Otherworld

By: Jason Segel, Kirsten Miller

Narrated by: Jason Segel

Length: 10 hrs and 32 mins

Publisher's Summary

For fans of Black Mirror and HBO's Westworld, Otherworld is the first book in New York Times best-selling authors Jason Segel and Kirsten Miller's new YA sci-fi-thriller series.

The future is now. And the future is terrifying.

There are no screens. There are no controls. You don't just see and hear it - you taste, smell, and touch it, too. In this new reality, there are no laws to break or rules to obey. You can live your best life. Indulge every desire.

It's a game so addictive you'll never want it to end. Until you realize that you're the one being played.

Welcome to Otherworld, where reality is dead. Step into the future. Leave your body behind.

The frightening future that Jason Segel and Kirsten Miller have imagined is not far away. Otherworld asks the question we'll all soon be asking: If technology can deliver everything we want, how much are we willing to pay?

©2017 Jason Segel (P)2017 Listening Library

Dante's Inferno for the LitRPGs

While I normally dislike the author reading his own story, Jason Segel does a great job of bringing his characters to life. However, his orc sounds suspiciously like monster with a fondness for cookies.

I think that comparing this story to Ready Player One is unfair. The only thing in common with it would be the virtual reality. The majority of the plot does not even take place in the video game. Otherworld is more of a setting for the characters to be in another realm and it is not described like video games in most litRPG books. And the parallels to Dante's Inferno seem evident throughout the book and it addresses similar themes.

You can find a summary in other reviews, but I would recommend this story to anyone looking for a story with a young protagonist who had his morals challenged over the course of his journey while trying to save the one thing he cares about. It is near-future sci-fi with great characters.

5 of 5 people found this review helpful

Jason Segel killed it.

This book is fantastic and I couldn't stop listening. I was listening to the audiobook while on a hike and next thing I knew it was raining, and I'd walked nine miles. Jason Segel is the most talented narrator I think I've ever listened to, and I listen to a lot of audiobooks. He brought the story to life. It felt like I was watching it happen. He and Kirsten Miller created an incredible story and made it colorful and real, and his narration took it up another notch. Listening to Otherworld has been a fantastic experience. I've enjoyed every minute of it.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

not terrible, but not good either

What disappointed you about Otherworld?

The story overall was ok, but could've ended fairly well with another few chapters; no real reason to make this a series.

Jason Segel (love him as an actor) did a well enough job as a narrator (more experience and he could be really good) but the story was just lacking for my taste. The concept is a good SciFi plot but now i see why the genre was Young Adult instead. I'm not much of a YA reader but still....

What three words best describe Jason Segel’s performance?

in-training potential-to-be-good not-quite-there-yet

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Enjoyable but Amateurish

Can literally anyone be a NYT bestselling author these days? This book kept me interested and listening because I was curious to solve the mystery and find out what would happen. However, the characters are extremely weak and the writing, overall, was amateurish. It reminded me of my days reading fanfiction online. The dialogue is sometimes painfully bad. And the main character's only reaction to anything is anger, even when anger is a nonsensical reaction. It reads as if the authors had no editor and never bothered to re-read the work after finishing it. If they had, one would think they'd realize the anger reaction was more repetitive than intended and attempt to add more depth to the protagonist. But that's not what happened. Simon fails to grow or mature as a character during the story and nothing about him screams "the one" to me, which makes the whole premise of the narrative hard to believe. Another character, Busara, is equally poorly developed. [**SPOILER ALERT**] I wanted her to be the fearless/ruthless person pulling the strings to bring down the Company's scheme, but instead she is wishy-washy and unsure of what she's doing. One particularly pivotal conversation between her and Simon was so poorly written that it annoyed me into writing this review. Some editor somewhere dropped the ball on this one. The result is a good and enjoyable story in an unpolished package by a writer who seems to lack maturity. The narration is equally lackluster.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Jason Segel

I loved this book!
It’s so great and the narration makes it worth the buy!

Slow to start but a good book once it picks up

Very slow start but once it picks up it really is a good story. It's kind of a look into what the future of video games and technology addiction could drive humanity to. Proof once again greed trump morality time and time again. Segel does a great job writing and narrating this book and I can't wait to read the sequel. A boy will go to no ends for love even if it may cost him his life

Well done!

Anxiously awaiting the next book. I like the story!

The characters interact really well, and the main character is relatable to most young adults.
I would probably get absorbed in the Otherworld game if it was available.

Discount “Ready Player One”

Just couldn’t get into this book. Feels like a knock-off Ready Player One but if the main character was pre-puberty Holden Caulfield.

Siegel has once again surprised me

I was intrigued by the author then addicted to the story. I laughed I cried I wish it wasn’t over... impatiently awaiting a sequel.

Interesting Story

The novel was a fun listen to, but slow to start. Too much backstory in the initial chapters. It was hard to believe some parts of the story and characterization seemed rushed. Overall, once it got going story was interesting enough to compell me to finish.