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"Wonderfully geeky and deeply compassionate." —Marieke Nijkamp, #1 New York Times bestselling author In this charming novel by Eric Smith, two teen gamers find their virtual worlds—and blossoming romance—invaded by the real-world issues of trolling and doxing in the gaming community. We all need a place to escape the real world. For Divya and Aaron, it’s the world of online gaming. While Divya trades her rising-star status for sponsorships to help her struggling single mom pay rent, Aaron plays as a way to fuel his own dreams of becoming a game developer—and as a way to disappear when his mom starts talking about medical school. After a chance online meeting, the pair decides to team up. But they soon find themselves the targets of a group of internet trolls, who begin launching a real-world doxxing campaign, threatening Aaron’s dream and Divya’s actual life. They think they can drive her out of the game, but Divya’s whole world is on the line… And she isn’t going down without a fight. Looking for more from Eric Smith? Don't miss You Can Go Your Own Way!
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This was fun and I think it will probably appeal to a lot of teens who are more into video games and Twitch streaming etc than I am. It's a great exploration of how toxic “online” stuff spills out into the offline world, and the ways intersectional identities can affect your online experience. The romance is cute, and I also appreciated the side friendships and the main characters' relationships with their parents as the parents struggle to understand the world of online video gaming.
I'm marking it as a romance because they do develop a relationship, but it is more of a sub-sub-plot.
It really goes into the darker side of gaming and how some people are just horrible to gamers who aren't straight, white men and also how people who make games are taken advantage of. It is surprisingly heavy, but mixed in with some sweeter moments of Aaron and Divya exploring games and talking passionately about their hobbies. The game they play sounds a lot like No Man Sky, so I definitely feel like picking that back up.
The ending... I'm happy there was a win, but wish it was more satisfying even if it wouldn't have been as realistic.
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