Technical and Excellent
5 out of 5 stars
When I start a Blake Crouch technothriller, I know I’m in for a ride. I know that when I read his or Eliot Peper’s books, I’m going to be taken to a world that not only could happen, but the way the story is written feels like is bound to happen. In Upgrade, Crouch was able to write a near-future that was so believable (even outside of the premise of the story) that it felt like, “oh no, this is where we’re headed.”
Logan, as a character, was the perfect mix of traits to make his story and emotions believable. He was tasked with the herculean task of preventing a bigger problem on top of learning about all the changes that were happening to him. There were stories within stories, and Crouch did a great job creating different waves of “completion,” for lack of a better term. Some subplots would come up and get solved, or some would lead to the bigger plot. And the bigger plot had twists and turns that kept me riveted to my seat.
I thought that Levya did a great job with the performance of this one. He was able to add a lot of emotion and feeling to the book without overperforming it. I felt like he became Logan, which helped the story be even more believable.
Overall, I thought Upgrade is in the top two books by Crouch I’ve read. Recursion is the other one, and both of them left me with this feeling of unease but also satisfaction as well. His writing style shines here, and I thought it was one of his most technical books.
Speaking of Peper and Crouch, I would LOVE to see the two of them come together and write a technothriller to knock my socks even further off. But, Peper included Upgrade in his 3 books email (these emails are excellent, I love getting them) along with an interview he did with Crouch.
Book Description:
The mind-blowing new thriller from the New York Times bestselling author of Dark Matter and Recursion
“You are the next step in human evolution.”
At first, Logan Ramsay isn’t sure if anything’s different. He just feels a little…sharper. Better able to concentrate. Better at multitasking. Reading a bit faster, memorizing better, needing less sleep.
But before long, he can’t deny it: Something’s happening to his brain. To his body. He’s starting to see the world, and those around him—even those he loves most—in whole new ways.
The truth is, Logan’s genome has been hacked. And there’s a reason he’s been targeted for this upgrade. A reason that goes back decades to the darkest part of his past, and a horrific family legacy.
Worse still, what’s happening to him is just the first step in a much larger plan, one that will inflict the same changes on humanity at large—at a terrifying cost.
Because of his new abilities, Logan’s the one person in the world capable of stopping what’s been set in motion. But to have a chance at winning this war, he’ll have to become something other than himself. Maybe even something other than human.
And even as he’s fighting, he can’t help wondering: What if humanity’s only hope for a future really does lie in engineering our own evolution?
Intimate in scale yet epic in scope, Upgrade is an intricately plotted, lightning-fast tale that charts one man’s thrilling transformation, even as it asks us to ponder the limits of our humanity—and our boundless potential.
Upgrade by Blake CrouchNarrator: Henry Levya
Length: 9 hrs and 47 mins
Published by Random House Audio on July 12th 2022
Genres: Technothriller
Format: Audiobook
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Also by this author: Recursion, Summer Frost
- No Rules of Engagement by Tracey Richardson (Narrated by Joana Garcia) - September 28, 2023
- Love at First Set by Jennifer Dugan (Narrated Narrated by Lori Prince) - September 26, 2023
- New and Notable Audiobook Releases for the Week of September 23rd on Brian’s Book Blog - September 23, 2023
