chronicallybookish | Coldwire (Coldwire, 1)

Coldwire (Coldwire, 1)

Chloe Gong

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From #1 New York Times bestselling author Chloe Gong comes the start of a daring new dystopian series where humanity has moved to virtual reality to flee their deteriorating world, following two young soldiers who must depend on unlikely allies in their fight for survival.

The future is loading… To escape rising seas and rampant epidemics, most of society lives “upcountry” in glistening virtual reality, while those who can’t afford the subscription are forced to remain in crumbling “downcountry.” But upcountry isn’t perfect. A cold war rages between two powerful nations, Medaluo and Atahua—and no one suffers for it more than the Medan orphans in Atahua. Their enrollment at Nile Military Academy is mandatory. Either serve as a soldier, or risk being labelled a spy.

Eirale graduated the academy and joined NileCorp’s private forces downcountry, exactly as she was supposed to. Then Atahua’s most wanted anarchist frames her for assassinating a government official, and she’s given a choice: cooperate with him to search for a dangerous program in Medaluo or go down for treason.

Meanwhile, Lia is finishing her last year upcountry at Nile Military Academy. Paired with her academic nemesis for their final assignment, Lia is determined to beat him for valedictorian and prove her worth. But there may be far more at stake when their task to infiltrate Medaluo and track down an Atahuan traitor goes wrong…

Though Eirale and Lia tear through Medaluo on different planes of reality, the two start to suspect they are puzzle pieces in a larger conspiracy—and the closer they get to the truth, the closer their worlds come to a shattering collision.

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Posts about this title from chronicallybookish

chronicallybookish\ \ Kaley\ \ • Jun 19

the 5 best books I read this spring

I have much planned for this summer INCLUDING a very exciting announcement either tomorrow or Sunday!! The Books: - Warrior Princess Assassin by Brigid Kemmerer - Coldwire by Chloe Gong - Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir - It’s All in Your Head by Sabina Nordqvist - How to End a Love Story by Yulin Kuang #BookTok #bookreviews #fantasybooktok #romancebooktok #romantasybooktok @Avon Books @Simon Teen @Read Forever Pub

5 books

chronicallybookish\ \ Kaley\ \ • Mar 21

the only way to describe coldwire: WTFFFFFFF?????

If you’re looking for a cyberpunk YA dystopia taking on authoritarianism, oligarchy, nationalism…look no further #booktok #dystopianbooks #bookrec #chloegong #coldwire @Simon Teen

1 book

chronicallybookish\ \ Kaley\ \ • Sep 28 2025

my fall ARC tbr

I have overcommitted, and I’m scared of the size of this stack #booktok #advancereadercopy #arcreviewer #tbr #toberead

13 books

Posts about this book from across Bindery

Casey the Reader\ \ Casey\ \ • Jul 27

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I was traveling for a chunk of last week, so I only finished two books this week. They were both excellent plane reads, though, so good job with that timing, me. Books marked with an * were gifted to me.\ \ Coldwire by Chloe Gong* - The sequel to this book is almost here, so I figured I should probably finally get around to it! I have loved every Gong book I've read and this is no exception. I was so drawn into this cyberpunk dystopia. You know I love a prickly girl character, and this book is full of them. It's excellent and horrifying how you can see exactly the trajectory our world might take to become the world of Coldwire. I found it a little hard to follow the reveal near the end, but I think that's on me rather than the author since other reviewers didn't seem to have that problem.\ \ This Princess Kills Monsters by Ry Herman* - I am very into fantasy comedy right now and this one is chef's kiss excellent. It reminded me a lot of The Princess Bride, if that story was more queer. It's deeply silly while also giving old fairytales a new point of view. Literally everything about this book is a delight.\ \ Join for free or login

