Publisher: Orbit Books

Author: Walter Jon Williams

Release Date: 1/1/2010

MSRP: $7.99

Pages: 496

Recommended Audience: Young Adult

What would you do if MMOs were real? No, I actually mean real. That is what Walter tries to bring to readers in This is Not a Game. They are called ARGs (alternate reality games), and a mega-corporation invests in writing the scripts, hiring actors, etc. to plant clues in real-world locations for people to solve, but what if the players were to solve real-world murder cases in these ARGs? That is what Dagmar Shaw does, and she tries to find the mystery behind her three college friends. The book is chock-full of mystery, suspense, and quite a bit of drama. Walter also tried to keep the book “today” using internet terms like Facebook, YouTube, Xbox, etc. to keep it hip and cool. Does this make the book a sell-out? No, it does, because Walter uses it sparingly and when it’s appropriate.

Thanks to the book being very “now,” a lot of younger readers might be interested, but the game has a huge political plot twisted in that has to do with attacks on foreign currency, and this may turn some of the dimmer-minded away. The characters are very strong and likeable in the book, but you always feel like you are not getting the whole picture. The book has great pacing and doesn’t really jump around characters since it evolves around one (Dagmar), and you see what goes around her and in her mind. This makes you really like Dagmar, but she does seem a bit generic and average sometimes.

The book just really shows how social networking can get out of hand and become a nightmare, and thanks to Walter’s choice of setting and sticking to the “now,” this can actually happen today. The end tended to be a bit rough and rushed, and I wished we could have known a bit more of what the characters were going to do after the end or if there was going to be a sequel (knowing Walter’s work probably not). I highly recommend this book to gamers, social networking fanatics, sci-fi buffs, and anyone anywhere into the “now.”.