The Socket Greeny Saga: A Science Fiction Thriller

Interesting concept but I found that descriptions of mental states got a bit too long and found that overall the main character did not develop enough to direct his own future rather he seemed to float through every thing that happened to him.

The books were great, with the perfect bittersweet ending that marks a great author in the making. The story and characters really pull you in. HOWEVER, the story could have been much more in depth and characters more developed. It felt a little rushed at points as well. Thats the 4/5 star breaker.

It may not have been one of the page-turner type stories that I have read in the past but, it kept me interested just enough to WANT to keep reading on and find out what happens next. It was a very well thought out and written saga. I enjoyed it thoroughly and would recommend it to my friends and others interested in such a story.

I liked the premise but it went off the rails about a third of the way through. The author clearly likes to read his words on the page because there were certainly a lot of them. I think the book clearly needed an editor that was willing to rein this guy in. The descriptions were virtually incomprehensible. I guess that must be what's nice about writing a SciFi/fantasy novel - nothing has to make any sense and maybe most readers don't expect it to. I thought about quitting in the middle but slogged my way through. I'm glad I only paid $1.99.

Like dragging a child into Disneyland kicking and screaming to have the gratifying wonder finally show in their face, Tony drags existentialism into the 21st century world of technology to blossom again. Immersing and totally fun.

I read the first volume some time ago and thought it fascinating so when I had the chance I glommed onto the set. I started reading
an stopped only to take care of bodily functions. I'm seldom so immersed in a story even less so with a juvenile main character. But
I was caught up in this story and enjoyed it from beginning to end.

Extremely enjoyable, well-paced, and imaginative series. Although obviously youth fiction, it's thought-provoking enough to engage adults. Satisfying character development, edgy story lines, and good sci-fi/fantasy wizardry.

This is a great series. I was captive by the concept. The series is very well written. While I am far from being a gamer but l can appreciate the philosophic mix of science and technology with the human condition. Your answer to the question of what constitutes being human is done very well.

May need to be deeply into gaming to enjoy this. I think I understood it sufficiently as I read along but did not find it interesting. I usually enjoy whimsy and YA sci-fi, but not this. Stopped about a third of the way through. That's OK...glad so many others love it and wish the author much success.

I could hardly remember the book title when I first started reading it. But once started, it's hard to stop reading. I could feel socket's struggle and the pain. Thoroughly enjoyed the books. Thank you, Tony Bertauski.

I almost didn't buy or read this book because I thought the title was too dumb. Boy was I wrong, a great story, a real page turner. I didn't want to put it down and when I did, I couldn't wait to get back to the story.

I don't always enjoy YA books as they often lack depth and characters can be flat but this is an excellent exception. I read all 3 books and would encourage readers to stick it out to the end. The end ties it all together in unexpected and satisfying ways. I'm not into gaming in the least but didn't feel lost. Now I'm trying to get my son to read it.

Well written with visuals that almost come to life. Would make a great movie.
A bit preachy near the end with redundant phrases used in the essence emphasis but the storyline was solid and sustained my interest regardless. The ending was uplifting and satisfying.

I first discovered Tony Bertauski through Halfskin and Clay, two of his sci-fi novels. I loved them and decided to give The Socket Greeny Saga a go. I really enjoyed the story, and the psychological insights of the main character were compelling, but overall, I think Halfskin was more innovative. That is the only reason I gave this trilogy only 4 stars.

I usually read horror, sci-fi and post-apoc but decided to try this saga. I got through 76% of it, noticed half a dozen typos, then skipped to the last 3% figuring the ending somewhat. I guess this is a gamers book, but still kind of strange. I'll conclude that based on the ending I'm very glad I skipped the last quarter.

I loved the first part of this series but it lost me soon after. I couldn't keep my focus for more than a few minutes on it past the middle. It became too much and too crazy. I think if you would have continued writing like you did in the beginning it would have been a much better story. It was confusing and uninteresting until the sad last few pages.

Ever find an author that makes you just want to live inside his/her head for a while? He's one of those for me. I never want his books to end. In just about a week I might have become a bit obsessed with his ideas and style. The fact that this specific genre isn't that far over the fiction line at this stage makes these books all the more relevant.

