Once again, Blake Crouch gives us another incredibly smart, fast-paced, and enthralling gut punch. Similar to his other recent work, I recommend just diving into the experience. While set in the future, it is a future that doesn't feel that far away which is terrifying. It is so layered and left me feeling that odd mix of melancholy and hopefulness. Brilliant.

Set in the not too far off future, the story unfolds as Logan Ramsey, employed by the GPA, the Gene Protection Agency, arrests a geneticist who has been editing genes in his lab. Turns out it’s a federal crime to do gene editing, and the GPA is tasked with policing scientists who might be tempted to manipulate genes in ways that would endanger humanity. Years before, Ramsey’s mother, who was also a geneticist, in an attempt to do great good, had created a worldwide catastrophe, causing horrific suffering and death. Ramsey is striving to make up for the shame and infamy she brought on his family.
Unfortunately, his family’s legacy of interfering with genetic manipulation is not over. One of his other family members is back at it. Again, humanity is threatened with a terrifying scenario caused by a crazed geneticist. The rest of the book is how Ramsey tries to stop this threat.
Part sci-fi and part thriller, this book kept me engrossed to the end. It also asked serious questions about how we might stop the impending destruction of our planet due to human interference, and what it means to be human.

Upgrade is a phenomenal narrative exploring what it means to be human and how far technology can and should take us as a species. This is the best technothriler I've read in the last few years. Blake Crouch was already on my 'must read' list, but he's moving his way to the very top.

**4.5-stars rounded up**

After an incident on the job where Logan Ramsey is exposed to possible contaminants, he begins to notice slightly alarming changes happening within himself. He's better able to concentrate, requires less sleep, his bones are becoming stronger and more dense. What is going on? It reads almost like he is becoming a superhero.

It's the near future and the U.S. government has formed a Gene Protection Agency and Logan is one of their field agents. The agency was developed because gene editing has become a serious threat to the planet. Logan has a lot of experience with gene editing, as his mother was one of the most influential scholars in the field. Unfortunately, not all of her projects ended well, leaving the family name tarnished.

Logan has worked hard to build his reputation back and he is known as a solid agent. That's why the incident on the job hit him so hard. He's taken out of commission, but there's so much more involved. His genome has been hacked. Was he selected for the upgrade, or was it just coincidence he ended up on that site that day?

We then follow Logan on the various stages of his upgrade, as he investigates who could be behind it and why. Ghosts from his past arise and a true cat-and-mouse game ensues with the fate of humanity at stake.

Blake Crouch is the ultimate SF-Thriller writer. He's just so damn good. This story was a ton of fun to read. I loved contemplating the science behind it. Additionally, the gripping plot, intelligent writing and non-stop action made me a very happy girl.

Honesty, I think nothing truly scares me more than certain advances in AI, technology and genetic manipulation. Thinking about how our future could be transformed by these advances, and in my mind it is always in a sinister way, is just fascinating to me.

I do feel this one would be super accessible as far as his titles go. Recursion sort of blew my mind and I can see how some Readers could be intimated by it. Also, Dark Matter got a bit trippy, although I loved it. I think if you have never read Crouch before, this could be a great place to start to get a sense of his style. I definitely recommend it!

Thank you so much to the publisher, Ballantine Books, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I truly appreciate the opportunity to dive into a little early.

"Upgrade" by Blake Crouch was a thrilling fast paced book. It follows siblings who are Upgraded and have two very different goals in mind. Each believe that their way will help the human race upgrade and hopefully survive the transition. Filled with an enormous amount of harsh choices and a will to survive and hope for the future. Can the human race survive the upgrade?

💫 THANK YOU to the Author, Netgalley and Ballantine Books for e-ARC of this book for an Honest Review!!
⭐⭐⭐⭐

#Upgrade
#NetGalley

Another incredible Sci-fi from Blake Crouch! I loved this one and was hooked right away and then couldn't put it down till the last page.

I don't read science fiction but every Blake Crouch book I've read has kept me interested and excited to turn the pages. "Upgrade" is that book you read and wonder how much time the author spent researching this incredibly technical topic. This book will interest anyone who liked the "Limitless" movie starring Bradley Cooper and Robert DeNiro. "Upgrade" isn't just about genetic hacking but is also about whether we can justify this risky practice practice. The main character's personal relationship to a world infamous genetic hacker adds a depth and compassion to the story. I love reading reading about how we can enhance our abilities, how we can fight better, learn better move better and basically do everything better (except die better). I may not have understood every technical aspect of this book but I loved the plot and the underlying message in the epilogue.

Crouch has again mastered at least enough of a complicated scientific subject to have me glued to my book and forsaking all other bodily needs while I plow through a story. Maybe he’s not simultaneously a geneticist, physicist, military strategist and man of all work, but you’d have a hard time convincing me of that.

