This was an interesting book, one with a lot going on in it. What I find interesting it initially I thought one way, but as things started to spin out of control I found my mind being changed.

Cassie came off like any other petulant teen, nothing new there, but it was the Hive that ramped things up. At first I liked the idea of the Hive, how it could help people from being dumb on-line where it's easy to because it seems so anonymous. But when Cassie was at the first Hive Justice I started to have misgivings. This guy was just venting, venting in a situation that was bad, was it stupid, yes. Later when Cassie posted her comment I thought much the same, so stupid and crossed the line from stupid to really bad. But and it's a big one, that one comment didn't make her deserve what came for her, a mob of people that seemed to feed on itself getting more and more worked up.

I thought Cassie did a good job of reacting to the Hive coming after her. Along the way she found people to help her and hindered herself in others. By the end of the book Cassie was in a better place, more at home in her own skin (I think) and more aware of the world (big and small). I do wish we had the answer to her last question. For me, I wish she would expose everything.

***Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for allowing me to read an eArc of this novel. All opinions are my own.***

This book could have been really great for me. I have seen a Black Mirror episode or 2, and I have enjoyed some of Barry Lyga's previous works. However, I just didn't like the political context. I believe that it is valid to write any interpretation of events, or what may become of America. I just don't go to novels to be this close to reality. I want escapism and a chance to live life differently for a few minutes or hours.

Also, the InstaLove was alive and well, and I just didn't care for it. Too cheesy and CW for me. But I would urge you to give this a try if you want some great political commentary and technical commentary as well.

DNF at 27%

Thanks to the publishers for sharing this one. It was a quick exciting read, that warns about the possible dangers of technology without being too preachy about it. My full review appears on Weekend Notes.

Wow! This book was amazing! I was hooked right from the beginning and couldn't put it down. Lots of twist and turns to keep you interested. You won't regret reading this one!

The Hive is so plausible it's scary. Imagine a person makes a bad decision, says or does something offensive, mean, etc., and it's all over social media with the faceless masses slinging insults and demanding justice. It's not difficult to imagine because it happens every day. Take it one step further. Imagine these faceless masses having the authority and ability to hunt down the offender and punish him/her in any way they deem suitable. It's the Hive mentality. Follow the leader, don't think individual thoughts, and don't act like an individual. Society is just a bit short of this becoming reality. It won't be long until the blind lead the blind to exact justice. I like everything about this story because it's so relatable and relevant. I love the underlying premise because it's truth, unfortunate, but true just the same. I've said it before, and I'll keep saying it. Social media is dangerous, especially for a generation of non-thinkers who simply do not exist as individuals. Life is not lived unless it's seen and liked. Follow, follow, follow.....like a hive joining together. But, some poor soul accidentally says something regrettable but inconsequential to a waiter, bank teller, janitor, bus driver, etc., and woe to them. Hive activated. Let the hell fire rain down, and cast this person out like a leper. Here's the HUGE problem: if this hive are saying/doing terrible things to this offender, whom they don't actually know personally, then they are performing the SAME action that offended them in the first place! It's being mean to a stranger, and it's all the same. Can you say hypocrisy? Social media can be an excellent addition to life when used properly. Don't join the hive(lol), but do read The Hive. It's great if, like me, you are appalled by the atrocities of social media every day. Definitely gives you something to think about! Thanks to NetGalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

I dnf this at 10%
I thought the main character was a brat right of the bat and it all seemed really political to me. I've also seen that the romance is cringy. I didn't get far enough into it to get to that

This is a book that had everything to be amazing and I feel that it failed so spectacularly for me mostly because of the tone the writers used.

The book starts with a bang: graphics that reminds us of an app, quotes, and tweets that make it seem real. I particularly enjoyed the President’s quote.

The theme is absolutely flawless for me and it touches in so many smart, difficult subjects that we recognize from our everyday lives like public persecution, mob mentality, internet fame, ... and does it in a way that is smart. The problem is I felt like I was being talked down to by baby boomers.

The story starts being told by Cassie and her mother, Rachel and they are such cliches: angry teenage girl, mother that cannot comfort her in her pain and that feel a complex of inferiority and resentment over the dead father, who the daughter idealized. I could have not related less to these characters and that shouldn’t have been the case at all.