The story was quite different, I loved the first two books but the third was very unexpected, wasn’t crazy about the ending but they were still good reads...the concept was believable but it was way out there. Yes it did start out like “ready player one” but went SO much further, they were enjoyable books.

The story was quite different, I loved the first two books but the third was very unexpected, wasn’t crazy about the ending but they were still good reads...the concept was believable but it was way out there. Yes it did start out like “ready player one” but went SO much further, they were enjoyable books.

Like peeling an onion, 17-year-old Socket Greeny goes through many transformations. He eventually helps destroy a mechanical "god" that has absorbed all life force from numerous planets, leaving them lifeless. Long after he and those he knew and loved had died, most of old age, his importance is eventually recognized and he becomes a legend.

I'm absolutely at a loss as to what this book is all about. From the beginning it gives the impression of a future life where people (including the main character, a young man in high school) are "spaced out" nearly all the time because life is so mundane and difficult. I am following the teenager who lives in his skin when he has to, but is mostly going through an other experience like someone on drugs.
That's it.
Good thing I only wasted 99 cents. But then - maybe if you appreciate the getting high feeling, this book is for you.

I'm sorry but I really did not like it. I found a lot of it hard to understand. Also, it jumped into every kind of SF gimmick- ESP, telekinesis, mind control, aliens, wormholes, time travel, virtual worlds, vampires. machines taking over the Earth, etc. Worst of all, I did not care for the characters. There was not enough interaction between the main characters and the interaction between them was the only part of the story that I liked. Finally, you can't tell if characters are good or bad, alive or dead, or if they are even real.

A disappointment. Just another super-hero. I didn't feel anything for Socket or his friends. Here's the deal: tailor the villain to fit the tricks of the title character. It's been done to death. Boring, aside from the grimmets.

Throughout the book Socket always had these new understandings and connection with life or universe but it was always short lived and somehow didn't change anything for him. I constantly waited for him to be a kickass/ badass person but it never happened. He was always behind one step back and always a wussy. Ending, although imaginative, was not fulfilling for me and I felt downright cheated.
Even the supposed badasses of the books weren't tough guys and although I think hinted, maybe gengineered entirely. Even robots had super powers. There were many things to explore but left hanging. Somehow writing wasn't immersive and I always felt like a ghost. I agree with one of the reviewers comment that books had too much words.
I feel frustrated and I feel I wasted my time.

I just can't give a good review to a book that degenerates into degenerate language. The first book was OK, but in the second book the author reveals his low morals with vulgarity that is just not acceptable. And this was supposed to be a young adult book. I guess he thinks all young adults are just trash, and that's a pity. So I cannot recommend this one. If you wish to stay out of the sewer, skip this one.

The book had a decent plot and I enjoyed the author's style.

But, a good part of the time I didn't know what was going on.

The ideas presented in the story were pretty neat and I really enjoyed the first part. Then things started going a bit confusing and I often had to wait until the author took a break to figure out what happened. This may be because while I enjoy this type of fiction, I have a hard time wrapping my mind around it and conceptualizing things like this.

Review originally published at Lomeraniel dot com Audiobookreviews.

Socket discovers that he is different to the other kids. When in Virtual Mode he sees and can do things that his friends cannot. His mother explains him that he is special, and that his place is in the Paladin Nation, where other people with special abilities train to defend the world from a very dangerous enemy.

Last year I had the honor to review the 'Halfskin Boxed set' and I absolutely loved it. It reminds me of classic dystopian books but completely modernized. What is not to love? So when I got the chance to review 'The Socket Greeny' saga I did not think it twice.

Bertauski writes science-fiction, but the good kind that makes you think and keeps you awake at night. His characters are fully fleshed and they evolve significantly in the three books, which really helps the reader to connect to them, even though the problems they have are so different from ours that this is a difficult task, but Bertauski does it!

The main conflict reminds me of the one present in 'Halfskin' but with a twist. It was interesting to explore this once again from a different point of view.

