Ernest Cline

"A 1980s cultural assessment of the fantastical future of online behavior continues the story that began in the internationally best-selling futuristic novel, Ready Player One, that inspired a blockbuster Steven Spielberg film"--

A Novel

Ready Player Two

Cortnie

I mean it’s definitely a sequel? Some sections were a little repetitive and got skimmed, but I enjoyed it overall!

Will Dawson

Eva Ströberg

It's a very rare occasion when the sequel is better than the original, and not in this occurrence either.

While Ready Player Two is very entertaining (I don't deny that), it felt like the chef was using the same recipe, albeit a little modified. Quests, 80's and 90's references, video games, all the nerdy things. Well perhaps it's what the readers had expected anyway, but I would have thought the author would have something different hidden in his sleeve. Obviously not.

Still a good read for a fan of Ready Player One.

Jordan

This book desperately needed more pages and intentionally full story lines. Things were in here that were obviously meant to placate the audience. It definitely would have done better with actual tragedy and hard consequences. 

Abigail Marie

The highly anticipated sequel to the beloved worldwide bestseller Ready Player One, the "ridiculously fun and large-hearted" (NPR) near-future adventure that inspired the blockbuster Steven Spielberg film. Praise for Ready Player One "Enchanting . . . Willy Wonka meets The Matrix."-USA Today "An addictive read . . . part intergalactic scavenger hunt, part romance, and all heart."-CNN "Delightful . . . the grown-up's Harry Potter."-HuffPost "As one adventure leads expertly to the next, time simply evaporates."-Entertainment Weekly "Gorgeously geeky, superbly entertaining, [and] spectacularly successful."-Daily Mail (UK) "A smart, funny thriller that both celebrates and critiques online culture."-San Francisco Chronicle "A geek fantasia, '80s culture memoir and commentary on the future of online behavior all at once."-Austin American-Statesman

The highly anticipated sequel to READY PLAYER ONE

Lindy

First of all, the funniest concept in this book is the idea that Sword Art Online will be considered a classic masterpiece in around 30 years. Second, I like to imagine the Prince estate trying to figure out how to sue as I type this.

Yes, Ready Player Two is extremely bad. I expected that. I decided to read it along with a podcast dedicated to sporking terrible SF. What surprised me, though, is that Ready Player Two has been overwhelmingly panned by popular consensus. For the at least first five years or after its publication, it felt impossible to find a Best Of SF list that didn't include RP1, it was nominated for/won multiple awards, and the cover is slathered in vomitrocious praise. And the fact of the matter is that RP2 is not any worse than RP1; one could make a legitimate argument that the sequel is actually better. For example, Cline seems to have come to the realization over the past decade that books should have themes in them; even if he can't execute it, there's an awareness. Anyway, popular culture has changed a lot since 2011, in some ways for the better, but we don't need to engage in revisionist history of the past decade. Especially so soon! Sorry you're all embarrassed for your past selves, but I can't lie and say I'm not enjoying the schadenfreude a tiny bit.

This is the sequel of Ready Player One, a book I loved reading a few years ago. I feel like it wasn’t a necessary sequel, but I still enjoyed it. 

I’m not going to lie, the quests got a little boring to read at times, I feel like this would work better as a movie (mainly because the time limits of a movie would cut some of them short). The pop culture references in this book were a bit of an overkill (way more than in Ready Player One) and the plot was somewhat predictable, but overall it was an enjoyable read for me. It felt nice to go back to the Ready Player One world for a few days, so I’m happy I read it. 

Roberta

This is the sequel of Ready Player One, a book I loved reading a few years ago. I feel like it wasn’t a necessary sequel, but I still enjoyed it. 

I’m not going to lie, the quests got a little boring to read at times, I feel like this would work better as a movie (mainly because the time limits of a movie would cut some of them short). The pop culture references in this book were a bit of an overkill (way more than in Ready Player One) and the plot was somewhat predictable, but overall it was an enjoyable read for me. It felt nice to go back to the Ready Player One world for a few days, so I’m happy I read it. 

