I gave "Ready Player One" 5-Star's for Ernest Clive's first book to bring virtual reality alive in the OASIS of his creation. He wrote a sequel. As with Andy Weir's sequel to "The Martian", an absolute must read follow-on after such an incredible first book. Unlike Weirs' second effort, "Artemis", which was a complete literary train wreck, Clive wrote a strong sequel called, "Ready Player Two" that is every bit as good as his first effort. In fairness to Weir "The Martian" is one of my all time favorite books. But to avoid being a troll, Weir and Clive communicate, or at least Clive gave Weir a nice mention in the credits. The difference is that Clive doesn't deviate from what he is good at doing...which is bringing video games to life on a written page. Since "Ready Player One" was published, the movie was also produced. As spectacular as the movie showed on the silver screen, there is still no screen as spectacular as what can be knit together in the human mind...great writers know this and Clive can still bring it. This is highly suggestive that may be a great writer. Although I will go to the movie for this sequel when it is produced, given Clive's writing, the book will still be better. Interestingly Clive also gives Spielberg acknowledgement for help advice in the credits suggesting, perhaps, that "Ready Player Two", the movie, will not be far behind. And they obviously don't have to screw with the name...
But now, on to the review, which I will not pack with spoilers. Let's just say, "Ready Player Two" is another epic quest across the OASIS delving far deeper into Shermer Illinois than one should go...even if you are a John Hughes fan. Far deeper into Prince's "The Afterworld'', even if you are a rabid Prince Fan, and so much deeper into Middle Earth, that even if you are not already in love with Tolkien, you might be forced to start reading that Parthenon of fantasy from the very beginning. I suspect most of Clive's topics will enjoy a resurgence of interest. Did Prince, for instance, really become a Jehovah's Witness? Damn, I missed that on the news... I've already checked the reference...it definitely seems true. Sorry to you Prince fans if I'm behind the times. Which means, Clive, generally speaking, must be staying on the factual side of his cultural references. I'll probably fact check a few more, simply because fact checking is in vogue these days here in early January, 2021. Don't get me wrong, I'm not trolling Clive at all for his deep references to pop culture. Every single fan of the 80's will love this book as much as the first one. What a trip down memory lane. And, even if you are not a fan of the multitude of references, beyond there being something for everyone, even the best fans can't possibly get every reference. My daughter, who is worried about reading either of these great books, since 80's culture does not belong to her, shouldn't be. The book is still extremely enjoyable even if you don't get the reference...Clive's style is such that you know it's a reference. And maybe, you will go watch a John Hughes movie, you happened to have missed. Look, I'm just saying that you can't go wrong with Molly Ringwald...no matter what...but I did not know that John Hughes actually played Brian's (Anthony Michael Hall's) dad in the Breakfast Club. Yes I fact checked it. Yes it's true.
So, perhaps, as a gamer, you grow tired of just another quest. Just another search, and collection of gems, or keys, or stones, or in this case, shards. Yes, collect the seven shards of the siren's soul and win a prize. Seems old hat. And certainly, without the cultural references, it might be. However, that's not only what Clive does. He mixes it deeply with his first. In fact, it might be worth going back to reread the first, in advance. He also, beyond gaming, he began exploring, for the first time, the true futuristic realm of true artificial intelligence. He even mentions the Singularity. Now, let's not get carried away. Clive is not the software engineer that Weir was back when he worked for a living. He is also, not the science fiction writer and advanced thinker, that is Philip K. Dick or Neal Stephenson or even Ted Chiang. But he begins to address some of the same advanced subjects that humanity must face, should one happen to believe, AI could become self-aware. Since I personally don't believe in that fiction, I am happy if he stays in his gamer, and pop cultural lane. And for the most part, he does. While bringing those subject's up...he doesn't really try to treat them with a deep philosophy. That's probably a good thing. He knows his blind spots unlike at least one of the aforementioned authors (Andy Weir).
He also cleverly avoids the deep technological understanding that would necessitate both the operation and the security of the massive server complexes necessary to create the OASIS. He sticks to his craft. He tells a story. This fundamentally is why I believe Clive's work is so good. Also, despite criticisms registered in these reviews, he deserves some defense. He mentions destroying the planet from environmental catastrophe based on the endless consumption of resources. So too, did he, in "Ready Player One". If you didn't like that in RP1 you shouldn't have read RP2. That is no surprise from a book about science fiction particularly when the plotline demands that everyone plug into the OASIS to escape reality. Second, he mentions, the gender fluid nature of computer generated Avatars inside the OASIS. This is a perfectly natural outcome of dealing with computer generated artificial life forms. You can also be a dragon, a wolf, or even a lamp...but he doesn't really mention those potentials. Also, despite the criticism, he doesn't beat the reader up about it. It's slightly more than a casual mention that will certainly have occurred to anyone with a brain who has ever logged into an online game and been asked to select an avatar.
I rarely give 5-Stars to books, as in my mind a 5-Star book is a must read and an immediate classic. RP1 is such a book. RP2 is just as good so I'm in a quandary. We must not forget that RP1 came first and thus I think you get Clive's craft by simply reading it. Thus RP2 isn't necessary reading if you've read the first. So I'll give RP2 a rating of 4.75 stars overall...which will look like a full 5 stars...but in reality, it's slightly less... So don't forget about RP1, and don't walk on by RP2... If you are a fan, read them both...
