Another good book from this author about sci fi stuff. I never enjoyed that genre as much prior to Crouch so for that I think him!!

Upgrade is a story that I know had I watched it as a movie, I would have loved it. There’s something about the visual aspect of movies that explains things to me, particularly sci-fi type things, that I have a harder time grasping when I’m reading about it. I don’t typically read a lot of sci-fi for that very reason but I was drawn to this story for what happens to Logan and what his body goes through when he discovers that he’s been given some type of DNA “upgrade” and can now do so much more than a normal human can do.

I loved that the story didn’t drag at all, it was nonstop all the way through. I admit I started feeling quite anxious while reading because it was obvious it was building to an all out war to save humanity and it really started feeling like an all too real scenario, like, what if this happened to US? I will say, some of those upgrades that Logan got? Increased reading speed, better memory, a stronger body? I’ll take those, please!

Mr. Crouch really tells the story well, and it’s obvious he researched the material extensively as it all felt like a very real world situation we could face at some point in time. I was fascinated with the concepts, and the whole “should man be trying to play God” scenario throughout. I would absolutely love to see this made into a film!

Blake Crouch is just one of those authors. You know you are in for a wild ride and it will likely turn out to be worth the time. Upgrade is no different. Sci-Fi nerds alike can rejoice in the fact that Crouch still has it.

Crouch has done it again! UPGRADE absolutely blew me away and kept me captivated through the entire story. I typically do not gravitate towards science fiction, however, I will read anything and everything by Blake Crouch. His stories are always so well thought out, easy enough to understand, and include fascinating predicaments that leave me thinking and talking about it with others. Absolutely will recommend UPGRADE to those that enjoy sci-fi or are looking to try something new.

Thank you thank you Netgalley and publishers for access to this advanced ebook in exchange for an honest review.

A reading friend introduced me to Blake Crouch a few years ago, starting with Dark Matter; I immediately read all of his other available titles and was so excited to read Upgrade when it was published. Unfortunately, this was my least favorite. I"m not sure if it's that I've watched/read several fairly similar stories, with similar plot lines and characters, or if I just didn't read this one at the right time; nevertheless, I struggled to get through it but forced myself to finish because I am such a huge fan of his work! Hopeful for a more engaging story from him in the future and I'm sure many will love this one.

I enjoyed both Dark Matter and Recursion, and was excited to read Upgrade! While I didn't love it as much as the other two, it was still an excellent read that hooked me from the very first page. Just like the other two, it was also hard to put down! The science in this book is fascinating! Also a bit scary because I feel like this could happen in real life.
TW: There are some trigger warnings for death of a parent--luckily I was warned ahead of time so I knew what to expect. There is a bit of death and gun violence in this one.

This book was everything! Had extremely high expectations and it knocked it out of the park. Blake Crouch keeps getting better and better, I am in awe!

R E V I E W 💖

I’m not a huge sci-fi person but I always hear such good things about his novels. The first half of the book I was so intrigued and it reminded me of the movie limitless. Somewhere around the half way point it got a little muddy for me and I was loosing track of the details. The ending was pretty depressing and didn’t really add up for me. Good, not great.

Ty
for the ARC!!
3⭐️

TLDR:

Upgrade is the newest novel by Blake Crouch. You may recall his other popular Science-Fiction Thrillers, Recursion and Dark Matter.

Notable Elements:

Genetic Engineering
Bioethics
Intellect
Family Dynamics

Likes:

Heart-Pounding Suspense — Logan finds himself in a number of high-stakes situations. The on-the-run narrative made this a fast-paced, easy read.

Mindful Storytelling — Coming out of a global pandemic, this is a thoughtful, sensitive approach to a fictional story regarding human health.

Dislikes:

Story Direction — There is a substantial focus on the workings of Logan’s inner world and the science of his predicament; as a result, the more interesting and meaningful parts of his life (like his relationship with his family) aren’t as prevalent as I hoped. This book is more about Logan’s relationship to himself than his relationship to others.

Unlikeable Narrator — The narration style changes as Logan changes due to his “upgrade.” I grew to dislike him over the course of the novel.

Final Thoughts:

Overall, I liked Upgrade, but I wasn’t invested in the story. It was fast-paced and brilliantly imagined as I’ve come to expect from a Blake Crouch novel. However, it doesn’t compare to the roller coaster of gripping emotion I felt reading Recursion.

