I Am Reviewed

This Is Not a Game has scored a couple good reviews!

Gary Wolfe at Locus sez that "This Is Not a Game begins at a full run, with superstar ARG developer Dagmar Shaw trapped in a hotel in Jakarta while the city is under a violent seige due to the collapsing economy . . .

" . . . the plot involves murder, corporate espionage, revenge, and [spoiler deleted] . . . Williams, from his own experience, knows how these games work and how the participants react, and the result is that This Is Not a Game succeeds only as a suspense novel, but as an incisive portrait of a subculture for whom reality is increasingly contingent, and increasingly mediated."

And meanwhile, Rob over at Bookspotcentral sez, "I guess you could say this novel is well timed. It depicts a number of financial disasters taking place in various places in the world. One of its messages I suppose, is that money is an idea. Or to put in in Magritte’s terms, look at a dollar and you see a symbol of wealth, not wealth itself. Somehow I doubt this will cheer up the bankers who managed to help their business to the brink of ruin . . .

"Throughout the novel Williams makes the reader very aware that what is happening on the surface may not be what is going on at all . . . Especially later in the book this creates slightly paranoid atmosphere that reflects the state of mind of the main character. As Dagmar discovers layer upon layer of seemingly unrelated events that are somehow related the game and reality become increasingly hard to separate . . .

"If you enjoy a good (techno) thriller this book is as good as it gets. Events frequently outpace the main character keep her, and to an extend the reader, off balance. Williams captures the paranoia, desperations and frustration of the main character very well, without making her helpless. Dagmar is used to being in control of the game, when she eventually cuts the strings that move her the result in interesting, unexpected even . . . "