4/5 stars

An Unwelcome Quest (Magic 2.0, #3) by Scott Meyer

Nerdy Fun!

Nerdy Fun!

An Unwelcome Quest is the third book in the nerd-ishly fun Magic 2.0 series.  Never heard of Magic 2.0?  You’re probably not nerdy enough.  You’ve got to be a pretty big nerd to really appreciate the fun that can be had reading the three books in this lighthearted and unassuming time travel adventure.

Series Review

Imagine you are poking around on the internet one day and you randomly come across a giant text file full of code.  Because you’re just nerdy enough, you notice this file appears to contain some curious information that compels you search for your name…and find it!  Before long you realize this file contains information about everyone.  That’s EVERYONE. On Earth.  Since you are a nerd to your bones, you realize the data in this file is basically gives definition to existence.  It’s all in there.  What do you look like?  How tall are you?  Where are you—like exact coordinates.  When are you in time? You discover that by manipulating this program, you can change yourself.  You can grow taller (painfully).  You can make any amount of money immediately appear in your bank account (but watch out for the government, they’ll notice!).  You can keep your phone from running out of batteries.  You can change your location, instantly.  You can stop ageing.  You can move yourself through time.  Essentially, you’ve discovered that life is really just a detailed computer program and you now can control it.  So what do you do with it?  Well, you are a computer nerd and you love nerdy things.  So, obviously, you decide to go back to a time when people believed in magic so you can pass yourself off as a wizard!

This is exactly what happens to Martin Banks, the star of the Magic 2.0 books. He thinks he’s pretty hot stuff until he gets to the middle ages and discovers he’s not the only nerd to discover “the file.” There’s quite a few, actually, and they are all nerdy guys and girls from the modern computer age that discovered the file in their own time.  Independently of each other they came to the conclusion that becoming a medieval wizard is exactly the coolest thing you can do with your new powers.  Martin discovers that he has a lot to learn about controlling time and space–and his new friends are there to help.  Of course, not everyone has benevolent plans for their powers, and it’s up to Martin and his nerdy friends to keep the nerdy bad guys from getting their way. The ensuing adventures are as fun and nerdy as you can imagine, and all three books find new ways to be awesome.

If you’re nerdy enough, I bet you’ll enjoy this series as much as I did.  If you find you aren’t enjoying Magic 2.0, obviously you are nowhere near the nerd you thought you were and it’s time to re-examine your life.

Suitable content for all ages, but I have a hard time seeing my 13-year-old daughter enjoying the story.  She is definitely not a nerd.  Although, she can be a dork once in a while…