Epic by Connor Kostick

In this futuristic story, the citizens of New Earth live in a society where violence is completely banned, and the only way conflicts are resolved is through a massive multiplayer online game called Epic. People toil in saltmines or olive farms with next to nothing to their name, yet spend as much time as they can adventuring in Epic to try to accumulate wealth a few pennies at a time -- until Erik and his friends find a way to use the game in a way no one has thought to in decades.

This was a fun read, and certainly an interesting concept -- think World of Warcraft meets Big Brother. However, the dialogue was very stilted, which kept me from truly enjoying the creative foundation for the story. NAY.