I've only read two of Marrs' previous books, but after finishing 'The One', I immediately began to class myself as a fan, and as such, I didn't even read the synopsis before requesting this one. Which was a good thing, as I have to admit that once I read the back of the book, I was a bit unsure of whether it would be my sort of thing.

Luckily, it was! It felt to me a bit like an unofficial sequel to 'The One', as there were a lot of references to DNA matching and the events that happened in the previous book. Personally, this is something I love, as I really enjoy seeing all the references to what happened in the others books! Other reviews have said it also follows on from 'Passengers', which I actually haven't read, and to be honest not having read it didn't affect my enjoyment or understanding in any way, as everything is really well explained.

Ok, now for the plot. The sciencey bit of how they actually got the data into DNA and then into peoples brains is largely skipped over, which worked well for me as my scientific knowledge is very limited. Instead, the plot is surprisingly character driven, focusing on 5 very different people as they adapt to a very unique scenario. Each character has a very distinct and well-developed voice, so you immediately knew who each chapter was about, and there are so many cliffhangers that it ends up being a real 'just one more chapter' sort of book! It's super fast paced, and manages to convey a complex plot in a really exciting and enjoyable way.

All in all, another great book from a very talented author. I would definitely recommend read 'The One' before this book, partly because it is a sort of sequel but also because 'The One' is a truly amazing book. But if you don't want to, it won't matter at all, as this is a standout novel in its own right. It's fast-paced, full of twists and turns, and completely gripping! You definitely won't want to put it down.

Disclaimer - I was fortunate enough to receive an advance reading copy of this book from the publisher in conjunction with NetGalley. This has not affected my review in any way, and all opinions are my own.

I am a huge fan of John Marrs so I always immediately read his books as soon as I can. This was another fantastic read, which kept me guessing until the end. I would recommend people read The One and The Passengers first to properly enjoy this one, but you could still definitely enjoy this as a stand alone.

Huge fan of John Marrs and his latest book The Minders is exceptional. It picks up on some the themes and loose ends from his earlier futuristic novels "The One" and "Passengers" including DNA testing for your perfect love match and self driving vehicles. Each of the minders has their own secrets as anyone who wants a fresh start and a new identity obviously would and this is where the problems start. John's mind is so creative and innovative, his AI ideas are so nearly in our grasp it is frightening and possibly prophetic. Hi characters are diverse but also relatable. The pace of the book is fast, I love the snappy chapters which leave you unable to resist reading just one more... I also enjoy the change of voice with the different narrators. He has a rare talent for a male author of being able to write convincingly from a female point of view. Extra points for being the first novel I have read this year to reference the Coronavirus pandemic of 2020!

Set in the future where five specially selected people are trained and medically manipulated to store the country's most sensitive data inside their brains. Together the five Minders know every secret behind the Government's lies, cover ups and conspiracy theories. But someone knows who the five are. One by one, they are being hunted down.

This is a fast paced read that's full of twists and lots of characters who have complicated lives. Each chapter is told from a different Minders point of view. This is a gripping edge of your seat read. There's parts that are shocking and horrific. Each Minder has their own complex story. I do think that you need to have read the two previous books in this series so that it makes more sense of this one. I could not put this book down. I really enjoyed this book

And brrrreeeeaaaaaathhhee!!!!!!!!
That’s exactly my reaction the moment I read the final words of the latest thriller from popular author John Marrs. I don’t think I quite realised how on edge I felt, my pulse racing as I sped through the pages, trying to overcome the urge to lie down in a darkened room and allow my poor overheated brain to relax!! Immediately I begin reading The Minders, I experienced information overload as there is SO much to digest, my mind constantly performing cartwheels. If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like to inhabit the mind of someone whose thought processes race at 100mph plus then all you need to do is pick up a John Marrs novel! I loved (almost) every minute of his latest insight into the future of a society where AI has advanced way beyond autonomous driverless cars, where robots replacing many workplace skills is commonplace and the sophistication of those seeking to obtain confidential highly sensitive information is the biggest threat to security worldwide. What’s most frightening is the fact this novel offers a glimpse into a dystopian future is really not far from reality.

