Chat

Rating:
Summary: fascinating, touching, but yet very disapointing at the end
Review: I loved this book. It was a fluke that i fell upon the series at the bookstore. But I was instantly drawn to them and frankly could not put it down! I loved the way the e-mails and chats conveyed the growing intimacy of the characters. At first they are rather mundane but at the end they are people you feel you know! The writing style reminded me of Manuel Puig who never writes a description but does move a book through conversation and letters. Could not put the book down and would recommend it wholeheartedly-

Rating:
Summary: IMHO... Lick a Stamp
Review: I was reaching for the book next to this book on the library shelf... and I plucked loose this one. Chat? As in online? Hmm.

Frankly, I miss letters. A letter in my mailbox, especially with an exotic overseas stamp on it, with its lines of handwriting... loops and angles and curliques that give a reflection of personality and, perhaps, secrets tucked inside the letter-writer... opening the letter, reading, sipping coffee, reading it again... and that faraway place, even if only across town, evoked on the slip of paper... Opening my mailbox to find a letter always felt just a little like Christmas. Yes, there is a romance in writing and receiving letters that seems almost entirely lost to us now. Not to mention how our switch to email and instant messaging has created an entirely new kind of language - of shorthand, emoticons, graphics, poor or nonexistent grammar, missing punctuation, computer slang.

The other side: email and instant messaging are quick and easy. I write more of these shorthand "letters" now than I ever did on paper. Granted, they are much shorter, and surely much blander, but the increased contact with colleagues eases the conducting of efficient business, and the increased communication with loved ones has drawn them nearer still. What would my work day be like without a message window popping up mid-afternoon with a little emoticon pursing big red lips with a "sweet sumthin" message attached, sent by the one I miss the most? Gets me through the day. Indeed, online chat can do wonders for any relationship. A little goes a long way.

A little in this cybernovel, however, does not go as long a way as it could, or should. The idea is undeniably relevant to today, and it is intriguing. Online chat provides an anonymity that allows people to reveal more than they ever would F2F (face to face). It also allows temptation to overcome good sense, and the results can be devastating. The couple portrayed in this online exchange of messages seems drawn to each other too easily, too predictably, and without enough explanation as to why. I'm just not convinced that a few dull exchanges can create such havoc. That they meet unknowingly in "real time" seems completely implausible. The whole exchange takes less than an hour to read, which would classify it more as a novelette than a novel, but it is probably an hour better spent.

I'm using my hour to write a letter.

Rating:
Summary: Fun and Refreshing Read
Review: If you are looking for a short and fun read for an afternoon, Nan McCarthy's novel Chat would be an excellent choice. This short novel allows the reader to eavesdrop on the conversation between two people that are communicating through a series of emails. In the beginning the focus characters, Max and Beverly, are innocently chatting online about computers, but in time their relationship develops into an online love story. This book weighs in at mere 115 pages, so it is understandable that within this length there is not enough time to develop characters in much detail.

Computers play a big role in all of our lives today. People have had their attention span shortened by the intense contact we have with computers and television. We are thirsty for information, but only in little doses, and this book does just that. The series of emails used to develop the plot introduce a man named Max who is new to online chatting and emails.

Initially Max is just looking for some information on what kind of computer system to buy, but he meets Bev, a book editor that has been logging on for years. With each email exchange more is learned about each of the characters, and the lives they live. Max likes to speak his mind asking searching questions early in the relationship, "Are you happy?" (10). Bev is initially portrayed as one who is online strictly for a tool of communication, and does not take kindly to some stranger hitting on a married woman, "You, on the other hand, are probably wearing a smelly jogging suit with your butt hanging out the back and Cheetos crumbs hanging off your beard." (8). With each email exchange the two grow closer together sharing more personal information and quickly this develops into a powerful online relationship.

Additionally, the characters are developed through the use of emoticons in some of the emails. Early in the book, the emails exchanged are just straight text, but as time moves on we begin to see the characters using emoticons to help express their feelings or tone of voice. It is through this we can begin to see something deeper than just an online friendship starting to evolve. Even though it is not hard to guess where the book is leading, it will still be hard to put down, and the ending will be left up to you as the reader to write the next email.

Chat gives those who have not yet experienced the world of email and the Internet a glimmer of what endless possibilities are out there. From finding actual information (like Max originally intended) to finding the love of your life, the Internet might hold your answers.

Rating:
Summary: A new style, innovative, modern novel
Review: In fact, it is the second book of this kind of cyberlove novel I read. The first one is written in Chinese by a Taiwan university student. I feel it is a new style to use the e-mail and chat room format in a novel to tell us story, it is quite special. I like it. Although parts of the novel are not very convincing and impressive, it still a innovative novel you worth to have a look.

Rating:
Summary: Quick, but great read
Review: Once you read Chat you will indeed want to complete the next two books in Nan McCarthy's series. Being an online addict and former chat junkie, I was so into this book, I emailed the author (no actual reply of course), but still felt good just venting.

If you enjoy light suspense, romance and high-tech flirtations, get crackin' on this 3 book mini-series. All three books can be read at one time. Their small size is also great for trading with friends.

Rating:
Summary: A must-read romance series for online users
Review: The Bridges of Cyperspace County with a surprise twist
Reviewer: jcorn59483 from Indianapolis, IN USA
First off, do NOT buy one of these books without buying all three (Chat, Connect, Crash) at the same time - they really do have to be read all together. Secondly, do yourself a favor and don't download these books. Try to find them in book form becaue you'll want the originals to stay on your shelf, ready to be picked up and read again and again.
Finally, here's the reason you should read this series: it is an orignal, well-done and witty flirtation and eventually full-blown romance between a man and woman who meet online. This is the FIRST romance series I ever read which was written from a cyber perspective, complete with emoticons (a crash course in them, in fact, useful if you've not particularly computer-savvy). I've read others since then but this is still my favorite. If you don't have much time to read but love a good romance, this one moves quickly but is fullfilling and emotionally engaging. Be forewarned: Have a box of Kleenex nearby!