| Play. Win. Survive. There’s one building on her island that Halley has never visited: the Mercenary House. Perched atop a mountain, surrounded by unnaturally evergreen foliage, the House is rumored to be a breeding ground for criminals. Mercenaries are liars, cheats, spies . . . and maybe, depending on who you ask, killers. At the Warsafe headquarters in Seattle, Roscoe is beta testing the company’s new video game. It’s her job to track down glitches—but something is different about this one. Lurking behind the lines of malfunctioning code is a secret that threatens to drag her deeper into the game, forcing her to put her life on the line if she ever wants to come home. Worlds collide as Roscoe teams up with Halley to uncover the island’s secret and expose Warsafe’s designs. But some mysteries are better left unsolved. As traitor after so-called traitor is revealed to be on their side, they begin to wonder: Could Warsafe’s mission be critical enough to justify its cruelty? |  |
Genre: YA Science Fiction
Release date: May 6, 2025
Release date: May 6, 2025
Click here to get your copy!
My Review
How far will they have go to uncover the truth....
I'll admit that I picked this book up because I've liked pretty much every title that I've read from the publisher. Warsafe turned out to be no exception. I found the story to be intriguing right from the start and that never let up all the way through the last page. The blur between fiction and reality that makes up the heart of this story from Lauren Smyth was just too interesting to put down.
The mix of familiar and sci-fi was something that I enjoyed in Warsafe. It really kept the story grounded while allowing the imagination to fully engage. Lauren Smyth's writing style and worldbuilding skills were also something I appreciated as they kept the story moving forward with no lags and made me feel like I was right there with each of the story's leads.
Aimed at mid to older teens, Lauren Smyth's Warsafe is a bit edgy in all of the best ways that make for a good Christian sci-fi or fantasy novel that can also be enjoyed by adult fans of those genres.
This was my first Lauren Smyth novel but after reading Warsafe I doubt it will be my last. It was exciting, had an interesting premise, and was just flat out a good and entertaining read....
Tell Tale Book Reviews gives Warsafe by Lauren Smyth a 4 Bark rating.
I'll admit that I picked this book up because I've liked pretty much every title that I've read from the publisher. Warsafe turned out to be no exception. I found the story to be intriguing right from the start and that never let up all the way through the last page. The blur between fiction and reality that makes up the heart of this story from Lauren Smyth was just too interesting to put down.
The mix of familiar and sci-fi was something that I enjoyed in Warsafe. It really kept the story grounded while allowing the imagination to fully engage. Lauren Smyth's writing style and worldbuilding skills were also something I appreciated as they kept the story moving forward with no lags and made me feel like I was right there with each of the story's leads.
Aimed at mid to older teens, Lauren Smyth's Warsafe is a bit edgy in all of the best ways that make for a good Christian sci-fi or fantasy novel that can also be enjoyed by adult fans of those genres.
This was my first Lauren Smyth novel but after reading Warsafe I doubt it will be my last. It was exciting, had an interesting premise, and was just flat out a good and entertaining read....
Tell Tale Book Reviews gives Warsafe by Lauren Smyth a 4 Bark rating.
(I received a copy of this book from the author/publisher. All opinions are entirely my own.)
More from Lauren
The Mercenary House, where much of Warsafe takes place, quite literally appeared to me in a dream.
By age 12, I’d already watched way too many action-adventure movies. (Did anyone else grow up on Tom Clancy--The Hunt for Red October, Patriot Games?) Most nights, I was hyped on fictional adrenaline, and I was able to lucid dream. So I got to star in highly imaginative and unrealistic versions of my favorite spy stories when I fell asleep.
That night, I found myself trapped in the basement of an eight-story house. Guards patrolled the rooms outside, and somehow I knew I had to sneak past them to reach the top floor. I also knew I was dreaming and in no real danger, which made me brave. So I crawled through air ducts, hid in shadowy corners, and darted behind turned backs. And I escaped.
The dream was so logical compared to others I’d had that it stuck in my mind. Why was I trying to get to the roof? Why did I agree to play this “game?” What was the secret behind that dilapidated, shadowy building where I’d been imprisoned?
A few years later, I started coding video games. My first full-length game featured more than 100,000 lines of code and is probably part of the reason why I’m so near-sighted. I loved the results, but not the process. More than coding, I realized I loved storytelling—weaving together sentences and images and movements that became a world on the reader’s screen.
I hadn’t forgotten my dream, but I didn’t have the Python know-how to turn it into a game. And I’d gotten sick of naming variables. (Somewhere in the source code for that first game, there’s an if-then statement oh-so-creatively named “againagainagainagainagainagainagain.” See also the classic: “help.”) What if, instead of crawling back to my code editing software, I wrote a book?
And what if that book wasn’t just about a fictional video game, but was also an exploration of morality, economics, and politics in a parallel world?
