Erebos

Gr 8 Up—Students at Nick's London high school are behaving strangely. They look exhausted, pass strange packages to one another, and maintain a general air of mystery. The 16-year-old is dying to know their secret, and soon enough he does: they are all immersed in a multiplayer virtual-reality video game called Erebos. Its rules are not unlike those of Fight Club: you do not talk about it outside of the game itself; if you do, you will be kicked out for good. So when Erebos begins to make strange demands on its players, asking them to carry out violent acts in real life, the addicted players generally do as they are told without speaking to one another about their actions. Even though Nick becomes as absorbed in the world of Erebos as other players in his school, he eventually realizes how dangerous it is and that he must help stop it. Descriptions of the in-game action are exciting, but the ending, when the mystery of the game's genesis is solved, is a letdown. This book has some wooden dialogue and forced-sounding slang, both of which are likely issues with the translation. Nonetheless, it's a solid purchase where gaming is popular—in other words, most libraries.—Hayden Bass, Seattle Public Library, WA