The only way I have of describing this book is as if this was the result of leaving aliens binge-watch American tv shows to learn about teenagers. They did get a lot of it right, it just never felt real.

This is a very good book for people that are interested in how powerful social media is and how little it takes for it to turn on us. The best part about it is that it is not futuristic at all, it’s already happening.

Thank you to NetGalley and Kids Can Press for this ARC.

Quite an interesting story about social media, the internet, mob mentality and how all of these things affect our lives today. I love Barry Lyga's previous books so I am already a fan. This new book did not disappoint at all! Cassie, the main character, finds herself in trouble after setting of a social-media-comment-gone-wrong followed by a crazy chain of events, the book takes off. Cassie is on the run trying to survive a whirlwind of roller coaster events made to punish her and much worse, out of her control. I definitely enjoyed this fast paced, exciting, modern-day adventure. Definitely worth reading! Thanks so much to NG for the ARC!!!

I wish I could say that Barry Lyga swept me off my feet with his recently released new novel «The Hive». I wish I could say that it was the most amazing sci-fi I’ve read in a very long time. At least, these were my expectations going into this book. But it didn’t deliver.

What is the Hive?

We all know how out of control online interactions can get. How people seem to lose all their filters (and ability to think straight) when they are talking to someone through the internet just staring at the screen and writing obscenities after obscenities.

What if an online justice system would condemn those who misbehaved, allowing the population to execute the sentence. Is it the best or the worst idea ever to hand the execution to the masses?

The Hive controls online community, submitting the misbehaved to their punishment in accordance with likes / dislikes the post gets, and then schedules the time and date for the mob to bring the justice.

WHAT I LIKED:

1 - The premise sounded like one of the episodes of Black Mirror, and also terrifyingly close to our reality. Everyday the online world consumes a little bit more of our existence. I mean… I’m running a blog here! We all exist online in some way or another. We all watched tweets getting out of hand, we’ve all seen the cyber bullying expanding itself. I wish there would be some punishment for those people, but I’m terrified by the idea of the Hive. By how easily things could escalate from a simple warning to a death sentence and a hunt.

Barry Lyga did an amazing job showing how scary this world could be.

2 - While I thought that the characterization in this books was very poor, there were some aspects about Cassie that I did like. Cassie McKinney, daughter of the famous (or should I say infamous?) hacker, who knows her way around the codes, who is brave and headstrong, but also genuinely afraid for her life.

Of course, Cassie had to be a hacker-genius, but I liked that she wasn’t good at everything. She had her strong points, maybe she was better than 90% of other professionals in this field, but there were others who surpasses her in other sub-fields.

WHAT I DIDN’T LIKE:

Oh my, this is going to be a long list.

1 - I desperately wanted to see more of the dystopian settings of this worlds, instead of reading a take on the Mean Girls. Cassie begins her senior year in a new school, where she immediately does three things:
- joins the popular girls’ table;
- feels too superior to talk to other kids;
- falls in love with a mysterious guy.

Were there no other way to drive the plot forward except the retelling of the Mean Girls with the most cringey scenes of insta-love?

2 - Cassie could be described with one word - anger. She recently lost her father, so it was “normal” for her to feel angry, to be angry at the world. I’m not a psychologist and I never experienced the loss of the closests family members, but I don’t understand why all movies and books make focus so much on the anger. Almost passing the idea that if you’ve lost someone you HAVE to be angry. Yes, people deal with the loss differently, for some that might translate in anger, but I’d like to see some healthy representation of that in YA books.

3 - The whole plot revolved about the joke Cassie made online. Honestly, I didn’t find it funny. However, I didn’t think she deserved to be punished because of it either. What startled me the most was the lack of empathy and regret from Cassie. She made the joke, which was a very bad taste, but she constantly said how she didn’t feel bad about it. THAT was the most scandalous thing, in my opinion.

4 - Overall, the book had many unnecessary gore elements that didn’t contribute to the story. I didn’t flinch while reading the fight scenes or descriptions of injuries, but it felt like a filler to add more pages to the book.

I could not put down this book. It was so interesting and the writing was great. I will definitely be recommending this to customers at my work!

The Hive is a really interesting concept; people who make online blunders can be hunted down by a social-media driven mob and punished according to their so-called crimes. While this is a cool topic to explore, I didn't love the writing or the characters.