Mini Review Monday - July 27, 2026

2 books

Casey the Reader\ \ Casey\ \ • Jul 3

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[Now that I'm doing weekly reading roundups on Mondays, it doesn't really make sense to do a fave of the week on Fridays. I don't know exactly what I'm gonna do yet (I KNOW it doesn't have to be the same every week. But my brain does not! It likes routines!), but today I've got my June wrap up and a look forward at some books I hope to pick up in July. (Books marked with a * were gifted to me and books marked with a ^ I was paid to read.)\ \ For June reads, it's no surprise that all my faves (starred) were books I read for Pride Reading Bingo. Queer books forever!\ \ \ \ THE QUARTER QUEEN^\ \ WHY ARE PEOPLE INTO THAT?\ \ LONDON FALLING*\ \ ⭐️ SEVEN DEVILS\ \ ESCALA'S WISH^\ \ ⭐️ THE MAIDENHEADS*\ \ DUNGEON CRAWLER CARL (reread)\ \ ⭐️ SEASONS OF GLASS AND IRON*\ \ DIVERGENT (reread)\ \ POOL HOUSE*\ \ LOVE IS AN EX-COUNTRY\ \ RAISING ARTEMIS^\ \ THE FOREST ON THE EDGE OF TIME*\ \ ⭐ ONE OF THE BOYS*\ \ DEATH OF THE AUTHOR*\ \ ⭐ SHAPES OF LOVE*\ \

- *\ \ Here's what's on deck for July. (Ish...you know how that mood reading life goes.)\ \ \ \ MOSS'D IN SPACE* - This is the July Found Family Book Club pick!\ \ CHAOS* - This space romance series is a fave of mine and I've been saving this latest installment for when I needed a treat.\ \ MAKE ME BETTER* - Gailey is a fave author and normally I would have gobbled this up by now but for some reason I thought it was a fall release and therefore I didn't prioritize the ARC. Whoops!\ \ BLACK SALT QUEEN* - I've been meaning to read this fantasy about royalty, romance, and betrayal for awhile and the sequel recently came out so I better get to it!\ \ I LOVE YOU DON'T DIE* - I'd intended to read this for Pride Bingo and didn't get there. I adored Song's debut CHLORINE and am looking forward to more of that.\ \ THIS PRINCESS KILLS MONSTERS* - Another Pride Bingo fail. I've been very into cozy, comedic fantasy lately so I'm ready to wrap myself up in this one.\ \ OUT OF STEP, INTO YOU* - The last of my Pride Bingo intendeds. I thought Burch's debut YA novel a few years ago was seriously underrated, so watch out for me yelling about this one soon.\ \ Books I'm carrying over from June: My current reads are Love In A F-cked Up World by Dean Spade and Coldwire* by Chloe Gong.\ \ Other miscellaneous July reads: I run an in-person book club that reads spicy books and I our July pick is The Pairing by Casey McQuiston, which will be a reread for me. I also read the first chapter of Murder In The Dressing Room* by Holly Star yesterday. There will be other audiobooks because I can't commute without them, but I haven't picked any yet.\ \ Is that a packed enough TBR for you or what!\ \ Join for free or login](https://caseythereader.binderybooks.com/item/RjgobKuiwId4ySBsPVwi/)

June Wrap Up + July Hopefuls

26 books

chronicallybookish\ \ Kaley\ \ • Jun 19

the 5 best books I read this spring

5 books

ofpagesandprint\ \ Dahlia\ \ • May 20

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[With a little over a week left in May, I wanted to share some of the incredible AANHPI stories on my TBR to continue celebrating AANHPI voices all year long!\ *Pitches from the publishers.\ \

