Today I read the first two chapters of 'Pwned' by Erika Mitchell.
It was good. In fact, it was very, very good.
The title is a dead giveaway, as anyone with a background in computer gaming would know: 'pwned', for all the luddites, is the computer gamer's favourite synonym for 'walloped', 'smashed', 'steamrollered', 'gazeboed', or any other one of those wonderful, weird and wacky words which all mean intense and unrelenting pain for the subject. According to the trailer, the 'pwnage' inherent in the title applies to the protagonist, Sean Boxer – a gamer, of course, and a writer, who spends his life playing Starcraft II and writing mystery books about faraway places. And the 'pwnage' being applied to Mr. Boxer is when he shows up in Korea for a Starcraft tournament – and gets nailed by the FBI. Yikes.
All this I found out from the video trailer, a fascinating link at the top of this page ( http://www.erika-mitchell.com/books/pwned/pwned-chapters-1-2/ ) which features a hilariously appropriate speech-bubble dialogue alongside the voiceover (in my opinion, the trailer's weakest point – the man's voice makes you want to go to sleep), and also a bevy of amusing comments from Ms. Mitchell's assorted friends, acquaintances and minions. The other weak point regarding the trailer would be that it reveals quite a lot of the story – for example, it gives away not only that Sean gets arrested by the FBI, but that his arch-enemy, fellow Starcraft nerd and (in the trailer's wonderfully apt words) 'douche' Norman, has somehow orchestrated this.
And now for the chapters.
There is nothing like being dropped right into the middle of the action, and we surely are here, for no sooner than we open the theoretical pages of 'Pwned' than Sean from the trailer is leading hordes of imaginary computer-screen people against other hordes of imaginary computer-screen people led by a real person somewhere on the other side of the world. The prose is elegant and pleasant to read, yet not opaque or literary (consider: 'Light caught motes of dust drifting through the air, further illuminating the mess that had snuck up on his living room.', or 'People emerged from the void that existed behind his closed eyelids, their conflicts and characteristics wrapped around each of them like cauls.', describing his writing. I don't even know what a caul is!!!) A lot of Sean's character is shown to us, describing a moderately successful geek, slightly bitter at the world, who hides from the real world in his computer games and his writing (and who also insists on spelling perfectly – just like me. I thought I was the only one who did that). We are also introduced to Tabby, awkward yet pretty, and in whom Sean professes no interest whatsoever (I don't believe it for a minute). Therefore, before the first two (very short) chapters have ended, we know two of the main characters and are impressed by the author's use of language. On the negative side, while Tabby gets plenty of description time, it's not obvious what Sean looks like – aside from assurances that he's blond and bespectacled, a category of people including millions.
Personally, I think this book is excellent; in fact, if I wasn't penniless, I'd have bought it myself already. I would certainly recommend it if you are one of Ms. Mitchell's friends, acquaintances and/or minions, although a further general recommendation would be impossible without the rest of the book.
That's it. Can't think of anything else to say.
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