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MetaWars: Fight for the Future

by Jeff Norton (Goodreads Author)

4.05 of 5 stars 4.05 · rating details · 44 ratings · 12 reviews

In an unforgiving future, two warring factions - the MILLENIALS and the GUARDIANS - are locked in a brutal battle over control of an online virtual world called the Metasphere. Jonah Delacroix has always known which side he's on - the same side as his dead father. But when he assumed his father's avatar, he learns that things aren't as black and white as he once believed....more

Paperback, 352 pages

Published August 2nd 2012 by Orchard Books

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Aug 12, 2012 Andrea rated it 4 of 5 stars

What an adventure! I wasn't sure what to expect from MetaWars, but what I got was a fantastic, imaginative journey. And I'll be the first to say, I'm not always the most enthusiastic fan of young adult science fiction, but I found MetaWars to be creative and so much fun.

So MetaWars takes place in the near(ish) future and the world is so bleak that most spend their time in the MetaSphere. The MetaSphere is a space that functions much like reality, people have jobs, they interact with one another...more

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Aug 08, 2012 Katja aka Tink rated it 3 of 5 stars

The focus of MetaWars is the battle between the Millenials and
Guardians for control of the Metasphere - in both the virtual and the real world.
The Metasphere is a strange online world in which people are represented by their avatars. These are normally shapes or animal forms. Even news presenters are shown through their virtual representations on TV screens in the real world. So that current affairs are narrated by say, a flamingo or elephant.
Sounds crazy, but with the amount of time we all...more

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Oct 23, 2012 Booka Uhu rated it 3 of 5 stars

I can see how this could be a really great read for someone, but personally, I found that if I'm still reading it a week later and I'm not desperate to pull it out of my bag, I'm obviously not enjoying it that much.

Lots of action and adventure, almost too much - there always seems to be a solution to any problem the characters have just a few pages or chapters away. Take for example when certain characters get disconnected from the Metasphere. I never really felt the urgency of that problem, an...more

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Jul 22, 2012 SJH (A Dream of Books) rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: for-review, young-adult, adventure, dystopia

Jeff Norton is a writer-director turned author who aimed to write a book for the current generation of teenagers obsessed with video games and living in a technology fuelled society. 'Metawars' is Norton's debut YA novel and is a roller coaster ride through a virtual world where people go to escape the humdrum existence of their real lives.

Elements of the story reminded me of the film The Matrix, with people plugging themselves into a virtual reality which is more real to them that their own day...more Jeff Norton is a writer-director turned author who aimed to write a book for the current generation of teenagers obsessed with video games and living in a technology fuelled society. 'Metawars' is Norton's debut YA novel and is a roller coaster ride through a virtual world where people go to escape the humdrum existence of their real lives.

Elements of the story reminded me of the film The Matrix, with people plugging themselves into a virtual reality which is more real to them that their own day to day existence. I could feel the sense of escapism that they experienced and the freedom they had to experience things which they wouldn't normally be able to do. The main character Jonah for example, delights in the sensation of flying which is mentioned several times throughout the book. I mean who wouldn't want to be able to do that whenever they wanted to.

Those visiting the virtual world are represented by avatars. These are created by the person's subconscious and can be pretty much anything and everything. It was slightly strange at first to see a dragon, unicorn and elephant conversing with each other, but after a while I didn't think much about it at all. It just seemed to be normal!

One of the most interesting ideas in 'Metawars' is that you can upload your virtual self and all your memories. This means that even if you die in the real world, you can in effect live forever in a virtual state. I thought this was a fascinating idea and one which is explored through Jonah's grandmother who he visits even after her death.

There is an exciting climax to the story with plenty of questions left unanswered. I'm sure there is a planned sequel to the book which hopefully will deal with many of these things.

This book will appeal hugely to male readers but there's lots to catch the eye of a female audience too. There is pretty much non-stop action from the word go and the drama never lets up. I found the plot a little bit complicated in places but on the whole Norton has come up with a terrific storyline which screams excitement and adventure.
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Dec 18, 2012 Misty rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: own

Fight for the future is a constant thrill ride that kept me riveted from the first page all the way until the last. It's full of excitement and action right the way through as Jonah is thrust into the middle of a war and has to choose his side, but everything's not as black and white as you originally think, and as you follow Jonah on his journey you find out and become just as confused as he does about which is the right side.
The best boy heroes are always the ones that aren't perfect, and who...more

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Jan 04, 2013 Darren Hartwell rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: action, dystopian, science-fiction

This review first appeared on The Book Zone(For Boys) blog

You would have to be some kind of hermit living in a shack on a remote Pacific island not to have noticed the glut of YA dystopian novels that have flooded the market of the past couple of years. If I'm brutally honest, I'm getting more than a little bored of them, but there is still one sub-genre of this that still excites me - tech. Over the past year or so I have had the pleasure of reading Ready Player One by Ernest Cline (written for...more This review first appeared on The Book Zone(For Boys) blog

You would have to be some kind of hermit living in a shack on a remote Pacific island not to have noticed the glut of YA dystopian novels that have flooded the market of the past couple of years. If I'm brutally honest, I'm getting more than a little bored of them, but there is still one sub-genre of this that still excites me - tech. Over the past year or so I have had the pleasure of reading Ready Player One by Ernest Cline (written for the adult market but potentially just as exciting for older teen boys); Bzrk by Michael Grant; Insignia by S.J. Kincaid; and now Metawars: Fight for the Future by Jeff Norton. Every one of these books has the potential to turn a certain type of reluctant reader boy (or girl) on to reading, as they all have huge appeal for gamers.

