Ørma

So good. Loved this book so much. Jac Forsyth is such an amazing author. Oh my God, the storyline, the characters were just so well put together. So so good.

Mac Eden’s role as a side character in an ancient game is to make sure the non-player characters don’t find out about the game. Subsequently, when an extraordinary superspecies known only as the Mandolin emerges in Afghanistan, the non-player characters do what they do declare war and make a reality TV show.

Eight months of televised war later, and a reality show is the only truth anyone cares about. Frustrated by civilian life, university student Hollow Quinn volunteers to join the British army. Her only friend Ezra Blake justifies the decision not to enlist, taking solace in a gothic anomaly full of magical innovation, mystical intrigue and self-aware furniture. But when Hollow grabs a starring role in the reality show, Ezra makes an impulsive decision. A decision that forces Mac Eden to override her standing orders and instigate a gameplay that will overshadow even the horrors of a paraspecies war in Afghanistan.

And as the game levels up, the non-player characters unlock the terrible secrets of WØLF. A reality show created for war, and designed for public entertainment.

This was a fun and entertaining book, I dont really like the lit rpg style though. For fans of rpg games and the pregressive fantasy genre, this should be right up your alley. Very well written

This was a really good book with a very interesting concept and some shocking revelations.

Based around two key characters, both caught up in their own versions of the war effort, it was fascinating to see how two mundane teenagers deal with their lives, one joining the British Army and the other volunteering in a kind of gap year at a magical museum house type thing.

The characters are real and raw, even the side characters. Each one is nuanced and different. The little asides in the filming of the reality TV show are great insights into what each is thinking. This really would make a great show.

My only complaint is that, at times, the dialogue tried to be a little too clever, but overall it was quite witty.

I've already looked to see about the next book because I'm left wanting to know what happens next. 4.5 stars.