Reviews

The Price War by Richard Holliday

cinderackerman's review

I received a sample of this story with the option to get a copy of the book for ARC reading. 

I did enjoy the sample, but ultimately decided it was something I wasn’t interested in. While the story itself is a compelling and intriguing idea, it is a little hard to follow. 

This dystopian society idea is a little closer to reality than we expect and I think it has the potential to be a thrilling, fast-paced story. Even though I didn’t enjoy it for myself, I will say that it deserves a read from everyone to make their own determinations about it.

connorjdaley's review

adventurous challenging emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I originally received this as an eARC, but I was so backed up that I actually ended up buying a copy by the time I got to reading it. (Sorry about that.) 

This is a near-future dystopian techno-thriller. It poses the question of what the world would look like if companies like Amazon were allowed to grow and buy and take completely unchecked. At some point, things would be so cutthroat that it would turn to blood, right? 

While the concept is huge, the author gives a very personalized story within. As he warned me, “the book is very British” and yep, it is unapologetically so. But within that, the characters are presenting you with their world, as opposed to the grander world beyond. The characters deal with issues with family and friends, losing jobs, home damage from storms, and some damage from other’s fists…the stakes get higher and higher as the story progresses, and I was incredibly happy with the fact that it didn’t extend to the unbelievable. 

The characters are believable, as are the relationships that intertwine between them all. Some dialogue was beyond me and my American brain, but that somehow read as especially authentic to me. 

The only thing the story was missing for me was a little more. More backstory, more world building, more lore. More of the precipice that was crossed to bring the world to where it was. Also, the author further pushes his pineapple on pizza agenda…nah.  

Personally a 4/5* for me.