Wildcard by Marie Lu

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Wildcard by Marie Lu



                Wildcard is the sequel to Warcross. There will be some spoilers regarding Warcross in this review so if you haven’t read the first book I would definitely recommend doing so before reading this review. That is the only disclaimer you are going to get! Moving on.
                It’s been weeks since Hideo’s algorithm took over the Neurolink. People have been turning themselves in for past crimes to the police. Crime is at an all time low. And the Dark Web is slowly fading due to all of the people reporting details to the police. And while the general public has no idea what has happened, Emika knows it’s because of Hideo. Because he has taken away choice and is forcing people to do no harm through his algorithm. But Emika can’t forget the person she saw when the algorithm took over. The man standing in all black, whose identity showed as Sasuke Tanaka, Hideo’s brother whom everyone assumed was dead. Could Zero really be Sasuke? Was he actually trying to stop Hideo? Why hadn’t he gone to his brother, when the one reason Hideo claims to have done everything in his life, was to find Sasuke again?
                When I finished Warcross I had no idea how Lu was going to pull this second book off. There were many too many questions about the future, the technology, Sasuke. Questions everywhere. Needless to say I was proven so very wrong. I feel at this point like I should know better than to doubt Lu. Yet, here we are. I’ve finished this book in no time and I am left in an emotional haze. Lu made some really smart decisions with this book. The pacing is similar to the first book and it has a very similar feel to the first book, but the tone is much darker, and the tension is at an all time high. Not only are you extremely curious about what’s really happened to Sasuke but you are also very aware that within days of the beginning of this novel, that everyone will be under the algorithm’s control. Then Lu starts to pull the layers of the story away and you get to the truth and it is heartbreaking, more importantly it makes sense. All of those questions I had at the end of the first book are answered to a satisfying extent.
                Now I will say that this book takes all of its world building and character development from the first book. If you have not read the first book in this series you will be completely lost and none of the characters will hold any weight to you. I don’t suggest anyone do that, because this duology is savored beautifully together. This plot takes you to unexpected places. It makes you question those in power and how we deal with immortality and morality.  It moves quickly, we’ve got a lot of ground to cover before anything can be resolved. Lu makes sure to make every moment count.
                By the end of this I felt emotionally spent. This was a great sequel and I thought it ends this series nicely. Kudos to Lu for including a consensual (though not graphic at all) scene between two adults. There are a few romance elements included in this story, which I honestly loved. I thought they were so well done and added to the story. I’m highly recommending this novel. It was such a fun read and with some overarching themes that really make you reflect on society and what we are willing to sacrifice on the whole. I give this 4.5 out of 5 stars.

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