I spent all of this book wondering if in 50 years time people would read it thinking it was historical fiction!

I'm not sure if I'd put this book in the dystopian category or somewhere else. It's just brilliant, clever and intriguing. We all say we want a better world, its great to think that those with power are prepped to help others but when the time comes what will they do - and what will others do?

The cast help us plan not just for the end if the world but a lovely way to make it a better place to be.

If only I could give it more than 5 stars!

While I acknowledge that Naomi Alderman has the most phenomenal writing style and literary craft, this one really just wasn't for me I'm afraid.

"The Future" by Naomi Alderman delivers a captivating and thought-provoking narrative that centers around a sharp and satirical parody of big tech and its founders. In this dystopian world, Alderman masterfully depicts the consequences of unchecked technological power. The story's darkly humorous take on the tech industry's influence creates a gripping atmosphere that keeps you engaged from start to finish. Alderman's imaginative exploration of this dystopian future is a thrilling ride that provides both entertainment and a stark warning about the potential dangers of our digital age. A must-read for those who enjoy incisive social commentary wrapped in an engaging story.

'They'd known each other for the best part of a decade. They were part of the Name The Day technology board ntd/tech, which was dedicated to using technology to prepare to survive the coming collapse of civilization, although Marius's apocalypse "preparation" mostly consisted of gleeful acceptance of the inevitability of suffering, decay, despair, and eventual painful death. He was a legend on the board for the sheer rage of his expertise in both technology and signs that humanity was on the verge of wiping itself out.'

This passage appears almost exactly half way through Naomi Alderman's latest foray into the near-future in which computer is king, three tech entrepreneurs are the richest men in the world and have prepared an underground bunker for their families and themselves to safely wait out the inevitable apocalypse coming fast over the horizon, and it nicely sums up the themes of the narrative. Anyone who enjoys literary techno thrillers will devour this well-written, propulsive novel that reads almost like an exciting video game, (Alderman's side-hustle, I believe!) As for this reader, well, I guess I'm just too old to grasp the fundamentals, particularly the technical references and jargon, and I admit I gave up after reading the paragraph above. I can admire the style and the reasoning behind writing dystopian fiction, but this one was not for me, I'm afraid.

Prfff this book was a bit of a mess, so my thoughts on it are also messy. I’d say the first third was very hard-going, which surprised me. I LOVED The Power, so I expected another powerhouse of a novel but it was very disjointed and all over the place.
I found everything around the story of Lot, Abraham and Sodom tedious, same as the Enochites sub-plot. I understand the metaphor, but I think removing the Enoch part of the book would not have affected the rest of the story.

I was thinking of giving up multiple times, and this was a rare example where the closing part of the book actually changed the overall perception of it. I loved the twist! It was very clever and well executed. Such an elegant and parsimonious solution.

The hacking/tech parts and the plot-line of Zhen and Marius were excellent. The overall concept of trying to collectively avoid a climate disaster is very topical, parts of it were harrowing (because they were so close to home) but the resolving ideas were great (just wish that’s how it also went in real world). I hated the names of all tech magnates but I loved the allegories to Musk, Zuckerberg, Bezos etc.

So, to sum it up, it’ was absolutely worth a read but it was at times very hectic and all over the place until it came together.

Everything I've read from Naomi Alderman has been great and this was no disappointment. A gripping apocalypse novel with plenty of twists!

I read The Power by Alderman earlier this year and really enjoyed it so wasn’t surprised to find myself living The Future too. Naomi Alderman has a very distinctive way of story telling and format which can be a bit confusing at first however then it starts to flow naturally and you definitely can’t mistake her voice.

In this novel we follow a group of tech giants and their companies, think Meta, Amazon and Apple. The world is on the brink of collapse, climate change, political unrest, food shortages, all things that could possibly be made worse of better depending on the actions of these people and their enterprises.

It’s hard to talk much without spoilers. The story is twisty and turny, characters are diverse and feel real. This has me gripped for all 400+ pages. It’s been categorised as a thriller, which I agree with but it’s also quite Sci Fi, Cli Fi and Speculative.

I recommend for fans of The Power, of Neil Stephenson, Michael Crichton and anyone that likes stories about the impact of humans and technology on the world.

Oooh, this one was gooood! The Future by Naomi Alderman (whose writing I discovered by playing Zombies! Run! back when my feet worked better) is fantastic. Without giving too much away, it follows a small group of super-rich tech giants as they prepare to be whisked away to their secret bunkers at the end of the world. Nothing in this book is as it appears to be at first glance, and the twists come thicker and faster as the the story progresses. I haven’t achieved a single thing since I got up this morning because I had to get to the end and find out what happens.

Having really enjoyed Naomi Alderman's 'The Power' I was very much looking forward to this but I found it difficult to engage with the story. The chapters skipped backwards and forwards but you had to start reading before you realised you were in a different scenario, it was hard to keep track of the characters and the bad language was tiresome. Overall it was a lot of effort for little reward.

I absolutely loved this - brilliant storytelling as a high-paced thriller paired with thought-provoking philosophy about big tech, human nature and climate change. So timely, and really refreshing to read dystopic fiction that attempts to offer answers as well as problems. I raced through it and would strongly recommend.

Do you ever pick up a book, read the opening couple of chapters and just KNOW that you are going to enjoy it? Well that was The Future for me.