Metawars starts off with protagonist Jonah Delacroix racing through the night time streets of London on his trusty rollerblades, desperate to win the sizeable meta-dollar prize that will keep him and his mother in food foe the next few months. Unfortunately for Jonah, as he is in spitting distance of the finish line he is thrown off his feet by an huge explosion - the terrorist Guardians that he hates so much have struck again. Meanwhile, across the other side of the Atlantic the US government has fallen, and Matthew Granger, creator of the Metasphere and long incarcerated leader of the Millennials is released from his prison by his armed supporters. Jonah does not yet know it, but both of these events are about to change his life immeasurably.

The world in which Jonah lives is not hugely different to ours in many ways. Millions live in poverty and can't help but see their future as being particularly bleak. To escape the day-to-day depression of their lives they spend increasingly more hours plugged into the Metasphere, a virtual world where people have jobs, socialise with each other, and in Jonah's case, attend school. Every person who enters the Metasphere has their very own avatar, constructed for them by the software, based upon the owner's own sub-consciousness. There are unicorns, dragons, robots, animals, and some even more bizarre avatars, but Jonah is stuck with a humatar, i.e. his avatar looks just like his real world self.

In discussions at school Jonah is always the first to defend the Millennials (his father used to be Granger's personal pilot) and just as quick to damn the Guardians, who he believes murdered his father in a terrorist attack some years ago. However, very soon Jonah's world is going to be rocked as everything he believes is challenged, and the lines between good and evil become increasingly blurred. As events begin to unfold he finds himself on the run with the people he previously hated, not really knowing who to trust as he crosses both the virtual and real worlds, fleeing for his life.

Metawars is a super fast-paced and well plotted story that sucks readers in from the very first chapter, and I would have finished it in a single sitting if I hadn't already made plans to go out with friends. As it was, we were late arriving as I kept on telling my wife I wanted to read one more chapter. And then another. And another.

Jeff Norton has filled his story with a great number of cracking concepts and ideas that will fire up the imaginations of young people, and I think it would make a really good class reader for English lessons as there are so many elements that make great points for discussion. Both the Millennials and the Guardians feel that they are morally right, and every action they make is justified, whatever the collateral damage, and readers will find themselves challenged just as much as Jonah does. Although it is science fiction, many of the concepts are only a few jumps on from web and gaming technology that so many people, young and old, enjoy today and this makes the story all that more credible as a possible future world that may be experienced by today's teens.

If you have boys or girls that prefer sitting in front of a screen with a game controller in their hand to reading then this might be the book that gets them turning their console off, even if just for thirty minutes at a time. It is the first in a series, and although Jeff Norton brings this instalment to a satisfying end, it leaves enough questions to make kids hungry for more.(less)

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Oct 14, 2012 Catherine rated it 2 of 5 stars

I really wanted to like this book. It had an interesting premise - set in the future, when the norm is to literally plug oneself into the Meta World (like the internet only better), which is a lot better for many than the real world.
However for some reason, and I can't say why as it should have ticked all the boxes for me, I just couldn't get into it. It was a bit difficult to understand at first, and I also found it difficult to like any of the characters much.
Overall it was okay, but maybe I j...more

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Oct 04, 2012 Tim Gardner rated it 5 of 5 stars

Amazing concept and packed with action.
A real page-turner combining elements of Avatar with the ever-present survival instincts of The Hunger Games and Mission Impossible (film) with the lines between good and evil shifting and blurring.
Thought-provoking and rich world that we're not so far away from...
A must-read for YA & Adult fans alike and HUGE potential for forthcoming instalments.

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Oct 18, 2012 Melanie rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: first-reads, sci-fi

For those of you who don't read YA fiction because you think it's only for novice readers, this book will have you thinking again. From the very first page I was hooked, and not just because this novel is ACTION ACTION ACTION. The characters, the intensely high-conflict scenerios, the world-building, the plot - all were well-crafted and exciting. Megawars offers a great read for people of all ages. If you love politics and future dystopias (with a whole lot of people fighting for a better future...more

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Jul 19, 2012 Myrthe added it

Very nice concept and thrilling story! I'm curious about the second book, because the ending of this book predicts some pretty nice twists in that one.

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Apr 22, 2013 Tushar Prasad rated it 4 of 5 stars

A decent and enjoyable read.

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Jan 30, 2013 Debbie at Snuggling on the Sofa rated it 4 of 5 stars

Really good action scifi YA novel. Looking forward to the sequel!

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Shelves: recieved-to-review, to-review

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May 12, 2013 Pia Christensen rated it 4 of 5 stars

May 09, 2013 Darthvader15 marked it as to-read

May 18, 2013 Jesse Owen rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: for-review

May 05, 2013 Hannah rated it 3 of 5 stars

Apr 26, 2013 Gene marked it as to-read

Apr 22, 2013 Allmec rated it 5 of 5 stars

Apr 20, 2013 Shrishti~Music~Psyche marked it as to-read

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Apr 05, 2013 Caroline rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2013, action, average-to-good, book-club, dystopia

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About Jeff Norton

Jeff Norton is London-based Canadian author, writer-director, and founder of the creative incubator Awesome.

A reluctant reader as a boy, Jeff strives to create stories that will turn reluctant readers into lifelong ones.

Before writing full-time, Jeff managed the Enid Blyton literary estate. Jeff moved to London from Los Angeles where he'd developed and produced the critically acclaimed interactiv...more

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Books by Jeff Norton

MetaWars: The Dead Are Rising (MetaWars 2.0)

MetaWars: Battle Of The Immortal (MetaWars 3.0)

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