Firewall

by Erin Jade Lange, Sandra Knuffinke (Translator), Jessika Komina (Translator)

Sie wollen Gerechtigkeit - es den Leuten heimzahlen, die ihren Mitschüler durch schlimme Mobbingattacken auf dem Gewissen haben. Und gleichzeitig die Cyber-Stasi, die seitdem sämtliche Onlineaktivitäten an der Schule aufs Strengste überwacht, austricksen. Dabei soll Eli ihnen helfen. Eli selbst ist zwar klar, dass das gefährlich werden könnte, aber die Verlockung, seine Hackerfähigkeiten zu testen, ist einfach zu groß. Doch was als Spiel beginnt, gerät nach und nach außer Kontrolle, und Eli erfährt, was passiert, wenn man Gerechtigkeit mit Rache verwechselt.

Genres: Young Adult, Realistic Fiction, Contemporary, Fiction, Mental Health, Romance, Death

351 pages, Paperback

First published October 2, 2018

About the author

ERIN JADE LANGE is the author of 5 novels for young adults, including the upcoming, Mere Mortals. Erin is the winner of the Friedolin Youth Book Prize in Germany and the Sakura Medal in Japan. She has also been nominated for the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize (twice), the German Children’s Literature Award and multiple state book awards. Her debut novel, Butter, was a 2013 Teens’ Top Ten Pick, and her books have appeared on several state reading lists. Erin is a recovering journalist and a lover of books. She lives in Phoenix, Arizona.
www.erinjadelange.com
@erinjadelange

Reviews

[Rae · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Chaos of Now by Erin Jade Lange is a thought-provoking book that discusses tough topics like bullying, suicide, and cyber monitoring. When Jordan, a geeky computer wizard, commits suicide by lighting a match, it irrevocably changes the lives of those he went to school with. Eli Bennett gets caught in the middle of a vigilante scheme to pay tribute to Jordan, but unfortunately, it does not go as planned . . . 

This was such an interesting book! It's going to be a tough book to review, because I feel conflicted. On one hand, it was entertaining to read. Tough to read, too, especially since I have kids of my own. On the other hand, much of the book was shallow and lacked good character and plot depth, so I had a hard time connecting with the characters.

I did like the the story concept. When Jordan commits suicide, it changes the lives of everyone around him. Jordan's friends want to get revenge against the bullies who destroyed Jordan's lives, so they rope Eli into helping them create their vigilante website. While doing so, their actions repeatedly raised the questions: Were Eli and his friends now the bullies? Did the bullies deserve their punishment? How narrow is the line between right and wrong?

I appreciated the complexity of the bullies. While the main characters lacked depth, the author provided insight into the lives of the bullies. No one is simply good or bad--there are so many shades of gray. I think it was interesting watching Eli process his actions and how they affected other people's lives. It's hard to feel good about something when empathy gets in the way. I liked that the book forced you into the shoes of a bully. It's easy to see how that line can be crossed!

The ending of the book left me wanting more. While suicide was a primary topic in the book, I wish it would have been discussed further. At one point a character called Jordan's suicide selfish. I wish there would have been more elaboration during this interchange, especially on the topic of mental illness. Simply saying suicide is selfish makes light of what suicide is actually about and doesn't pay homage to the mental illness that often runs rampant before a person commits suicide. 

Overall, this was a quick read, easily consumed in a day. Should you read it? I can't say I would highly recommend this book, but if it sounds like your cup of tea, give it a read!

Thank you to NetGalley for providing the Kindle version of this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Blue · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finally a YA book that not only draws attention to the power of social media but how the characters are attached to technology, whether it be their phones of their computers, which is fantastic. I’m sorry but if you are writing a YA book based around teenagers in this time line, you need to have them glued to their phones or at least have their interaction with technology more often. I am over YA books that are based in high school or around young adults that don’t spend any time on their phones… really authors, have you stepped outside? Teenagers and their phones are inseparable and in the Chaos of Now you see their need for it and how parents removing it from the house is literally the world’s worst punishment so bravo Lange!
Technology aside (Yeah sorry I got excited about it) The Chaos of Now is a book filled with tough topics such as bullying, suicide, cyber monitoring and cyber bullying and to be frank with you all. It was bloody brilliant.

You can find my full review for this book here:
http://www.bluefairytales.com.au/2018...

[Nav (she/her) 🌧 · Rating 3 out of 5]

TW - death, cyber bullying, racist comments

I came across The Chaos of Now whilst browsing the library website. YA contemporary is one of my favourite and most read genres so I'm always looking to discover more books in this genre. I was also incredibly intrigued by the synopsis as the topics this books looks at are so relevant in this day and age.

Plot
One year ago Eli Bennet watched a fellow student (Jordan Bishop) set himself on fire at school as a result of cyber bullying. Now in a nationwide crackdown new laws have allowed teachers to become cyber snoops to be able to keep an eye out for any bullying on social media. However, when Eli is approached by two mysterious hackers to join a group that wants justice for Jordan, things soon begin to spiral out of control.

Positives:
- The writing is easy to follow and so the book is pretty quick to get through.
- The book covers social media and cyber bullying which is just so important in this day and age.
- The story really does highlight how easy it is for someone to gain access to your computer and how wary you need to be when you receive communication from unknown people or sources.
- One of the funniest moments throughout the book was whenever Eli tried to speak Spanish and those scenes made me laugh out loud every time! I feel like anyone who has had to learn a foreign language in school will be able to relate to that.

Negatives:
- I feel like the synopsis gives away too much info. So, when Eli is going somewhere at the beginning of the book it was pretty hard to stay interested in what was going on as I felt like I already knew.

- There is a scene where a side character (Ashley) is talking to her friends about another side character (Isobel).

"I'm not racist or anything," Ashley explained to her friends, who jumped to reassure her she wasn't. "But you can only use so many colours on brown skin. It's very limiting for the audience."

