neil_denham's review
5.0
I really loved this story, the places described were very vividly real to me, the main characters well drawn, and the plot always twisting and turning. I genuinely believed that this social media start up could exist (and I am sure it is only time before it does, I hope Dane has protected his idea...) From the young organisations I have been involved in it all seemed authentic, and the veer to cultish behaviour (I hope that is not a plot spoiler) also very believable. The ending was a touch 'neat' for my liking, but overall a superb novel!
anndudzinski's review
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Former.ly has a guaranteed client base. The dead. Users record journals while they're alive but once they die, their journals become public. Dan is hired as a back end programmer when the start up is in its infancy, but it soon experiences exponential growth. But Dan is uneasy that there's something not right with the two founders. Too much secrecy surrounding the company's business model and where the money is coming from. But soon employees that leave the company start dying, and Dan needs to figure out what's going on at Former.ly before there are any more casualties.
This is not my normal reading fare and the story is pretty intense. However, it's heavily plot driven, which works for a suspense novel but my preference is to have some character development. I never really connected with any of the characters and, in fact, didn't find Dan likable at all. Things just sort of happened without any warning. While it kept the pacing moving along quickly, I found myself playing catch up to what was happening more than once.
Definitely tense and high octane, but not what I usually look for. If you're a fan of heavily plot-driven novels (like James Patterson), this one might be up your alley.
This is not my normal reading fare and the story is pretty intense. However, it's heavily plot driven, which works for a suspense novel but my preference is to have some character development. I never really connected with any of the characters and, in fact, didn't find Dan likable at all. Things just sort of happened without any warning. While it kept the pacing moving along quickly, I found myself playing catch up to what was happening more than once.
Definitely tense and high octane, but not what I usually look for. If you're a fan of heavily plot-driven novels (like James Patterson), this one might be up your alley.
reviewsfeedblog's review
3.0
I think there is a part of that blurb that is misleading - "Then, their posts are shared with the world, often with unexpected consequences". Having read the book - I have absolutely no idea what this is supposed to refer to. Can someone please enlighten me? I can't recall anything "shocking" published on the site.
Former.ly is a social network designed for users to prepare memorials for after they are gone. Beginning in a small, grubby house and gradually growing into a state-of-the-art office with full security complement, the Company seems to be going from strength to strength, but what is driving this Company forward?
The narrative within the book itself is well presented and there is enough mystery throughout to keep the reader gripped. When Dan starts at the Company, he knows very little about the work he is contributing to; he knows he is working out bugs in code, but not what it does. Other members of staff come and go and as Dan becomes more experienced, he is able to dig deeper using the trust he has gained. The pace at which the story unfolds is good, which helps the story to flow.
If I am completely honest, I didn't really understand Dan's motivation to stay with the Company at all. Not only is he working such crazy hours that it affects his relationship, but his employers are also really shifty and mistrusting all the time! I know if that was me, I wouldn't sit well with it. There are other characters that feel the same way I do, but I struggled to sympathise with Dan for one simple reason - he had plenty of warning signs to get out of that situation sooner. Sure, maybe he did want to get to the bottom of what was going on, but I just couldn't put myself in his shoes. That's an entirely personal thing - not a fault of the character himself.
Overall, I rated the book three stars, as whilst the writing and the plot was good, I struggled to relate to the characters telling the story. I also didn't feel that much depth with characters other than the MC either, which I would have expected since Dan et al spend almost all of the time in the office (yes, anti-social hours and weekends too)!
It was an acceptable read, even if there were parts that weren't entirely to my liking.
Former.ly is a social network designed for users to prepare memorials for after they are gone. Beginning in a small, grubby house and gradually growing into a state-of-the-art office with full security complement, the Company seems to be going from strength to strength, but what is driving this Company forward?
The narrative within the book itself is well presented and there is enough mystery throughout to keep the reader gripped. When Dan starts at the Company, he knows very little about the work he is contributing to; he knows he is working out bugs in code, but not what it does. Other members of staff come and go and as Dan becomes more experienced, he is able to dig deeper using the trust he has gained. The pace at which the story unfolds is good, which helps the story to flow.
If I am completely honest, I didn't really understand Dan's motivation to stay with the Company at all. Not only is he working such crazy hours that it affects his relationship, but his employers are also really shifty and mistrusting all the time! I know if that was me, I wouldn't sit well with it. There are other characters that feel the same way I do, but I struggled to sympathise with Dan for one simple reason - he had plenty of warning signs to get out of that situation sooner. Sure, maybe he did want to get to the bottom of what was going on, but I just couldn't put myself in his shoes. That's an entirely personal thing - not a fault of the character himself.