Our MC is once again a flawed but perfect man with a heart of gold and a driving force in his personality to do good. And since we don’t get a lot of those guys in fiction, I’m willing to permit Crouch injecting basically the same guy into great stories every couple of years. I’m gonna fall in love with him every time.

So if you’re a sci-fi geek who knows at least a little about all kinds of science things and love a good story, start reading Blake Crouch ASAP. This is your sign.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my free copy. These opinions are my own.

"𝘞𝘦 𝘥𝘰𝘯'𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘢𝘯 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘮. 𝘞𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘢 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘢𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘮. 𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘵, 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘭𝘦 𝘧𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘰𝘳, 𝘪𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵'𝘴 𝘥𝘳𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘶𝘴 𝘵𝘰𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘥 𝘦𝘹𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯... 𝘐𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦'𝘴 𝘢 𝘴𝘰𝘭𝘶𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯, 𝘪𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘭𝘪𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘤𝘶𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘶𝘴 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘢𝘮𝘣𝘪𝘷𝘢𝘭𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦. 𝘖𝘶𝘳 𝘢𝘱𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘺."

On vacation this week I devoured 𝗨𝗣𝗚𝗥𝗔𝗗𝗘, a fast-paced thriller about genome hacking and a race to save humanity. It's science-filled and action-packed, the complete antithesis of what I usually read at the beach, but Blake Crouch has once again written such a smart and propulsive book that I could not put it down.

I'm not much of a science fiction reader but what I love about Crouch's writing is that he uses science to create complex situations that drive a truly emotional story. This book forces you to consider moral and ethical questions about a future that doesn't seem too far off from our own, and I know I'll be thinking about it for a long time to come.

4.5 stars

Thanks to Ballantine Books and NetGalley for a copy to review.

Imagine a world where gene editing had gone too far and caused famine and death. Then picture life ten years later, when gene editing is mostly illegal and highly regulated by the world’s governments. That is the near-future world of Upgrade, the latest novel by the author of the Wayward Pines series.

Logan Ramsey is a field agent in the new US government agency preventing unauthorized gene editing. When a mission goes wrong, his genome is biohacked. How that will impact not just his own future but humanity’s future as a whole is the subject of this excellent thinking-person’s science fiction thriller. If you like The Matrix or the author’s previous books, you will enjoy reading Upgrade too. 5 stars!

Thanks to Ballantine Books and NetGalley for a digital review copy of the book.

Blake Crouch (Dark Matter) is back with another sci-fi thriller that explores a complex scientific concept while having a protagonist run around and be violent in various action set pieces. In this instance, his plot revolves around an attempt to upgrade humanity through genetic manipulation.

How much you buy into the plot will depend on how readily you accept (at least for the sake of the story):
- The conviction that humanity is almost inevitably headed for self-induced extinction very soon, mostly due to anthropogenic climate change that could be stopped with the right kind of behavior that most people are just too stupid/stubborn to do.
- The assumption that virtually everything that makes us human, including emotions, ethics, and moral behavior, is the product of our genes as shaped by evolution (and can be changed by genetic manipulation).

Overall, it’s okay for an action-packed “enhanced human / ticking time bomb / special forces” sort of thriller, but the bombast contrasted oddly with the preachiness and scientific jargon that was driving the plot. It reminded me quite a bit of Michael Crichton’s blend of preachy “science” and action, but I generally found Crichton more enjoyable. Obviously, your mileage may vary depending on personal taste.

This was my first Blake Crouch novel and sci-fi is not my typical genre. I liked the story line well enough but couldn't relate to (and didn't really like) any of the characters. Overall, this one was only an "ok" read for me but I'm clearly in the minority. If you're a Blake Crouch fan, I'd definitely recommend checking it out.

Thank you to Random House Publishing and NetGalley for allowing me read an advance copy of this novel. My review is voluntary and all opinions are my own.

First of all, thank you to NetGalley and Ballantine for the ARC.

This is a fast-paced thriller with a message for humanity about our failure to acknowledge the damage we are doing to our home, our planet, and our future as a species.

This book is set in the near future, and in it, Blake Crouch explores the morality of using DNA manipulation to help humanity survive its own destructive behaviors which threaten to end our time on this planet. Logan and Kara, brother and sister, represent the two sides of the argument he presents here. At one point, Logan says, "We don't have an intelligence problem. We have a compassion problem. That, more than any other single factor, is what's driving us toward extinction." This dichotomy is the motif throughout the novel, and it is not subtle. In fact, I think for some people it may be a bit preachy, but I think subtlety is at times overrated, especially when, like so much science fiction, it is closer to reality than we want to admit. I will say that the science was a bit overwhelming at times, but I think you can still enjoy the story without fully understanding all the technical aspects because Crouch also explores the humanity of the characters, especially Logan.