I like that wade is a trash, but Ernest went to far on this one

Campos

Briar's Reviews

I was thrilled to receive this sequel as a gift, even if I had to wait a little bit to get the first book. And honestly? I loved this! Is it as good as the first? No, of course not. Is it still a fun ride that you'll enjoy if you like 80s references and vibes with the first novel? Yeah!

Don't take yourself too seriously with this book. I'm pretty sure this book was meant as another fun romp in the world of the Oasis and not to be some insane, skillfully written essay about where the future will go. Seeing all of our buddies again was so nice, and all of the 1980s references had me grinning (although, I haven't watched Lord of the Rings yet OR read the books, so those ones went over my head. Yeah, I know, I'm getting there). 

There are good and bad things about this book, so let me try to summarize:

THE GOOD:
1. Hopping back into the Oasis and seeing a development with wearable technology and AI was really intriguing. It was something I wondered about in the first book. 

2. Robert Downey Jr. as Duckie is what I didn't know I needed in my life. Thank you Ernest Cline for making me sourly disappointed that I didn't get to see that. 

3. Art3mis sticking to her guns and working to better the world. I can relate, I'd probably do the same.

4. Og and Kira. Kira and Og. That is all.


THE BAD:
1. There were definitely some chapters and sections of this book that could have been left out and no one would have complained (or maybe even noticed). Sometimes I felt that there was too much description and 80s references, but that's just my opinion. I like when we hop into the action right away. There's a section about 1/4th into the book that I felt didn't need to be there. It was just pages and pages of boring back story that I didn't need or want. But that's my personal opinion. 

2. Game over? With so many disappointed readers, I won't be surprised if we don't see a round three. But Ernest might find some more tech advancements. I doubt it though... This felt like a good close.

3. Was this made just so they can make a sequel movie? Please. Let me know. It's important.

4. Awkward sex comments. Really awkward. Like, super awkward. Read it and you'll understand. Insert every face palm gif you can imagine here. Ick.

THE UGLY:
1. Halliday. That is all. He's... creepy now?

2. Wade gets more annoying in this book. I didn't mind him in the first one, but this one... Ugh.

3. The Prince section felt like too many Princes, but maybe that's just me. I had to google all the references.

Overall, this book was really fun for me. It took a long time to read, but life kept getting in the way. I binged as much as I could, because who doesn't love a book that sinks them into a nostalgia trip?

Four out of five stars!

Jonathan Tysick

Interesting big picture plot idea (the ethical questions it raises are fascinating), with a surprise ending. However, the details were too slow and a bit boring all in all. Perhaps I'm just not geeky enough to appreciate all of the trivia.

Jacob Medure

haha so fireee. I was worried that the sequel wouldn't meet my expectations but it was awesome!

Colleen

3 Stars
 
*An entertaining but completely unnecessary sequel*


I’ll keep this short. Ready Player Two had the same problem as Armada: it tried too hard to be Ready Player One. Even more so, since this sequel reuses almost every element from its predecessor. 

This sequel really is a rinse and repeat of the first book: the hidden videogame quest built around 80’s geek trivia. Only the concept started to wear a little thin, because instead of the references feeling like amusing and nostalgic Easter Eggs, they felt more like reading a rambling fan page with as many references crammed in as possible. I was utterly bored during the Prince Planet section! My dedication to trivia does not extend to what outfits dead celebrities wore. I practically nodded off to sleep during that part.

There are also was the additional downside of the main character turning from lovable underdog to self-absorbed jerk which made it a lot harder to root for him.

Nevertheless, the story was still entertaining overall. It was quick and easy to read and still fulfilled the nostalgia craving even if it went overboard on the portion sizes. I don’t regret reading it, but I also would have been totally fine if I hadn’t read it.


  “My friend Kira always said that life is like an extremely difficult, horribly unbalanced videogame. When you’re born, you’re given a randomly generated character, with a randomly determined name, race, face, and social class. Your body is your avatar, and you spawn in a random geographic location, at a random moment in human history, surrounded by a random group of people, and then you have to try to survive for as long as you can.”

