Entertaining and Enjoyable Read for People of all Ages, March 31, 2017
Not typically one for a YA story, (well not anymore), I am so glad I decided to take a look at this one. Stefani Deoul really put all her knowledge and experience as a story-teller on both the page and the small screen to work to deliver a dynamic and immersive as well as original tale. As she describes, On a LARP introduces us to a young teen coder (That’s compu-speak for all of us middle aged folks). Sid Rubin is a typical teen smartass, well typical if your teen is a super-smart high school kid with a strong conscience and a knack for solving problems. (Happily mine were).
The secret to a great YA story to me is in the point of view. It is important to feel yourself, no matter how old you are in the shoes of the protagonist, and from word one, Deoul puts her readers there fro page one.
“Do any of you know the truly scary part about being seventeen?” Answer: “Your brain doesn't actually know, understand or care what it can't do; and, while this sounds great in theory, in my particular case, my under-developed brain apparently didn't know I couldn't fly. So I jumped . . . And I plummeted . . .”
When young Sid sees the photo of a murder victim during a field trip to the police station, her keen eye soon finds her and her friends chasing a “dark web” (another techno-term I’ve always loved) killer through the middle of a live action role playing game, and hey, who doesn’t want to LARP through a murder mystery.
This story is an energetic and youthful ride that really delves into the fascinating world of interactive role-playing (or L.A.R.P.-ing), Ted Talks, teenage heartbreak, suspicious parents, oh, and some really cool “Cosplay.”
This, of course, is not the first literary run for the award winning Deoul, who is the author of the novel The Carousel, and who has produced TV series such as The Dead Zone, Brave New Girl, and Haven, as well as being the executive in charge of production for the series Dresden Files and Missing, but tackling a YA story might have seemed like the road less traveled to her at first. It is, however, a path she navigated to perfection providing an entertaining and enjoyable read for people of all ages.
https://www.amazon.com/LARP-Rubin-Silicon-Alley-Adventure-ebook/dp/B06X6L1RKY
