The Hive

Husband-wife writing team Lyga and Baden’s first collaboration is a dystopia about social media and crowd-sourced justice system gone wrong, delivering a compelling look into the potential future of our technology. The government has shut down online bullying with BLINQ, a new social media platform that condemns and exacts punishment in real life by mob justice known as ‘The Hive.” Seventeen-year-old Cassie, an expert hacker, is angry at the death of her cult-hero father, her life changes to poverty, her new school, and more when she writes a negative post that goes viral. The controversial joke leads to online Hive condemnation with devastating consequences as Cassie is forced to go on the run, eventually joining a group of renegades hiding in the shadows, trying to unravel a conspiracy while the faceless masses of the Hive try to end her life, all in the name of justice. This speculative fiction alludes to the current political and social climate, and the action packed scenes would make this an entertaining movie. This science fiction nove lcontains foul language as well as some tec and hacker lingo. Mature young adult readers will be engaged by this thought-provoking cyberthriller set in a relatable future created by abused social media.
Note:
This novel is based on a story proposal by Jennifer Beals and Tom Jacobson.