I absolutely loved this concept! I love a great plot and that was definitely going on. It's fast paced and action packed. I wouldn't necessarily say it's a technological thriller, but it read like one!

It was a quick read that I think socially conscious teens will really enjoy. The HIVE regulations don't quite make sense as they contradict themselves, but I think some readers will overlook that.

Thanks Net Galley for the preview!

I was drawn to this description almost immediately! I love futuristic books and really loved how realistic this idea felt. Cassie was a strong main character full of intellect and surprises. I felt like the "romantic" component with Carson was the perfect amount of sweet. I also loved the who can she trust twists and turns. I hope to see a sequel to follow these characters and the HIVE.

I loved Lyga's Jasper Dent series so was really excited to see that he's got a new book and how it would compare to them. In this case, it's as though Lyga is channeling Cory Doctorow, and I mean that in a very good way. "The Hive" was founded on the idea that peer pressure/peer justice would get rid of online bullying and shaming (although it's very much about shaming!) and is government run. When someone does or says something online, people can "like" or "condemn" it and when the algorithm shows a bad condemn to like ratio, the group can - in real life, in public - exact some sort of punishment. What could possibly go wrong?

Our heroine is the daughter of a Latin professor (living) and an infamous hacker/programmer (now dead) and the government is convinced that when her father died, he left something behind, something the government wants (what, they're not quite sure, but they know it exists... probably). So when Cassie, in an attempt to fit in with the cool girls at her new school, posts a somewhat questionable joke online, the Hive decides that what she said was unacceptable and that she should be severely punished. No spoilers, but there are some parts that require a suspension of disbelief as she goes on the run, trying to avoid "justice" and repair her reputation. She's kind of like Katniss but with code, not arrows.

What doesn't require that suspension is the existence of the Hive and the idea that an entire society, so addicted to its devices and its desire for likes (or upvoting or whatever the term is on different platforms) could create such a thing and then use it to mete out justice. Or that the government would use it to try to control events and people, becoming more authoritarian in the process.

eARC provided by publisher.

An interesting and timely book. Could this be what our future looks like? Social media runs every teens life and the threat of something like the HIVE to punish you for your misdeeds online? I can see it happening! This book was well written and kept me hooked throughout

Loved every minute of this fast-paced dystopian thriller! I cannot wait to booktalk it to my students- they are going to eat it up. A definite must-read for YA fans!

The Hive:
By Barry Lyga & Morgan Baden

I give this book 5 out of 5 birds! This was not my first rodeo with Barry Lyga. This book had me hooked from the first chapter. It was like Hunger Games but in the world of social media. I am always so interested in Social Media and how it will affect the future. This book will give you an idea… jk jk… I hope. Over all I LOVED it. The storyline was well thought out, the Protagonist, Cassie, is just what this world needs… A girl who codes. I was obsessed with the knowledge that young girls out in the world will soon be reading this and will know that girls who code are cool!

Not everyone wants to pick up a book about coding, and I get it. I have a basic knowledge of coding and only felt lost on maybe two pages where I found myself skimming. Overall I thought it was easy to follow.

There was a minor “love story” weaved throughout the narrative, I would actually say it was the weakest part of the novel. Which is fine, because I didn’t turn to this book for some sappy crap.

I thought the touch of gore and horror was just right. They were described so well, I can still picture the scenes in my mind. It’s not Barry Lyga without some messed up scenarios, but clearly I appreciated them.

From my personal research too, Barry’s wife is Morgan and co-wrote this as her debut novel, which makes it even cooler. I don’t think I’d have the patience or time to write a book with my husband lol.

If you are a fan of his other novels DEFINETLY pick it up, if you haven’t read any of Barry’s stuff- I’d start with this one. It’s the tamest of them all. Who is putting it on their too read list now!?

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#netgalley#yafiction #yacontemporary #barrylyga #morganbaden #summerreading
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I think The Hive was absolutely brilliant. Perfect YA book with drama and intrigue. Cassie was a well written main character and the story flowed nicely.
It definitely makes you think about society and the obsession of social media.

I was really excited about this one at first, but then the reviews and ratings started to drop....I am not willing to devote time to this book after seeing reviews.