Coldwire by Chloe Gong

The quick cut: In a cyberpunk future, two girls find their lives intwined as they find themselves stuck in a virtual cold war. 

A real review: 

  We all have an image in our heads of what the future looks like. Considering the rampant pace that technology is growing at, it's fairly likely that it will continue to take a main role in our lives. For Eirale and Lia, this is very true when they are given assignments that give them the impression that what they're doing may be linked. 

 After climate change has wrecked the planet and epidemics have risen, a new technology has emerged that allows the well off few to live in a virtual reality known as the upcountry. For those who can't afford the luxury, they instead live in the downcountry, a reality that is crumbling. Eirale graduated from the academy and became private forces in the downcountry while Lia is partnered with her nemesis for their final assignment in the upcountry military academy. Their lives are in opposing places, yet continue to overlap. What is their true connection? 

 The story here is at a minimum intriguing. While cyberpunk is something that has definitely been explored before, this one feels gritty in a different way. Rather than exploring the double edged sword of technology, this story instead delves into how sometimes we don't learn from the past. 

 Eirale is framed for killing a government official and basically forced to allow an anarchist to use her for his purposes. Her employer wants her to go along with it as long as possible to help them get what he is looking for. She's stuck in an uncomfortable situation and seeing her navigate that says a lot about her character. 

 Lia is an overachiever who is competing with her classmate for valedictorian. When they get paired together for their final assignment, it's a shock considering that doesn't typically happen. The task? Infiltrate the enemy and locate a traitor. Except the more that the assignment continues, it increasingly becomes clear that not all is as it seems. 

 It's an enjoyable read for the most part, but the middle gets slow going and at points it feels like the author has lost track. The last 20% of the book comes with so many reveals and shocking updates that it made getting through the middle worth it for me at least. I'm definitely excited for what the sequel brings. 

 A fun and mysterious science fiction story with a cyberpunk core. 

My rating: 4.25 out of 5