“We’ve learned an interesting rule about fame. Those who seem desperate for it are the people that others least want to see.” — Jeanne Ryan, Nerve

This book was actually a late add to the list, as in, this month. I had seen the advertisements for the movie but didn’t know it was a book until recently. Since I have such a big break between books, I thought I could squeeze it in. It’s a good thriller read and the movie trailer looks pretty intense. The movie stars Emma Roberts and Dave Franco for the main roles and while reading the book, I think the casting is spot on.

SPOILER ALERT

The book is a nice thriller to read. Hackers are controlling people through their use of electronics and their desire to get more and more prizes is compelling. Also, I liked the fact that the game was so believable. If there was a game called NERVE created tomorrow by an anonymous group of hackers, I would basically grab this book and follow it as a guide to see exactly how people would start reacting: watching it, believing that everything is completely choreographed but continuing to watch anyways, watching as normal people become internet sensations, giving away tons of private information without even meaning to… There are so many believable things about the way this game works.

The one thing that I found quite unbelievable about the story was the timeline. Vee is grounded by her parents so she has to be home by curfew but goes to do one dare and is about 2 minutes late to curfew. She talks her way out of it and continues on like normal. Fine. But then the next day, she ends up doing dares back to back and ends up in the finals that just-so-happen to be the same night. I’m not buying it. But alas, I don’t tend to read books to see how real they are but instead to enjoy them – and I enjoyed this one.

SUMMARY

The book is a good read and you won’t want to put it down in the end. I could even use a second one to get more of the story. I recommend it, as long as you have a little bit of an imagination.

GRADE: B-

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