An unsettling book for sure this hits close to home at the moment. However, if you are looking at world-building and really getting deep into the characters, this book meanders. The premise is certainly fascinating.

An interesting, and extremely timely, premise -- but unfortunately, the writing dragged a bit and I wasn't able to get into this one.

What I Loved:
I really enjoyed the beginning of this book. I liked the story that was being told and loved where I thought the book was going to go.

How I Felt:
Overall, I found this book to be a bit of a let-down. The story started strong, and I was really invested. It sort of stumbled and never found its footing again about 30-40% in.

A Companion is the mental awareness of a human that has been placed into a robotic casing. These casings range from low-end R2-D2-like robots all the way up to human-looking companions. People lease companions for friendship, to keep family members with them when they near death, and a variety of other reasons.

The number of characters was overwhelming. The beginning started with a companion, Lilac, and a young girl quarantined in a home. The companion is sharing her life’s story with the girl, and I was really interested in where the plot was headed. Then, we meet a young employee at a nursing home, then a young girl on the street, then an actor/companion, and the list just keeps going. It became a confusing list of characters that I couldn’t connect with and didn’t care about.

The writing was good. I liked where the story was going at the start. I was intrigued and flew through the beginning of the book. Each individual section of the story was actually interesting, but it felt like starting a new book at the beginning of each chapter, and I didn’t want that. I was looking for a full story that would fill out the first character’s plot.

The story places the reader in a California high-rise with a mother and daughter, and their companion. The companion tells the story of her death to the girl, and it’s interesting. She was murdered and in all these years has not been able to find the murderer through her research in her down-time. She escapes her high-rise family and shows up at a nursing home where her murderer lives. She shouldn’t have been able to do this, as companions are command-based, and yet Lilac seems to be able to control her own actions. Through a domino effect of events, Lilac’s actions create a shut-down of all companions. There are a few that survive and go underground to form a rebellion.

Content Warning:
This book contains references to murder and quarantine due to a virus outbreak.

To Read or Not To Read:
I would recommend The Companions for readers that enjoy a variety of short stories in the science fiction genre.

I was provided an advanced reader's copy of this book for free. I am leaving my review voluntarily.

Rough to start a book about a quarantine during a quarantine, but that's the decision I made... Luckily The Companions isn't really about a pandemic-- it's about one specific aspect of the response: the creation of "companions" who possess the minds and memories of humans who died. Cool concept! And quick read... though sometimes too quick. By the end of the book, so much time had passed, so many characters had changed bodies, and so many locations were mentioned, I wasn't entirely sure who/how/what was actually going on. An enjoyable quick read, but a bit scattered for me.

What a book to be reading right now! This post-apocalyptic (in more ways than one) novel takes place in near-future California. There are years of quarantine due to new viruses. Really. This really affected how I read this book—I was both excited and repelled by the idea of years of quarantines, never going outside, etc. After the quarantines are lifted, people need to readjust and children have to learn how to be in the wider world.

I would LOVE to hear the author’s take on her book vs our current scenario.

What does jeep this book from hitting too close to home is that, in addition to people, there are companions. A company has perfected a way of removing a person’s memory/personality from their body soon after death—and placing it into a fabricated body. These companions are then leased—by people looking for servants, or by their own family, or by their employer. The companions are facing their own apocalyptic scenario.

I enjoyed this book, it was a pretty quick read, and it was also a very unusual experience.

Gallery/Scout Press and NetGalley provided me with an electronic copy of The Companions. I was under no obligation to review this book and my opinion is freely given.

The Companions is a dystopian story, complete with a quarantine after a highly contagious virus has made it impossible for the living to go outside. The Metis Corporation has capitalized on this, helping to create a new class of people from the consciousness of those are dying. The wealthy can afford to stay as companions to their family, but others are hired out to strangers. 16 year old Lilac has been leased out, but soon realizes that she is able to defy commands and sets off to find the person who killed her.

The Companions suffered from too many perspectives that did not have any meaningful connection to the main premise. The author made promises in the synopsis that were never delivered, especially in regards to the overall story. This might have made an exciting mystery/thriller, had the author taken the time to build the suspense. I really wanted to care about Lilac and her quest, to be taken on her journey, but I sadly did not. For these reasons, I would not recommend The Companions to other readers.

