On the Horizon – chaos on catnet (Naomi Kritzer)

Ahoy there me mateys!  I received this young adult sci-fi eARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  So here be me honest musings . . .

Title: chaos on catnet

Author: Naomi Kritzer

Publisher: Tor Teen

Publication Date: Tomorrow!! (hardback/e-book)

ISBN: 978-1250165220

Source: NetGalley

This be the second full-length CatNet series novel by Naomi Kritzer.  The first novel was based on “Cat Pictures Please” which won the 2016 Locus and Hugo awards for best short story.  Book one followed Steph who was on the run from her evil father.  She is saved in the end by her friends from a social media site called CatNet and the AI in hiding called CheshireCat who runs the site.

I enjoyed the first book and was glad to hear that it was getting a sequel.  Turns out that I liked this book even better.  Steph is back and trying to live her life out in the open and gain some stability.  At her new school, she makes a new friend, Nell.  Nell’s mother happens to be missing.  And Nell happens to have grown up in a cult.  The two friends join an online social media game.  But something seems weird about it.  Steph, Nell, and Cat find themselves trying to solve the mystery of Nell’s mom and maybe also save the world.

What I loved about this one was how lovely the friendships are, how grown-ups are involved in saving the day, and of course CheshireCat.  I really do enjoy getting to see Steph again.  But I thought Nell was an excellent character.  Watching her change during the course of the book was awesome.  I also thought her family was a hoot.  Old friends make an appearance and well as some new unexpected arrivals.  The larger themes of privacy, family, and trauma are here too.  This book was fun and I was glad to see what was evolving with the AI.  I recommend this book but make sure ye read book one first!

So lastly . . .

Thank you Tor Teen!

Side note: I have to admit that the cover of this book in the series also doesn’t thrill me.

Goodreads has this to say about the novel:

In this follow-up to the award-winning near future YA thriller Catfishing on CatNet, It takes an AI to catch an AI…

When a mysterious entity starts hacking into social networks and chat rooms to instigate paranoia and violence in the real world, it’s up to Steph and her new friend, Nell, to find a way to stop it—with the help of their benevolent AI friend, CheshireCat.

To visit the author’s website go to:

Naomi Kritzer – Author

To buy the novel go to:

chaos on catnet – Book 2

To add to Goodreads go to:

Yer Ports for Plunder List

Previous Log Entries for this Author

catfishing on catnet – book 1 (On the Horizon – YA Sci-Fi eArc)