The comments that Ashley makes about Isobel just made me feel incredibly uncomfortable. Out of nowhere the reader is made aware that Isobel is a poc. Up to this point Isobel has been in the book quite a bit and looking back it doesn't say anywhere that Isobel is a poc, it just says she has "long, dark hair". It feels like her skin colour was just randomly put in there to show another aspect of bullying (or maybe an attempt at diversity, who knows). More importantly, I already know how hard it is to use certain colours on my "brown skin" as they do not show up. But this sort of writing does not make me feel positively represented or celebrated at all. More like put down and not good enough.

- I wasn't too happy with the way the book ended. It was very abrupt. Eli pretty much did a life changing thing and the book just ended there. There was no follow through, no epilogue, just a disappointed reader left with a lot of questions.

Final thoughts
Wow, so The Chaos of Now was a really interesting book to read. I was able to gain more of an insight into internet safety, technology etc. The story was also easy to understand. But unfortunately, I cannot overlook the racist comments made by one of the side characters. So, it is incredibly difficult for me to recommend this book.



Memorable quotes
"These moments go by really fast. Make sure you stop and appreciate them while they're happening instead of looking back and wishing you could relive them."

[Grace · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Chaos of Now is a thought provoking read which covers many difficult subjects. It was an engaging quick read, but the middle was dull and lacked the necessary character and plot development needed to move the story along. Also, the ending left me wanting more and it did feel a little rushed.

Overall, it was alright and made me think but lacked in some areas.

[Ankas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mobbing, insbesondere Cybermobbing, ist ein, wenn nicht sogar DAS zentrale Thema im neuen Jugendroman „FIREWALL“ von Erin Jade Lange. Der Jugendliche Jordan Springer wurde von seinen Mitschülerinnen und Mitschülern so extrem gemobbt, dass er nur noch einen Ausweg sah: Auf sehr spektakuläre Art und Weise nahm er sich vor den Augen seiner Peiniger das Leben. Natürlich hat dieser Fall das komplette Land erschüttert. Die Medien haben sich auf die Schule gestürzt, welche in Kürze traurige Berühmtheit erlangte. Nicht nur die Eltern, auch die Politik und natürlich die Schule verlangten Maßnahmen. So kam es, dass ab sofort sämtliche Online-Aktivitäten der Schülerinnen und Schüler überwacht werden.

Zu den betroffenen Schülern gehört auch Eli, ein begnadeter Hacker, der bereits so einige Sicherheitslücken im Internet ausfindig gemacht und publiziert hat. Als er eines Tages von einer unbekannten Gruppierung namens „Freunde von Springer“ angeworben wird, schlägt sein Hacker-Herz direkt höher. Die „Freunde von Springer“ haben es sich zur Aufgabe gemacht, sich an Jordans Mobbern zu rächen und im selben Atemzug der „Cyber Stasi“ eins auszuwischen. Obwohl Eli weiß, dass sein Handeln alles andere als legal ist, kann er der Verlockung, sein Können unter Beweis zu stellen, nicht widerstehen und lässt sich auf einen Deal mit schwerwiegenden Folgen ein…


„Meine Neugier fuhr auf der Überholspur… und ließ meine Zweifel auf dem Seitenstreifen zurück.“
(S.74)

Ohne Frage, bereits mit ihren ersten 2 Sätzen konnte mich die Autorin schockieren und in ihren Bann ziehen. Sie hatte meine vollste Aufmerksamkeit, von der ersten bis zur letzten Seite. Mitgerissen von dem eindringlichen Schreibstil, der sicherlich auch Spuren des brillianten Übersetzer-Duos Sandra Knuffinke & Jessica Komina (übersetzt u.a. die Bücher von Maggie Stiefvater und Marie Lu) trägt, fand ich mich, schneller als erwartet, in einem dunklen Keller wieder und beobachtete, welch großer Schaden mit einem finalen Klick ausgelöst werden kann.

Eli war für mich ein sehr glaubwürdiger Protagonist, irgendwie ein Anti-Held, der jedoch im letzten Viertel ordentlich Mut beweist. Er muss sich mit typischen Problemen des Erwachsenwerdens herumschlagen und ist mit Sicherheit ein Protagonist, mit dem sich viele Leser identifizieren können. Wie in ihm das schlechte Gewissen gewachsen ist, welches anfangs noch komplett von der Euphorie überdeckt war, fand ich klasse dargestellt. Wir sind alle keine perfekten Menschen, das ist klar, und Eli zeigt, dass man Fehler begehen kann, aber unbedingt daraus lernen und seine Konsequenzen daraus ziehen sollte. Was hätte alles vermieden werden können, hätten sich die „Freunde von Springer“ gegen den Klick auf „veröffentlichen“ entschieden?

„Jeder nahm es sich raus, über andere zu urteilen, erging sich in Schadenfreude, und so langsam konnte ich die Grenze zwischen Gut und Böse nicht mehr erkennen.“
(S. 272)

Mir gefiel es sehr, dass die Autorin die Grenzen zwischen schwarz und weiß aufbricht, Täter zu Opfern und Opfer zu Tätern werden lässt. Sensibel aber dennoch eindrücklich erzählt sie diese erschreckende Geschichte, die eine spannende Dynamik entwickelt.

„Wir hatten ein Monster erschaffen. Ein kleines süßes Babymonster – weitgehend harmlos, aber trotzdem ein Monster. Und das Problem mit Babymonstern ist, dass sie irgendwann Zähne bekommen und jede Menge Wut im Bauch, bis sie zu gefährlich sind, um sie unter Kontrolle zu halten.“
(S. 124)

Wobei es sich bei diesem MONSTER handelt, solltet ihr selbst herausfinden.

Ein brisantes, aktuelles Thema – spannend und authentisch verpackt in einen Jugendroman, der definitiv auch prima als Schullektüre gelesen werden kann. Er zeigt erbarmungslos auf, wohin Cybermobbing führen kann und motiviert die Leserinnen und Leser dazu, ihr Online-Verhalten zu überdenken.