Overall, I rated the book three stars, as whilst the writing and the plot was good, I struggled to relate to the characters telling the story. I also didn't feel that much depth with characters other than the MC either, which I would have expected since Dan et al spend almost all of the time in the office (yes, anti-social hours and weekends too)!
It was an acceptable read, even if there were parts that weren't entirely to my liking.
aravenclawlibraryx's review
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Title: Former.ly: The Rise and Fall of a Social Network
Author: Dane Cobain
Genre: Thriller and Suspense
Format: paperback book from the author
Series: NA
Star Rating: 4 stars
A special thank you goes to Dane Cobain for giving me a copy of this book. Please know that this does not influence my rating or thoughts on the book itself.
tw: parental death, death from illness, alcohol, toxic work environment, infidelity, drugs, murder, death
Speech is never free. It is expensive.
This book was actually pretty good. I mean that in a good way. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect as I don’t read a lot of thriller/suspense books. Most of the time, the thriller/suspense books are books about crime so this one was a little different. But it was a good different. I was just so stressed the whole time while I read this book. I just had this super uneasy feeling. The vibes were wrong with the founders. I found myself constantly thinking about this book and what I would have done if I was in the main character’s position.
The first 25 percent of this book was a little slow. We had to meet Dan and the social media site was just getting started so there had to be a lot of build-up. But that’s okay! Build-up is good if we get a good payoff, which I think we did. I wasn’t super sure about Dan, the main character, as a person. He was kind of an asshole and seemed to be one of those stereotypical men in tech who act better than you. But I slowly grew to like him. I even found myself rooting for him toward the end.
The concept of the site Former.ly is actually really cool. I can see it being a major problem, though, if very important people used it. Ones that had access to top-secret stuff that the public might not want to know about. Of course, I don’t like how the founders, John and Peter, ran their company or how they treated their employees. But I think that they really had a good thing going. But of course, they go and ruin it.
Overall, I was pretty impressed with this book. It shows just how bad some workplaces can be. I mean, I would hope that workplaces aren’t as bad as this one. But the conditions that Dan and his coworkers were forced to endure were just plain bad. I wasn’t sure what I was getting myself into but I was pleasantly surprised. I enjoyed the way the author wrote. I enjoyed the concept of the book. Overall, this was a pretty good book.
nikkisdudley's review
4.0
A great unconventional thriller for the modern day. Some great twists and turns to keep you flying through the pages.
simplyallytea's review
3.0
Former.ly is a small start-up tech company that has a social media website. Think like Facebook but it is private, only the user can see and it becomes public when he or she dies. And our leading character finds himself coding here.
Dan Roberts is the main character of Former.ly, but I could not click with the guy, which caused me many problem because I always seemed to be putting the book down to do something else. Dan is a very chill guy, maybe too chill. Nothing seemed to really faze him and it bothered me. Having girlfriend problems. Shrug. Company founders being sketchy and secretive. Shrug. Someone died for the first time. Shrug.
When Dan finally started showing more effort and emotions about the occurrences around him is when I finally got intrigued and hooked with the story. Watching him risk his safety for the truth that surrounded Former.ly kept me gripped. Watching him from going from a loner and a guy that did not really care about anything to someone who threatens the very people who are capable of stealing his life away was beautiful.
Unfortunately this took more than half the book. I personally enjoy complex characters that keep you wondering about who they are, and Dan did not give me that.
Cobain writing is simple and straightforward which makes it into a quick and easy read. While it has hints of a mystery novel it does not follow a generic mystery novel scheme. It felt more that I was reading a journal, in this case, Dan’s journal as he writes out his experience with Former.ly. Having lack of explanations on certain things made sense, even when it drove me a bit mad, but like many unreliable narrators this lackness is expected. ( Kinda like Nick was super unreliable in the Great Gatsby )
Overall, it was an interesting experience out of my fantasy genre. If you are looking for something quick/simple and set in our modern time this is a book you should give a try.
Dan Roberts is the main character of Former.ly, but I could not click with the guy, which caused me many problem because I always seemed to be putting the book down to do something else. Dan is a very chill guy, maybe too chill. Nothing seemed to really faze him and it bothered me. Having girlfriend problems. Shrug. Company founders being sketchy and secretive. Shrug. Someone died for the first time. Shrug.
