4 out of 5 stars

The publisher provided a copy of this, free of charge, in return for an honest review.

The Cloud is America’s biggest employer; it provides numerous goods and services to those left in society who can still afford it. It is so large that it has to a greater extent replaced government, and its warehouses are self-contained towns with accommodation, security, and facilities built in. Gibson is the owner of this business and built it from nothing. Some of his personality quirks are evident in the way that the business functions, but he is probably one of the richest men on the planet, so he doesn’t care what people think about that. He has a terminal illness that is focusing his mind on who will take over after him.

To get in as an employee means passing a test, and the company decides on what you will be doing based on the results of that test and your previous experience. Paxton, who has been down on his luck after the Cloud took his design and made it theirs without paying him, has decided to join. He passes the test and is annoyingly allocated to security; he’d rather have been in picking. Zinnia joins at the same time and is allocated a position in picking, but there are hints that she has an alternative agenda.

Their first day there is really tough. The training has given them an outline of what is expected, but the reality is so much harder, especially for Zinnia, who is picking. Her performance is constantly monitored for speed and accuracy. However, her role is not the only one that is monitored, for all staff, their company-issued smart watches track their exact location, what they spend in the company stores, and they are not allowed to leave their accommodation without wearing it.

They soon settle into the daily grind: wake, work, eat, sleep, repeat. The days become weeks, and these then stretch into months. As they get to know each other, their relationship blossoms to an extent, but they still keep some of their innermost thoughts very secret, especially Zinnia, who is at the Cloud for ulterior motives.

This book was quite a ride! It is a thriller wrapped in a dystopian tale of untrammelled corporate power. The Cloud company has effectively replaced the American Government following social unrest, riots and then pretty much societal collapse. This corporation that Hart has dreamt up has certain similarities to a certain emporium that is well known but not always well loved. On that he has layered big brother surveillance and control, an evil narcissist boss in the style of Bond villains and near-future technologies.

I thought that the plot was fairly good, and it was really fast-paced. There wasn’t much character development, but then I wasn’t expecting it in a thriller like this. Even though I really enjoyed the book I always feel that after reading dystopia, we need those in power to read them too and begin the process of making changes so that there are more checks and balances in the vast power that corporations and their owners have. Though until they stop funding the politicians that make the rules, I can’t see this changing any time soon!!

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