[Lindsey Lynn (thepagemistress) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Trigger Warning: suicide, bullying, self harm, amongst other similar topics. Wow. So this was an absolute page turner. I couldn't put it down. The writing was well done. I enjoyed how real the characters were. The emotions and inner debate was very relatable. The plot was simple but had twists you didn't see coming. The dialog flowed really smoothly. Overall, I just really enjoyed and flew through this. The ending is still with me and has left me with lots to think about.

[Ghostly Writer · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm not entirely sure with how I feel about this... May edit this later, if I change my mind about the rating. In different ways, the latter part of the novel brought up a lot of things for me. Difficult.

Actual rating: 2.5 stars.

[Carin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Last year, a boy who had been teased and bullied committed suicide at school by lighting himself on fire in front of everyone in the cafeteria. This book begins one year later, on the anniversary of his death at a school assembly meant to honor him. But Eli notices quickly that the students coming up and saying nice things about him, didn't even know him, and certainly weren't his friends. Right after, a couple of his actual friends reach out to Eli. The three boys were going to enter a coding competition together (you must have a team of three) and now they want Eli to be their third. He quizzes them on why they didn't stand up for him at the assembly but agrees to be on the team, overlooking some read flags, as he loves to code, and he wants to get out of his house, where his father's very young, very hot, former stripper girlfriend is always trying to act like his mom.

In the aftermath of the suicide, national laws were passed regarding bullying, particularly as regards social media. Kids are no longer allowed to really have any social media accounts except the most innocuous on heavily-policed (literally) sites. It hasn't really cut down on bullying which has just gone old-school but it has meant that students no longer feel they have any place to vent or to actually call out bullies. So the coding project is that these three boys are going to make a website that is untraceable where students from their high school can post things to out bad people. They start it off with a video of an obnoxious wrestler shooting steroids.

But later, Eli overhears some boys at school talking. It turns out that the wrestler was doing what every wrestler did in order to compete. He didn't want to do it. He's lost his college scholarship which means he can't go to college at all. He was pressured into the steroids, and his life is now destroyed. And Eli starts to realize that even bullies might have more to their story and be real people with their own problems. But by this time, the website has taken down more people, and begins to take on a life of his own. He also starts to realize he doesn't know these two other boys very well and they might have an alternative agenda for this project.

This book really delves into the complications of bullying. How bullies are often themselves bullied at home, how bullies aren't just 100% evil, how even bullied kids can themselves bully others, how we can be bullied by people who we think are friends, and so on. It's thoughtful, multilayered, and really timely, with topics super-relevant today. The book really has stuck with me and I think it's both a great story, and a really important one.

[Sara (A Gingerly Review) · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 to 3 stars from me.

This was a quick read but I struggled to connect to any part of the story.

FRTC

[LG (A Library Girl's Familiar Diversions) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Like a lot of kids at Haver High, Eli will never forget the day Jordan Bishop walked into the cafeteria, soaked in gasoline, and lit himself on fire. Cyberbullying was widely cited as the cause of Jordan's suicide, and lots of internet restrictions, particularly ones focused on teens, popped up after his death.

A year after Jordan's death, Eli is just focused on his goal of being the best coder he can be, with the hope of maybe striking it rich with some kind of app after he gets out of high school. He had no intention of going to college. He didn't really know Jordan and sees the way his high school focuses on Jordan's death as some kind of tragedy porn.

Then one day he gets a message that leads him to two other kids at his school, Mouse and Seth. They want him to be part of their American Cybersecurity Competition team - to take the spot that Jordan, their friend, would have filled. The catch is that their real world project is going to be kind of illegal: an unregistered website designed to mock all of the internet restrictions that were supposedly inspired by Jordan's death but that Mouse and Seth know he would have hated. However, it isn't long before the website begins to morph into something meaner and more dangerous than Eli originally intended to be involved in.

This is another one of the books in my old conference ARCs backlog. I didn't know anything about it, going in, although it was immediately clear that it was an "issues" book that could potentially become really dark. I was a little worried that it would veer into "school shooting" territory near the end, which I really didn't want to deal with (I already loathe workplace active shooter trainings that involve watching real or simulated active shooter footage). It didn't, but there were hints that it could have.

Anyway, Seth, Mouse, and Eli's site rapidly shifted from justice to revenge. Initially, Eli didn't see a problem with it - the people they were posting embarrassing/compromising video clips of had all been horrible to other people, and embarrassment couldn't kill a person, right? Except that people's lives were being affected, and Eli was repeatedly brought up against the fact that, as horrible as some of these people were to Jordan and others, they were also still people who could be harmed by his actions. And once the whole thing got started, backing out wasn't easy. For one thing, Seth and Mouse had blackmail material on him, and the smaller stuff they knew could easily lead to the bigger stuff that Eli had never told anyone.

In between all of that mess was Eli's worries about flunking Spanish and his crush on Isabel, as well as his annoyance with his father's relationship with Misty (Eli's mom died of cancer when he was very little, and Misty was apparently Eli's dad's first serious girlfriend since then). All the more normal worries balanced out the website stuff a bit, although Eli's reaction to Misty was tough to take sometimes. Misty was a good bit younger than Eli's dad and supposedly previously worked at a strip club (I realized after a while that we'd only ever heard this from Eli, who I decided was not a trustworthy source of information where Misty was concerned), and Eli had a tendency to be rude and dismissive towards her. On the plus side, he was aware that his behavior was unwarranted and occasionally crossed the line, so I was willing to be sympathetic - he also felt a little like Misty was taking his dad away from him.

The ending was somehow both a bit much and not enough. I think part of the issue was that there wasn't enough time to really develop the new facets of Jordan, Mouse, and Seth that were revealed near the end, before all the dramatic stuff started happening. I'm also not sure how well some of the discussion about Jordan's suicide would go over with some readers - I'd hesitate to recommend this book to anyone who has ever seriously considered suicide, although it might be helpful for those dealing with survivor guilt after someone else's suicide (I'm saying this as someone who is not a mental health professional, so take it with a grain of salt).

This was a quick read that I enjoyed more than I expected I would, although I'm still not sure how I feel about the ending. In addition to the Jordan, Mouse, and Seth stuff, the way Eli's big secret was resolved felt a little off, too.

