4/5 stars 
 Wow, what a really enjoyable book! I think not quite enough to give it 4.5 or 5 stars, but a truly great futuristic novel. 
 I love how WWIII is fought in space. No bloodshed, no soldiers - Just spacecrafts battling out in the solar system where no one actually gets physically hurt. 
 The military twists are interesting. There's a lot of battling between the characters against themselves and making decisions that must be their own. If they go with the military, are they even their own person any more? That sort of thing. 
 Also really great questions of loyalty, race, corporate greed, and war itself. I loved how it all came together. Excellently written and I think male or female, old or young, anyone can enjoy this book! 
 Full review originally posted on The Book Addict's Guide: Now of course, a book about wars isn't something I'd traditionally pick up. I'd seen several reviews saying the same thing and about how awesome the book was and I'm glad to say, I wasn't disappointed! More than anything, I was left with a feeling of how well it was written. Yes, Tom is only fourteen, which is young for most YA novels that are floating around there and -- let's face it -- although I'm reluctant to admit it, I know how immature I was at fourteen. Since the characters have to grow up fast and adapt to military standards, I think we see a lot more maturity shine through although there are still a lot of fun "kids being kids" moments as well. 
 I was actually really interested in the military/war aspect of the book, which I didn't really expect to be. It's World War III and all of the fighting is done in space. The drills and practices are all interactive virtual reality segments so all of the violence is simulated and we're left with no real bloodshed at all. Thinking about it from the other side, Tom also has to adjust to the fact that all of the killing, the ruthlessness, the fighting -- It's easy to do when it's just a game. Once he has to think about actually performing with real ships, it becomes a whole different story that he didn't take into consideration. 
 I also really loved all of the interweaving plot lines that cover the basics of a book -- the friendships and loyalty (especially when we're playing with treason here), a little bit of teenage romance, jealousy, pride, and then even more serious topics like corporate greed and the boundaries of what exactly is acceptable and what crosses the line into evil. 
 I really was surprised at how much I enjoyed it and I think male or female, young or old, and audience can pick this book up and not only enjoy it, but take a real message away from it as well.