Battle of the Immortal. (MetaWars, Book 3). Jeff Norton. London, UK: Orchard Books (Distributed in Canada by Hachette Book Group Canada), 2013. 301 pp., trade pbk., $10.99. ISBN 978-1-40831-461-6. Grades 6-11 / Ages 11-16. Review by Ronald Hore. *** /4

excerpt:

Sam revved the outboard electrical engine of the black, Kevlar clad dingy, pointing them across the flooded streets of Manhattan towards Hell's Kitchen. Jonah squinted as the late afternoon sun tried to blind him. His eyes closed for only a moment, he visualized finally getting his dad back. After two months of incarceration, Jonah was going to bust his father out of his prison.

The flashing neon signs of Times Square took no notice of the floodwater below, and Jonah almost laughed at the strangeness of billboards boasting of luxury goods and exotic metacations while the streets below drowned under a metre of water.

But he didn't.

He knew that when the Guardians flooded Manhattan, the water was trapped inside the city by the same defensive dykes the island nation used to keep out the rising sea levels. Not only would the city face irreparable damage, but he was betraying Manhattan's young president, Lori Weisberg, as well.

He was betraying a friend.

Battle of the Immortal is the third in the four volume "MetaWars" series directed at young adult readers. The book consists of 302 pages divided into 37 chapters plus a page advertising another series by the same publisher. The external front covers of all of the books in the series are very similar in design. The inside front and back pieces promote the series along with review comments.

      This story continues the adventures of teenage heroes, Jonah, and Sam (Samantha) as they struggle to free the virtual world, the Metasphere, from control by a single man, Matthew Granger. In this episode, the conflict with the Uploaded continues, (those who have died and uploaded their consciousness, but who are now trying to take over the lives and bodies of the living.)

      The complex plot also continues the fight for control of the Metasphere between the Millenials and the Guardians. The story travels to Havana Cuba where the Guardians seize control of the third of the four server locations controlling the Metasphere. The high body count continues, first with the battle for Havana, then a fight with pirates and finally tangling with Jonah's nemesis, Matthew Granger. Jonah continues to wrestle with his conscience and the difficult choices they are making between what actions might be considered right or wrong. Sam is more of a shoot to kill first and ask questions later, type.

      Nonstop high adventure and derring-do with young teenage heroes in peril at every turn. They solve the problem with the Uploaded by the end, but many crises still remain to be solved in the final episode.

Recommended.

Ronald Hore, involved with writers' groups for several years, dabbles in writing fantasy and science fiction in Winnipeg, MB.

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Published by The Manitoba Library Association ISSN 1201-9364

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