I’m sharing another instalment of my Mini Review Mondays, the most recent of which was a couple of weeks ago. In case you haven’t seen any of my previous posts, I do ‘mini’ reviews of books that I’ve previously read and am now ready to share my full thoughts about.
First up, I’d like to talk about A Game of Life or Death by Triona Campbell. Thank you to Hannah Love at Scholastic for sending me a copy in exchange for an honest review.
When sixteen-year-old Asha Kennedy discovers her older sister Maya’s dead body in their home, her world falls apart. Desperate for answers, and to stay out of the hands of the social services she grew up in, Asha turns to her hacker friends for help.
Her search leads her to Zu Tech, the hit games studio where Maya was a lead coder. As Asha begins to unravel the riddle of her death, she realises that the only way to uncover the truth is from the inside. Asha ghosts her old life and infiltrates a Zu Tech eSport tournament as they launch ‘SHACKLE’, the revolutionary Virtual Reality video game Maya was working on – and which hides a monstrous secret.
Publication Date: 2nd February
TW: death, murder, violence, gaslighting, manipulation, stalking, brainwashing, blood
My Thoughts:
A Game of Life or Death is a book that bursts onto the scene with a bang, weaving in smart social commentary about capitalism, technology and the dangers of living in virtual reality.
This book embraces and revels in the hyper reality evoked by video games, while also sensitively exploring grief. Campbell’s background in TV production comes across in that zippy, compact style of writing. Every scene keeps you hooked and pulling along through the story. I love how much the ethos of video gaming communities comes into the book; it is competitive but there is a found family element and the collaborative strength from working as a team.The games on show were so imaginative and vividly described, I feel like I could also lose myself playing them. This is such a strong debut from an author I will definitely be keeping an eye on.
Asha was a brilliant protagonist. She was smart, resourceful and determined. Watching her hacking skills and game play was fascinating and gave that extra element of realism to the story. Through it all, Campbell explores grief in a nuanced and sensitive way. It is delicate and raw at the same time, with emotions pouring out onto the page. Asha runs through the gauntlet of grief, from rage to sadness to a quiet, steady desire to discover the truth. This pulls her into the spiderwebs of this highly enjoyable thriller. It is so well plotted, with twists and turns that genuinely surprised me. The pacing is spot on, allowing moments for character progression and growth, but also ramping up right when it needs to.
A Game of Life and Death resets the YA thriller genre with a twisty, savvy and socially conscious debut story. I’m eager to see what Campbell has in store for the continuation of this story.
Next up, I’d like to talk about This Time It’s Real by Ann Liang. Thank you to Harriet Dunlea at Scholastic for sending me a copy in exchange for an honest review.
When 16-year-old Eliza Lin’s personal essay about meeting the love of her life goes viral, she gets everything she’s ever wanted: the approval of her new classmates, a rare internship opportunity at her favourite publisher, and a devoted online following who think her relationship is #couplegoals.
The only problem? Eliza made the whole essay up. In fact, Eliza’s never even been in a relationship before, let alone in love. All good writing is lying, right?
Desperate to cover up the truth, Eliza makes a deal with her classmate Caz: she’ll help him write his college applications if he poses as her boyfriend. But Caz plays the role of boyfriend a bit too well… But Eliza’s carefully crafted image begins to unravel as the relationship with Caz becomes more and more real. Can she still follow her dreams if it means breaking her own heart?
Publication Date: 2nd February
TW: racism, bullying, self-image discussions, injury detail
My Thoughts:
This Time It’s Real melted my cynical heart. It takes a lot for me to fall in love, but Liang achieved it here with a heart-achingly sweet story that has depth and layers to it.
If You Could See the Sun was an incredibly addictive, immersive and thrilling read. It was academic rivals to lovers excellence, mixed with a searing exploration of power and privilege. This Time It’s Real lived up to my sky-high expectations with a fake romance plot that is just exquisite, as well as exploring family, following your dreams and the pure joy that can be found in love.
Ann Liang just hits that sweet spot for me everytime. Her writing is the kind of seemingly fluffy romance that I adore, with brilliantly crafted characters and a lot to say about finding your own path in the world. It is filled with angst, longing and miscommunication that is endlessly frustrating, but the chemistry is there and it just hits so well. I also loved how this book celebrated the joy of romance and how romantic stories are important in their own right. It is a real love letter to the power of love.
Eliza was a character I really connected to. The love for her craft really shines through and there is that desire to succeed that I think we have all experienced. She is growing up and that is an unmooring experience for her, combined with sudden fame from her viral essay. Her experiences of loneliness and being adrift made for emotionally vulnerable moments. For me, the storyline with her and her best friend definitely hit the hardest.
This Time It’s Real provided me with the sunshine I needed in my life. It is a softly embracing, warm and joyous celebration of love in all its forms and pushing to forge your own path.
Finally, I’d like to delve into One for All by Lillie Lainoff. Thank you to Titan for sending me an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Tania de Batz is most herself with a sword in her hand. Everyone thinks her near-constant dizziness makes her weak, nothing but “a sick girl.” But Tania wants to be strong, independent, a fencer like her father-a former Musketeer and her greatest champion. Then Papa is brutally, mysteriously murdered. His dying wish? For Tania to attend finishing school.
But L’Academie des Mariees, Tania realizes, is no finishing school. It’s a secret training ground for new Musketeers: women who are socialites on the surface, but strap daggers under their skirts, seduce men into giving up dangerous secrets, and protect France from downfall. And they don’t shy away from a sword fight. With her newfound sisters at her side, Tania feels that she has a purpose, that she belongs. But then she meets Etienne, her target in uncovering a potential assassination plot. He’s kind, charming-and might have information about what really happened to her father.
Torn between duty and dizzying emotion, Tania will have to decide where her loyalties lie…or risk losing everything she’s ever wanted.
Publication Date: 7th February
TW: ableism, blood, murder, loss of a loved one, past mention of sexual assault, misogyny, sexism, chronic illness, death of a parent, grief, blood, injury, murder, sexual harassment
My Thoughts:
One for All is a kickass YA fantasy story that I know will stay with me.
This was absolutely fantastic. Simply just the chronic illness representation made my heart glow because it was so true to life and then to watch Tania succeed, but also experience flare ups (because illness are not magically curable) – this will mean so, so much to people. Seeing disability representation in wider media and literature is still so rare, so to have something so authentic, nuanced and realistic is just phenomenal. Of course, Tania is not solely defined by her disability and to do so would be a disservice to her. She is a ferocious fighter, loyal and deeply caring. Once you are past her walls, you know she would fight for you. I connected with her deeply and hope many other readers get to see themselves in her.
Beyond Tania, there is a fantastic supporting cast of diverse, capable and frankly badass women. I love the genderbent take on the Musketeers, giving it a genuinely empowering edge. There is a weaponisation of femininity and their supposedly ‘weaker’ traits. The ball scenes are incredibly tense, fast-paced and allow a display of dazzling social skills, as well as political intrigue and some good old-fashioned spying. I adored the thriller storyline of the book, trying to piece together the overarching conspiracy and second-guessing every character. There is also critiques of the monarchy and the privileged class system, woven in really well with the plot. It means Lainoff leaves room for discussion and debate. Even the morality gets murkier by the end of the book, allowing for nuance once more.
One for All takes the ethos of its original text and dials it up into something entirely new, fresh and deeply exciting. This is a stellar story, with representation that made my heart sing.
A Short Book Lover 
I was thrilled to see this time it’s real on my libby- especially still as a new release!!
Happy to hear you loved it 🥰
LikeLike