Ready Player Two by Ernest Cline

Ready Player Two, just like its predecessor Ready Player One, endlessly references 80s pop culture. It's very nostalgic, and acts as if no good film, video game, music or book was ever written or released after the 1990s.

The plot was compelling enough that I forced myself to finish the novel, although some chapters dragged. Did those chapters drag because I did not know enough about the movies/musician/video game they were referencing? Probably. But a novel is not supposed to punish me for not knowing about names, events, and facts it has not even discussed. It's even supposed to make me care and want to learn more about them, which, sadly, Ready Player Two failed to do. If it's my fault that I didn't enjoy the novel fully because I am not familiar with 80s pop culture, then the novel gatekeeps more than it entertains.

However, I think the ending saved the book, although it felt like a combination of several Black Mirror episodes. (Yes, I know I just complained about being bombarded with pop culture references, and now I'm using one. Sorry! But if you haven't seen a single episode of Black Mirror, you must at least try, for it is an examination of modern society and the unexpected horrors of modern technology).