Bubble by Anders de la Motte

Published in Sweden in 2012; published in translation by Atria/Emily Bestler Books on February 4, 2014

"We create our own realities," Tage tells Rebecca, "small spheres where we imagine we control what happens." Living inside a bubble has been an ongoing theme of the Game trilogy. The final novel makes the point explicitly: "In actual fact the feeling of control is just an illusion, and those spheres are nothing more than bubbles." But all bubbles eventually burst, along with the illusions they contain.

Having escaped it for a time in Buzz, HP is back in the Game. As you would expect in the last novel of a thriller/conspiracy trilogy, the purpose of the Game is finally revealed. The reveal is not shocking or even particularly surprising, but it is more plausible than most conspiracies in thriller fiction. Of course, some of the characters the reader meets in the first two novels play different roles than they first appeared to play, but -- like the conspiracy -- those revelations won't cause most readers to gasp with surprise.

The novels turn out to have a serious point, which has something to do with how easily governments can be persuaded to act against the interests of individuals and in favor of corporate interests when paid noisemakers make disturbing noises about national security and terrorist threats. It's a familiar point but Bubble gives it an interesting twist involving cybersecurity. On a level that's probably more fun, the novels are about how easily individuals can be manipulated, particularly insecure individuals who crave attention and fame, or at least acceptance.

Viewing the trilogy as a whole (and I think that's necessary because neither of the final two work well as a stand-alone), while there is nothing outstanding about the plot or Anders de la Motte's writing style, the story is entertaining, it moves quickly, the action scenes are plausible, and the novels include enough humor to make clear that we're not supposed to take the global conspiracy theme too seriously. That's a plus, since most conspiracy thrillers have become so over-the-top that they are unintentionally comedic. The characters -- particularly HP and to a lesser extent his sister -- are sympathetic and HP experiences some redemptive emotional growth as the novels progress. All of that was enough to make me feel that the novels were worth reading.

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