(Original review posted on A Library Girl's Familiar Diversions.)

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

Check out more reviews like this on: NicoleHendersonReads

Before reading this book, I hadn’t heard a ton of things about this author (other than the fact she wrote a book called Butter which was pretty popular in YA a while back). But the plot of this particular book was what intrigued me the most, specifically the coding element. I have never read a book with coding in it before so it was great to read something about it and in some ways learn about the technical side of technology. So when I got this book in the mail, I just had to read it right away.

Considering the fact that it’s a thicker contemporary novel, I didn’t expect to read it that quickly. The writing style made the book much easier to read, but it also packed a punch. This book truly made me think about the darker side of social media and how serious it can really be. We don’t often realize that social media has a dark element because we tend to ignore all that, but it is something we need to be mindful of when using social media. I personally thought that this book did a fantastic job at portraying this aspect. Besides that, I really enjoyed reading about coding and learning more about the subject matter. And I hope to read more about coding eventually.

Another aspect I loved was Eli’s character arc. I felt like I could relate to him in a lot of ways, such as his values and family life. I also thought Eli added a lot of humour to the (surprisingly) dark contemporary as I chuckled at a few lines throughout the novel. However, I do understand why other reviewers are saying that Eli and other side characters were underdeveloped. That’s because this book is mostly plot driven and so we don’t get to know the other characters as well as we do with Eli. And I really do wish the friends (Seth, Mouse etc..) were more developed.

This is definitely one I would reread again and again. Overall, it was a great book I would highly recommend you guys go check out.

I received this ARC from Raincoast Books so thank you to them for sending this my way.

[Mrs.Tucker · Rating 4 out of 5]

This YA dives into many topics (e.g. identity, grief, suicide, bullying). Lange does a good job of covering tech/hacking topics, but the male narrator feels a little forced. I think my students who are interested in coding might be interested in the storyline, but they also may feel as though the characters are stereotypes. I’m interested to see their reaction to it as a choice option.

[Read InAGarden · Rating 2 out of 5]

Gave up a fourth of the way through the book. Just didn't thoroughly capture my interest.

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

This YA novel starts off with a strong premise, but it loses momentum three-fourths of the way through. There are plenty of twists and turns that will keep teens reading to see how things turn out, but I wish the ending had been a bit more solid. As another reviewer mentioned, while it might be comforting to some to simply say that the act of suicide is selfish, that seems to be a simplification of a complicated decision. Parts of the plot made me think of recent headlines and events at various schools, of course, and the use of a flawed narrator in Eli, a sophomore, makes the story more interesting to read. After the one-year anniversary of the suicide of freshman Jordan Bishop at Haver High, two of Jordan's friends enlist Eli's hacking services for an online competition, which turns out to be more of an attempt to wreak vengeance on all those who did wrong to Jordan and contributed to his death. Eli has secrets of his own about some of his own online actions, but as he watches some of those who disparaged Jordan when he was alive be brought to their knees by embarrassing online videos and materials, he finds himself feeling sorry for some of them. As he is drawn further and further into the plot, he's also dealing with keeping everything a secret from his best friend, a budding romance, and with an overprotective woman who's come into his father's life. But how far can he trust his new friends? After Jordan's suicide, the school gained access to students' online activity, a move that I would have liked to have seen explored even more. There is always a way around those sorts of controls and attempts to thwart the free exchange of ideas, just as there will most likely always be those who will want to basically spy on others. But how legal are those sorts of actions? Did no one express concern about them? Examining these questions would have given the book additional heft, and make it even more timely. As things stand, I sometimes felt as though I was reading a book set in today's world and sometimes one in the very near future. Teens might enjoy debating whether school or government officials can behave as they did in this book and what the consequences of posting certain materials might be for them and for others.

[Autumn · Rating 5 out of 5]

The school librarian actually recommended this book for me to read. Just from reading the first page I was hooked. Like what would cause a kid to do something like that in the school cafeteria. As the story progresses things start to come to light and who was truly Jordan's friends. I could relate to how Eli felt as far as how when someone passes everyone wants to act like they are so sad and it is so hard to believe that people can be so cruel, when sadly they are a part of the problem. I really liked how Eli was a coder that is neat especially now because now a days kids are coding or learning how to. When Eli gets asked to be part of a group that want to enter into a competition he is on it, though he learns really what they want to do. He will find himself learning to try and not overstep boundaries as what this group uncovers will hurt people. Is revenge really want they want or they dealing with guilt for not having to step up and be a friend. While Eli is hiding information on being in this club for coding competition he also is dealing with home life and having a young woman who is younger than his dad be in his life. Eli is dealing with a lot and it is all hitting him at once. I think the author did a great job with bringing up cyber bullying and how it affects people and the guilt that people have by their actions. I thought I had it all figured out but I was literally wowed when it all came together towards the end. I really wasn't expecting that at all.

Overall for me this book was good and the plot was a steady pace. I really like how the cover of the book went with the story. As soon as I saw it and then read the first page it just kind of clicked for me. I don't see too many covers like that. I would like to see more from this author.

[Michele · Rating 4 out of 5]

💻 @kidlitexchange #partner 💻
Thank you to the #kidlitexchange network for the review copy of The Chaos of Now by @erinjadelange Wow! 4 solid ⭐️ from me!
•
Eli is a very good high school coder who skates by in school. He’s not popular and mostly unnoticed. He’s got his best friend and that’s all he needs. Haver HS was turned upside down last year when Jordan committed suicide in the cafeteria by burning himself. Since then federal legislation has put a block on any negative social media. (That in itself is an interesting concept.)
•
Eli is approached to join a coding competition team. His involvement in this also means fighting against the bullies that caused Jordan’s demise.
•
Toss in an absent dad and a new soon-to-be stepmom, there’s a lot of character development in this book. I easily fell right in and didn’t want to put the book down! You can bet this book will be on my high school library shelves when it publishes in October!

