Review – Chaos on CatNet (CatNet, Book 2) by Naomi Kritzer (5/5 stars)

Reading Level: Young Adult
Genre: Science Fiction/Thriller
Length: 9 hours and 17 minutes
Publisher:‎ 299 pages
Release Date: April 27, 2021
ASIN: B08HKWFV9M
Stand Alone or Series: 2nd book in the CatNet duology
Source: Borrowed ebook through Kindle Unlimited
Rating: 5/5 stars

“It takes an AI to catch an AI in Chaos on CatNet, the follow-up to Naomi Kritzer’s award-winning near future YA thriller.

When a mysterious entity starts hacking into social networks and chat rooms to instigate paranoia and violence in the real world, it’s up to Steph and her new friend, Nell, to find a way to stop it—with the help of their benevolent AI friend, CheshireCat.”

Series Info/Source: This is the second book in the CatNet series. I borrowed this on ebook through Kindle Unlimited.

Thoughts: I really enjoyed this second installment in the CatNet series. It was fun and engaging with an intriguing mystery and some wonderful new characters. I loved the fact that this was set in a near future Minneapolis, I always love reading about stories set in Minnesota, especially those set in the winter.

With Steph’s dad behind bars, Steph and her mom can finally stop running and settle down in one place. They choose Minneapolis. Steph is enrolled in a special school to help her catch up on things, and there she meets Nell. Nell was part of a religious cult but when her mother went missing Nell ended up with her liberal (but fairly normal) father. Another kid at the school wants Nell and Steph to sign up for a phone game called Mischief Elves that has you do real life pranks for points. The AI, Cat, realizes that there may be another AI at play here with all the info Mischief Elves is keeping track of. As they dig deeper into things, it looks like a much more sinister plot is afoot and Steph’s mom hasn’t escaped her past yet.

I love the AI Cat, Steph, and her mom. They are amazing characters. They are joined by a number of other new fantastic characters. Nell is in a tough situation; her mom raised her in a sort of religious cult but has disappeared. Nell’s father lives in a polyamorous situation and gave up on being part of Nell’s life when her mother joined the cult. Nell is trying to navigate all of this, and she is a fantastic character. I really enjoyed Nell’s father’s household and all the people in it as well.

This discusses some intriguing issues around AI sentience and also gets into some political issues around riots, etc. All of this was well plotted and blended together.

This has a fantastic afterward by the author. She explains living through the George Floyd riots and how she framed these riots compared to that. I also loved her discussion of making a future Minneapolis that she would want to live in with Safety Officers who were more concerned about the safety of a young girl out at night than about power and prejudice.

My Summary (5/5): Overall I really enjoyed this second book and the series as a whole. It is a fun read with wonderful friend and family dynamics. Additionally, it is an interesting take on AI issues, explores some political issues, packs a wonderful mystery, has some action, and is just a very entertaining read. I will definitely be taking a look at other books Kritzer has written in the future.