Heir Apparent, by Vivian Vande Velde, is about a girl named Giannine Belisario who gets trapped in a futuristic video game. It starts when she gets a gift certificate from her dad on her birthday to Rasmusseum Enterprises, a futuristic gaming center. Once Giannine is in the game she is Janine de St. Jehan the sheepherder. Shortly after the game starts CPOC protesters break into Rasmusseum damaging the equipment. The damage to the equipment made it so if Giannine dies in the game she must start over and over again until her brain overloads causing her to die in real life. While in the game Nigel Rasmusseum creator of Rasmusseum Enterprises contacts her saying that she must find a magical ring. Her first couple of tries don't go too well, she dies in the game from being poisoned, the guards killing her, and being attacked by Wulfgar. While she's in the game she must do many challenging thing such as surviving the royal family, reciting deadly poems, dealing with annoying ghost, being kidnapped by barbarians, searching for stolen gold, fighting a dragon for a crown, and not being killed because she made a tiny mistake. In her last life until brain overload Kenric was her most trusted friend. She tried to be friends with all the royal family members Wulfagar and Abas not including Queen Adreanna. At her coronation to become king, Kenric gives her a drink shortly after fizziness starts to take over as what happens when you die in the game. She thinks that Kenric poisoned her, but it was really just her brain overloading. She starts to cry thinking she'll never make it out of the game alive when Kenric quickly crowns her king. She wakes up in Rasmussuem to have her dad, who's never around, waiting for her.
One of the main themes in this book is to never give up. An example of this is when Giannine was doughting if she would ever make it past the first part, but she does "I was going to dies. I was never going to make it past the first part of the game" (58). Another example of this is when Giannine was questioning how many more mistakes she can make "How many more stupid mistakes can I make before time runs out" (121). The last example of this is when she is frustrated about dying again, but she keeps going "I was glad that I wasn't being deep-fried by the computer, but I would be if I didn't figure my way out of this convoluted, backstabbing, mean spirited game." (217). Thats why one of the main themes are to never give up.
I would recommend this book to other 7th grade readers because there are so many details that she finds out in her next life that are shocking. She also goes on so many adventures and it feels as if you're there as the story unfolds. You feel like your slaying a dragon or your in a hostage situation its amazing. Thats why I would recommend this book to other readers.
