Arcadia

Plansky delivers on the promise of his first novel, Safari, in this imaginative, pulse-pounding techno-thriller. L.A. tech journalist Desmond Lewis is devastated to learn of his colleague Jake Miller’s death. The official story is that Miller died in a car accident in Nevada, but readers are privy to the truth—that Miller, who was on the run, was actually killed by someone, or some thing, dressed in a white astronaut suit. After Lewis listens to the last voicemail Miller left, in which the dead man refers to having stumbled onto something big, he pursues leads that take him to Las Vegas, Nev., the location of Arcadia, a virtual-reality amusement park. He’s accompanied by his girlfriend, e-sports champion Jenna Bateman, whose father is convinced that violent video games have contributed to an upsurge in real-world bloodshed. Lewis learns that the mastermind behind Arcadia, Victor Zhao, previously created a virtual reality game in which players assumed the persona of a serial killer. Lewis and Jenna soon find their lives in peril. Smooth prose and relatable characters are a plus. Michael Crichton fans will be pleased. [em](BookLife) [/em]