It's hard to know where to start with this book, so I'll lead in with a little bit of my own context: I don't read a lot of the isekai genre, nor do I really play MMOs except in passing! You might think this would hinder my enjoyment of a story that on the surface is all about those things, but you'd absolutely be wrong.
While I can tell even with my passing familiarity with the tropes of the trade that this story enthusiastically deals in playing with the expectations seasoned readers of portal fantasy might have about where it's going and what it's doing, that's far from the only draw it has. This is a story about videogames, yeah, but it's a story about people first, and Talia and her co-authors have crafted some fantastic folks for us to get to know. The dialog and character dynamics flow beautifully, with characters flipping between clever banter when they're on top of things to wonderfully, realistically awkward nerdy stumbling when they're not, and they always feel consistent with themselves all the same. You really get the sense of camaraderie between the main cast from the word go - not only that they like each other, but WHY they like each other, and that's no mean feat to establish so quickly.
I could easily keep going about this for ages, but to keep things at least sort of brief: S++ would highly recommend to longtime fans of the genre and newcomers alike, especially if they're in search of fresh, funny, and heartfelt takes on trans journeys of self discovery or queer romance.
I read a lot of portal fantasy - both traditionally published and self-published - and this is one of my favorite books in the genre, beating out even Seanan McGuire or Simon Archer. I've read over 180 books this year, and this is one of my top three books of 2022 - beating out even some of my favorite authors as Laurell K. Hamilton & Ursula Vernon for that spot.
This is a book that knows coming out narratives, cyberpunk stories, portal fantasies, & polyamorous romances, and uses that knowledge to build fresh, nuanced dynamics; clever allusions; and multilayered, smart worldbuilding that nothing else I've seen this year can equal.
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It's hard to know where to start with this book, so I'll lead in with a little bit of my own context: I don't read a lot of the isekai genre, nor do I really play MMOs except in passing! You might think this would hinder my enjoyment of a story that on the surface is all about those things, but you'd absolutely be wrong.
While I can tell even with my passing familiarity with the tropes of the trade that this story enthusiastically deals in playing with the expectations seasoned readers of portal fantasy might have about where it's going and what it's doing, that's far from the only draw it has. This is a story about videogames, yeah, but it's a story about people first, and Talia and her co-authors have crafted some fantastic folks for us to get to know. The dialog and character dynamics flow beautifully, with characters flipping between clever banter when they're on top of things to wonderfully, realistically awkward nerdy stumbling when they're not, and they always feel consistent with themselves all the same. You really get the sense of camaraderie between the main cast from the word go - not only that they like each other, but WHY they like each other, and that's no mean feat to establish so quickly.
I could easily keep going about this for ages, but to keep things at least sort of brief: S++ would highly recommend to longtime fans of the genre and newcomers alike, especially if they're in search of fresh, funny, and heartfelt takes on trans journeys of self discovery or queer romance.
I read a lot of portal fantasy - both traditionally published and self-published - and this is one of my favorite books in the genre, beating out even Seanan McGuire or Simon Archer. I've read over 180 books this year, and this is one of my top three books of 2022 - beating out even some of my favorite authors as Laurell K. Hamilton & Ursula Vernon for that spot.
This is a book that knows coming out narratives, cyberpunk stories, portal fantasies, & polyamorous romances, and uses that knowledge to build fresh, nuanced dynamics; clever allusions; and multilayered, smart worldbuilding that nothing else I've seen this year can equal.
Read it now. You're in for a treat.