As this novel begins, Britons are living in an era where Ed Sheeran is a relic of the past, drones are delivering takeaways and top secret joint cyber/espionage intelligence committee meetings are taking place, tasked with seeking a temporary solution to storing classified government information in a way that is virtually unhackable. The Hacking Collective have already successfully made attacks on other countries, harvesting extremely sensitive information and their existence is cause for alarm. The country is still reeling in the wake of a mission two and a half years ago whereby this group infiltrated driverless vehicle networks reprogramming them to collide. PM Diane Cline does not want a similar scandal on her hands.

The Solution? Find Minders, would be guardians of secrets, who are carefully chosen individuals, identified by their ability to complete the most complex of puzzles due to the anomalies that exist in their brains. These are people the government believe can be entrusted to safeguard the nation until a more permanent solution is found. All these individuals have one thing in common,the condition synaesthesia, and could be the perfect vessels for keeping classified information safe. Is this a viable option to thwart the Hacking Collective’s mission? It’s certainly achievable thanks to the work of a neuroscientist who has developed a (failsafe?)method to turn humans into governmental guinea pigs, the details of which I won’t divulge for fear of ruining the storyline.

So with five individuals privy to the topmost secrets I was asking myself how they were going to keep themselves one step ahead of the Hacking Collective. With only handler Edward Karczewski having a vague idea of their whereabouts they are let loose to reside in any part of the country and I really feared for their safety. Could they end up as collateral damage, picked off one by one by the collective, as is the case in The Passengers? Can those at the highest levels of government hierarchy be totally confident in the trustworthiness of these five individuals or could one of them have the potential to turn rogue? I had so many thoughts running through my mind, imagining how it must feel to be one of these minders cut off from their previous life, no contact with family or friends, no access to the internet or social media bar the book website ReadWell (Netgalley for the future perhaps?!?) used only to communicate in the most extreme of situations. For some of us, especially if you’re a Luddite like myself, this may sound like the perfect scenario and it does read a bit like an extremely advanced version of a witness protection programme. All the minders, for one reason or another are wanting to restart their lives afresh so maybe spending five years, under a new identity, at the behest of the government but financially rewarded for carrying out their unusual role may be the way forward. Normally I would discuss the characters involved, offering an opinion on who I liked or disliked but I feel that’s unnecessary here and would spoil the plot! Suffice to say the minders include a space debris coordinator,a father to an autistic boy and a conspiracy theorist. You will be shocked and intrigued by further revelations as to why these characters feel the need to exit their old lives and begin a new one. Their behaviour as Minders will keep you enthralled, with the author surprising me at every opportunity.

As the storyline gathers momentum I was perturbed at the way these characters now have to live their lives. Fancy being in perpetual fight or flight mode, not knowing who to trust, unable to forge any emotional connection with those around you. I don’t think any amount of financial compensation would be enough to tempt me! This is such a rollercoaster, adrenaline pumping read that is so engrossing and utterly brilliant!

With references from The One and The Passengers littered throughout I do think on this occasion the reader benefits from having read these previous novels. The app Match my DNA is relevant to some of the minders lives, in particular Flick and Charlie, a concept that is intriguing in itself. I loved the fact some of the characters from The Passengers return in this novel, namely Bruno and Charlie and appreciated the references to others that are woven seamlessly into the storyline, bringing back fond memories.

The Minders is a read designed to exercise the brain cells and to get your neurological synapses firing on all cylinders. Themes such as the dissemination of information, fake or real, the enormity of governmental cover ups and the way agencies harvest our personal data are at the forefront of the storyline. The real treat is in discovering which direction the author will take you in,knowing there will be plenty of bumps along the way.
My only slight criticism is the storyline flies along at such a speed I struggled to keep up at times, particularly towards the end.