This dystopian novel really gave me Never Let Me Go vibes. The concept is so creepy. I LIKED IT!
Thank you, Gallery/Scout Press, for gifting me this DARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Katie M. Flynn’s debut novel The Companions follows eight different narrators, companions and humans, over a span of 20+ years as her characters live through quarantine, the advancement of androids from metal bots into nearly human form, and the recall of companions after some of them have bypassed their command drives. Flynn’s novel is ambitious in its storytelling, aspiring to the likes of David Mitchell, and her premise holds great potential for exploring notions of quarantine, big corp, memory, companionship, and human experience. However, what starts off as an intriguing if all-too-relevant dystopian novel becomes slightly overworked in the voice of a few unnecessary and uninteresting characters before it fizzles out in an unclimactic ending.

Flynn writes two or three really strong characters, but even these best characters seem to change over the time span of the novel and act out of character. For instance, when one loses a portion of memory, she begins acting more violently and carelessly than she had up to that point. These changes seem less a depiction of character development and instead show the difficulty a writer faces in maintaining consistent characters over a long fictional time period. The novel would have benefitted from a stronger focus on these compelling characters rather than the attempt to see them through the perspective of other, less interesting characters who ultimately don’t further the story.

The Companions also misses opportunities to delve into the stakes of its own plot. While the synopsis pitches the titular companions of the novel as an ethically-questionable and technological result of quarantine, the novel itself never develops the implications of the virus and consequent quarantine. They loosely set up a class-based system within the novel, but that thread is soon abandoned. Quarantine remains a simple plot device that isn’t really even necessary (it’s just as believable that a corporation would invent and market companions without a the population being under quarantine) and it ends abruptly before half the novel is over, leaving the reader who was pulled-in by this line of the synopsis a bit dissatisfied.

Still, Flynn’s novel raises interesting questions about what constitutes personhood and explores the lasting emotional connections—good and bad—between people. I would have liked to see more emphasis on these aspects of the novel, but at least they are present if not central. Flynn also questions the desirability of immortality, while remembering that technology, like humans, ages over time. Overall, The Companions falls pretty short of David Mitchell’s science fiction or Margaret Atwood’s virus-induced dystopia. But despite this novel’s shortcomings—perhaps even because of its shortcomings—I think it would be good choice for a lively book club chat.

Thanks to #NetGalley for a copy of #TheCompanions in exchange for an honest review.

This debut novel about a viral outbreak and quarantine is the perfect book to read during this uncertain time we are living today. It’s so much more than that though. It is a story of love and survival and grief and revenge. The journey of our protagonist in search of catharsis for a tragedy that happened during childhood is rendered so perfectly through the experiences of eight narrators, each with their own voice. The author trusts the reader is smart enough to follow the action. It never feels that the language or plot are dumbed down in order for a more cohesive storyline. I believe this author has one hell of a talent and it’s not to be missed or overlooked.

This book had an interesting premise which captured my attention, but there were a lot of characters introduced and the time span was really long so things got confusing.


I received an advance copy. All thoughts are my own.

So here’s the story with this book…it grabbed my attention the moment it appeared on Netgalley, it had all the right elements for an excellent dystopian read. So I downloaded it and then the negative reviews came in, one after another, readers complaining about the pacing, the plotting, the mess of characters. It was discouraging enough to put the book on the back burner and there it languished until recently, never quite forgotten. And then it somehow was just the book I was in the mood for. Mind you, in the time in between Companions has acquired a terrifying relevance to real world. The characters stuck in a lock down, a social isolation producing a new method of social engagements, through the eponymous companions. Consciousness transfers enable the future world to offer friends and assistants to those in need or even want of one, a personality imbued beings ranging from a rolling can to a rendering so realistic as to pass for a real person. Traditionally, these companions do not have free will, but evolution being what it is, one, a young girl, ends up with one, a will that drives her to shake off her societally imposed bonds and set off to find her killer. And thus the story begins. A story that spans years and years, from a world on a lock down to one that finally becomes free. Told through almost self contained but cleverly interweaved narratives, the plot drives on in leaps and bounds across time and place. I believe that’s where the other reviewers’ accusations of disjointedness come in and it is there to an extent, especially in the second 50%, but it does work altogether as a cohesive total. It might be a debut novel thing…the author tries to cram a lot of ideas and characters into a relatively short page count and it gets somewhat muddled. Plus you’re dealing with consciousness transfers and body hopping and characters going from kids to adults, so some confusion is inevitable. But it’s worth it to stick around and sort it out, because there is an interesting and compelling story underneath it all. And granted, maybe not the most original, consciousness transfers have been done, by the ever excellent John Scalzi recently and others I’m not thinking of right now, but wherein Scalzi plays it for fast laughs, here it’s a genuinely meditative drama in a way on what it means to be a person, to have a personality, on what can be edited or acquired, on what drives us forward. It’s a world where death is no longer the end, so there’s more space to speculate on all those things. The differences and similarities of minds and bodies, minds in bodies. The world without end is still a starkly lonely place in this story, but a strangely inviting one. This definitely isn’t for everyone, but for me it was well worth the read, glad I waited too (albeit unintentionally), since this is now disturbingly timely and relevant. For fans of literary science fiction and dystopias this should offer some food for thought. Approach with patience and pay attention to characters, there are many. Thanks Netgalley.