I really hope that the author can move in a different direction. He’s built his brand around 80’s nostalgia at this point, but I hope he can put a new spin on it at least. I like his ideas, but if his next book is yet another “80’s trivia is the only way to save the world!” plot, then we’ll have to go our separate ways.


RATING FACTORS:
Ease of Reading: 4 Stars
Writing Style: 3 Stars
Characters and Character Development: 3 Stars
Plot Structure and Development: 2 Stars
Level of Captivation: 3 Stars
Originality: 2 Stars

Audrey Lord

This book really had me in the first half. It was dried up and boring. The same bs from the first book. But then suddenly Cline did it again. He reached out and said "You think it's dried up?! Well fuck you," and completely blind sides you with an amazing story.

Fatima Kadri 

*3.5

To those who say the plot of this was basically a copy and paste of the first book, that’s a complete exaggeration. There were so many fresh, new, and intriguing elements in this book in terms of the quest, world building, and the characters. That being said, it wasn’t the best it could’ve been (the first 70-100pgs felt like one long info dump) and overall feels just slightly out of place alongside its predecessor. 
Does this sequel need to exist? No, but that should not stop anyone from enjoying it like I did.

Lord Aragorn

Loved the book! Enjoyed the characters and even if the story was somewhat predictable, Ernest Cline's imagination kept me hooked till the end.

A decent follow up to RPO, enjoyed it yet naturally didn’t have the impact the first did.

Fred Rivett

Rachel Kanyid

I didn't love this as much as the first book. I think it just felt a little like a copy of the first, but I did enjoy it. I enjoyed the way it ended a lot.

dascha

It pains me to my core to give this much anticipated sequel a one star review.. I was going to give it two, but the last two chapters of the book made me even more disappointed than I already was. There was so much more potential in the world Ernest Cline created and unfortunately I feel like he just wanted to create another Easter-Egg hunt so badly, everything else was pushed to the side. 

If I’d give advise, it would be to enjoy the first book and forget about this one. That way your experience will be much more fulfilling..

edit: it's august 10th and i'm watching the hunger games and thinking about how freaking amazing catching fire is and it's the perfect example of using your framework to your advantage when incorporating it into your sequel. catching fire has basically the same plot as the hunger games but uses the audiences knowledge to make something new and interesting. meanwhile, the world of ready player one had just so much more to offer, using the framework was in my opinion totally unnecessary

Ahmed Salem

I could not find the same magic I found in the first book.

Todd Luallen

I'm fairly generous with my ratings of FICTIONAL books. If you publish a book, you automatically get 1 star (of course I can't give less, so I guess this isn't all that generous). 4 stars if you entertain to some degree. 5 stars if I really enjoyed the book. That leaves just two ratings unaccounted for. 3 stars if you aren't entertaining. And 2 stars are reserved for books that NEEDLESSLY choose to add their political spin and commentary to an otherwise pleasant fictional tale. It seems like every aspect of our lives has some extremist form of political commentary duct-taped on to it like a bad repair job. The only redeeming aspect about reading this book for me was that I read it via Libby, and therefore didn't have to pay for it (aside from my tax dollars of course).

Moonie 

Many people have hated this book but I loved it...probably just because I see a bit of myself in each of the main characters

Whitney Pickle

I enjoyed it. It definitely wasn't as good as Ready Player One, but it was still good.

Patrick Hof

I usually don't write reviews, but I was prompted for my opinion about this book so why not make it public: Ready Player Two is almost as fun to read as the first one. Granted, the novelty factor of RP1 cannot be repeated, but Cline did a good job to give me back a similar feeling to the first book, something he didn't manage with Armada. The latter often felt too contrived and trying too much to appeal to readers of RP1. 

I started RP2 with the expectation to get a light, fun read and that is exactly what I got, nothing more, nothing less. Yes, it's cheesy and yes, the story doesn't always make sense and the moral and philosophical undertones are questionable if you look at them too closely. But that's not why I've read this book. I wanted to have fun with a story containing a lot of obscure pop culture references, and I wasn't disappointed.

Ready Player Two A Novel

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