I don’t know what to say, most of the reviews say the book is a little too long and goes on and on, but I don’t think so. This lays out trauma, friendships and success perfectly. Life sucks even when it’s really good.

“Brilliant,” said the NPC as he finally lay down the book.

I wanted to love this book. However it went on and on. I wouldnt waste your credit on this.

I’m a 50 something year old woman with little to no gaming experience but loved this book. Very well written.

I don't care even a little for video games, this book is so good I miss the characters. It could be any business. It is the growth and development of the characters. No one character is more important than another you care about them all. Narration is perfect. Give it a try.

I found it a little long and a little slow in parts. I found myself liking the characters less as the book progressed

Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow was a major letdown; the Shakespeare quote and cover art served as bait, so I bit. The book drags through a bland and uninspired narrative, weighed down by 70s nostalgic references that feel more like pandering than meaningful additions to the story. The characters are flat, relying on tired clichés and predictable tropes that offer little in the way of depth or originality. Relationships and plot points feel contrived, with little emotional weight or believability to keep the reader engaged. The format flips too, which is a bit harder to grasp in Audio Book form, making it suddenly confusing until you realize it's a text, or the future.The story also suffers from a lack of realism, both in its character arcs and in the situations it presents. Too many details feel implausible or exaggerated, making it difficult to take the narrative seriously. Instead of immersing you in a world of creativity and emotional complexity, it drags you through a series of implausible events that leave you questioning the logic behind them.Despite its attempts at innovation through video game creation, the book fails to capture the excitement or potential of this world. The games and their mechanics come across as vague and unengaging, making it hard to believe they’re central to the characters' supposed genius. Instead, everything feels cobbled together using stolen ideas to make it feel appealing, lacking coherence and focus.Ultimately, the novel feels hollow, trying too hard to be profound without offering anything truly original or thought-provoking. It was a struggle to finish, and I can't say I'd recommend it to anyone looking for a compelling or satisfying read.

I don't know these people in my life, but the characters are so intriguing. Even when I disagree with people and their choices, it's fun recognizing that everyone is coming from some perspective. Most people believe they are right in most moments. Sometimes we're doing the best we can, and good enough has to be good enough. The narration was good. I found the story-telling and development to be unique.

Excellent book. My husband and I listened over the course of multiple long car rides and it was a fantastic way to pass the time. Overall, we loved it but felt there were some parts that dragged too long -- except the ending. We wish that was more fleshed out and that you got to spend more time with the characters in that time period. The writing was fantastic and so were the characters. It felt like you knew them intimately and were immersed in their world and games. Also, I loved how this book gave me more of an appreciation for the gaming world and how they can be a comfort and inspiration for so many people. Highly recommend this read!

The beginning of this book started off so well but then as the book progressed some of the characters (Sadie) went from being plucky to straight up unlikeable. Plus the narration is very flat.

I didn't love the book. I was expecting a tale of friendship but I found the characters very flat and unidimensional - though the story spans most of their lifetime there is little to no character development in any of the main characters. The story in itself is written as a lifetime saga but not in a very smart or interesting way and it feels very iterative and repetitive. After reading many raving reviews I was expecting so much more from this book. The style itself is very repetitive (lots of "he said/she said" in the dialogues for example - which is very obvious in audio version). Not great but not terrible either.

Didnt feel like this was a strong book. Loved Marx’s character the most, not sure why he would be attracted to someone who is so negative, resentful and a downer like Sadie . Sadie’s character was so annoying and all those years she wasn’t talking to Sam didn’t make any sense to me. I just pitied Sam the whole time . I learnt a few things about video games from this book , but other than that it t was nothing special .

OMG the narration drove me so crazy. It was SOOO robotic. While I thought the story itself was so beautiful and tragic. I don’t know if you wanted it to be audio telling of it to be monotone because of the computer angle, but it was absolute torture to get through her reading the words which had so much meaning, and she read them like a freaking robot. What were you thinking? It was really hard to plow through the only reason why I did was because I cared about the characters but this woman sucked.

Enjoyed this book. A few parts where it slowed a bit, but overall the character development was excellent and I felt compelled to keep going-even when my commute was over!

I love this book but I don’t know that I would have actually finished it if I had read it. I had to listen to it. And I couldn’t stop listening to it. The story is wonderful on so many levels and the audio is so well done!

