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When Matt's computer crashes
while he is playing the new game he just started, Keeper of the Kingdom,
he is mysteriously transported into the game. In the game, in the
bubbled Zaul Kingdom, Matt finds refuge with three workers; Dana,
Balder and Norak, who have just hidden away a boy who was ill named
Targon. They take Matt to Doran, a man who they feel can help them find
the CD-ROM of the game that Matt lost when he crossed over. After Targon
heals, he meets Varl, an elderly man who escaped the Protectors when he
was a kid, and hopes that he can help them all escape. Meanwhile,
Commander Z and his robotic Protectors are trying desperately to find
Matt. But Protector 21 has his own ideas how things should be handled
and is planning a revolt of his own with Matt caught in the middle.
This is a young adult book
set in the year 2540 and focuses on a boy named Matt who is from the
year 2010. The story revolves his attempt to finish the game he started
before he was sucked into the game. The only problem is that he now has
to finish as a real character from inside the game. This is the
first published novel by H. J. Ralles. This is a fast-paced story that
shows the struggle of an oppressed people, humans in this case, trying
to break free from the control of the computers. Ms. Ralles has created
and interesting and brutal world where humans are killed for breaking
the rules and live their lives as slaves to the super computer. The
characters she has brought to life are quite believable and are very
interesting to read about.
Like any book published by a
first-time author, I am always a little skeptical. But I was pleasantly
surprised by the way the story rolled along and with the character
development. The characters were easy to read about, as they were quite
likable, and the situations they are placed in are quite exciting. The
print is lager than normal, making it easier reading for the younger
reader. I did like that Ms. Ralles teaches the reader a little about
computers by giving some steps on how to open programs. I felt that it
would have been nice if there was a little more of this. One thing that
I had a little problem swallowing was the killing of the humans. Not a
lot are killed, and the Protectors turn them into a pile of ash when
they shoot them, but still...it is killing. Since
this is a book for young adults, I thought it would have been better not
to have that type of violence. Other than that one little problem, this
is an excellent story and I was very pleased with the storytelling. I
would recommend this book to young adults who are not only into
computers and computer games, but are also into science fiction.
I rated this book a 7½ out of
10. |