Oh Boy! What a time to read this book. It has a virus quarantine at its core. It has machines of varied human qualities interacting with real humans. The world in in tragic decline and criminal activity seems boundless. I found this creepy in its relevance and spooky characters abound. It’s brilliance will sneak up on you in the most unexpected way. The cast of characters offer a glimpse into the future with all of it’s resigned indifference. I felt for the human caretakers they were dedicated and sincere in their emotions.

The Companions is a sweeping near-future dystopian that spans many years and explores the connections between many characters, creating a beautifully earnest vision of a future that feels all too real right now. This story hit me in a way that I haven’t experienced since I read Station Eleven, and I love this slow, deliberate style of story-telling. What Station Eleven did with the post-apocalyptic genre, The Companions does for science fiction, melding and mixing literary fiction with the speculative genre in a very sincere and realistic way.

The Companions opens in a United States under quarantine because of a dangerous and highly contagious virus moving throughout the world. People are sequestered in their apartments, and are, inevitably, bored out of their minds. Maybe that opening sounds a little too close to reality right now, but the story does open up from there in a very sci-fi way. In The Companions, people can elect to have their consciousness uploaded when they die, so that they can return in android form and serve as Companions to their families or to other people.

There’s a “big bad” company, Metis Corporation, at the core of this Companion process, and it actually owns the intellectual property of each and every person uploaded into their system. These Companions are from many different backgrounds and are uploaded under totally different circumstances. Some are murder victims, some are elderly individuals who elect to be uploaded to spend more time with their families, and some are just people who choose to sell their consciousnesses for whatever reason. Nearly all of the people uploaded into Companions, though, have some sort of trauma resulting from their deaths. This trauma starts breaking through in (sometimes) dangerous ways, and Companions must eventually deal with a world that created them, but no longer wants them.

The Companions follows many characters, and explores the relationships between humans, between Companions, and in human/Companion relationships. The story spans many, many years, and we see some characters grow up, some characters die, and some characters change into very different people than who they open as. People change forms, change bodies, and lose memories. It’s a story of reincarnation, of aging, of love, and of a changing world. It’s really beautiful and I can’t recommend it enough.

Bottom Line: 5/5 star read. This book got me out of a bit of a reading slump, and that’s the highest praise I can give a book. Not only that, but it gave me serious Station Eleven vibes and has the depth of a novel twice its length.

Thanks to Netgalley and the Publisher for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review! The Companions is out now!

I found The Companions boring and I really couldn't get into it. Which stinks because I was looking forward to reading. I got about 1/2 through before I decided to give up.

Quick Take: A highly contagious virus ravages the state of California and while the rich pass the time in ammenity abundant high rises where the companinship program allows them to upload their coincidenceness before they die so they can remain with their family. But things become complicated when “the companions” start to experience flashbacks from their former lives.

What I Loved: First of all, let be known that this one wasn’t a real DNF. I skimmed the last few chapters and enjoyed the audiobook for it’s full cast of stellar voice actors. I was incredibly intrigued by the premise of this book which is pitched as Station Eleven and Never Let Me Go. It also felt a bit on the nose as the books about how cities started sheltering in place when people started getting sick. Maybe not exactly a comforting read at the moment. Be that as it may, I was still excited to read this book and am sad to say I was disappointed.

What I Didn’t Love: I was really excited for this book because of the premise and I appreciate what Flynn was trying to do with her commentary on elitist mentality and social class systems. My main issue with this book was how disjointed it felt. It felt more like a tangled book of short stories than a cohesive novel and I never felt like the characters were fleshed out enough to give them any real depth. Ultimately, the synopsis sucked me in, but the choppy execution took me out of the story completely and was confusing at numerous points. I read all the way through this one and will not be coming back to it.

2 stars

You can read all of my reviews at https://www.NerdGirlLovesBooks.com.

