Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience.

3/5 Good.

There was lots to like about this debut thriller from Tom Chatfield. A High Tech, High Stakes tale set in the world of the Darknet.

With Hackers, espionage, terrorist groups and more it all goes well until about 60% and I just felt it started losing the plot and became far too technical, complex and just lost me a bit.

I liked Avi, I liked the idea I just don’t think it was carried through in the way I wanted to see it after such an encouraging first half of the book.

Unfortunately this one really wasn't for me. I had to skim to get through it all as it felt like such a slog for me every time I picked it up.

Unfortunately, I have not been able to read and review this book.

After losing and replacing my broken Kindle and getting a new phone I was unable to download the title again for review as it was no longer available on Netgalley.

I’m really sorry about this and hope that it won’t affect you allowing me to read and review your titles in the future.

Thank you so much for giving me this opportunity.
Natalie.

This book will no appeal to everyone. But for me I loved it, I work in IT and have plenty of experience coding, so I was fascinated by the tech, the lengthy explanations, the hacking and the dark web.
The read was essentially a modern spy thriller involving secret agencies and one poor hacker trapped in the middle.

I found the premise really fascinating and not something I've personally read about as a plot before. There was a bit of a lull in the middle where my interest waned a bit but it quickly picked up from there. I'd definitely read more from the author as the plot and pacing were mostly spot on.

Really wanted to like this book but to be honest I struggled to get into it. I want something far more fluent and easy to read for relaxation. Great storyline though.

Fast paced thriller. Set in a shady world this story twists and turns and leaves you wanting more. I’m about to look for more books by this author. Recommend buying and locking them door and putting your feet up as you won’t want to put it down!
Story based around a hacker and is very contemporary.

An odd book, which promised a different type of read. I felt it lost its potency midway through, and became slightly confusing, but did rally after that. Overall, not really my type of read, but the writing style was mostly engaging.

3 Stars.

Thank You to Netgalley, Tom Chatfield and Hodder & Stoughton for letting me read this book.

This book took me a while to read. For a debut from Tom it was a good read. Although I liked this book I wouldnt rush to read it a second time, but at least I can say that I have read it, I just don't think that this was my cup of tea. But well done on your first book Tom.

There were times when the story got me really hooked and the time just flew bye, but at the same time there were parts that just seemed to drag on forever and made me want to stop reading altogether. I am glad that I kept reading as I found out what happened.

too many people have already said what this book is about so I wont bore you with my version of the astory. But what I will say is this.

Read the book for yourself and form your own opinions of it. You can not judge a book if you yourself have not read it.

Azi Bello is a hacker. Online, he is the cool genius hacker AZ. In reality, he is sat in an old shed at the bottom of his garden with a cup of coffee and no real life social skills whatsoever. He thinks he is untouchable, until he gets a visitor who has found him out. His life as he knows it is over, and he must do what his visitors want if he has any chance of surviving in one piece.

This book is fast paced, it's funny, and it's modern and relevant without being pretentious. There are a lot of action and technological elements, but there is also human interest because of Azi's character. He is hapless and earnest and he has no idea what he's doing, at all. But he desperately tries his best and I was truly rooting for him all the way through.

I wasn't sure I would enjoy this book at first. I am reasonably computer savvy, but I'm not a tech whiz by any stretch. So some of the jargon in the book went straight over my head, and I was worried that I wouldn't understand enough to know what was going on. I was totally wrong about that though. It didn't matter at all that I didn't get every hacker reference - the parts I needed to understand were explained, and most of it didn't really matter to the story.

I did enjoy reading this book overall. It didn't go how I expected, and it was funnier and not as edgy as I thought it would be. But that's why I liked it more than I thought I would. It was really well written, never boring, and the lead character Azi was lovable from start to finish.

A decent thriller exploring the hidden depths of the dark net. Fast-paced and some well-crafted and likeable characters. The author doesn’t bog us down in technical detail about the dark net but effectively demonstrates the power it can wield. Something a bit different to the norm.

This is one of the most enjoyable books I have read in a while. It is fast paced, believable, and had me gripped pretty much from the first page. Whilst enjoying reading the book as a story, I feel as though I have learned all sorts of new snippets about modern technology and it has certainly been thought provoking. Thoroughly recommended.

This book follows Azi, a hacker working from the comfort of a shed in his garden. Life gets somewhat uncomfortable for Azi though when he is contacted by a hacker friend online and then all hell breaks loose. Azi is thrown headfirst into the underbelly of the dark web searching for the elusive Gomorrah.

I find the topic of hacking and computers in general really fascinating because for most normal computer users, we will never be aware of what really goes on in the internet and what computers are really capable off. Most of us will merely use them for browsing for internet, maybe creating the odd word document or spreadsheet. Azi and his fellow hackers however, use them for completely different purposes.

This is a fast paced action thriller with plenty going on from beginning to end. It is fairly complex and detailed at times though so I wouldn’t say this is a ‘beach read’ as such. But if you’re after something a bit unusual with a different topic then it’s a worth a read.

Azi is a relatively 'harmless' hacker doing his stuff from the comfort of a garden shed in Croydon, England. He thinks he's being clever, keeping under the radar, no chance of being caught up to no good by the authorities. He is wrong. One day while Azi is up to his usual hacking shenanigans, chatting online to another of his hacker kin, there is a knock on his shed door and his life is suddenly changed forever.

