So I broke my "don't read/watch anything made past 2014 unless someone you trust recommends it" rule because I liked Ready Player One (the book) for the most part and wanted to read the sequel. I realize that my personal rule was made for good reason.

I remember the author got some flack from the twitter mafia because in the first book the main character clarifies that someone is a "real woman" and also the the complaint that he didn't write women well (which every male author seems to get now). I am wondering if this book was his apology.

The plot is pretty much lifted from Sword Art Online (people trapped inside of a virtual world and a quest has to be done to get out) but we have to hear about women in gaming and how important their roles were. Yes, there are women who are into gaming and who were involved with making games going back to the beginning, but there were a lot of men as well. I'm at the point where some of these women (Anita for instance) are just mad that certain hobbies generally appeals to more men than women, and they must have a problem with men enjoying something.

Also, if anyone read the first book the main character has a friend who had an avatar of a white guy but was actually a black lesbian who used a white male avatar because of the privilege aspect. She was the most annoying character in the book because they went to a planet within the OASIS comprised of John Hughes movies and she whined about the lack of diversity and then whined about the lack of diversity in Tolkein. Then they also went to a world dedicated to Prince and she whined about Prince becoming a Jehova's Witness later in life and saying that homosexuality was a sin.

The book also has trans nonsense and the main character reflects on how he has evolved on gender fluidity or whatever due to the fact you can experience sex in the virtual world however you want.

Now I'll go read some golden age sci-fi or dig through my pulps.