The Minders

The plot is good but the story seems stretched a bit. The pace doesn’t pick up the way one expects.

Not good at all. The storyline isn't convincing. The author tries to be smart but falls flat. You feel bored after the initial novelty recides because there is no juicy meat in storyline after that.

The Minders is the third book set in the near future Marrsverse that also provided the setting for The One and The Passengers. Now, if you haven’t read those, or you don’t want to read them, no problem, it’s not even an official series, you’d have no issues whatsoever if you were to pick up The Minders. BUT (and it’s a massive but), they are GENIUS and you should absolutely read them ALL!For those of you who have missed it, The One is about technology allowing people to find their one true love through DNA. Of course lots and lots could go wrong with that and some of those downsides return in The Minders. The Passengers (ICYMI) is about self-driving cars and how they might be hacked and The Minders refers to that.What happened in The Passengers showed the world in general, and the UK Powers That Be specifically, that cyber realism is a very real threat. Storing sensitive data on servers that are constantly on the move proves inefficient. Consequently, medical experts, the government and MI5 have come up with a way to guard the country’s secrets: they will no longer be stored on computers and servers that can be hacked, they will be implanted in the heads of five people who have proven themselves capable by solving a puzzle only very few people can solve.Note to the wise: if you see this online challenge thingy inviting you to start your life again by trying to solve a puzzle less than 1% of the population can solve, DON’T CLICK ON THE LINK. Before you know it there’s a bead in your head and you’ll know what a certain sheik did in a certain hotel room and all the other loathsome stuff that was swept under the rug for diplomatic reasons.So. Implanting all the country’s deep dark secrets in the heads of people, what could possibly go wrong. Well, for starters, people aren’t computers. And so the Minders think, they feel, they might let something slip, they might want to ease someone’s pain by setting the record straight, they might snap… And there’s also an external threat: their locations are secret, with only one man having a clue where the Minders are, but someone is hunting them, picking them off one by one, stopping at nothing.John Marrs has done it again: The Minders is a compelling, thrilling, twisty and twisted read that I had the utmost trouble putting down. Like The One and The Passengers, it’s very Black Mirror-esque but better (yes I went there, I regret nothing) and if you enjoy this kind of science fiction where the world is still the world as you know it but with some kind of enhanced technology that is speculative yet terrifyingly plausible, The Minders is definitely the one for you. Highly recommended!

I'm a fan of John Marrs books but found this one a bit slow and not as easy to get into as some of his others. If you're choosing between John Marrs books, 'The One' is amazing and 'The Passengers' is almost as good, this one, 'The Minders' just didn't grip me as much.

The Minders is John Marrs’ most recent novel, and like every single one of his novels a thrilling rollercoaster of a ride, that I would highly recommend to any type of reader.Marrs has this uncanny ability to hook a reader within the first few pages (uh what am I saying, if a reader picked up the book and turned to a random page they would probably get hooked), which in my eyes is what makes or breaks a thriller. Within a few pages I was already wondering: where is this leading? But I REALLY wanted to find out. What also makes this novel extra special is that it refers to some of his other novels in many ways, particularly The One and Passengers, for which it could almost be a kind of sequel. It doesn’t have to be though and I don’t want to deter new readers, so if you haven’t tried any John Marrs novels then get on it now!The plot is set in a not to far future United Kingdom, post Brexit and post pandemic. Possibly the authors vision of a future U.K, struggling with its own identity in a cyber terrorism-filled-world. The UK’s most important secrets are at risk from The Hacking Collective. To prevent further security breaches the U.K government issues a test for the U.K population to find 5 individuals who will guard their secrets…in a more organic way.I didn’t connect as well as usual with the characters in this novel – I’m not sure why as I usually connect well (even with the bad ones) with all of Marrs’ characters. Maybe it was the knowledge that something terrible may happen to them? Or maybe I just know that Marrs doesn’t do happy endings? Despite this, the plot more than made up for it with its movie like action and intrigue. Yep this ones a one sitting read!There’s not much to say about the writing, as Marrs’ writing, as usual is absolutely fantastic, with well (but not over) described scenes, high action and vivid imagery.

It was well written , but ultimately the ending wasn’t quite the great twist . Plot line was totally wasted

What a fantastic story with gripping and complex characters- and a storyline that brings out a little conspiracy theorist in you.Enjoyed the way the book flowed, and how the ending was not one easily guessed.Although this can be read independently to “the one”, “the passengers” and the marriage act, the time frame it is set in fits in with the dystopian near future theme that makes them all so fascinating.