Fast paced, thought provoking and not so far beyond the realms of possibility I absolutely loved The Minders. With this author’s writing I expect to be shocked,surprised and a little bit terrified and I wasn’t disappointed on all three counts. I can thoroughly recommend, whether you’re already a fan of this author or just discovering his writing and cannot wait to see where his imagination will take the reader next. Just as an aside, If you fancy exploring more fiction focusing on the condition synaesthesia I can also recommend The Colour of Bee Larkham’s murder ( Sarah j Harris) and Blue eyed Boy (Joanne Harris).
My thanks as always to the publisher and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read in exchange for an honest review.

Well, John Marrs does it again with an utterly gripping and exceptionally written book.
When I pick up a John Marrs book, I expect to be blown away, to be enthralled and not have a life for a few days! This delivers on all of those. I couldn’t put it down; it was just brilliant.
You need to have read ‘The One’ and ‘The Passengers’ before reading this one as he references quite a few of the characters and events from these books. I was desperately trying to remember who everyone one was as it was May 2018 when I read ‘The One’ so I was really testing my memory.
This world that he has created is a lovely break from the norm; it is a Psychological Thriller but very different from a lot of the cookie-cutter PTs that are out there at the moment. It is such a refreshing read.
It was great that he referenced the coronavirus in the past tense, let’s hope that one day he is right, and it will be just an event in history.
There are so many twists and turns towards the end, and I was so shocked by a few of the circumstances, and I found myself having to reread the last paragraph I’d read just to make sure I wasn’t imagining things. At one point, I even gasped out loud, and my hand flew to my mouth!
This really was the perfect read and follow-on to the previous two captivating books in this series.

This is my seventh John Marrs book and once again, I loved it! It's set in the same world as some of his previous books (including The One) as there is some overlap with storylines, however it is definitely a standalone book!

This is set in the near future (for example, Rihanna and Justin Bieber are childhood music to the adults in the story), where the UK Government has decided to embed all of the national secrets as DNA into five volunteers' brains. This is an attempt to protect the information from global hackers who are taking down countries one by one.

What follows is a nonstop thriller as we follow the volunteers (the 'Minders') as they start their new lives with new identities in order to hide themselves from the bad forces who want to destroy the information in their brains. I don't want to say any more as it will spoil the story, but I loved the characters (including the baddies!) and thought the concept was really unique.

I did quite enjoy this book, it read a bit like a movie script so would be perfect for a TV adaptation. It’s really not something I would normally read, I don’t tend to go for ones about government or politics, but it’s nice to switch it up every now and then.

The Minders is set in a future where governments around the world are being hacked and countries held to ransom over their secrets.

In an attempt to become unhackable the U.K. selects and trains five uniquely talented individuals to have the countries sensitive data implanted into their brains for five years, while the government build a more secure system.

But somebody has found out who they are and they are being hunted down one by one, to extract the secrets hidden in their heads.

The story was told by switching between five main characters:

* Flick - after being ‘matched’ to a serial killer she spirals into a dark place, obsessing, drinking and withdrawing from the world. Becoming a minder is her chance to forget, to leave it all behind.

* Sinead - is involved in an emotionally abusive relationship with her ‘match’, she has finally seen the light and is desperate to escape and start afresh.

* Charlie - feels alone in life because all of his friends are ‘matched’ to their perfect partners and have moved on. Once he becomes a minder he struggles to feel anything at all, he can’t decide what is worse.

* Bruno - after the devastating news of the death of his wife Bruno is left to care for their autistic son alone. His son solves the puzzle which enables Bruno to join the minders, but he isn’t as strong as the others and after the implantation he suffers from ‘echos’. These are visions of the people hidden inside his brain, which enable and encourage him to spiral out of control.

* Emilia - after waking up in an unknown place with no memories, she escapes and is eventually reunited with her ‘husband’. But she is warned by a stranger that everything is not as it seems and she needs to locate the minders so they can tell her who she really is.

