SHOULD HE LIVE OR DIE? YOU DECIDE.
Charlotte Goodwin looks directly at the camera and reveals a chilling truth to the thousands watching her Instagram Live broadcast. She has killed her ex-boyfriend's new partner in cold blood. But she is not finished yet. With bloodied hands she takes a calm sip of tea before continuing. Lincoln Jackson will now make his confession, then the viewers must vote to decide whether he should live or die.
The public display sends shockwaves rippling through the online community and the numbers of viewers skyrockets. But as Lincoln's past is revealed, how will he be judged?
Bonded by mutual tragedy, Charlotte's three best friends have supported each other through the soaring highs and devastating lows of their lives. Now, in Charlotte's hour of need, her friends also face a choice, whether to help her get away with murder.
The Hive explores our darkest fears of the relationship between social media and mental health, but, most importantly, the strength of sisterhood against all the odds.
It's such a pleasure to be hosting the blog tour for The Hive today. Many thanks to Scarlett Brade, Zaffre Books and Anne Cater from Random Things for inviting me and for my advance copy of the novel, received through Netgalley.
Love them or hate them, it's impossible to deny the impact influencers have on social media. The right endorsement from a prominent figure can be priceless to a brand. What if somebody tries to influence something that really matters, however? What if, instead of asking their followers to choose what they should wear or what they should eat that day, they are tasked with deciding if a person is going to live or die?
This is exactly what happens at the start of The Hive and it's a stunning opening. Charlotte is on Instagram, streaming live from The Hive, a popular gossip channel. She has already announced that she is responsible for the death of Heidi Dolak but Lincoln Jackson is still alive – for now. Comments and replies on Instagram feature throughout the novel and here the response varies between shock, disbelief and amusement. While some immediately state #VoteLive, others think it's a laugh to choose #VoteDie – but before we discover the result of this grim poll, the narrative takes us back to the events that brought Charlotte to this point.
It would be easy to deride Charlotte as a naïve, immature young woman who is bedazzled by fame and falls instantly in love with celebrity heavyweight boxer, Lincoln Jackson and ignores the numerous red flags. However, as the book progresses, what becomes clear is that she has been shaped by her past, and despite her apparent confidence, is vulnerable and desperate for love and a sense of family. It's ironic then that she has actually found that, only not in the arms of her narcissistic boyfriend. The Hive is a gratifyingly dark revenge thriller but it's also a fascinating examination of the power of friendship and the love that's shared by the four women who have supported one another through their respective traumas. It's worth saying here that although much of what is discussed occurred years in the past, there are still references to some distressing subjects, including abuse, loss and poverty.
Understanding the depth of friendship between Charlotte, Trix, Poppy and Zaheen really adds to the emotional weight of The Hive. The first-person narrative ensures it's especially harrowing watching Charlotte unravel following an unbearably tragic event and I thought the reaction from her friends, from their patient support through to their distraught pleas to her later in the book, was pitch-perfect. I believed totally in their relationship even though the situation they find themselves in is obviously a dramatic one.
Lincoln Jackson is a brilliant character; he is patently awful and just what you imagine somebody constantly feted and criticised would become. As an exploration of the dark side of social media, The Hive is chilling; in spite of the #BeKind movement, people are consistently encouraged to judge the appearance and actions of others, and as Scarlett Brade imagines what those suffering mental turmoil could be driven to, it's impossible not to consider what the future holds.
The Hive is an unsettling, thought-provoking contemporary thriller; written with an immersive immediacy that meant I couldn't put it down, I thoroughly enjoyed this assured debut and look forward to reading whatever Scarlett Brade writes next.
The Hive is published by Zaffre Books and can be purchased from bookshop.org, Hive, Waterstones, Amazon or your favourite independent bookshop.
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Thanks for the blog tour support x
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