Armada by Ernest Cline
Reviewed by: Jimi Roberts, Circulation Assistant
Genre: Science Fiction
Suggested Age: Adults and teens
What is the book about?: Zack Lightman is by all accounts any 18 year old high school gaming addict. One day while daydreaming in class, he sees a spacecraft from his favorite video game flying around outside of his classroom window. He begins to wonder if he is going insane and hallucinating or if he is truly seeing some type of alien spacecraft. Zack longs for some type of zombie apocalypse or alien invasion to happen in his life while pondering what to do after high school. Has that moment finally arrived, or is he having the same mental breakdown his father supposedly had 17 years earlier?
My Review: Armada is the second novel from the author of Ready Player One. I would encourage anyone who has read his first novel to go into this one with an open mind and try not to compare the two; they are very different novels. Armada is heavily influenced by the big science-fiction franchises of the late 70s and early 80s: Star Wars, Star Trek, The Last Starfighter and Alien, amongst others. It pays homage to these films while crafting a new and exciting tale out of the pieces that all these films have in common. In my opinion, that’s what makes this so much fun. Of course, there are sci-fi cliches in this book – that’s the point. This all will seem familiar to both the reader and the characters by design. These characters are familiar with the same movies as the reader. If I had to nit-pick one thing it would be the length. I felt like another 100 pages could have gone a long way towards fleshing out some of the supporting cast, which would have given the story a little more depth. This novel is certainly full of action – some of it is the best action writing I’ve read to date, but I found the story to really hit its stride in the more intimate moments. There’s a section in the middle that can only be described as “going X-files” and it was fantastic. I could have easily read 2 or 3 more chapters of that part and been ecstatic. That said, this was a great, fun (really quick) read and I think any fan of the sci-fi genre will get a kick out of it. If you go into it expecting Ready Player Two though, you will likely be disappointed. If you go in as a fan of 80s sci-fi, you will probably leave wanting more.
Rating: 4/5
About FDL Reads
Welcome to FDL Reads, weekly book reviews from Fondulac District Library. Librarians (and possibly some other guest reviewers) review all types of books, from children’s picture books, young adult favorites, to the latest adult thriller, and share their thoughts each week at fondulaclibrary.org. If the book is owned by Fondulac District Library (or another local library), you’ll see a direct link to the catalog entry and whether or not it is available. If it is checked out or at another local library, you will be able to place a hold as long as you have your library card and PIN numbers. As with any book review, these are our opinions…we disagree amongst ourselves about books frequently. We all have different likes and dislikes, which is what makes the world an interesting place. Please enjoy, and keep on reading!