Ready Player One… You’re in for one hell of a ride…

Published on by theorangutanlibrarian

ready player one

My avatar: Miss Orangutan Librarian

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Level one: at first I felt like I was off to a rocky start. Though it was well written, the opening sequence was info dump after info dump, setting up the game and a nihilistic backdrop that was hard to like. Everything so far felt depressingly similar to our own world, with very small changes that didn’t really appeal to my imagination. Also, not being a gamer, I struggled to get into the premise and a lot of the references were lost on me. But then I levelled up…

Level two: as the book progressed I began to have more fun with it. I slowly forgot my initial misgivings, becoming absorbed in the characters and their adventures. And before I knew it I was rooting for them to *win*…

Level three: by the last third I was totally loving it. With the heightened drama and the world building, the book had me in the palm of its hand. Initial reservation forgotten, I felt like I’d fallen into a whole different universe. And it was just as I escaped my own reality I thought isn’t this the point? Because I may not play video games, but I can more than understand getting lost in make believe and needing an alternative to shitty reality. I mean, even writing this on my blog, I totally get what it is to live online…

Game Over: And then came the finale to take this to a whole other level: the message to step outside the game. It could not have ended on a better note. As the kids say, “it gave me life” 😉

Rating: 3½/5 bananas

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So have you read this? What did you think about it? Let me know in the comments!

50 thoughts on “Ready Player One… You’re in for one hell of a ride…”

  1. I’m probably going to read this at some point, but it won’t be for a couple of years at the earliest. I’m hoping he builds up a decent back log of books by the time I get around to him and I can plow through it all in a couple of months…

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  2. I absolutely LOVED this book. One year at my library they did a little “Key Quest” throughout the catalog where you had to follow clues to find the keys and gates. At the end of the game they said it was based on “Ready Player One” so I just had to read it. I’ve read it a couple times now and in fact am about to start it again now that hype over the movie has started. 🙂

    Now, I actually liked his second book better as it seemed more “believable”, but I know many fans of RPO don’t like his second book at all.

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  8. I haven’t read this yet but now that I know it’s going to be made into a movie, I’m thinking of checking it out. I dabbled in gaming for a couple years back in my college days so maybe it will be a fun read! Clever buildup on your review here! 🙂

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  9. Lovely review! I haven’t read this book yet, but it’s on my radar now that I know there is an adaptation coming soon ahah. I’m sorry to hear that it was a bit of a rocky start, it’s a good thing it got better after this though 🙂 I’ll have to give it a try someday 🙂

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  11. Received this in a Loot Crate, & was excited to read after
    hearing about it. I thought the book started out strong
    with some great world building. There were a few WFT
    moments like the author casually slipping in “God doesn’t
    Exist” which left a sour taste in my mouth. I found the story
    got a bit rushed/sloppy around the final battle & so I couldn’t
    say it was as amazing as all the buzz & hype made it out to be.

    Your 3 1/2 rating is right on point. It will be interesting to
    see how Hollywood handles the book for the film adaptation.

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  13. After hearing about how much name- and reference-dropping the novel does, I was extremely wary of it. Maybe a big part of it is the fact that I grew up in the 90s, while the author obviously grew up in the 80s, and 80s nostalgia doesn’t speak to me at all, but I don’t think my opinion would be any different. The one-page excerpt I read hurt my head.

    But it sounds like the novel is about more than just references. I really liked the premise of it, so I hope it’s worth reading or watching when the film comes out.

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  16. I’ve not read this book yet and I fear that may be down to all the hype. It’s one of those books that have a really interesting concept but I’m not that big a gamer so I’m not sure if I’d enjoy it as much. Hmm I’ll give it a go and see how I fare with the hype.

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  19. I understand how it might have been challenging to get into this book based on our current world experience and the lack of gaming in your background, but I’m so glad you enjoyed this! Ready Player One is a firm 4 star for me. I completely get you with the info dumps. But the addiction to the culture and how true Cline stays to the mission really captured me. I am not really into pop culture but I appreciate all the 80s elements. I’m a bit anxious about this movie, though… I don’t have high hopes…

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  20. Maaaan, I feel like I’m missing out on something that I’d probably enjoy a lot. Based on the trailer and all its Easter eggs, I can only imagine the awesomeness that the book beholds and all the nostalgic throwbacks it might give me!! Excellent review!! I’ll make it my mission to read this before the movie comes out. 😛

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  21. So glad you liked this book! This is one of my all time favourite sci-fi novels 🙂 I can see how the start would have felt slow with all the explanations (though having been somewhat of a gamer when I was a teen, the premise and references still intrigued me), but later it does pick up the pace. I was also a little dubious at first about the generic/not-very-different dystopian world, but I warmed to it eventually, especially as the main focus was on the Oasis. One of my favourite parts was when it became clear the hunt in the Oasis could have serious consequences for Gunters in the real world (the “wow, this just got real” moment)… because it wasn’t “just a game” anymore. From that point onward I think the story had me utterly enthralled!

    Oh, one thing I also loved was that the enemy was basically corporate greed and privatisation – I’m not sure if you’ve found this too, but so many YA dystopias have an oppressive government as the enemy, and while this was certainly similar, I liked that it was ultimately about money and the big, faceless company for a change (also a gloomily plausible scenario).

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    1. I did enjoy it!! 😀 Yes, I did like the premise but it took a bit for me to properly get into it, but once it picked up the pace I really enjoyed it 🙂 yeah me too- once they left that world it was really cool and acted as a good background. Yes for sure!!!

      Yes you’re right- that was really clever!! Definitely agree!!

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  23. One day, I’m finally going to get around to reading this book.. with everyone telling me how awesome it is + how interesting the synopsis is, I’m genuinely surprised I haven’t read it yet!I never knew the book was structured into ‘levels’ though – that;s really cool, and to me, it;’s a more immersive experience.
    Great review ❤

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  24. I have been thinking about this one for a while. I read Ender’s Game a while ago and wasn’t a big fan, not sure how but I mixed up the titles but I meant to grab this one. So now I haven’t really been in the mood. Maybe I should get to it this winter.

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