If you’re going to stick your hand into somebody else’s refrigerator, you better be ready to deal with the consequences. Especially when, instead of perishable foodstuffs, the icebox in question contains people who are “provisionally alive.”
They haven’t died yet — death has not yet made up its mind about them. And even though most of them will never open their eyes again, a lucky few do stand the ghost of a chance of returning to this world. What a pity then that among these fortunate souls, there is one man who thought his earthly affairs concluded for all eternity.
His case file bristles with cautionary attributes such as “serial killer,” “extremist” and “mentally unstable.” And yet could this be the best candidate for an assignment that has already claimed the lives of several veteran operators? Who knows…
My Opinion: 535 pages, $3.99, Available On Kindle Unlimited
*Full disclosure: I received an advanced copy for review. I purchased a copy when it became available.
This is a Russian translation story whose setup puts a vigilante investigator into cryostasis instead of being killed by corrupt officials. He wakes up 24 years later and is tasked with going into a full immersion space VRMMO to solve the locked room mystery murder of a prominent clan member of the game. However, in practice this is really just a setup for the series and this is mostly a slice of life story where the MC adventures, tries to gain as many achievements to catch the attention of the clans as he can, and pops out of game to update his employer and plan what goals he has in game. There’s a little intrigue but generally it's an interesting and action-ish adventure with a survival sabotage game mode in the last 25%.
The entire setup takes a bit, but the MC is creating his character and going over stats, class descriptions, weapon descriptions, and sci-fi mechanics by the 9% mark. He chooses a class that’s considered terrible but the MC makes it work somehow. There’s lots of detail about all the mechanics which I appreciated, but it also made the later fights more meaningful since a lucky shot didn’t override the setup game rules and the MC died in game from poor decisions or just overmatched enemies. Money also plays a big role and becomes another motivating factor for the MC to power up.
There’s a certain irreverent sense of humor that some readers will enjoy and plenty of Russian background notes that gave the story a unique flavor.
Score: 7.4 out of 10