From the very start, this book drew me in and didn't let me go until the final pages. Thoroughly enjoyable read and recommended to all

This is a clear, clever and manipulative book that offers insights into the future and the state of where we all seem to be inevitably heading. The near future is a critical point for change and people of influence and power are given clear choices to act and make the world a better place. With a collection of complex characters from misfits, the hyper-privileged, to survivors of real suffering, Alderman presents it all without judging and lets the characters unfold and deal with very modern day dilemmas.

A truly enjoyable and extremely cautionary tale, this is a deep and meaningful exploration of who we are and where we are - with a warning to act now if you can.

I wanted to enjoy The Future but unfortunately it didn't quite hit the mark for me.

Well-written with an intriguing plot, it's certainly one to try if you're a fan of dystopian fiction.

However, I didn't connect to any of the characters and found them all to be pretty awful. This distracted me from the emotion and tension of the novel. I also found the plot dragged a lot in places whilst the ending was overly rushed and seemed to contrast with the rest of the story.

Overall, a well written but fairly dull read.

Thanks to 4th Estate and NetGalley for the ARC.

A novel set primarily in the near future, everyone is trying to make life on earth bearable for humans, and their co-habitants, but it does not look like it is going to work.
The author introduces the reader to the protagonists, explaining all of the required details.
The characters are not simple souls, and quite a few are in turmoil, of one sort or another.
The relationships are complex, and the tech information is fairly complicated.
As the novel moves forward everything becomes clearer, or does it.
A marvellous story, hopefully not true.
Thanks to the author for a brilliant read, and to the publisher for an advance reading copy for honest review.

I enjoyed The Power and had high hopes for The Future. However, I struggled with the multiple characters and though thought provoking got a little bored. Fans of dystopian fiction will enjoy it.

OK, most important thing first. I can confirm one of the main characters is called Lenk Sketlish. This sounds more like the dish no one orders at a Hungarian café than an actual human being. Distracting.

Anyway, on with the review. The Future is about how fictional versions of techno-giants a la Jobs, Bezos, Zuckerberg might prepare for a possible oncoming apocalyptic event.

There are lots of great ideas, big ideas, and deep ideas in this book. Alderman is clearly a brainbox and The Future will make you think, possibly about things you've never really thought about before. And that's kind of great, right? I particularly loved the thread about minor manipulations of social media posts and how this can change collective consciousness - cool! There are several points in this book where it approaches greatness, and Alderman, as shown with The Power, is an author capable of greatness.

But this isn't quite a great book. It felt a little disjointed at times. Some sections were incredibly strong, then the book would lose it's way for a while. And I wasn't fully taken with the main character Lai Zhen. She just didn't quite jump off the page for me.

But The Future is absolutely worth a read. Even if you don't love it all, you'll probably find something you love, whether it's meditations on the power of mega tech companies, bible allegories, Foxes vs Rabbits, great descriptions of what AI is (and isn't), repurposed "sex suits" that can guide you through post-apocalyptic situations or out-of-place stunts (inserted for the movie adaptation?) involving explosions and swimming pools.

Right, I'm off for a bowl of Lenk Sketlish.


<i>I chose not to buy and own this book, because that's such a Goddamn Rabbit thing to do, and I'm a Fox. So, thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for an ARC in return for an honest review.

With enough big brother technology (that does not seem in the least far fetched) this is a spine chilling read because it feels like it could absolutely happen.

Lots of backstory detail is given on all the main players and really brings them to life along with the well described settings.
My only issue was with the forum entries- where formatting must have gone awry either just on my Kindle or in general as the entries were not within the boxes they should have been, leaving big gaps and interspersed story text and forum text that was difficult to follow at times.

Naomi Alderman is an absolute auto-read for me and The Future was no exception, I absolutely flew through this in one day and can see it doing very well when it is released later this year.

The Future is half terrifying and half fascinating, set in a dystopian future where the richest people in the world have safeguarded their own (and their loved one's) futures and are ready to let the rest of the world suffer the consequences. Mixing technology with questions of morality, Alderman has absolutely nailed the brief of a modern dystopian novel and in my opinion this is her best book yet.

Un beknown to the common folk, the event that lead to end of the world as we know it is about to occur and a cabal of elite people and their families are getting ready to secretly head for their bunkers, armed with pre prepared cover stories to appear in the press as to their whereabouts. I loved this set up but the narrative then embarks on a dizzying array of interwoven back stories about the main players which I found hard to keep track of at times as I was reading the novel in short bursts and I think a dedicated hour or two of solid uninterrupted reading would have helped soldify all the characters and their connections better in my mind. The story is quite unbelievable but it a good ride and I could see the rights being snapped up to make a limited series. The narrative also weaves in bleak but well informed climate change issues. A good dystopian tale.

The Future had many of the hallmarks of my favourite kind of sc-fi -- rooted in reality, interesting characters, innovative / bold ideas that wouldn't be terrible if implemented in our world. However, it didn't quite work for me. It was very slow to reach the "aha," building lots of crisscrossing narratives until they all coalesced at the end. The end was too neat with too much explaining. There are interesting stories in here about the state of our world and the dangers we've created for ourselves. There are interesting ideas about how we might work ourselves out of it. There are interesting characters - a rogue hacker, a survivalist community, a religious cult. But the best sci-fi for me leaves room for interpretation and reflection. The Future didn't quite deliver on that front.