Rating: 3.0/5.0

Agent Logan Ramsay works as a scientist for the Gene Protective Agency where the primary goal is to enforce the ban against genetic engineering, but after a raid gone bad, he finds himself “upgraded” from a gas in which he inhaled. His IQ is well over 200, he has total recall, even from his earliest memories, and the strength and speed like no other. He is a wanted man and on the run. But the planet is dying and soon humanity will no longer exist unless he acts fast. He has to find a way to save himself and the world. This is a fast-paced sci-fi dystopian thriller and perfect for fans of Michael Crichton and Philip K. Dick. One of my favorite reads of 2022

Upgrade is set an unspecified number of years into the future. Climate change has wreaked havoc over the planet, leaving lower Manhattan permanently flooded. A genius trying to save the human population has used her gene editing skills to modify locusts to increase crop production, and in the process caused a global famine that led to the starvation of billions. Her son has tried to live a normal life, and almost succeeds but for his mother, who has engineered a specific change - an upgrade - to his genetic code and that of his sister. This is where the story gets weird. It goes very fast. There are many technical terms and it can be hard to follow. Does the key to saving humanity lie in changes to our genetic code? What are the unintended consequences? Do ethical considerations matter in an emergency? Upgrade is, of course, fictional, but it raises tricky real-world questions. I found it to be very entertaining and thought-provoking, and ridiculous. Thanks to NetGalley and Random House publishing for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Blake Crouch makes science fiction incredibly accessible with explanations simple enough for "lay" readers to understand without making it feel like he's talking down to readers. This story is tense and fast paced, filled with big questions for readers to ponder. An excellent book.

I am such a fan of Blake Crouch's books. He has a way of combining compelling plot lines, sympathetic characters, and believable science fiction scenarios with action and thrills that propel the story along and make it impossible to put down.

'Upgrade' is set in the near future, when genetic modifications are not only possible but have already wreaked havoc in the world. The main character, Logan Ramsay begins to experience some strange side effects after a police raid ends in an explosion. Suddenly he finds that he is mentally sharper, his memory has improved, and he doesn't need as much sleep. It seems that someone is using him as a guinea pig for genetic modification.

It is a race against time to find out who is behind this act, because the stakes are high. If this can happen to Logan, it can happen to anyone...and he has already seen the devastating consequences of genetic manipulation.

I thoroughly enjoyed this one, and look forward to Crouch's next book!

I will admit that I am not much of a sci-fi fan and the ease at which something can be spread to change the human genome is a terrifying concept because of how real it is. <i>Upgrade</i> tells of superhero concepts - super human abilities, retaining infinite amount of information, speed reading, increased senses. It's all a bit exciting to imagine but with that come real responsibility and the heartbreaking decisions that follow because it might be the only way to save the world.
I could safely say that this book made me a fan. I could see it being played on out screen and even more terrifying in reality.

Agent Logan Ramsay works for the Gene Protection Agency (GPA). After his mother's gene adaptations went horribly wrong, leading to the Great Starvation that killed millions and forever changed the world, he was sent to prison for her crimes. After his release he joined the GPA to atone and to prevent another catastrophic gene editing event from happening again.

When a raid goes terribly wrong exposing Logan to gene modification, he has to not only manage those changes but adjust to becoming one of those he has been hunting.

Crouch tells a story heavily influenced by COVID, fears around genetic manipulation and ultimately the question of what direction the human race is heading and what to do about it. Just because we can do something, should we and at what cost? We're taken on a trip from government enforcement, science, and morality, as we follow Logan as he evolves and uncovers the larger plan for humanity that may save the race or doom it.

I struggled somewhat with this story. There was a lot of info dumping that felt chunky and didn't blend well with the story and I'd asked myself if the level of detail added any value and often thinking it didn't. Other scenes skipped so much detail it didn't feel realistic, again pulling me out of the story. While there were interesting points, I wanted a more complex, deeper story.

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i am a huge fan of blake crouch and this did not disappoint at all! it’s extremely fast paced much like his other works and the sci-fi is very accessible while still being interesting. i liked this more than recursion but not as much as dark matter. still an excellent read!

What would you do if you woke up one day and were … better? Stronger, faster, smarter – every aspect of who you are improved. And what if that improvement wasn’t just a one-time bump, but a continuous evolution? If that one day became a week became a month became a year? And what if the cost was your humanity?