Strange Familiars by Keshe Chow - Two scholars of magical veterinary science must put aside their lust and loathing to save the world in the first installment of this whimsical, romantic, dark academia duology. ( Strange Familiars is also the July pick for Musings of the Nine Book Club! Keshe will join the club to comment insight about Strange Familiars and chat with the club as we read. We hope you join us!)\ \
For No Mortal Creature by Keshe Chow - In this romantic, gothic fantasy inspired by Wuthering Heights, a teen girl with the power to move between life and death must journey into the afterlife. But to survive, she’ll need the help of her two sworn enemies—both dangerously captivating, both hiding secrets that could destroy her.\ \
Unfinished Business by Clare Osongo - In this funny, warmly chaotic tale of love, a floundering office worker discovers her mother's ghost is trapped in the company Slack server, and must free her by resolving her own troubled love life.\ \
The Fast Track by Angelica Cheng - An ambitious racer who dreams of becoming the first female F1 champion finds her plans going off track when she catches feelings for her biggest competition in this dishy, delicious contemporary romance for fans of love, Lynn Painter, and Lewis Hamilton.\ \
The Revenant of Surolifia by Florence Chien - In the vein of The Traitor Baru Cormorant and The Unbroken, The Revenant of Surolifia is a gripping political fantasy of empire, identity, and impossible choices, where rebellion blazes in the streets, loyalty is a double-edged sword, and the price of peace may be too steep to pay.\ \
The Game of Oaths by S.C. Bandreddi - In this heart-pounding, richly imagined fantasy set in the Belle Époque, a trapeze artist fights to win a deadly tournament amid the glamour and illusions of a magical circus. But survival isn’t her only goal—she wants revenge.\ \
Witch Daughter by Tanaz Bhathena - In her adult debut, award-winning author Tanaz Bhathena expertly weaves a tale of love and loss in ancient Persia with her take on the timeless tragedy of Tahmineh, a temptress, a witch, a victim, or, perhaps, a woman trying her hardest to protect her loved ones.\ \
Burn the Sea by Mona Tewari - A fierce Indian queen must defend her country against both the colonizing monsters attacking from the sea and the cowardly manipulations of a neighboring king…who happens to be her husband.\ \
The Secret World of Briar Rose by Cindy Pham - A lush and immersive queer “Sleeping Beauty” retelling about escapism, grief, and dreaming of a better world.\ \
A Kiss of Crimson Ash by Anuja Varghese - Inspired by medieval India’s most epic love stories, this debut Romantasy blends rich storytelling, lush worldbuilding, and spice of every variety. Perfect for fans of Nisha J. Tuli and Tasha Suri.\ \
The Book of Fallen Leaves by A.S. Tamaki - Shogun meets Game of Thrones in this epic fantasy debut of ambition, vengeance, and sacrifice.\ \
Coldwire by Chloe Gong - The start of a daring new dystopian series where humanity has moved to virtual reality to flee their deteriorating world, following two young soldiers who must depend on unlikely allies in their fight for survival.\ \
The God and the Gumiho by Sophie Kim - In this sly and dazzling contemporary fantasy, the most notorious nine-tailed fox in Korea pairs up with a trickster god–turned–detective to track down a wrathful demon . . . before it can destroy the mortal world.\ \
Blood Over Bright Haven by M.L. Wang - The first woman ever admitted to a prestigious order of mages unravels a secret conspiracy that could change the practice of magic forever, in this standalone dark fantasy from the author of The Sword of Kaigen.\ \
Double Happiness by Heather Eng - Caught between a relentless tech job, her adoring fiancé, and an unexpected new flame, Mei must learn what it means to choose herself.\ \
Brighter Than Nine (sequel to Darker By Four) by June C.L. Tan - The Shadowhunter Chronicles meets the Chinese underworld, drawing inspiration from diaspora folklore, in this epic, sweeping contemporary fantasy duology.\ \
Checking You Out by Jennifer Chen - XO, Kitty meets Dash & Lily in this rom com about two teens falling in love via letters left in their favorite library books—even if in real life they think they have nothing in common.\ \
Roar by Varsha Bajaj - The gripping story of a boy whose eye-opening trip to a tiger sanctuary ignites his desire to join those who are roaring to protect the animals.\ \
Babel by R.F. Kuang - A historical fantasy epic that grapples with student revolutions, colonial resistance, and the use of language and translation as the dominating tool of the British Empire.\ \
Fishbone Cinderella by Elizabeth Lim - A mother and daughter must break their family’s curse through trials of war and immigration, love, loss, and redemption in this riveting multi-generational saga with a shimmer of magic.\ \
The Killing Spell by Shay Kauwe - In this spellbinding fantasy debut set in a future where language magic reigns, a young Hawaiian woman must solve a murder to clear her name.\ \
Japanese Gothic by Kylie Lee Baker - In this lyrical, wildly inventive horror novel interwoven with Japanese mythology, two people living centuries apart discover a door between their worlds.\ \ \ Happy AANHPI Heritage Month!](https://ofpagesandprint.binderybooks.com/item/w8ybreAz4RMi6uF1KFu5/)