Told in alternating chapters from the perspective of three ultra-smart teens, Rex, Tunde, and Painted Wolf, this is a thriller with plenty of technology, coding, and hacking...All of it described so someone can easily understand what's going on. Rex desperately wants to find his brother, Teo, who vanished two years ago, Tunde is being threatened by a despot African general. He either builds a piece of technology the general wants, or his family will face horrible consequences. Painted Wolf has made sneaking into places where she can record and photograph corrupt politicians and businessmen, then outing them on the internet, her mission.
Two are selected for a dream competition in Boston, the other hacks his way in. The action at the competition is fast and fierce, leading to a dandy setup for the sequel which I just ordered. ( )

FROM AMAZON: Rex: Sixteen-year-old Mexican American programmer. One of the best in the world. Determined to find his missing brother.

Tunde: Fourteen-year-old self-taught engineering genius. Brought the Internet to his Nigerian village. Targeted by a ruthless military warlord.

Painted Wolf: Mysterious sixteen-year-old activist blogger. Pulled into the spotlight when her father became involved with a corrupt Chinese official.

The Game: Two hundred geniuses. A head-to-head competition devised by India’s youngest CEO and visionary.

Welcome to the revolution. Get ready to run.

In Genius: The Game, an action-packed young adult novel by Leopoldo Gout, three brilliant teens from around the world use their knowledge of hacking, engineering, espionage, and activism in a race to save the world.

I'd hoped for another 'Ready Player One' but this first book doesn't live up to the charm of RPO. Still it's a very interesting look at the near future, and I'll be reading the next book ASAP. The characters are great beacuse they are so diverse, being from all over the globe. Painted Wolf is my favorite as the strategist directing the tech geeks. I love the Tunde can only work with junk parts, given an MIT like lab he instead heads for a Boston Junkyard to gather the parts he can use. ( )

Leopoldo Gout is a new author for me, so I didn't know if I would like this book, but it is really very good.
Rex, Tunde, and Painted Wolf are known as the "LODGE" to computer hackers, bloggers, and code writers all over the world for using their skills to right wrongs and stand up for the little guy. All three have their own reasons for attending "The Game" hosted by the youngest CEO in India's history and computer genius, Kiran Biswas . As the game goes on, the three realize that the other competitors aren't their biggest problem, and the game may just be a front for something sinister going on behind the scenes at Kiran's company called OndScan. Soon they are all fighting for their lives and the lives of their families as the pressure to win the competition becomes a life and death battle.
Clearly there will be at least one sequel to this book based on the way that it ended. A lot of the technical jargon is way over my head, and the technical drawings and diagrams interspersed throughout the book add interest, but none of it is necessary to understand the story. The three main characters are all flawed individuals, but they are easy to like because they are always doing what they think is right. I'm looking forward to the sequel to find out what happens to these three likeable characters. ( )

I loved the book.... Until the ending... I got no closure.... ( )