That’s the central event of Blake Crouch’s latest sci-fi thriller “Upgrade.” Set in a world where well-meaning science nearly destroyed the world by trying to save it, it’s precisely the sort of book we’ve come to expect from Crouch – an action-packed thriller built on a thought-provoking science fictional foundation.

Extrapolating the potential ramifications of scientific discovery and then exploring the consequences is one of the blueprints to create exceptional sci-fi. Of course, one has to have the architecturally authorial talents to follow such intricate plans if one is to craft true excellence. Suffice it to say, Crouch has once again understood the assignment.

In a near-future marked by catastrophe, Logan Ramsey works as an operative for a law enforcement division aimed at tracking down and neutralizing rogue geneticists. See, the world very nearly came to an end because of gene manipulation – billions died and billions more almost met the same fate – and so forces were mobilized in an effort to ensure that such a thing would never happen again. And Logan has his own very specific reasons for engaging in this sort of work.

And yet, science marches on. The genetic genie is out of the bottle.

When Logan and his team raid a suspected gene manipulator’s lair, they are caught in what turns out to be a trap. Logan bears the full brunt of an explosion, a genetic bomb whose malicious intent is difficult to discern. He is held in quarantine for weeks, even after tests conclude that he is unharmed.

Unharmed, but not unchanged.

Soon, Logan begins to notice changes in himself. He’s stronger and faster. His intellectual capabilities are increasing. He requires less sleep and less sustenance. However, others have noticed as well – the people he works for are very interested in seeing how this develops. It isn’t long before Logan decides that he will have to solve this mystery for himself, even if there are plenty of folks out there – on all sides – who are much more interested in their own agendas.

And all the while, his capabilities continue to grow. But who did this to him? And why? And what are they planning next?

I’ll confess to a bit of intentional vagueness with regard to the plot of “Upgrade.” Like Crouch’s other work, there are more than a few narrative turns that are best left unspoiled. Believe me, you’re better off not knowing – that’ll make the moments of discovery that much more fun.

No one digs into the dark side of sci-fi quite like Crouch does. He has a real knack for starting from a scientific reality and spinning it forward into something altogether fantastical. One of the joys of his work is the fact that it all feels so goddamned plausible; sure, it’s a few steps removed from the reality of the present, but you’re given a real sense of the path that was taken to get to this not-so-far-flung future.

It's fascinating to consider that we’re only in the embryonic stages of genetic manipulation. The science is still so raw and new, with few practitioners really out there on the bleeding edge (well, as far as we know, anyway). But here’s the thing – scientific progress is slow right up until it isn’t. It only takes one generational genius to make that quantum leap and redefine the way we understand the world … and there’s no way of knowing what that redefinition will ultimately entail.

Of course, Crouch has other writerly gifts as well. In particular, he has this incredible ability to put the reader inside the heads of his characters. Reading “Upgrade” is a thrill ride because we are almost literally riding along – we’re passengers inside Logan’s head as he moves through a world that is steadily slowing as his own changes are accelerating; his motivations are evolving along with the rest of him, for better and for worse.

And again – leaving aside all that other (excellent) stuff, the truth is that “Upgrade” is just a flat-out barnburner of a story. Idea-driven sci-fi is awesome, but it can get a little navel-gazey; Crouch is great at surrounding the thoughtfulness with well-crafted thrills and loads of action.

If an author keeps delivering on a consistent basis, they are eventually going to become appointment reading. Blake Crouch is there, a writer whose work I eagerly anticipate as soon as I learn that it’s coming. His work has always been strong, but he’s blasted three home runs in a row in a genre where any author is lucky to hit one – “Dark Matter,” “Recursion” and now “Upgrade.” He’s as good at what he does as any writer currently out there.

Let me start by saying that my husband and I loved Dark Matter! Upgrade grabbed me right away with the storyline and the look into our not too distant future.

Unfortunately, I got lost somewhere in the middle and just was not able to stay invested in this storyline, simply because I am not a science kind of gal.

If you enjoy science fiction and mystery, I recommend this author and this book. This one just didn't do it for me.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine Books for this advanced readers copy. This book released on July 12, 2022.

3 for neutral, was unable to access my netgalley account for months, until today. Because of this, I was unable to see which books I needed to read. I apologize for the inconvenience and hopefully will not have any more issues in future.

This was so fast paced and hard to put down!

I was a little worried with all the science talk (I’m not a science girlie), but I was totally able to keep up with the story and everything happening.