Is the is definitely a Love it or hate it book, and I’m in the want to Love it but needed more. It was an interesting concept but dragged in areas

I was intrigued by this title - I'm one of those who is astonished by the overwhelming importance that seems to be aggregating around social media "presence" and thought I would find this snarky and darkly enjoyable. It is well written and dark, but more depressingly dystopian than snarkily so (as I was hoping)... The characters are developing nicely, but their lives are wearing me out and I'm finding it difficult to keep engaging in the balance between superficiality and life-or-death-seriousness that exists on every page. I understand that this is the point, and can appreciate it objectively and ideologically, but I'm just not enjoying the reading enough to continue... If you like your books dark and weighty with spot-on social commentary, you will probably really connect with this one. I, unfortunately, did not right now...

Thank you NetGalley for letting me read and review this novel. I loved it and can’t wait to read more by this author. Imagine a world where everything, including where you live is judged by your social media status and if people read it. I am telling you we aren’t far off! I loved this. Thank you!

I absolutely loved this book I read it in 3 days because the more i read i just couldn't put it down.
The twists were great and the characters were vivid and it truly was the most engaging book I've read in a long time.
I hope there will be a sequel as I just wanted to keep on reading to find out what the characters get up too.
Definitely a book I'd recommend.

Social media. We are becoming a society that must check their “pages” on a regular basis. Who posted what? Did they see our posts? Did they react? Should we react to others’ posts? Had a good hair day? Post it and wait for the reactions. Have a bad break-up? Post your dirty laundry and wait for the reactions. BUT, be careful, because even employers are looking at your posts…

Welcome to a future that really doesn’t seem too farfetched. FLUENCE by Stephen Oram tells the stories of two people, each fighting for the coveted ratings on social media that could make or break their careers, finances and of course social standing in a society who plays Peeping Tom to your every post. The problem? These unknown faces are also your judge and jury and your fate lay in their unseen hands. Probably shouldn’t upset anyone or bore them, either.
Dystopian? You bet. Terrifying? Uh-huh. Possible? Definitely. Probable? ???????

Follow Amber, upwardly ambitious, a young go-getter who will stop at nothing to feather her nest. Meet Martin, a man burned out by life and trying to fit in in a world he really has no stomach for. Seems Martin’s heart and conscience are holding him back.

Edgy and tense, Stephen Oram’s world is as dark as it is fascinating as he makes no apologies for the characters and world he has created!

I received a complimentary copy from Silverwood Books!

Publisher: SilverWood Books (June 26, 2015)
Publication Date: June 26, 2015
Genre: Dystopian
Print Length: 333 pages
Available from: Amazon | Barnes & Noble
For Reviews, Giveaways, Fabulous Book News, follow: http://tometender.blogspot.com

Thankyou to NetGalley, BooksGoSocial and Stephen Oram for the opportunity to read an ARC of Fluence.
I enjoyed reading this book even though, at times, the storyline dragged a bit. The plot is such an interesting concept and given the rise in popularity over the last few years of social media, a possible future for mankind? I certainly hope not.
I would definitely recommend this book, especially if you enjoy dystopian storylines I look forward to reading more from this author.

This was an interesting book, there were parts that dragged a little but once I was about 60% in I found myself unable to put the book down. I became so invested in the characters and their lives that I didn’t want to stop reading, just so that I could know what would happen to them on Pay Day. Tie that in with a near-future dystopia that just a little too plausible and I was hooked.

It’s a book that examines human motivation and looks at a world in which social media influence determines societal position. And holy does it hit close to home on that mark because I’ll be the first to admit that I’m constantly checking my accounts to see how my hits/likes I’ve gotten on my posts (I’m mean, I’m not addicted to social media, you are!). Anyway, this character-driven book, propelled forward by a cornucopia of morally grey characters with a tangled web of motivation, was an interesting foray into the ways in which people will try to survive when things are amiss. Whether by playing by the system, or choosing to opt out, it forces the question of how a person might act when social media rules the world.

While there were a few parts that dragged a little and could have been cut, they were sandwiched by tantalizing scenes that hinted at the eventual conclusion and greater picture. These little hints kept me reading and wanting to know what was going on. I would have liked to see more about this world and have it examined more in depth, but the way it was presented did work well with the character-driven nature of the plot, especially given how little the characters themselves knew about the world. My one complaint is that I enjoyed Max as a character, and while we do get to experience the story a little from his point of view, I would have liked to see more of him.

This is one book where I finished and went, I hope there’s a sequel because I think it’s been set up just perfectly for that (and I would 110% read the sequel).

I recommend this book to anyone who likes near-future dystopian books, enjoys character-driven science fiction, and wants to side-eye their social media for a while.

I struggled with giving this book a solid 4 stars. If I could, I would go 3.5.

A rather dystopian take on London in the future, Fluence introduces us to a society determined by your social media status. Pay Day is coming, and this once a year event uses an algorithm to determine your strata for the coming year. Will you move up? Or will you move down?

Amber is currently a Green. She’s married to Terence, also a Green, but unlike Amber, Terence is perfectly happy to be a Green. He lacks the ambition and drive that Amber has for climbing the Strata to Orange. They live in an Orange home provided by Amber’s previous beau. Amber only has visions of going up, even though she does truly love Terence.

Martin is also a green. He has a family, wife Jenny, son Max, daughter Becka. They live in a Green community in the country. Unlike Amber, Martin is barely clinging to Green and fears that dropping to Blue will be the end of his life as he knows it. Jenny persistently pushes Martin to perform better, while their son Max has a hidden life that is helping him to get where he needs to be once he turns 21 and becomes one of the Strata seekers.

Amber and Martin work together for the Bureaucracy. In their department, they determine if people should be White, or those supported by the State. Amber does her job with little compassion or care, only making points to reach the next Strata. Martin has a heart and is bothered by every decision made that adversely affects the people he meets.

As the story continues, we watch as these people interact in this dystopian society. Every moment of their lives not only displayed on social media, but also tracked by the Bureaucracy. One of the things that makes this story appealing is the reality that our society is not far behind this dystopia. Our current society is fixated on social media and status just as this dystopian London is. I think that the similarities are both haunting and interesting.

Oram writes a tale that is thought provoking and entertaining. I wrestled with liking the characters and then despising how manipulative and dishonest they could be due to the circumstances of their lives. Choices they make affects everyone around them. Bumbling Martin can’t seem to make any of the right choices, while Amber makes unsavory choices to try to get ahead. I loved the way that Oram described in full detail some of the places that Amber went for entertainment, the debauchery of the higher strata. His attention to detail really brought the story to life. You can almost smell the beer in Martin’s local pub in the country, hear the accents of those he converses with. The story is rich in detail, which is important in bringing this fictional place to life.

This could also be looked at as a cautionary tale. Could this be where our own society is headed?

This is not the first book that revolves around this theme. It is the most complicated and layered one I've read so far.

When you live in a world where everything you do or say has a tremendous influence on your place in society, you can go two ways. Play along or get out. Amber is playing along, her colleague Martin wants out. We follow them both during the last week before the one day in the year it is decided what happens to people - go up or down in society. What happens can have great impact; you can lose your house or get a much bigger one, you can lose your job or get a better one.

Fluence is a rather complicated book with multiple storylines and sometimes a bit too much detail. In the middle of the book there is a long part where Amber goes partying; although this 'party' is very important for her, for me, as reader, it was a bit tedious to read.

The author has a unique style and the story itself is a solid one, with interesting characters.