[maddie · Rating 4 out of 5]

in general, this book was well developed and enjoyable, with an actual unique and realistic take on social media and the dangers of cyberbullying. this was what i wanted easy prey to be!! characters acknowledging their toxic masculinity and working to change their mindsets!!! the main character owning up for his mistakes in a healthy way and trying to move on and be a productive member of society!!! yes please!!!!

this is a book about a teenage hacker named Eli who is a self proclaimed genius and computer geek. he gets caught up in coding a website dedicated to avenging the people who bullied a boy named Jordan who committed suicide a year prior to the events of this book. i loved the way that even the bullies and cheaters and bigots were portrayed as three dimensional. their actions were not erased or forgiven, but the reader was able to see them as real people instead of cartoon villains. the themes of hero vs villain and the way that Eli came to see the poisonous nature of revenge and the fact that everyone had shades of grey in them-- not just good or evil-- was extremely well done. it is rare to see such complex themes in YA.

i wish that Eli's relationship with his father had been delved into further, but i loved reading about the way his view of his father's girlfriend changed. i feel this story took a common trope "the evil stepmother/ dad's new girlfriend" trope and handled it in a very unique and effective way. i loved Misty, and she was such a positive example. i also loved the subplot about Isabel and that scene where she puts makeup on Eli and explains that men can wear makeup too was so precious.

i feel that this book is a very important addition to the genre and is something that many teens and adults could benefit from reading. i felt that in certain situations, the topic of homophobia was not dealt with in the best way, but other than that, delicate issues like suicide, drug use and cyberbullying were handled well.

one of the most important scenes in this book was the climax and i loved the way that Eli told Mouse that SPOILER Jordan lit his own match and although many people treated him unfairly and were completely in the wrong, Jordan's suicide was not anyone's fault. that line alone ended 13 reasons why.

the writing was nothing memorable to me, but i very much enjoyed the plot, and the writing did nothing to inhibit that. although some of the dialogue and teen slang made me cringe, a lot of it was very realistic and made me laugh at times. i feel like Lange really nailed it on the head when Eli said something in his monologue to the effect of "disgust is an easy emotion to fall back on when you don't want your parents to know your actual emotions." as a teenager, those words are almost to true to handle.

the characters were fun and likable for the most part, but i didn't feel very connected to any of them, and i felt that the characters and relationships could have benefitted from much more development.

in general, i enjoyed this book and would recommend it to teens and parents. the exploration of social media and morality was extremely well done and the way the internet was portrayed here was a lot more realistic than other books. this book actually showed it's messages in a fairly subtle and nuanced way, which i greatly appreciated. nothing makes me cringe harder than when authors make their characters preach about social and political values-- even when i agree with them. this book was enjoyable and well done and i think is a very important and meaningful addition to the genre.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

TW: Suicide and bullying.

I was super excited to start reading The Chaos of Now by Erin Jade Lange. Being a super big fan of her books and her writing style, I had high expectations for this book. Needless to say, I was not disappointed!
As always, the writing style of Lange is flawless. I adore the way she is able to bring together the story neatly and efficiently. It’s able to keep my interest and make me want to know what happens next. I also love how she is able to create such in-depth and relatable characters. In today’s world, so many teenagers and children are hooked to technology and The Chaos Of Now shows the more gritty reality of that. How, without barriers, things can spiral out of control.

“I was learning to accept a little less chaos in my life.”

The story follows a year after the suicide of Jordan Bishop due to high school bullies. Because of this, more laws were put in at schools when it came to browsing the internet and social media. However, for Eli Bennett, a teen hacker who enjoys looking into things when he shouldn’t be, is at risk. These new rules put his hobbies on the line and he’s not a fan. It removes his freedom of speech. Eli is also not alone with this train of thought and is eventually approached by two like-minded individuals, Seth and Mouse.

But they want Eli to join them in hacking and outting the bullies of Jordan. Seth and Mouse were once friends of Jordan, and they want to start an online Justice for Jordan website. A place where they can show Jordan’s bullies in ways that would embarrass them, or worse. But what starts off as an innocent picture here and there quickly turns into a darker area. With the website spiraling, it may also be ruining Eli and his chance of being in school, and the lives of people he cares about.

“My world was simple and small, and the air gap that protected me from the rest of the world was still in place.”

Eli is a lovely character and I really enjoyed getting to learn about him. He is super passionate. I love how even in a very dark contemporary (suicide and bullying being very focused), Eli brings some humor into it. Although there are times when he struggles, especially when it comes to his step mum and his dad. He doesn’t like how his dad is with a younger woman and he feels like he’s being put on the side. There are also times when I feel like Eli is not the nicest to his best friend, Zach, because he wants to keep secrets from him. But Eli struggles with these problems and issues he faces and I enjoy the way his character progresses and ends with The Chaos of Now.

Seth and Mouse were also really interesting characters, and throughout The Chaos Of Now, my heartfelt for Mouse the most. I kept wondering what would happen to him. Can I just wrap him in a blanket, please? I also enjoyed reading about Eli’s best friend. Although left on the sidelines a bit when Eli joins Seth and Mouses group, Zach really wants to be there for Eli. He really shows what a proper friendship should be.

This book is very heavy on plot and not very “action” based. The way that Lange writes puts emphasis on the heavier parts of the plot and bringing awareness to them. I feel strongly that the characters really drove home the concept of bullying and how, if not stopped, can destroy the lives of others. It’s just an all-around good book and I highly recommend it if you are a fan of her previous books!

Want to read more reviews? Check out the blog! Bexyish Blog

[Tanja von Der Duft von Büchern und Kaffee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Inhalt:

An Elis Schule ist Mobbing kein unbekanntes Thema. Trotz eines Vorfalls in der Vergangenheit, bei dem ein Junge sich in der Cafeteria der Haver High, mit Benzin übergossen und selbst angezündet hat, sind Sticheleien und Ausgrenzungen immer noch an der Tagesordnung.

Eli selbst kann sich mit Jordan, dem Jungen der sich einst das Leben genommen hat, identifizieren. Auch er ist ein Computernerd, dessen liebste Freizeitbeschäftigung darin besteht Daten zu hacken. Doch im Gegensatz zu Jordan ist Eli nicht alleine. Er hat einen besten Freund namens Zach, der sein Hobby teilt und ihm treu zur Seite steht.

