WARCROSS

Nancy Wu's acerbic narration drops listeners into a high-tech future in which virtual reality has become ubiquitous, and Warcross is the world's most popular video game. When a skilled hacker threatens the Warcross Championships, creator Hideo Tanaka will need a bounty hunter, a hacker, and a gamer to investigate. Luckily, Emika Chen is all three. Unhurried in her narration, Wu finds a natural tone for the streetwise teenager as she goes undercover at the international competition, which provides a mixed bag of accents for Wu to manage. She keeps up with some, but a few don't quite hit the mark. However, she shines in delivering the intensity of the virtual reality action and the uncertainty of young love as Emika and Hideo become closer and secrets are revealed. J.E.C. © AudioFile 2017, Portland, Maine [Published: OCTOBER 2017]