I really didn't like any of the characters and felt like the resolution was just blah. The idea of a videogame project manager as a tortured artist was a cool premise. ( )

Ryan Colter and his team have been working on the video game, Blue Lightning, but, due to budget constraints from up the ladder, Ryan’s manager has to scrap the video game in favor of adapting a shoot-em-up type game for older systems. Ryan has a real hard time with the decision and begins to seriously consider quitting and working on writing the book he wants to write full-time. Instead, Ryan throws himself into the next project to try to bring the entire team on board only to have Blue Lightning come back to haunt him. Blue Lightning has come to life and has no desire to be shelved and put in storage. Has Blue Lightning truly come to life or is Ryan imagining it all? Will Ryan find a way to save the game without losing his sanity?

An intriguing plot with fun, well-developed characters. Readers who are into gaming and game development will enjoy the gaming references and the idea of a game coming to life. ( )

Not what I expected or hoped for. This book isn't really about a video game character running around killing people. It's more about the man who created her. It dragged on a bit, and was a bit too techy for me, but overall it was an OK read. I would say it's more about obsession than horror. ( )

I received this as an early review copy from librarything. I thought this was a good story based around the gaming industry. I can see people relating to the job and relationship aspect of this tale. How people get so wrapped up in their career they neglect those they love and what they have waiting for them at home. I loved the fantasy side of this also. Blue Lightning truly interferes with peoples lives in more ways than one! This author did a great job in making this something fun to read and hold your interest to the end. ( )

Disclaimer: This Kindle book was received via LibraryThing's Early Reviewer giveaway.

The story starts out with a good look at a video game director who is very heavily invested in his work. Like all workaholics, his life outside the office deteriorates and frustration over the lack of control spirals in. For the first entire half of the book, we see the effects of overbearing stress and repetitive stupid, stupid decisions on Ryan, our intrepid hero. His ingenious work, destined to revolutionize the gaming industry, is canceled due to game producer (read: beancounter) bottom line risk aversion, and he's forced to work on a brainless and talentless port of a crappy franchise piece guaranteed to bring in millions for the production company but bring nothing new to the table. Our boy Ryan is an arrogant egotist with very poor social and decision-making skills; a cardboard cutout stereotype of an outcast gamer geek somehow done well for himself. He's got the dream girl, he's got the dream job, he's got the horrible unlikability...

When the supernatural events promised by the front cover actually do take place at the halfway point of the book, I was interested once again. Perhaps this new player would liven things up. I get the whole "project takes on a life of its own" allegory and it had potential, but there's very little escalation by our Blue Lightning entity that cannot be attributed to Ryan's idiocy. I started to think this was less a supernatural/sci-fi AI manifestation and a narrative breakdown in Ryan's sanity, delving into some neat interactions with coworkers as the mental break progresses. I wish it were that good.

The confrontation prior to the climax was enjoyable but the resolution was extremely -- EXTREMELY -- disappointing. There's only so far I'm willing to go with my suspension of disbelief and when that quota is nearly used up beforehand, the ending had best be at least logical within the confines of the world that was created. There were glimmers of potential throughout but nothing truly came together during the book and all of it was dashed by the ending. With another work or two and some serious work on creating likable characters, Dansky may be able to flip my opinion. Until then, this one gets a pass. ( )