Although I did really enjoy this when I was reading it, looking back now I don’t remember a lot of the details of the story(!), it’s been about 3 days since I finished it.

Whilst I was reading I did also find it hard to remember each characters backstory. In particular the two female minders Flick and Sinead were impossible for me to tell apart, as their ‘voices’ were exactly the same.

It was an intriguing futuristic story though with a few current day references (brexit/coronavirus), and for the most part held my attention. I did get through it relatively quickly and the pace seemed to pick up near the end.

I did enjoy the twist, you might see it coming if you read a lot of books like this as it was fairly straightforward, but i was in the dark the whole time. It would probably have a bigger wow factor on screen.

I also liked how wrapped up the ending was, although I wouldn’t say it was a traditional happy ending for all involved 😅

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for letting me read and review an advance copy of The Minders.

(3.75/5)

In his new thriller John Marrs has once again given us a highly original story, taking us back into his futuristic world of autonomous vehicles and gene matching for the perfect marriage that he established in The Passengers and The One. This time, the world is threatened by the group known as the Hacking Collective, who are hacking into highly classified government documents and blackmailing countries to not reveal their darkest secrets. Several countries have already been bankrupted and Britain is worried that they might be next. A joint cyber-espionage/intelligence committee has come up with a plan to buy them a few years protection for the country's classified documents while they work on a new unhackable system for storing data.

The plan is to translate the classified data into genetic code and implant them in the brains of a specially selected group of people, called minders. The novels follows a group of five minders who must cut all ties with family and friends and social media and start afresh in a new location of their own choice.

The novel follows the minders as they establish new lives and connections, while trying to stay hidden from those who would hunt them. While the characters were diverse and interesting, some of them could have done with a bit more rounding out and their sections felt a bit rushed. for this reason I didn't enjoy this novel quite as much as the earlier ones set in this world, but it still made for an entertaining and at times gripping read that will definitely appeal to fans of the author.

Well where do you start with your review when you have loved a book so much that all you want to say is “ I love this book, I love this book, it’s a fantastic read don’t miss it !! “ and that’s just how I felt when I finished the book I wanted to tell everyone I knew to read it it’s just that brilliant.
When you see the name John Marrs it’s a no brainer that the book is going to be good, everything he writes has been amazing...but this one oh my goodness this one for me he took it to another level there wasn’t one thing I didn’t love, the characters were flawed and superbly written, the story was exciting and wonderfully well crafted it twisted my head round like I was something possessed! It’s a story like no other completely unputdownable and surely the best John Marrs so far but then I say this every time I read his latest book !!
Pick this up please don’t hesitate it’s a story that has so much and one that will not disappoint I’m not rehashing the plot because it’s better to not know but to just go in with no preconceived ideas .. can’t praise it enough I don’t have enough words unlike Mr Marrs.
Better than a five star read and John Marrs once again a massive thank you for giving me hours and hours of pleasure in reading this.
My thanks to NetGalley and Random House UK, Cornerstone, Del Ray for giving me the chance to read the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

would like to thank netgalley and the publisher for letting me read this amazing book

the hacking collective are after all of englands secrets....

5 individuals are picked after seemingly working out a puzzle...their lives will never be the same again....

can they stay alive before the hacking collective find them and try to spill their secrets

what a thriller of a ride...so much happening that i dont want to spoil anything but its one of those books that you cant put down and cant believe...but technology and with the way of the world this could happen...well we know it happens

cant wait for the next book from this author...its always a whirlwind of emotions

I love John Marrs books they always take me in straight away.

The minders was interesting and gripping and very well written as always.

Great read and a little different

I have loved reading all of John's books so far, and was drawn to both the cover and the blurb for The Minders.

As a big fan of The One I was really hoping that I would find The Minders as compelling and 'unputdownable'. Sadly it didn't quite hit the mark of his other work for me. That said, I have seen so many rave reviews that I have come to the conclusion that this was definitely a case of it being 'it's not you, it's me!'. I was reading it during the recent heatwave when I was struggling to function, so that could well account for it!