Nach einem unschönen Vorfall auf der Herrentoilette, bei dem Eli von einem Mitschüler bedroht wird, erkennt er beim Blick in den Spiegel eine dort in Form eines Binärcodes hingekritzelte Botschaft. Das Rätsel ist für Eli schnell geknackt.

Zwei Mitschüler, Seth und Mouse, haben auf diesem Weg versucht, Elis Aufmerksamkeit zu erlangen. Sie wollen den Jungen in ihrem Team für die US-amerikanische Cybersicherheitsmannschaft, die jeden Sommer in einer anderen Stadt stattfindet, und bei der es darum geht, in Dreierteams in den Bereichen Programmieren und Hacken um ein Preisgeld gegeneinander anzutreten. Oft werden die Gewinner von großen Unternehmen als Cyberprofis gescoutet. Ein Traum, den Eli schon seit Jahren träumt. Denn so gut Eli auch mit Computern umgehen kann, seine schulischen Leistungen lassen zu wünschen übrig.

Doch in dieses Team einzusteigen hat nicht nur einen Haken. Eli wollte solch ein Team immer mit seinem besten Freund Zach aufstellen. Doch für diesen gibt es leider keinen Platz mehr in der Gruppe. Überdies ist die Idee von Seth' und Mouse' für den Wettkampf zwar genial, bewegt sich aber im Graubereich der Legalität.
Eli muss sich entscheiden, ob er bereit ist einen hohen Preis zu zahlen, um seinen Traum zu leben.



Meinung:

Das Angebot von Elis Mitschülern Seth und Mouse, ihrem Hackerteam beizutreten, klingt einfach zu verlockend, um es auszuschlagen. Als Teammitglied muss Eli sich jedoch einigen Regeln unterwerfen. Keiner darf von diesem Geheimbund erfahren. Dessen Ziel ist nicht nur die Cybersicherheitsmannschaft zu gewinnen, sondern auch an den Tätern, die einst einen Mitschüler durch Mobbingattacken in den Selbstmord getrieben haben, Rache zu nehmen.

Eli ist, als er die Einladung der beiden Mitschüler erhält, anfangs skeptisch. Seth und Mouse sind zwei Jungen, die er auf der Schule nie wirklich zur Kenntnis genommen hat. Auch seinem besten Freund nichts von diesem Projekt verraten zu dürfen, ist etwas, was Eli überhaupt nicht gefällt.
Seit dem Vorfall im letzten Jahr, als sich ein Mitschüler nach Mobbingattacken das Leben genommen hatte, hat auch die Schule Maßnahmen ergriffen. Die Cyber-Stasi, wie sie von den Schülern der Haver High genannt wird, kümmert sich akribisch um Onlinestraftaten, die sich gegen die Schule und ihre Schüler richten.
Eli träumt von einer Zukunft, die nicht in dem Schatten seiner schlechten Noten liegt.

Zwar wäre eine Internetpräsenz, die dem aufmerksamen Augen der Cyber-Stasi entgeht, eine Idee, die gute Chancen auf einen Gewinn bei der Meisterschaft hätte. Doch ist dieses Vorhaben zugleich illegal. Sicherlich haben die Mitschüler, die Jordans Tod auf dem Gewissen haben, eine Abreibung verdient. Doch hat wohl jeder schon einmal das Sprichwort gehört: "Wer auf Rache aus ist, der grabe zwei Gräber". Ab einem gewissen Zeitpunkt meldet sich jedenfalls Elis schlechtes Gewissen.

Die Journalistin und Autorin Erin Jade Lange spricht aus und schreibt nieder, was sie umtreibt. Kein Wunder also, dass Firewall ungemein realistisch erzählt daher kommt.
Ihr Protagonist Eli ist ein Nerd, der sich mit alterstypischen Problemen, wie der ersten großen Liebe, schulischen Problemen und der neuen Geliebten seines Vaters, einer ehemaligen Stripperin, herumschlagen muss. Das wirkt oft so, als sei es direkt dem Leben abgelauscht.



Fazit:

Erin Jade Lange beleuchtet in ihrem Buch „Firewall“ die Systematik der öffentlichen Demütigung im Internet. Cybermobbing, das Anprangern und Beleidigen im Internet, kann Folgen wie Depressionen oder Selbstmordgedanken nach sich ziehen. Mit der virtuellen Welt hat das Phänomen Mobbing eine weitere Dimension bekommen.

Zugleich geht es in diesem Buch um Freundschaft, familiäre Probleme, Zusammenhalt und die erste Liebe. Es geht um Rache und den Wunsch nach einem Ausgleich für das entstandene Unrecht.

Die Geschichte wirkt mitten aus dem Leben geschöpft, präzise der Wirklichkeit abgelauscht.

Ein empfehlenswertes Buch für alle, die sich für die Lebenswirklichkeit junger Menschen interessieren. Eine vollumfängliche Leseempfehlung.

[Unseen Library · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received a copy of The Chaos of Now from Allen & Unwin to review.

Rating of 4.5.

From one of the most intriguing authors of modern young adult fiction comes this powerful story about bullying in the modern cyber world and the potential impacts our choices can have on those around us.

One year ago, a student at Haver High, Jordan Bishop, walked into the school cafeteria and committed suicide by setting himself on fire, a reaction to the relentless online bullying he was experiencing. Since that event, life at Haver High has not been the same. Not only do the scars of Jordan’s actions remain but radical legislation brought in to combat cyberbullying ensure that students’ online lives are openly monitored by federal cybersnoops.

