Book Review: No Pain, No Game
No Pain, No Game by Lucie Ataya is a dystopian novel that explores what would happen if convicts sentenced to death row were put up on reality TV and tortured to death.
I enjoyed this book, but just like hunger games or the movie “Purge,” the premise is a little unbelievable, sometimes breaking my suspension of disbelief. At the same time, however, who’s to say something like this WOULDN’T happen to society? We had public execution and torture during the middle ages; what makes us so different now? What TRULY separates us? Humans are still just as bloodthirsty. And if we got desperate enough, perhaps we would revert back to past mistakes.
This was a fun exploration into the mind and forced me to think about what really makes up humanity and society. My only real critique was about the character Miranda. We got many descriptions and stories from other characters, and while we did get some from her, I believe her story fell flat. There wasn’t enough time taken to her investigation, nor of her past. There were certain elements I would have loved to see fleshed out more, but she was still a great character, and I enjoyed her and Pedro’s relationship.
Other than that, I had a lot of fun with this book, and the polished writing and formatting made it all the more enjoyable.
There were some AWESOME quotes in this book too:
...The smile on his face was as polished and impeccable as the dark designer suit he was wearing.
The beast had awoken, and deciding upon not granting its prey any mercy, it had sprinted towards it at full speed, pouncing before allowing itself another moment of doubt.
He was every shadow children feared underneath their beds, every unknown movement at the corner of dark little streets, and that fresh breeze of panic one shattered from when standing too close to the edge of a cliff.
The world of fame and fortune was a solitary one, and everyone wasn’t cut out for it.
If you enjoy dystopian stories, check this one out! This is a great addition to the genre.
Elizabeth Suggs is the owner and founder of Editing Mee and co-owner of Collective Tales Publishing. When she’s not writing or editing, she loves to dive deep into books (the weirder, the better!), and she loves to take random long walks to unplanned destinations. Check out her recently released book Collective Darkness with eleven other authors. Buy your copy here: www.CollectiveDarkness.com