I received this book for free from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Deep Dive by Ron Walters Published by Angry Robot on January 11 2022
Genres: Adult, Science fiction
Pages: 400
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher
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The nitty-gritty: Deep Dive is a fast-paced, science fiction thrill ride with an engaging mystery and some interesting twists.
Deep Dive was such a thrilling read, and I could not tear my eyes away from the page. Ron Walters’ story is a twisty, mind-bending sci-fi thriller that keeps the reader guessing. It evokes both The Matrix and Total Recall at times, so if you’re a fan of either of those movies, you’ll probably love this.
Peter Banuk is a video game developer who works for a company called Omega Studios. He’s an obsessive workaholic who spends a lot of time at the office, much to the chagrin of his wife Alana and their two children, Evie and Cassie. When the story opens, Peter’s best friend Bradley has just invited him to beta test the highly secret hardware he’s been working on, a virtual reality headset called Deep Dive, which Bradley claims will be the first ever fully immersive VR experience. If it’s successful, Bradley wants to partner with Peter and market the headset, a deal that will put Omega Studios back on the map. Although it’s Evie’s birthday and he’s promised her a special birthday dinner, Peter can’t resist the temptation of testing out Deep Dive for himself, but he promises Evie he’ll be back soon to celebrate.
When he arrives at the Boundless offices, Bradley’s company, Peter isn’t prepared for just how amazing Deep Dive really is. He finds himself in the world of Scorchfell, the video game he developed, the one that flopped spectacularly when it was released. But before he can emerge from the simulation, Peter opens a door and steps through—and enters a nightmare. He wakes up in his truck with no memory of how he got there, and when he goes home to his family, Alana claims that they don’t have children—and never have. Other things are different too. Bradley is dead, and Scorchfell is a huge success. Is Peter going crazy? Has he lost his memories? Or is something more nefarious going on? Peter swears with every fiber of his being that Evie and Cassie exist, but no one believes him. All Peter wants to do is to get back home to his real family, but it’s not going to be easy.
Deep Dive was an absolute blast of a reading experience. The story is narrated by Peter, and we follow his first person point of view as he navigates the unfamiliar world he’s been thrust into. I thought this was a good choice because the reader is just as much in the dark as Peter is, which creates some intriguing mysteries. The author draws out those mysteries for quite a while, although some readers may guess what’s going on. I had some ideas myself, but the story played out in unexpected ways, so I ended up being surprised at some of the interesting twists. The action is fast-paced and relentless, full of conspiracies, secrets, and danger, and there isn’t a dull moment in the entire story.
Ron Walters is clearly a big video game fan, and I loved the immersive experience of reading about a VR world that changes into something more sinister. I’m not a gamer myself, but that doesn’t stop me from enjoying video game-centric stories, and I’m fascinated by virtual reality and the idea of sinking into different worlds. I also loved the real world elements of running a video game company, the competition involved, and the high stakes business of releasing a new game into an already flooded market.
But my favorite parts of the story, not surprisingly, center around Peter’s love of his family and his emotional state when faced with the fact that his beloved children might not be real after all. Walters deftly captures Peter’s raw emotions, and I’ll admit some scenes were very hard to read (and will be for other parents as well). Peter has to come to terms with what’s most important in his life—being successful in his career, or being a good father and husband. Part of what makes this story so successful is Peter’s mental state and his reactions to the strange world he finds himself in. When everyone around you is calling you crazy, what do you do? I thought Walters handled it brilliantly.
The only thing preventing me from rating this higher is that I felt the last twenty percent or so was a little rushed. A lot happens in the second half of the story, and I wouldn’t have minded more pages to stretch out those final scenes and give them more time to develop. But despite this small complaint, Walters hits just the right emotional notes at the end and wraps up his story perfectly.
I can hardly wait to read Ron Walters’ next book, especially if it’s as fun and thrilling as Deep Dive.
Big thanks to the publisher for providing a review copy.
What an intriguing premise! I have to wonder if the main character stumbled into an alternate reality or if he’s still in a section of the game itself, unable to get out… Nightmarishly compelling, indeed! 😉
Maddalena@spaceandsorcery recently posted…THE LATE SHOW (Renée Ballard #01), by Michael Connelly
Without spoiling it, yes that is the mystery! Lots of fun:-)
Can you imagine waking up and not knowing how you got there? It’s not just a mystery, it’s scary. Sounds like an awesome read, Tammy!
Priscilla Bettis recently posted…It’s Release Day for “The Hay Bale”!
It was such a good time:-)
Wow, this sounds like such an exciting read. Also sounds so scary for Peter to be going through that. I really wanna read it!
Stephanie @ Bookfever recently posted…ARC Review: Electric Idol by Katee Robert
It was fun being in his head:-)
From what I’ve read this also brings to mind memories of the two Tron movies. I’d be up for trying it. Lately I’ve been craving more computer-related stories, so I recently started getting back into William Gibson and just started reading Zer0es. This sounds like it might also satisfy my cravings.
It definitely might be able to do that, and I agree with the Tron comparison:-)
I am so glad you enjoyed it so much! And this really seems an intriguing book with no space to feel bored!!
Yes, the pacing was great, I couldn’t stop reading:-)
I love the sound of this one. and yet I think I’ve completely overlooked it for some reason. I read the guest post that the author wrote for the Bibliosanctum which also piqued my interest.
Lynn 😀
I loved that guest post too:-)
I have the feeling following your blog is not going to go well with my plan to limit the number of new books added to my TBR. How could I resist this one, after such an mazing review? Thanks anyway, lol
Will my revenge be successful, if I manage to publish my review of Termination Shock today? (by Neal Stephenson)
lol
LOL so sorry?? I will be checking out your review of Termination Shock soon:-)
This sounds awesome Tammy!
It was a bunch of fun!
Great review! This sounds really good, Tammy. I read in the comments the comparison to Tron as well as The Matrix. I liked both those movies! I’m sorry you thought the ending was a little rushed.
Jan @ Notes from a Readerholic recently posted…Sunday Post: An anniversary
Tron is a good comparison too:-)
Videogame themed books aren’t something I’ve read much of but this one sure does sound cool!
I need to get this. I read Offbeat’s review as well. 🙂 And I just finishd the Simulation Multiverse by Rizwan Virk which was all about alternate realities/ VR/etc so I’m in the right mind set lol!
This sounds great. I love video game centric books!
I literally just started this one, I’m so excited!
“I’m not a gamer myself, but that doesn’t stop me from enjoying video game-centric stories”.
Same!
“I also loved the real world elements of running a video game company, the competition involved, and the high stakes business of releasing a new game into an already flooded market.”
It kind of faded in the background for me while I was writing my own review, but yep! that was interesting too, and something you don’t se very often in a VR book, since usually, the adventure is the point.