Heartfelt and lovelt

Definitely not my normal read, but I really enjoyed the story and fell in love with the characters

I hated this book.

Was this book dense and pretentious? Yes. Were the long lists annoying? Very! Were there a couple of sections of the book that dragged. Definitely. Did I love this story despite these flaws? ABSOLUTELY. The writing was wonderful. The story flowed between present day and flashbacks in an unusual, but seamless pattern. The friendships were genuine, complete with the insecurities and jealousies that can creep into the strongest relationships. The emotions and struggles of the characters were gripping and I was caught up in their dramas from the start. My only regret is that I kept this book on my to-read list as long as I did.

I had avoided this book because I'm not into gaming, but the great reviews finally convinced me to read it. So glad I did, just a stellar novel. The way the story is told changes throughout, depending on viewpoint and where the characters are in the "game." Interesting and incredibly moving. Narration was excellent as well.

I am not a gamer nor have any particular interest in gaming, but this book was well written with good character development and took some unexpected but interesting turns throughout. It was less about gaming and more about the ups and downs and complexities of a long-term friendship.

Creative, fascinating, heart wrenching, and beautiful. Listen to this book!

Excellent. Great story, unexpected turns despite foreshadowing. A lot of ideas and stories touched on within a single narrative that is very cohesive.

Boring

This was like slow torture to listen to. I would almost be ready to stop listening then something would finally happen to keep me going. I don’t get what all the hype is about.

Excellent!

Fantastic insights into relationships. You don’t have to be a gamer to appreciate.

Great book and the narrator was great too.

This novel completely exceeded my expectations. I loved the compelling story, the interesting and rich characters, and learning about gaming, which was totally new to me. Even if someone has no interest in or knowledge of gaming, I highly recommend this novel because of the beautiful writing and storytelling.

Wow. I Loved this book and the story. I even loved the imperfections of the story. I appreciate the parts that left me wanting more.. I loved when I became so emotionally invested I disliked the characters and even felt angry with them. I am happy to have listened to this great book.

Went on about details not important. None of it relevant to the main point of the book. Waste of time

I chose this book because so many people raved about it and gave it high ratings. I wasn't sure I could even finish it because the narrator sounds like a robot. I'm assuming this is done intentionally because of the subject matter in the book but it did not make it very enjoyable to listen to. The content was not really up my alley but the story grew on me as I stuck with it and overall I think it had a good storyline I don't think I could recommend this book primarily because the narrator is so robotic and difficult to listen to.

Terrific novel whether you're a gamer or not.

I wanted to like this book, but the 2 main characters are insufferable and unlikeable. Sadie is, for lack of a better word an asshole! I don’t understand how this is supposed to be a story of great friendship when the 2 barely speak to each other and Sadie always has some arbitrary reason for being mad at Sam. The book is way too long and has parts that don’t add anything to the story. It felt like the author was checking off a checklist of tropes and she wanted to make sure to include them all.

At some point the story started to feel a little circular and repetitive but despite that I still thoroughly enjoyed getting to know these characters. I was moved enough to genuinely cry at points and was interested in the story even though video games as a subject isn't generally something I chase after.

I loved all of the characters in this book and was sad when the story ended. Great narration, too, really enjoyed it!

Loved how the author portrayed a broad, diverse group of themes.

I love the book! ❤️

Almost immediately I felt a strong connection with Sam and Sadie, and near the end I sensed dread at the prospect of not having Sam, Sadie, & Marx in my ear, I love them! Even as a non-gamer I was drawn into the appeal of both playing and creating game worlds, and I unexpectedly found Shakespeare profound in a whole new light. I didn’t expect to find classics literature interwoven with references to Mario and Donkey Kong. Ultimately a fantastic telling of friendship across a lifetime.

Loved the style this story was written in. Enjoyed all the characters. Would recommend!

I thought it was very long. If you are not a gamer and no nothing about gaming it is very tedious. However, The story and characters are good.

What a great story over the span of years. Enjoyed the narration as well.

Maybe if I was a gamer I’d like it more but I’m giving it a 2.75. Totally lost me at about the 3/4 part. But it did have a sweet story. Sorry it’s not for me !!