Review: Gamescape: Overworld by Emma Trevayne + Playlist + Favorite Quotes & GIVEAWAY! (CLOSED)

Hello, my fellow booknerds! Today is my stop on the blog tour for Gamescape: Overworld by Emma Trevayne hosted by Fantastic Flying Book Club and I'm really happy to be a part of this tour! If the cover alone doesn't interigue you, hopefully my review of this little guy will.

As always, I'll start by saying that I was sent an e-copy of this book in exchange for an honest review as part of the blog tour. Now that we have that out of the way, let's move on, shall we?

Down below I have compiled a few of my favorite quotes from the book as well as the review, of course which you can read to get my thoughts on the book. Also, there is a playlist that I created which I hope you guys will enjoy listening to and last but not least, a GIVEAWAY! Let's get the show on the road!

__________________________________________________________

Add It To Goodreads!

Rating: PG-13

Genre: Science Fiction, Gaming, Fantasy

Score: ❤❤❤❤

Page Count: 496

Book #1 of The Nova Project series

Publisher: Greenwillow

Published: September 13th, 2016

The planet is dying. Centuries of abuse have damaged the earth beyond repair, and now all the authorities can do is polish the surface, make the landscape look pretty to hide the disease within. Two prominent yet mysterious businessmen couldn’t fix it, either, but they did something even better. Together, they invented Chimera, the most complex and immersive virtual reality video game the world has ever known. The Cubes in which Chimera is played quickly became a fixture of this landscape: part distraction, part hospital, and almost wholly responsible for holding up the failing world economy.

Miguel Anderson is also dying. He isn’t the only one who plays the game–everybody does–but Miguel has more reason than most: When players leave their Cubes for the day, the upgrades and enhancements they’ve earned for their virtual characters leave with them. New lungs to breathe poisoned air, skin that won’t burn under the sun are great and everything… but Miguel, born as broken as the earth, needs a new heart–and soon–if he wants any hope of surviving just a little longer.

Then the two Gamerunners announce a competition, with greater rewards and faster progression than ever before, and Miguel thinks his prayers have been answered. All he needs to do is get picked to lead a team, play the game he’s spent years getting good at, and ask for his prize when he wins. Simple, really.

At first, things seem to go according to plan. Mostly, anyway. Inside his Cube, with his new team–including his best friend–at his back, Miguel begins his quest. He plays recklessly, even dangerously, for someone whose most vital organ could give up at any moment, but his desperation makes him play better than ever. The eyes of the world are on him, watching through status updates and live feeds, betting on his chances. With greater rewards, though, come greater risks, and the Gamerunners seem to delight at surprising the competitors at every turn. As he ventures deeper into a world that blends the virtual and the real to an unsettling degree, Miguel begins to wonder just why the game was invented at all, and whether its stakes could be even higher than life and death.

Review:

PROS:

1. Okay, I'm honestly a sucker for a book based on video games or gaming of any sort. I think it's partly because all my friends are gamers and I've been sucked into that world for a few years now and every day I get a little more and more obsessed with games. I just adore them! So, when I first heard people talking about this book, I was interested by the cover. I mean, it's so darn cool. When I had the chance to potentially review the book, I jumped at it and crossed my fingers in hopes I would be able to do just that and long story short, I'm happy to show you guys my review for this book! Let's get started.

2. I really loved the world of Chimera and the 'real world' in which the characters lived. To be honest, they were both pretty scary worlds even though one had advanced technology and one was the advanced technology. The real world in the book was very much a fake one where even the plants such as trees and grass weren't even real, only holographs and illusions made by their advanced tech. People didn't know what simple things such as wheat looked like, didn't know what it meant to grow something from the ground, and a lot of people walked around with robotic hands, fingers, arms, you name it, all earned in the game of Chimera. The game itself was complex with it's constantly changing simulations bringing the characters into a virtual version of deserts, countryside, even the city. It was really neat and easy to picture in my head which kept me hooked.

3. The characters were all interesting as well. Miguel is a person who doesn't give up easily and he's very much a problem solver. Sometimes he lets himself go off course but he's always quick to get back on track. Miguel has a medical condition that keeps him from living to the fullest and he's slowly dying but he doesn't let that stop him from playing Chimera since he's natually just a driven person. I also really liked his friends both in the real world and in the game. A couple of them were slightly jerks but also had redeeming factors while playing the game. There was some nice chacacter development that I liked and it kept me dedicated to the characters while reading.


4. The book is fast-paced when it comes to the game-play and full of action as the characters battle their way through Chimera. It's a lot of fun to read and I think if you like gaming or just like books about gaming, this book is something I think you should consider picking up. I especially think that this would be the perfect gift for someone who's a fan of video games even if they're not big on reading. I also really liked that it had simliarities to The Maze Runner which I LOVED and reminded me a little of things such as Sword Art Online, Ender's Game, and The Giver. Overall, I just really enjoyed it as it had a lot to offer such as twists and turns, some mystery, and suspense.  

The reason I didn't give this book a five-star rating is because at times the book did get a bit slow and I found myself wishing it would pick up the pace even just a tad. I also thought the ending was a little too rushed and could've used another chapter or two to wrap up the book and set up the story for the sequel. Long story short, I quite liked this one. 

You Can Purchase The Book Here:

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

Book Depository

iTunes

Read An Excerpt!

__________________________________________________________

About The Author:

YA sci-fi/cyberpunk writer. Fan of words and music and chocolate. Represented by Brooks Sherman of FinePrint Literary Management. My first novel, CODA, will be out Spring 2013 from Running Press Kids, and its sequel, CHORUS, will be released the following year.

Author Links:

Website

Goodreads

Twitter

Facebook

__________________________________________________________

Blogger's Choice Playlist!

I'm so super darn excited to share another playlist with you guys since it's always so fun to compile a list of songs together that remind me of a book whether it's by the lyrics or if it's simply the tone or tempo of the song. Here I have put together a little playlist for Gamescape so I hope you all enjoy the songs I picked out! Enjoy!

HEIST by Lindsey Stirling

__________________________________________________________

RUNNING GUNS by Alyssa Reid

__________________________________________________________

C'EST LA VIE by Eppic

__________________________________________________________

PEOPLE LIKE US by Kelly Clarkson


__________________________________________________________

BRIGHTER by Against The Current

__________________________________________________________

Follow The Tour!

__________________________________________________________

a Rafflecopter giveaway