I believe that good books don’t answer questions; they make you ask new ones. They draw you into a situation you’ve never experienced and force you to take sides, rooting for or against characters, judging or supporting their choices. If you could stop a catastrophe by sacrificing a few people, would you do it? If you were offered control over someone’s life, would you take it?
That’s the central dilemma of Warsafe. What you choose, who you agree with is up to you. Like a real video game, Warsafe lets you confront the same choices as the characters and work your way out of the puzzle—if you can do it without compromising your morality.
Remember Warsafe’s motto: Safety requires the many to sacrifice the one.
Disagree?
Enter the Warsafe universe and prove it.
By age 12, I’d already watched way too many action-adventure movies. (Did anyone else grow up on Tom Clancy--The Hunt for Red October, Patriot Games?) Most nights, I was hyped on fictional adrenaline, and I was able to lucid dream. So I got to star in highly imaginative and unrealistic versions of my favorite spy stories when I fell asleep.
That night, I found myself trapped in the basement of an eight-story house. Guards patrolled the rooms outside, and somehow I knew I had to sneak past them to reach the top floor. I also knew I was dreaming and in no real danger, which made me brave. So I crawled through air ducts, hid in shadowy corners, and darted behind turned backs. And I escaped.
The dream was so logical compared to others I’d had that it stuck in my mind. Why was I trying to get to the roof? Why did I agree to play this “game?” What was the secret behind that dilapidated, shadowy building where I’d been imprisoned?
A few years later, I started coding video games. My first full-length game featured more than 100,000 lines of code and is probably part of the reason why I’m so near-sighted. I loved the results, but not the process. More than coding, I realized I loved storytelling—weaving together sentences and images and movements that became a world on the reader’s screen.
I hadn’t forgotten my dream, but I didn’t have the Python know-how to turn it into a game. And I’d gotten sick of naming variables. (Somewhere in the source code for that first game, there’s an if-then statement oh-so-creatively named “againagainagainagainagainagainagain.” See also the classic: “help.”) What if, instead of crawling back to my code editing software, I wrote a book?
And what if that book wasn’t just about a fictional video game, but was also an exploration of morality, economics, and politics in a parallel world?
I believe that good books don’t answer questions; they make you ask new ones. They draw you into a situation you’ve never experienced and force you to take sides, rooting for or against characters, judging or supporting their choices. If you could stop a catastrophe by sacrificing a few people, would you do it? If you were offered control over someone’s life, would you take it?
That’s the central dilemma of Warsafe. What you choose, who you agree with is up to you. Like a real video game, Warsafe lets you confront the same choices as the characters and work your way out of the puzzle—if you can do it without compromising your morality.
Remember Warsafe’s motto: Safety requires the many to sacrifice the one.
Disagree?
Enter the Warsafe universe and prove it.
 Lauren Smyth | Lauren Smyth is an economics and journalism student at Hillsdale College. Since signing her first publishing contract at age 13, she has written three young adult action/adventure novels, coded two story-based video games, and started a blog enjoyed by readers and writers around the world. When she’s not writing, you’ll find her flying right seat in a Piper PA-30 aircraft, recording episodes of her Grammar Minute writing podcast, or heading upriver on her paddleboard. |
It's Time For A Giveaway!
To celebrate her tour, Lauren is giving away the grand prize of
a $25 Amazon card and a signed, hardcover copy of the book!!
a $25 Amazon card and a signed, hardcover copy of the book!!
Click below to enter. Be sure to comment on this post before you enter to claim 9 extra entries!
Blog Stops
Book Reviews From an Avid Reader, May 27
Artistic Nobody, May 28 (Author Interview)
CeCe Reads and Sings, May 28
Locks, Hooks and Books, May 29
The Lofty Pages, May 30
Guild Master, May 31 (Author Interview)
For Him and My Family, June 1
Texas Book-aholic, June 2
Fiction Book Lover, June 3 (Author Interview)
Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, June 4
Tell Tale Book Reviews, June 5
Simple Harvest Reads, June 6 (Guest Review from Mindy)
For the Love of Literature, June 7 (Author Interview)
Blogging With Carol, June 8
Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, June 9 (Spotlight)
Inklings and Notions, June 9
Artistic Nobody, May 28 (Author Interview)
CeCe Reads and Sings, May 28
Locks, Hooks and Books, May 29
The Lofty Pages, May 30
Guild Master, May 31 (Author Interview)
For Him and My Family, June 1
Texas Book-aholic, June 2
Fiction Book Lover, June 3 (Author Interview)
Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, June 4
Tell Tale Book Reviews, June 5
Simple Harvest Reads, June 6 (Guest Review from Mindy)
For the Love of Literature, June 7 (Author Interview)
Blogging With Carol, June 8
Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, June 9 (Spotlight)
Inklings and Notions, June 9
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