I was skeptical about the ratings of this audio book, and the description of it that I read, but I was very pleasantly surprised! I really enjoyed the story, which walked close to the edge of stereotypical in terms of the build up, but never (IMO) crossed over. I found myself compulsively listening, all the way to the end, and found myself both satisfied by the ending, and wanting more. There are a lot of tropes about high school boys, bullies, MMORPGS, etc, and the book manages to use those and build something compelling out of the pieces, without succumbing to being trite.
The technology described, and the magic system of the game, is very cool, and I loved the twists and turns of Jason’s growth, as a player and as a person.
I found the narrator a bit stiff at first, but I warmed to him, and ended up really enjoying his performance. Overall, a great book, and I can’t wait to hear more!