Eli Bennett is a young hacker who is desperate to graduate and leave town in order escape his father and his father’s new girlfriend, Misty. Eli is happy enough at school with his only friend, Zach, although he wouldn’t mind getting to know the beautiful Isabel. But when he is approached by fellow hackers Seth and Mouse, he finds himself drawn into an entirely new challenge. Seth and Mouse were Jordan’s friends, but have had to keep their relationship with him a secret to avoid backlash from the other students. Desperate to get some sort of justice for their fallen comrade, they are seeking a way to get back at those students who drove Jordan to kill himself. Their idea is to create a website where Jordan’s bullies can be publicly shamed, and they need Eli to make it untraceable to the authorities. Despite being haunted by a previous hacking mistake, Eli agrees to help, interested in the potential of this sort of website.

Calling the website ‘Friends of Bishop’, the site provides the students of Haver High with an anonymous forum to post videos about bad behaviour in the school. With the help of a few bombshell videos, the site becomes a hit, and Eli and his friends believe they are making some real changes. With the cybersnoops desperately try to shut down the site, the hidden Friends of Bishop revel in their notoriety and the praise of many of their classmates. But when their quest for justice takes a nasty turn, Eli finds himself facing the real-world consequences of his actions and must try and work out what the right thing to do is.

Click link for full review:
https://unseenlibrary.com/2018/10/29/...

Or visit my blog at:
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[Laura Koehler · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thanks to the @kidlitexchange network for the review copy of this book— all opinions are my own.--- “But it turns out, guilt doesn’t slide off so easy. It sticks to you like a film you can’t rinse away.” In his daily life, Eli does the bare minimum to skate by. The only thing he is really passionate about is coding. So when he is summoned by two students he barely knows that are also coding nerds, his interest is peaked. Seth and Mouse ask him to be their third teammate in an elite coding competition. To Eli, this is the perfect opportunity to get noticed by companies for internships so he can bypass college and start doing what he really loves. Eli agrees to the offer, and they begin their work. But he begins to realize that this coding project is actually a mission to seek revenge and humiliate everyone who wronged Jordan Bishop, a boy who committed suicide earlier in the year due to bullying. With the creation of the website "Friends of Bishop," Eli feels satisfied and powerful. But as secrets start to unfold and the effects of their project bring about extreme consequences, he starts to feel conflicted and extremely guilty. By the end of this novel, Eli learns that his actions can have a far greater impact than he ever imagined.

Eli is the epitome of a teenage boy narrator. At times, he is self-centered, self-conscious, and down right rude. In contrast, he has his moments of sheer loyalty, honesty, and kindness toward his friends and family. I appreciate that the author created a character that was so authentic. I also loved that this novel explored the fine line that exists between justice and revenge. The book did an excellent job exploring multiple perspectives, forcing the reader to walk in other people’s shoes. Readers of this novel will learn that it is not our job to control the universe and that technology can have intense consequences that can never be erased. I would recommend this book for high school readers and libraries due to the mature issues that Eli and his friends deal with.

[Clare Bird · Rating 3 out of 5]

I want to thank Netgalley for a free advanced copy of The Chaos of Now in return for an honest review!

Things I enjoyed about this book:

I love the fact that Erin Jade Lange tackles such a prevalent topic bullying. Anti-bullying is my jam so I was super excited to pre-read this book! I also enjoyed that coding was the a main concept in this book, it’s not the norm to have some as “nerdy” as coding in a novel.

The Things I Didn’t Enjoy:

The Chaos of Now had so many parts that felt far-fetched. It was hard to believe every twist and turn. There were times when it was hard to connect with the characters. I couldn’t tell if it was because of ME or because of the writing.

MRS BIRDS WORDS REVIEW

Erin Jade Lange deserves 3 out of 5 bird feathers for her novel The Chaos of Now. I truly wanted to give this book 4 feathers, but the lack of reality really pulled me back. The plot felt slow in a few places. I truly loved that The Chaos of Now was littered with coding talk. I appreciated the hard subjects tackled including suicide and bullying. I think these are subjects that need to be talked about. The one relationship that I did love was the main character, Eli and his father’s girlfriend. For some reason, I was excited every time they interacted. I don’t often read a book and think, ” I’d definitely recommend this for a boy.” I do think many boys would find it interesting. With that said, I think girls would enjoy it too- perhaps just more relatable because of the three male protagonists not because its about coding… Girls should code! Overall, I’d recommend it but would be prepared for some literary stretching.

Parent’s Guide:

Swearing, sex, crime, and suicide. It would make a great conversation starter to read with your teen and discuss!

©CLVB2018

[Katy Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cyberbullying is at the heart of this pertinent school story.

In the aftermath of a suicide in the lunch hall a year ago, a nationwide reaction focusing on cyberlaws to protect students restricts online freedoms for everyone. The online bullying that resulted in Jordan Bishop's death has caused much underground hacker activity. Eli is approached by fellow hackers to help take revenge upon those who caused Jordan's death and begins to enjoy the power of scoring points against the bullies.

It's a classic tale of "power corrupts...", in a very contemporary context. I was reminded of Thirteen Reasons Why at times, though the victim here is a male, the bullies are widespread and none identifiable as a 'main' culprit in Jordan's demise.

Eli becomes a convincing Everyman, one who is blessed with superior coding skills, but one faced with a problem we would all struggle to choose the moral direction with. Who deserves to be punished, and who gets to decide?

There are a few red herrings and some good 'nasty' characters at school that show other sides to themselves later on, in the way they tend to. Eli has a slightly uncomfortable home life, with Dad's new (much younger) girlfriend causing yet more guilt and dilemmas. There's a love interest for Eli that is rather sweet, and the girl in question is quite a strongly rounded character too, I wanted more from her but she was, alas, not the focus.

I liked the social media angle and how it is used by the hackers and by the school community as a way of venting frustration and grievances. I did want more at the end though, more assurance of the future direction of the characters and 'what will happen next' - the sign you've grown to care.

For ages 12 and above.

[Jonathan Gentry · Rating 5 out of 5]

For Erin’s fourth piece, she’s returning to her roots. However, this time around she adds a refreshing cyber concept to the bully trope.

In The Chaos of Now, we follow Eli, a coding genius who wants nothing more than to leave his current life in Haver High for a job in the cyber world. I’m a cyber geek just like him, and I can tell you that his portrayal was spot-on realistic and very believable. I especially love the little “space, backspace, space, backspace” quirk he has. This is something that I do myself when I’m in deep thought in front of my keyboard.

