Fortuna

By Michael R. Stevens

Longing for escape from his mundane existence as a Stanford computer science major, Jason Lind signs up to play Fortuna, an online role-playing game set in Renaissance Florence.From the first, fateful... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1933515775
• ISBN13: 9781933515779
• Release Date: May 2010
• Publisher: Oceanview Publishing
• Length: 312 Pages
• Weight: 1.30 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 6.6" x 9.5"

Customer Reviews

Online Game - Is it Real Life?

Jason Lund, a computer science graduate student at Stanford, is bored and starts playing a role-playing online computer game, Fortuna. He is impressed with the graphics of the game that takes place in Florence during the Renaissance. He has played these types of games before but this one is even more addicting and he is soon obsessed with the secretive nature of it, and its focus on power. His studies and his relationships start to suffer because he is spending so much time on this game. He also is spending money and he begins to think that the game is somehow closely tied to real life. His good friend Marco is concerned that Jason is missing too much school and his girlfriend, Paola is also in concerned. In Fortuna Jason plays a priest, Father Allesandro who listens to confessions and then skims some of the money from the confessor's contributions. He desires to become a bishop and soon sees that his ambition comes with a financial cost that spills over into his real world. Because of this he realizes he needs to get some money and goes to his Uncle Frank who had been a business partner with his father to get a job. You find out that Jason comes from a wealthy father, Nick Fibonacci who was a huge contributor to Stanford and has a building named after him. His father died in a car accident about 9 years ago. At this point in the book, the author takes us back 9 years to meet Jason's father, Nick Fibonacci. We learn about his relationship with business partner Frank Stocker. Jason got his computer savvy from his father who created a computer program that was siphoning money from the business. The story then goes back and picks up with Jason again who in working for Stocker and discovers what his father has done. Will this solve Jason's own money problems? What really happened to his father? Who is the mysterious woman in Fortuna and is she actually someone he knows? Read this thriller to find the answers. Michael R. Stevens tells an interesting story weaving together Jason's real life and his life as Father Allesandro that you will not want to put down.

BUY THIS BOOK!

From the first page of Michael Stevens' novel, Fortuna, the reader is caught in the spell of the book, as we learn that "a game is not a game.." The game is called Fortuna. Jason, the protagonist, a graduate student in computer science at Stanford, becomes seduced by the online game set in Renaissance Florence. The world of Fortuna is definitely more appealing than his RL (real life) so he falls deeper and deeper into the spell of the game, and, as a consequence, deeper and deeper into debt. To get ahead in the society of Fortuna, just like RL, money must be spent... The book seduced me for many reasons. His real world as a grad student seems believable, and I become involved in the lives of the bright, rich, entitled students at Stanford, followed the progress of Jason's romance with a coed, traveled to the past to see the details of Jason's father's last days, then jumped to the current inner workings of Jason's father's firm in Silicon Valley with its ruthless attempts to control its employees. As the reader becomes aware of similarities between the online world of the game and Jason's real world, the characters come increasingly and dangerously to life, the tension mounts, and the narrative reaches its dramatic and somewhat unsettling conclusion. I loved the detail and lucidity in which Stevens describes the Renaissance world of Fortuna. This online world is described so eloquently and in such vivid, lush detail that the reader feels as if he too is in the game, and we are in for the ride with Jason as he competes for power. I also enjoyed Jason's romantic encounters in his two worlds. His dealings with the Florentine courtesan add color and humor to his life in Florence and add depth to his character development as he makes decisions online which affect both of his worlds. I thoroughly fell under the spell of Fortuna, of Jason and his pals, and was captivated by the entire novel. It's a wonderful, rollicking ride! This is a must-read. Buy this book. You will not be disappointed.

Great Suspense

Reviewed by Marty Shaw for Reader Views (04/10) "Fortuna" introduces us to a young man who creates separate lives in two very different worlds, leading to revelations that affect both. Jason Lind is a bright college student, feeling cramped and unfulfilled at Stanford. He discovers the online world of Fortuna, where he is able to create a new persona that allows him a taste of the excitement and adventure that he's been hungry for, but the addictive nature of the game and Jason's own desire to pierce it's veil of secrecy soon has him fighting for his life as the past, present, and Fortuna all converge to reveal a plot for power and wealth that affects Jason and everyone he cares for. Mr. Stevens gets off to a slow start but the book soon picks up the pace, enticing the reader forward with each new twist. The world of online role-playing games is captured perfectly as we see Jason first enter the world of Fortuna out of sheer frustration and then gradually lose himself as RL (real life) is constantly put on hold while he immerses himself into the online persona of Father Allesandro, but the book isn't just about a kid sitting at a computer all day. Jason learns the hard way that even computer games can have real life consequences, and these consequences can prove to be deadly if he's not careful. "Fortuna" delivers a fine balancing act between providing a history lesson of ancient Italy and giving us a thrilling mystery. In this situation, one doesn't really work without the other and the history lessons are spread thin enough and spaced far enough that the reader doesn't feel like a textbook was picked up by mistake. Jason is written as a very believable character, with the problems, worries, and ambitions that most college-age people could relate to. His relationship with his best friend, Marco, is captured in a very realistic manner but things occasionally have a "too good to be true" feeling with his new romantic interest, Paola. However, the feeling is more along the lines of `what a lucky guy' than an attitude of `that's so fake' so the story doesn't suffer. "Fortuna" will be a great read for anyone who likes thrillers with a hint of mystery, and Mr. Stevens leaves a trail of breadcrumbs for those readers who like to get involved and see if they can piece together things before the characters in the book do.

An awesome ride

This is a fun ride through the way an online obsession might play out. Beyond Second Life, beyond WoW, somewhere it would be darker--and scarier. And the dividing line between online and "real" would get thinner and thinner. This writer obviously knows the MMORPG world inside and out, you see him at things around the Valley. It's cool to have an insider take on this topic. And I love the Renaissance part. Check it out.

intriguing fun thriller

Bored computer science major at Stanford University Jason Lind loves playing the online game Fortuna, based on Renaissance Florence economics. However, his role playing character Father Allesandro da Scala begins to take over more of Jason's time than his real life. He soon falls into heavy debt due to his character, but remains addicted to playing the game even as he is aware of what he is doing as the Renaissance Father Broke he leaves Stanford to work for his Uncle Frank at Global Packet Control (GPC); the same firm his dad worked at before he died in a car accident almost a decade ago. At GPC, Jason uncovers questionable probably illegal deals and underhanded practices that leave him wondering what to do, but he thinks Father da Scala would know how to proceed. Though the premise feels over the top of Mount Whitney, this is an intriguing blending of on-line role playing and global economics, as Michael R. Stevens argues that both consist of players starring in roles other than themselves. Except for a romantic subplot that feels forced and required, readers will find the saga of Jason-Father Allesandro fascinating. Harriet Klausner