A complex cyber-thriller with a little bit of snarky humour, though lot of the tech is very far-fetched and cannot possibly be real. Can it? Let's hope not.

This is a thriller based around the world of hacking and the Dark Web. It all ties in with terrorism and Neo Nazis and is a Helter - Skelter ride from beginning to end Fascinating story..

Headline : An IT geek falls into the world of terrorism
Like the techie guy in some of Mark Dawson’s novels, Azi has a great IT skillset that is called on like never before in Tom Chatfield’s new book.
Dark forces put Azi and his friend in mortal danger with the ‘goodies’ at times posing not dissimilar threats.
A backdrop of right-wing extremism gives a modern day palate for Chatfield to explore the impact of sociopaths/psychopaths on society both today and potentially into the future. The terror amongst participants in Isis-related atrocities is well drawn.
A hard-to-put-down thriller, the dramatic ending hopefully sets up Chatfield and Azi for further adventures.
This book was provided as an advance copy by the publisher in return for an honest review.
Note :
I intend to provide the above on Amazon when the book is released on 11 July 2019.

My thanks to Hodder & Stoughton for an eARC via NetGalley of Tom Chatfield’s debut novel, ‘This is Gomorrah’, in exchange for an honest review.

Azi (AZ) Bello is a gray-hat hacker using his extensive computing skills to navigate the dark net and dispense his own kind of justice. Currently, he is working on infiltrating an online group of neo-Nazis in order to ultimately expose them.

He works out of a shabby shed in his late mother’s garden. When he receives an appeal from Sigma, an online ally, he responds and finds himself quickly drawn into a dangerous international conspiracy. It’s a major shock for the nerdy AZ to be dealing with assassins, spies, and other shadowy folk in the real world.

This was a high concept techno-thriller with plenty of action. We follow AZ’s journey and separately that of Kabir, Sigma’s cousin, who had been recruited to a terrorist group. He has grown disillusioned and is now trying to escape, carrying with him compromising information.

There was no way that I could predict some of the wild directions this thriller took. Totally exhilarating. I am not that much of a techie so some details of the story sailed over my head. This didn’t stop my enjoyment though.

Tom Chatfield comes from a background of writing nonfiction on the subject of digital culture and in his acknowledgements also suggests a few writers’ works for those interested in learning more about the dark net.

Is there the possibility of more adventures for AZ? I rather hope so. I found it totally engaging, complex, and intelligent. Highly recommended.

This book, without doubt is not for everyone, it is irritatingly fascinating,,complex, detailed, at times confusing but if the aim of the book was to get the reader to question the world of terrorism, data and hacking then it succeeded, with me, ten fold!

Azi is a hacker, in East Croydon, rarely leaving his little garden shed
he has a string of alias’ and is infiltrating the Dark Web into some of the deadliest chat rooms and obnoxious hate groups you can find
He is 100% sure he cant be traced, and he is right....until he is....and is ‘requested’ to help find the origins of ‘Gomorrah’, a deadly Islamic State plot to ruin the world....thats the simple version!
What then follows is a maze of espionage, new and scarily real technology, double crossing, triple crossing and whatever 4x crossing is!!!, characters that are hideously wonderful and a full on, really full on read!
Azir is great, and his at times sarky and realistic commentary is refreshing and I grew to like him a lot
Part of the book deals with a British fighter in I.S. and the harrowing descriptive writing as to what he finds is as abhorrent as it is impossible not to read, he decides to run away and well this all ties into the book
The plot changes at a rapid fire rate and sometimes its so intensely overpowering you need a few minutes headspace to catch up, take a breath and then re start your journey with Azir and the other characters
There are no specific twists as the whole book is one from beginning to end and leaves you goggle eyed with information at conclusion
As I say not for everyone but this book got ‘under my skin’ and I am marking it totally on how I enjoyed it, a bit stressful, a bit awesome and a bit endearing, the whole experience was kinda brilliant!
10/10 5 Stars

I enjoyed a lot of This Is Gomorrah very much. For a good deal of its length I found it well written, witty, rather insightful in places and genuinely exciting. Sadly, for the last quarter or so it declined into a rather silly, generic-feeling cyber-thriller.

The set up is good. Azi is a cyber-geek in London who spends time on the dark web where he has cleverly set up a false identity to infiltrate and sabotage far-right groups. This brings him into contact with Gomorrah, a very sinister organisation on the dark web who deal in all sorts of highly unsavoury things and whose dark purpose becomes gradually clearer throughout the book. Azi suddenly finds himself caught up in a real-world web of espionage and terrorism in which everyone seems untrustworthy and he is on the run with powerful people trying to kill him.

It all sounds pretty familiar, almost stale stuff, but Tom Chatfield makes it feel very fresh. He writes very well, there is genuine wit here, laced with some sharp observations, plausible detail and decently drawn characters, all of which makes for a good story. For a while I thought this might be a five-star book, but the denouement (which I obviously can’t say anything about) let the book down badly for me. It was just plain silly and rather clumsily done, I thought, and I was disappointed by it. I have given it four stars on the basis of the first part of the book, but only just in the end.

This is plainly being set this up as a series. I like Azi as a character and Chatfield writes well so I may well try the next one, but I can only give This Is Gomorrah a rather qualified recommendation.

(My thanks to Hodder and Stoughton for an ARC via NetGalley.)