When listening to the first and second book there was something that failed to make the books complete to me. The issue with the duplicates was an interesting one, but since their origin was kind of obscure, it was difficult to relate to the Paladins. At that moment the duplicates were a kind of faceless enemy but without a lot of substance. There was something missing. But Bertauski's books cannot be read as standalone. Each one of them is part of a meticulously written plan, and everything falls in place in the end. The questions I had, the things that did not convince me, were answered in the third book. So my advice is this: if you have the chance, get the complete saga and read it from beginning to end. Everything will make sense in the end.

The total length is more than 22 hours, but I was so immersed in the story that it took me four days to listen to the three books, and when I had finished them it left me with a lonely feeling, already missing Socket and his friends. As I have said, this is one of those books that makes you think and will have you busy mulling over it after some time. I spent over one hour awake in be around 5 am just unable to take my mind off this story.

The books are narrated this time by Tony Bertauski himself. I am not sure about this move though. I remember greatly enjoying the narration of 'Halfskin', but I had more issues with this one. While Bertauski's narration is mostly correct and his characters' interpretation is quite good, I missed some more voice range. He made the effort of giving a different voice to Spindle, but all the other characters sounded the same, even female characters. This rendered things a bit confusing at times. I also noticed a couple of sentence repetitions and numerous volume variations. This can sometimes be fixed by normalizing the track but I am not sure if it was somehow more evident on the original. At times I could hear Bertauski swallowing and even wheezing, probably caused but being to close to the microphone. All in all, the narration was okay, but I think it is a pity to have a just okay narration for a master piece like this. I believe in hiring professionals to have professional results, and a good narration always makes an audiobook shine.

I am happy that I took the time to listen to this audiobook, and I plan to read more by Tony Bertauski. He is one of my favorite authors nowadays!

I received a copy of this book in audio format from the author and narrator in exchange for an honest review.

This was one of the best sci-fi/tech audiobooks I've heard lately, and frankly I can't believe it's still relatively undiscovered. The Socket Greeny trilogy is no slow starter. It hits the ground running from page one and never lets up. Socket Greeny is a disaffected, tech-savvy 16-year-old outsider, who, along with his friends Streeter and Shoot, frequently ventures into an internet virtual mode. Accessible via a small wearable transmitting device, anyone with the right gear and skill can enter a moldable world of virtual reality, which Socket and his friends often do while in school (because their high school has the most powerful gateway in the area). But on one particular day when the trio enters virtual mode, something strange happens, and their lives become forever changed.

I was genuinely impressed by author Tony Bertauski's writing skill (spectacular balancing of story elements), his imagination (Spindle, the preserve, the grimmits), and foremost his ability to describe with astounding, well-proportioned detail the environments, events, and emotions experienced by the characters. This trilogy could easily become a movie or TV show, and I fervently hope that soon it will become one!

In some cases, I've found that when an author narrates their own material, it can sometimes be at a disservice to the story or performance, but this is certainly NOT the case here. Bertauski masterfully narrates each installment, and he accomplishes the feat with marvelous results. I caught only a few mispronounced words (eg. ethereal; YIN and yang), but in no way did they detract from my understanding of the context or decrease my overall enjoyment.

Despite its teen/young adult genre categorization, I believe adults will, like me, find a lot to love about the Socket Greeny saga. Going beyond mere entertainment, it was a full-on head rush of mental escapism. It was simply a pleasure to listen to! I'm looking forward to more from this author because he has so much to offer his readers and listeners.

I was provided a free copy of this audiobook by the author in exchange for my unbiased review. Many thanks for the opportunity!

He is best friends with Streeter and Chute...and so begins the odd names in this story. This story is about...virtual reality/friendship/good vs evil/school/adult authority figures....and all sorts of possibilities. There are hints of other stories - for instance "Men in Black" is referenced directly - but others are more subtle. I guess I have to classify this more as science fiction than anything else.

Another great story by Tony Bertauski! His writing reminds me of Stephen King's even though it isn't the same kind of horror. Tony has great character development and a wonderful story line. You just want to keep reading to see what is going to happen next.