If you like a lot of action with some philosophy mixed in, you will really enjoy Crouch's latest novel, "Upgrade."

I loved this -- it was almost literally “unputdownable”. Blake Crouch is such an inventive writer!! He's on my automatic "must read" list now.

I’ve been reading Blake Crouch’s work for over a decade now. And while I can’t remember if it was Abandon or Snowbound that I read first, I do recall instantly becoming a fan of his work. And over the years he’s continued to thrill and entertain me with his amazing tales. Well I’m thrilled to say his newest book Upgrade is right up there with the best of his stories. In a way this book reminded me very much of the movies Lucy and Limitless, where man (or in the case of Lucy woman) pushes the boundaries of what humans are capable. In Upgrade after an accident during a lab raid, Logan Ramsey, finds himself becoming the next step in human evolution. It’s a thrilling fast-paced story with very real, complex characters and as with many of Blake’s work it’s loaded with high concept science, in this case genetics, and Blake does an excellent job of breaking down those concepts in a way that’s easy for us to understand. Thanks so much to Ballantine Books and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review an eARC of Upgrade.

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/upgrade-blake-crouch/1140385126?ean=9780593157534&bvnotificationId=a8627b29-0232-11ed-b592-0a0bd0983579&bvmessageType=REVIEW_APPROVED&bvrecipientDomain=gmail.com#review/212871262

https://www.amazon.com/review/R25KTSUIFBG9NK/ref=pe_1098610_137716200_cm_rv_eml_rv0_rv

A bomb alters the DNA of Logan Ramsay upgrading him to a "super" soldier in a war he didn't know he'd fight against his sister. This action thriller is top-notch and read at such thriller pace. My adrenaline was pumping just as fast as Logan's. Imagine if you are able to tap under resourced areas of the brain and body - its NOT unfathomable.

The ending is very profound, leaving you with words that haunt this novels conclusion. I am not typically a SciFi reader, but Upgrade's drama and action mixed with SciFi worked magically.

Thank you Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Ballantine Books for the complimentary copy to read and review.

As usual, Blake Crouch delivers another mysterious, action-packed, mind-bending sci-fi thriller that is imaginative and stands out from the other novels in the genre.

The novel takes on some heady subject manners. It’s set in the near future and there is a worldwide famine caused by a genetic engineering experiment gone wrong.

My only complaint about this novel is that the author sometimes goes off on a tangent and comes off pretty preachy. But he didn’t do that too much to distract from the fun parts of this book.

It’s a good story that’s well-crafted and will keep you reading to the end.

With his vivid imagination and extraordinary creativity, Blake Crouch puts a fresh and original spin on this mind-blowing, engrossing and mesmerizing sci-fi UPGRADE.
From the first page, I was instantaneously drawn into this fascinating sci-fi world of Logan Ramsay where I was constantly shrouded in mystery and stunned by the unexpected twists and turns..
Life is endlessly surprising…
I truly appreciate NetGalley and Random House/Ballantine for the gifted copy of UPGRADE which I loved it as much as I loved DARK MATTER, if not more.
#NetGalley
#Upgrade

Wowza- this is a non-stop action and intrigue sci-fi thriller!

Hear me out friends- if you’ve followed my Instagram page for any amount of time- you’ll see that Sci-Fi is not a genre I read much. Maybe you are the same- sometimes reading and trying to figure everything out makes me feel really unsmart (is that even a word?) If you are the same - rest assured that this author does a great job of introducing scientific concepts in a way that is easy to digest. Even if you don’t understand every nuance- you still have plenty of information to track the story.

This one felt a little like watching a watching the latest Borne movie. Intrigue, suspicion and heart palpitating tension. This ended up being such a quick read because I couldn’t put it down. The concept of gene mutations enhancing the human species was so interesting and timely. Set in a future society- there is a task force (GPA) to deal specifically with gene editing. Interspersed with the drama and action are intense relationships, unmet expectations and failure. This would make a great book club discussion!

I highly recommend this one. And it has maybe one of the best last lines ever:

“What do you call a heart that is simultaneously full and breaking? Maybe there’s no word for it, but for some reason, it makes me think of rain falling through sunlight.”

Thank you to @netgalley and @randomhouse for the ARC to read and review.

Logan Ramsey is haunted by his family history, hoping to use his job to make up for the past. After a mission gone wrong, he finds he feels different-very different. His abilities have changed dramatically. His entire genome has changed dramatically. And now he may be the only one who can stop what's about to descend on humanity, while being forced to decide if he should even be trying to stop it at all.

There is so much science in this book. I am not typically a science fiction reader, especially not when the science gets technical. But I loved this book. Crouch has this amazing ability to make science fiction that is not only accessible to readers like me, but that is absolutely gripping. I could not put this book down.