When a real-life murder occurs between two SLAY players fighting over game currency, Kiera is appalled.  She's even more disturbed when her beloved creation is labeled racist and violence-inducing.  As much as she longs to stand up for her game, Kiera can't risk exposing her identity.  But, when push comes to shove, she's forced to take action.  Will those actions unmask her as the creator of SLAY?  What will happen if it does?  Can Kiera defend and save her game or will her safe haven be shut down forever?

SLAY, a debut novel by Brittney Morris, asks some intriguing questions about online gaming, racism, Blackness, fitting in, and standing out.  As a white woman raising an adopted bi-racial child, I found the book's exploration of Blackness particularly eye-opening and insightful.  I'm not a video game fan, so that part of the novel struck me as as dull and headache-inducing as watching someone play a game.  Not gonna lie, I was tempted to skip all the in-game sections.  I didn't, but those scenes just didn't engage me at all.  Kiera was likable (in spite of her constant self-centeredness) as were her friends (other than racist, manipulative Malcolm).  The plot was compelling enough to keep me turning pages, but it contained a lot of illogical actions and weird dichotomies that drove me crazy.  For instance:  The recurring theme of being one's authentic self is an important one, but I couldn't understand how that works in a video game where everyone is hiding behind a false name, appearance, and a lot of times, personality.  That makes no sense at all.  I was also confused about why Kiera's addiction to gaming had to be a big secret.  My kids brag about being gamers!  I especially didn't get why it had to be kept from Kiera's parents—if they're "cool" with their underage daughter having sex with her (racist, manipulative) underage boyfriend in their house and they're not at all worried that their daughter spends endless hours cooped up in her room, are they really going to care that she's a gamer?  Again, totally illogical.  I could go on, but I won't.  Suffice it to say, I had some big issues with the plausibility of SLAY's whole setup, which took away from my enjoyment of the book.  Overall, I liked it enough to finish, but the novel