After a run-in with a jock in the restroom, he finds a code message left behind by someone who heard the run-in happen. When he deciphers it, he’s welcomed into a team of computer geniuses that call themselves “Friends of Bishop.” They call themselves this because of a freshman named Jordan Bishop (who Eli knew) that committed suicide in the school cafeteria due to bullying. Together they set off on a mission of revenge to get justice for Jordan.

This almost reminds me of the plot for the second Watch Dogs video game in a way. An underground hacking group using their cyber skills to take on a bunch of people they feel wronged them in a day and age where there are strict cyber regulations in place.
The side characters and subplots were excellent and complimented the main narrative well too. My favorite side character would have to be Mouse because I see a lot of myself in him (not so much at the end though.)

I also think the character of Misty and the whole “evil stepmom” to “trusted confidant” subplot was done well. You can see why Eli can’t stand his new step mom at the start, and why in the end she’s the only parental figure he can trust.

All in all, I’ve loved Erin’s constant takes on the bullying trope and contemporary genre. I’m excited for the Butter movie as well as whatever her fifth book will be!

[Mandi Schneck · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was not expecting to enjoy this book as much as I did. The Chaos of Now by Erin Jade Lange is a YA contemporary that follows Eli, a high school student obsessed with computers and coding. The book starts one year after one of Eli's classmates, Jordan Bishop, committed suicide by lighting himself on fire in the middle of the cafeteria, with bullying as the cause. There is definitely a trigger warning on this book for bullying and suicide.

Eli himself is a victim of bulling, having most recently been beaten up in the bathroom. But immediately following his beating, Eli is left a code in a computer language very few can understand. The code leads him to some new friends and a slot in a team for a major coding competition. But when the team's competition project turns into a vehicle for revenge on Jordan's death, Eli isn't sure he wants to stay a part of it, especially when his own secrets are at stake.

I really enjoyed this read! I liked all of the characters, and thought the plot was fast paced and engaging. This was definitely focused on the harm that bullying can do, but had a great techie aspect to it as well. I did think that some parts were a little bit unrealistic, both some actions and some repercussions. I absolutely appreciated that the love interest was not at all the center of this story.

Fans of books like Warcross, and those interested in computers, technology, and coding, would definitely enjoy this read!

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars

Thanks so much to Bloomsbury for an advanced copy of this read! The Chaos of Now by Erin Jade Lange is out TOMORROW, Oct. 2nd, so be sure to pick up a copy!

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Eli and his classmates will never forget the traumatic suicide by a fellow student in the school cafeteria. Everyone knew that Jordan Bishop didn't quite fit in and was bullied online, and some even thought he'd be better off dead.

Eli is good at computer coding, so good, in fact, that he's hacked into a few computers that he shouldn't have. One was especially dangerous and resulted in an act of violence, but luckily, no one was hurt. Eli himself recently became a victim of a bully which was witnessed by another computer geek who invited him to join in a coding group with another student. Together they decide to take down the school's cybersecurity site which was put in place after Jordan's suicide as an entry into the prestigious computer competition that could lead to lucrative internships, scholarships, or jobs.

The trio decide to also make a few students pay for their bullying of Jordan with an online site with videos embarrassing them. At first, the videos have consequences for those students that seem like justice is being done, but life is never that simple. Unfortunately, when things start to spiral out of control, Eli and his new friends are powerless to stop them, and may be endangering their own futures in the process.

[Rok!tsuperhero · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love everything about this book. The story and the relation to coding, cyber-snooping and anything and everything hacking and coding. I'm a beginner to this hacking and coding world and every day it intrigues me, so to find a fictional book that not only has a great message but also entertaining and knows what it's talking about, it's everything that I could ever want in a book. I loved the ending as it felt realistic. It didn't have a happy ever after in my opinion, and honestly, if there was, I wouldn't be happy. It ended perfectly. I felt that Eli being so honest to the point where his future may be either behind bars or in the job/school of his dreams, was so brave. I never would admit what he admitted, TBH. That takes balls honestly. I'm glad I got the chance to read this book, it will definitely be in my personal library!

[Tara Weiss · Rating 3 out of 5]

Do you ever think about how much you don't know? Like, for example, the internet . . . I mean, I had to take a compulsory coding class in library school, but yeah . . . surface level right there. Not even scratched surface level, digging in towards encryption and security with a nail file.
On one level this book is about teen suicide, bullying, avenge/revenge, first amendment rights, and what happens when a school seeks to take away student rights. But there is this other part where the consideration of parents having no idea what a child can do online. I like the story from this point of view. That is more of a 4-star story . . . the other parts are sort of run of the mill YA, but that's new territory and a worthwhile read.

[Cambear · Rating 3 out of 5]

A tale of bullying, revenge, the dangers of the internet and escalation

This is one of the books where you aren’t supposed to like the characters so much as empathize and understated them. It’s a cautionary tale about the dangers of cyber bullying and how extreme they can be.

It moves swiftly as the stakes and consequences escalate. At the same time, the characters really do some stupid stuff so you want to scream at them not to do it.

So it’s an interesting story with a strong warning, but not one that resonated personally with me. But for those that are looking for a light page-turner thriller (of sorts), this may fit the bill.

Thanks to the publisher for providing a copy of the book for review

[Georgie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve tried this one a couple of times before and struggled with it because I found it hard to like the main character Eli. I’m so glad I have it another go. Eli is not the most sympathetic of characters. He constantly treats his stepmom and best friend like crap. His stepmom doesn’t really deserve it, but I get that he was pissed off about his dad dating a much younger woman. His best friend definitely didn’t deserve it. But I thought Eli was an honest portrayal of how some teenagers can be. I loved the character Mouse, and Zach (Eli’s best friend). The plot was gripping and intense, and I was caught up in Eli’s story, and grew to understand him even while wanting to smack him upside the head.
The book also gets a whole star just for the use of the phrase ‘basement Goonies’.