, genetic editing and engineering is being overseen by the government, and all unauthorized geneticists are no longer allowed to work in the scientific field. A branch of law enforcement , The Gene Protection Agency, is created to make sure that all illegal labs are secured and destroyed, and the scientists are taken into custody.

We follow former geneticist and current GPA agent Logan Ramsay on a raid in a reported underground lab where an explosion occurs puncturing his hazmat suit. He discovers he was infected with a sleeper cell genetic upgrade which causes him to develop super-human abilities a few weeks after the incident.

After being suspected of upgrading himself, Logan escapes the clutches of the GPA he once worked for and must race to destroy the upgrade before it falls into the wrong hands. He knows that the very thing that could save mankind could also very well be what destroys it.

Blake Crouch does an excellent job making this insanely incomprehensible scientific world feel accessible. There is just enough breakdown of scientific procedures, terms, and vernacular to help you keep pace without feeling like you’re reading a dictionary.

Thank you NetGalley, Random House Publishing Group- Ballantine, and Blake Crouch for the ARC

I received this book free of charge from NetGalley in exchange for my hones review.

This was quite the book. At time, a little scary.

Logan works for the GPA. This is a government agency that cracks down on people who are modifying DNA. Logan's mother was a top notch scientist who had modified the DNA that killed millions of people due to famine.

Logan raids a house and ends up in an explosion. He gets really sick but then seems to recover. A moth later, he is noticing that things seem different. His bone density is changing, he can absorb what he is reading better. Turns out his DNA was modified to make him "better". He spends the next year trying to track down who did this and why.

Some of the text was hard to read as it was very scientific. It was a fast paced read that kept me interested.

Did Logan save mankind or will it self destruct???

4/5 stars.

Logan Ramsay has had an upgrade and we get to follow him as he figures out what all the changes do for him and why he was chosen.
I really enjoyed this book and love Blake Crouch’s writing. Some of the sci-fi parts were a lot and I glazed over small sections. Even with that, this flowed so well. I wanted to know what was going to happen and also didn’t want it to end! This is action packed, descriptive, and a bit intense at times.
There is an ended BUT it could be opened.
My main question is… will there be a sequel?? I am excited to see that the film rights have already been acquired and think this would be an excellent movie if they stick to the book.

Upgrade’s pacing was absolutely incredible and such an improvement from Dark Matter and Recursion! Just like the previous two - I devoured Upgrade in a day and a half.

The context of pandemic or extinction was a little eery to read but that’s on me for jumping into my books blind. I think Crouch delivers consistently entertaining books made for wonderful brain worlds or tv.

I made it 35% of the way through and gave up. I found the writing and premise both lacking. I really wanted to like it, but it’s just not grabbing me.

I was really excited when Ballantine offered me a chance to read this in advance. I loved Dark Matter and had heard good things about his previous novel Recursion, so of course I jumped on it.

But I was strangely disappointed. The premise is nothing new- I knew that going in. Man gets an upgrade, turns super smart, has to save the world, etc. etc. etc. But I typically enjoy smart characters and trusted that something new would be done with it.

I think the twist was supposed to be the way the super intelligence drowns out emotions and makes him able to set aside his personal feelings completely to do what needs to be done.

…

Unfortunately I just don’t care that much about a guy with no emotions, and I, as the reader, had no emotional investment in him whatsoever. The big emotional climax we were working up to lost all emotional impact because we’ve spent so much time feeling absolutely nothing.

The other issue I had is that because Logan is so upgraded, he really doesn’t have any weaknesses, so many scenes lost their tension.

The writing is fine- readable, action sequences are clear. The science is incomprehensible to the girl who almost failed biology.

I think if you go in to this expecting a popcorn flick, with bad ass fight scenes and hoping to see some cool side effects of becoming super human you won’t be disappointed. Plenty of readers seem to already have enjoyed it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for providing the advanced e-galley.

This book is absolutely wonderful, but if you’re not a science heavy thinker/reader you may not love the way this book reads.

I’ve listened to all the other books from Blake Crouch on audio, and will listen to this one when it launches as well as I feel like this gives the absolute best experience.

Regardless of your level of understanding of big science-y words, I would still recommend this book!! So fantastic

I love Blake Crouch's books. They have a way of getting you to think. This is the first one I've read instead of listened to though. With the audiobook for Dark Matter I was completely drawn in and found myself listening even when I didn't have time to do so. I liked Recursion but it lacked something for me. Upgrade had more of the feeling of Dark Matter and I was completely engrossed in the story. Maybe has something to do with the point of view. I believe that both Dark Matter and Upgrade were a single point of view while I know that Recursion switched between points of view. For me Upgrade was just as good as Dark Matter and I know I'll be recommending it to many people.

Upgrade is set in our future and looks specifically at how humans are changing the world: climate change, gene editing, and much more. Logan Ramsay, our main character, feels a responsibility for the past gene editing, which his mother did, that lead to famine. Because of Logan's direct connection to the famine and deaths of so many people, he starts to work with a government agency that stops the genetic editing and cracks down on the scientists like his mother. In a raid on a possible lab he is infected with a virus that is designed to change his DNA, the very thing he is working to stop. The story follows Logan as he deals with his mother's legacy and what it means to be human as the changes to his DNA happen. I don't want to give to much of the story away, but I can tell you that it had me questioning the way I think about things.

Upgrade is a story that asks what makes a human a human. I know I'll be thinking about it for a while yet. For me a good book has me asking questions and pondering the story even after I've finished it. This is not only such a story but it has characters that are engaging and likeable. If you enjoy science fiction mixed with a touch of thriller you need to read this.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an advanced copy in return for my honest oppinon.

I have really enjoyed Blake Crouch's books, however this one couldn't compete with Dark Matter and Recursion for me. I thought it started really strong but the second half was much more generic that I would have loved to see. While it made me think, it was a little textbook. I could definitely see this becoming a movie and, at times, it read just like once. I thoroughly enjoyed the time spent reading Upgrade but I went in with really high expectations... Still a solid read though.

I LOVED the beginning of the book. The first chapter was so gripping. Ultimately I liked it less as it went on. The epilogue was good, but Recursion was better in my opinion.

Another fast paced winner from Blake Crouch. This deals with the ethical and moral dilemma about gene editing.
Where do you draw the line when it comes to modifying the underlying genes responsible for some of the worst diseases known to mankind. Why not modify every possible gene in the body and become a "superhuman"?

The protagonist of the this book is dealing with this exact question when his mother's experiment with gene editing went awry and caused a global havoc. Without divulging much more of the story, I can say that this book moves at a relentless pace.

I have read most of the past works from the author. Looking forward to the next one.