What a satisfying ending. This saga starts out like it's about a pretty average teenage boy with a best friend and an almost girlfriend who kind of stumbles into a bigger purpose to his life. He goes away to train and learn and hopefully solve a problem or two. Well done and a good read, pretty standard. But after that happens, the story really takes off and comes into its own. All kinds of other things happen that explore the nature of be-ing and what it means to be real. Layer after layer is peeled away and we go farther down the rabbit hole. The more I read, the more i liked it. Very satisfying. This goes in my re-read list.

This is one of my favorite series. Socket Greeny and his friends are great characters that you just fall in love with. The imagery is beautiful and scary at times. I found that I could not put the book down. I was completely immersed in this story. Tony Bertauski is an amazing writer, and I highly recommend this to anyone interested in a hi tech, well rounded, sci fi story with lovable characters that you can believe in and root for, and some villains to dislike as well.

I have read the Drayton Chronicles by Mr. Bertauski and I say I am really enjoying his books. I love the charcters and the plot of this set of books. The first book sets you up to understand the others. I admit that I might be over analysing the story but I think Mr. Bertauski allows you to see beyond just the story. The story has many twists and turns that are very enjoyable to read as just the story but if you are into looking deeper you can see how this can apply to life in general as well....Thank you Sir for not just a great story but opening up an aware ness of self....If you like a story that is not "obvious" and can still turn you around...then you should give this saga a try... I think you will be pleased

I got this series free. Most free books are somewhere in the range of 1 star to 4 stars. This series is really good. The main character is a boy whose life has been turned upside down. He struggles with the revelations of his new life and the responsibilities it brings.

I could not put down these books and read the whole saga in 2 days. I did have to put the book down for a couple of hours in the last 50ish pages as I was becoming emotionally drained and needed a break. I doubt this would happen to anyone else, but this book really spoke to me.

I will be seeking out more books from this author.

I had no idea what to expect when I got this saga, but it has been a real pleasure to read. Bertauski throws in twists and turns that add dimension and mystery to the storyline while staying true to the central theme that technology is awesome - but who we are is defined by our actions. This is definitely worth a look!

Enjoying exploring this latest in sci-fi fantasy. An amazing imaginative saga of survival of life in a "virtual-mode" of futuristic drama. It serves to provide the author and reader a tour-de-force in creating a philosophical model to see us through the present transition times, to another reality. Perhaps a little more suffering than I have tolerance for, and then again the world we presently inhabit contains it's fair share. And that's a valid reason for the place of serious sci-fi.

C

This series of books is very well written. There are plenty of twist and turns throughout the books. The first book as usual is the best of the three, but they are all worth the money. The character development is such that you start to feel that you actually know the characters.

Tony Bertauski has become one of my favorite authors. This is the first series of his that I read and have been devouring one series after another since. The Socket Greeny saga really sticks with you and I have found myself thinking about it long after reading the last pages. I really liked the ending too!

Wow what a great author! I will gradually read all I can from him. This book can get a bit confusing at times as things are explained that no-one has ever experienced, but it held my interest to the end. Very unique and a must read!

This series of books is very well written. There are plenty of twist and turns throughout the books. The first book as usual is the best of the three, but they are all worth the money. The character development is such that you start to feel that you actually know the characters.

Tony Bertauski has become one of my favorite authors. This is the first series of his that I read and have been devouring one series after another since. The Socket Greeny saga really sticks with you and I have found myself thinking about it long after reading the last pages. I really liked the ending too!

Wow what a great author! I will gradually read all I can from him. This book can get a bit confusing at times as things are explained that no-one has ever experienced, but it held my interest to the end. Very unique and a must read!

This starts out as a pretty decent science fiction story. Unfortunately, the ending is a cheat. The author switches into metaphysical mumbo-jumbo to explain everything. It's as if he couldn't come up with a real ending, so he tried to dazzle the reader with his inventiveness and a tiny bit of feel-good.
If you like straight Science Fiction, don't bother.

Great trilogy, well written and a few surprises, I have read sci-fi and fantasy for years and its nice to get a fresh twist on the power of the mind and a mix of technology, I front want to say too much as it would spoil the books, but its well worth a read, and a big thank you to the author keep up the good work ?