When Dan finally started showing more effort and emotions about the occurrences around him is when I finally got intrigued and hooked with the story. Watching him risk his safety for the truth that surrounded Former.ly kept me gripped. Watching him from going from a loner and a guy that did not really care about anything to someone who threatens the very people who are capable of stealing his life away was beautiful.
Unfortunately this took more than half the book. I personally enjoy complex characters that keep you wondering about who they are, and Dan did not give me that.
Cobain writing is simple and straightforward which makes it into a quick and easy read. While it has hints of a mystery novel it does not follow a generic mystery novel scheme. It felt more that I was reading a journal, in this case, Dan’s journal as he writes out his experience with Former.ly. Having lack of explanations on certain things made sense, even when it drove me a bit mad, but like many unreliable narrators this lackness is expected. ( Kinda like Nick was super unreliable in the Great Gatsby )
Overall, it was an interesting experience out of my fantasy genre. If you are looking for something quick/simple and set in our modern time this is a book you should give a try.
laurabroadberry's review
4.0
Former.ly by Dane Cobain is certainly a page turner as you long to figure out what the plot twist will be, and when it will happen. I found the story very easy to read, and it kept me gripped enough to keep turning the page.
Dan Roberts enters a small start-up tech company, known as Former.ly, and becomes a key part as the company expands to a global level. A social networking site dedicated to the dead, which posts any updates the person privately made on the website before they died, by making the private posts public. But some shady business happens, and Dan is caught in the middle of it.
First impressions: I really wanted to know what would happen to Dan, but I suspected the founders were part of this shady business to begin with. The ending was a bit of a plot twist, but again, I quite enjoyed seeing Dan deal with the consequences of his actions.
What I liked: I liked how Dan was an obviously flawed character, like the detectives in crime novels, in which he's a loner and purposefully doesn't have anyone to be his weakness. I liked the realistic growth of the company, and seeing how the characters progressed with this growth. I liked how the story progressed, and built the tension up gradually, whilst drawing you in with the first line. I also liked that the story jumped to the relevant plot details, rather than filling in what had happened between those times. Personally, I liked how technical it sounded, because it showed the author knew what they were writing about, but if someone wasn't in the know about computers and coding, it might not make sense in places to them.
What I disliked: I'm all for character flaws, but having the founders and his girlfriend being erratic was a bit much. Surely the girlfriend could've just been fed up with the relationship and just left, because having her do what she did really felt like it was shoe horned in, regardless of whether it gave Dan a coincidental second chance or not. I felt, in places, the explanation could've been a little better, especially towards the end. The end, in a way, felt a bit rushed, and I would've liked to have seen more of the aftermath of what happened in prison, for example.
The book itself was well written in that it was concise and built up tension, but I felt like sometimes it was too rushed or not explained well. However, I did enjoy reading it, and would recommend it to anyone who'd like a well thought out murder mystery.
My rating: 4/5
Dan Roberts enters a small start-up tech company, known as Former.ly, and becomes a key part as the company expands to a global level. A social networking site dedicated to the dead, which posts any updates the person privately made on the website before they died, by making the private posts public. But some shady business happens, and Dan is caught in the middle of it.
First impressions: I really wanted to know what would happen to Dan, but I suspected the founders were part of this shady business to begin with. The ending was a bit of a plot twist, but again, I quite enjoyed seeing Dan deal with the consequences of his actions.
What I liked: I liked how Dan was an obviously flawed character, like the detectives in crime novels, in which he's a loner and purposefully doesn't have anyone to be his weakness. I liked the realistic growth of the company, and seeing how the characters progressed with this growth. I liked how the story progressed, and built the tension up gradually, whilst drawing you in with the first line. I also liked that the story jumped to the relevant plot details, rather than filling in what had happened between those times. Personally, I liked how technical it sounded, because it showed the author knew what they were writing about, but if someone wasn't in the know about computers and coding, it might not make sense in places to them.
What I disliked: I'm all for character flaws, but having the founders and his girlfriend being erratic was a bit much. Surely the girlfriend could've just been fed up with the relationship and just left, because having her do what she did really felt like it was shoe horned in, regardless of whether it gave Dan a coincidental second chance or not. I felt, in places, the explanation could've been a little better, especially towards the end. The end, in a way, felt a bit rushed, and I would've liked to have seen more of the aftermath of what happened in prison, for example.
The book itself was well written in that it was concise and built up tension, but I felt like sometimes it was too rushed or not explained well. However, I did enjoy reading it, and would recommend it to anyone who'd like a well thought out murder mystery.
My rating: 4/5
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