TW: racism, severe injury, gun violence, strangulation, animal injury, inhumane work conditions

I enjoyed the first book, but didn't really know what was to come with this one. In some ways I liked it better than the first, and in others I found it a little disappointing.

As much as April May and her many flaws did grow on me in the first book, it was a bit like a hostage situation- I got to know and like her because I had no other choice. And I do still like her, but I really enjoyed the POVs in this book, and enjoyed them more than I did at least half of April's in the first. Actually, I was kind of bummed out when April came back to take up the narrative, because I was hooked on the other stories, and really having fun with the other characters. I'm glad we get to see more of the "supporting characters" and get to know them as people, and the expansion away from it being Chosen One-esque is a really effective choice over all for this story.

I also thought the pacing in this is great. I liked the pacing in AART as well, but the inclusion of multiple storylines really works well in this, and they all cross each other and trade off in perfect ways to keep the book compelling. Even knowing that they're going to come together at some point and that each new direction is going to matter, the individual story itself stays interesting alone, and when they do start to touch it's somehow still a surprise.

The general concept of this book is a good one. I think the topics of digital currency, overly powerful and unchecked technology, and the power struggle between the brothers are all cool, and lead the way into both a fun romp and a story with some weight.

However, sometimes it went just a little stale for me. I think the biggest problem I had was simply that I preferred Carl as a mystery. I like him as a character in this book, but not as a main character, and his chapters explaining his background were both strange to read and kind of a let down. I would have preferred getting only some of the answers, but without the mystery it lost some of the mystique that was drawing me towards this story and these characters in the first place.
And then, there were things just felt too predictable, arcs that didn't have any room in the sheer drama of it all, and things that were just a little too unrealistic, particularly to Carl. Actually, I think my main complaint is that Carl went from being totally unknown to far too human and knowable, without hitting the right middle ground.

I did enjoy reading this book, I like the way Green writes and I was glad to be able to see what came of these characters. There's a lot here to like, though there were a few choices I didn't love.