better than Ready Player One

Two thoughts stood out as I finished this exceptional new story from Derek Taylor Kent and a Evolved Publishing:

1) That has to be the smartest mystery story I’ve ever experienced.

2) Am I really considering that Kubrick’s Game was BETTER than Ready Player One by Ernest Cline?

It’s been two days since I finished, and I’ve yet to discredit either of those lofty claims. First off, the story centers on some geeky film students, one who had a form of autism, and has become an unrecognized expert on all things Stanley Kubrick. His best friend is studying to be a director after his acting career stagnated and left him with a cheesy catch phrase as his legacy. Both characters are fun and very likable.

Their story begins with an invitation to solve a scavenger hunt engineered by Kubrick before his death fifteen years ago. I wasn’t sure what to think coming into this book with only a minimal grasp on Kubrick’s biography and films. I’m glad to say that Kent wrote a mystery that was both highly knowledgeable of Kubrick’s work, creating an intricate puzzle that is both brilliantly woven and accessible to readers who know or don’t know anything about Kubrick. Seriously, this puzzle is amazing in how it kept me guessing and how the pieces tied together in ways that made me question how in the world Lent had fit them together so perfectly. This perfect match of seemingly abstract and unrelated pieces to the puzzle enhances the chance that Kubrick really created this game.

I’m tempted to go on, but I won’t spoil anything. Needless to say, I’m excited to read more, and I can’t wait to not only rewatch Kubrick’s movies, but also check out Derek’s website where he has an additional real life The Game.

I listened to the audiobook, which has top notch narrators. Not too many audiobooks have the narrators faces on the cover, having become famous for their television or movies. Listening to this book, it felt like I was being treated by actors at the top of their craft. I had a few small critiques of the audio production. There was a bad habit of the main narrator fading out between spoken dialogue. I wish the producer would have leveled out the volume a little better in those places, as well as a brief part in chapter 54 when there is an obvious break in the text. I tried to sync my kindle version to see how much I missed, but couldn’t…I don’t think it was much.

In searching my kindle version I found that they have images of the movies in the text, which would have been awesome to see as I read. Whichever format you use, this needs to be on your reading list. Evolved Publishing shows once again how they put out some of the most solid and enjoyable stories you can find.