Ready Player One

Hey guys! It's been a while since I've posted here. I was busy with school and was in a reading slump for a while. I tried to read some here and there, but none of them kept my attention for long. But Ready Player One by Ernest Cline I picked up at the library and I absolutely loved it. It wasn't like anything I've read before, and I found it very interesting and the world just sucked me in.

It's the year 2044, and the real world is an ugly place.

Like most of humanity, Wade Watts escapes his grim surroundings by spending his waking hours jacked into the OASIS, a sprawling virtual utopia that lets you be anything you want to be, a place where you can live and play and fall in love on any of ten thousand planets. 

And like most of humanity, Wade dreams of being the one to discover the ultimate lottery ticket that lies concealed within this virtual world. For somewhere inside this giant networked playground, OASIS creator James Halliday has hidden a series of fiendish puzzles that will yield massive fortune--and remarkable power--to whoever can unlock them. 

For years, millions have struggled fruitlessly to attain this prize, knowing only that Halliday's riddles are based in the pop culture he loved--that of the late twentieth century. And for years, millions have found in this quest another means of escape, retreating into happy, obsessive study of Halliday's icons. Like many of his contemporaries, Wade is as comfortable debating the finer points of John Hughes's oeuvre, playing Pac-Man, or reciting Devo lyrics as he is scrounging power to run his OASIS rig. 

And then Wade stumbles upon the first puzzle. 

Suddenly the whole world is watching, and thousands of competitors join the hunt--among them certain powerful players who are willing to commit very real murder to beat Wade to this prize. Now the only way for Wade to survive and preserve everything he knows is to win. But to do so, he may have to leave behind his oh-so-perfect virtual existence and face up to life--and love--in the real world he's always been so desperate to escape. 

A world at stake. 
A quest for the ultimate prize. 
Are you ready?

Tell me, does this synopsis not immediately intrigue you right on the spot? I've never read anything set in a virtual reality, so reading about this fictional future and the OASIS was soo interesting, and intrigued me from beginning to the end. Next, was the idea of the contest. Halliday, upon his death, set up a bunch of hidden puzzles inside this massive virtual world, with only a bunch of riddles to lead the way. And in order to solve these puzzles, a knowledge of '80s trivia was needed. Although I have pretty much no knowledge of the 1980s, I found the references to be really interesting.

At times there were large passages of just information, which might be skipped by some readers. But I never found the book to be boring at any point. It was just a chain of events and it kept me on the edge of my seat throughout it all. The characters were so distinct and unique. A lack of character development can make me avoid many books, but this book just hit it spot on. The plot got more and more intense, and the ending was just full of excitement and I just can't express how much I loved this book.

I would give it a 100 out of 10. So now that you've heard my thoughts go and enjoy it for yourself! If you're not immediately immersed into the book after the first few chapters, than I admit that it's not for everyone. But I would definitely give it a try, and comment below on what you thought.

Off topic: I'll try to post more often, though no promises. It'll probably be once in a while from now on. Thanks for reading!