The premise of the story is great, and has links to The One, but can also be read as a standalone book.

We are thrust into the future where we follow the twists and turns in the lives of five 'minders', who have been entrusted with keeping government information safe from cyber hacking.

The characters all come from different and normal backgrounds, with this one aim in common. However, there are forces out there that are interested in gaining the knowledge they hold - and will stop at nothing to get their hands on it. Cue us as readers following the minders as they try to stay safe and below the radar whilst the bad guys have other ideas.

Overall this is a strong read, but just not my favourite. I am sure it is going to be a massive success!

Another great novel from Marrs, fast becoming my go to author! Wonderful characters that are so clearly defined and do not confuse me in the slightest, and a plot so believable it is frightening! Definitely recommend reading The One and The Passengers prior to this as there are spoilers and definitely enhances the enjoyment. I was a little confused at the introduction of the website and it's relevance, hence my removal of the last star of my rating.

I couldn’t wait to read this after recently reading The Passengers and loving it. Marrs has once again nailed it….drawing you in right from the very first page. Building up the suspense and tension while we meet five strangers who have been chosen to start their lives again and become The Minders. The chapters alternate between the characters, with each chapter leaving you wanting more.

The Minders is once again a clever unique, character driven story. Right from the start I could picture this being a movie. The author takes the reader on a roller coaster ride. I couldn’t read this fast enough wanting to know more about the characters and what was going to happen next.

It is a story full of twists and turns that will have you gripped from start to finish. Fans old and new are going to love it and doesn’t need me to sit here and praise it…..This book speaks for itself!

If you are looking for a fast paced addictive read then this is the book for you. I cannot recommend it enough. Giving it all the stars.

Thank you to Isabelle at Penguin for a copy and for the blog tour invite.

Firstly a big thank you to the publishers for approving my request to read on netgalley. I am a huge fan of his after reading the one which i cant wait to watch on Netflix.

I was very excited to read this.

I told myself i was having a earlier night then started reading this… never a good combination. Before I knew it the book was finished.

This is an amazing high tension,fast paced and very slick. Cleverly written and characters you connect with instantly. I imagine his research into his books are always fascinating.

Think spy /thriller/dystopian and thats the minders.

Fantastic and addictive reading as always . His books are also always thought provoking especially in terms of our moderm world we live in.

Out in e book now and paperback September 17th.

After reading What Lies Between Us by John Marrs, I was hooked. His writing style is brilliant and every book is unique with some fantastic twists and turns. I can't wait to read more.

The Minders is very topical - it's set in the future but it really does make you think about how simple it will be for our lives to end up very much surrounded by technology. Current events are even mentioned as well!

There are lots of characters with complicated lives and interesting history. John Marrs keeps them all on track, carefully juggling their story as he works his way through the book. There's potential and space for plot holes in such an intricate book - but John is the master of wrapping up loose ends and answering questions but in a fascinating way.

John Marrs is a very talented writer who has a way of capturing your imagination and believing the impossible. I have loved all his books to date but this one possibly went a little bit to far for me with the graphic details.
You can’t help but feel sorry for the minders of the nations secrets and the information they are privy too. But as usual John holds nothing back and a happy ending is not what you always get.
Saying all this I really enjoyed the book and could not put it down. Looking forward to the next one.

John Marrs has done it again! This is epic - so fast-paced, so gripping and so original! I love John Marrs' writing style, always keeps me reading until the early hours. I just hadddd to see what was going to happen in the end! Really enjoyed this book in particular, I'm going to recommend this to everyone. Thanks so much for sharing the review copy.

John Marrs is just an absolute genius with words, plot lines and keeping the reader hooked on every word. This is one of those books that you really want to cancel real life for because nothing will make you want to put it down once you start.

While this could potentially be read as a standalone book it’s probably advisable to read both The Passengers and The One beforehand as they are both mentioned