This was a confusing, lack-luster science fiction book that left me wondering "what the heck did I just read?"

The premise of the book is promising, and apropos of our current virus crisis. The state of California is under quarantine after a deadly virus is unleashed. Residents are locked in their high rise towers and can't leave. As a result of the quarantine, a "companionship" program arises, which allows people to have their consciousness uploaded into a computer program before dying so they can stay in the custody of their families. They are given robotic bodies, which vary is complexity from simple models to manufactured bodies that can pass as humans. Less fortunate people are uploaded and rented out to strangers to be, in essence, their slaves. Lilac is a 16 year old girl that is rented out to strangers. When she realizes she can disregard her command program, she takes off, looking for the woman that killed her. Intriguing, right?

Sadly, the book doesn't deliver. The book starts as if it's in the middle of the story, so the reader is lost until later in the book when the author provides a few bits of details about the world. I know that some other authors use this tactic as well, but I don't like it. It's annoying to have to read pages and pages of a book just to try to figure out what is going on.

The world-building in this book is almost non-existent, as is the character development. There are multiple characters and storylines, with the single thread of Lilac to tie them together. I found myself not really caring about any of them. The book is supposed to be about issues of loss, love, revenge and loneliness. I was left wanting. To me, it was a wandering story that didn't seem to have a point. So many random things happened that weren't explained. It was like entering someone else's stream of consciousness - you see what's happening but have no idea what any of it means.

This book wasn't for me, but that's not to say others won't enjoy it.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley & Gallery/Scout Press in exchange for an honest review.

If ever there was a book for right now it should be The Companions, for this is a dystopian story of various California residents during and after a long-extended quarantine. During this quarantine “companions,” life-like robots, had been created with the personalities and memories of actual people. Initially these companions were helpers or staff, but eventually they became a way for people to hang on to their loved ones. The companions themselves evolved over time, as well. Though I initially found the many characters interesting, and the story itself fascinating, by the second half of the book it became messy and jumbled. I think Flynn simply had too many elements to her story, forcing it to limp along to an ending that did not live up to the promise of its start.

Note: I received a copy of this book from Gallery Scout Press (via NetGalley) in exchange for my honest thoughts.

I’ve been wanting to read this one for a while, but with both jobs still going strong, I am thankful for the paychecks and the work, but it’s left little time for anything other than audiobooks. I had a full Saturday off today, and I was finally able to dive in, and some parts of this book seem a little scary in their timeliness.

With a rampant virus, California is on quarantine, and those who can afford them lease “companions,” machines with the consciousnesses of dead people. The better models even pass for human. Though the dying can chose to be a companion before they die, they become property of the Metis Corporation and lose complete autonomy over their bodies and placement. Lilac is companion to a teenager in a high rise, until she is somehow able to ignore her protocol and bust out. The years that follow lead her on a journey that will change the world.

This book is told from eight perspectives, and though I was skeptical about making connections with characters with that many alternating povs, I couldn’t put this down and were wholly invested in the characters. There are a bunch of people to keep up with, but their stories are so intertwined, even across many years, I didn’t get lost among any of the stories.

If you cope with escapism during trying times, maybe save this for when things go back to “normal,” but if you like to read pretty apt sci-fi/dystopian fiction, definitely give this one a go. I read it in just a few hours, wholly absorbed in finding out what happens. It’s melancholic, for sure. Even thought it’s sci-fi, I found the stories to be pretty realistic. Not everyone gets a happy ending in life, but there’s closure for these characters even if sometimes their struggles, like our own, seem to have no meaning. There’s something terribly human in the story of these sentient machines and the humans they live alongside.

I’ll be thinking about this one for some time to come. Bonus, some queer representation, though that’s not the point, and there’s no descriptive sex if that’s an issue for you. Pick it up from your favorite, local bookstore or library.

The Companions is a fascinating exploration of consciousness and humanity - what makes us human? The philosophy behind the idea is fascinating. The plot is somewhat disjointing, jumping through time with reference to several key events, including a quarantine period due to a killer virus at the beginning of the book. There are several key characters, but none of them feel properly focused-on and developed. The MC at the end of the book who turned out to be someone the main storyline caught me completely by surprise. (Spoiler: it's not the person who the book starts with!) All in all, it was a really interesting story but it felt like there was too many plotlines and ideas spread too thin.

I loved the idea of this book - mass pandemic leads humans to the ability to not only load their consciousness into robots and live forever, but also to serve as companions to the wealthy. However, with memories of their old lives, companions are not happy and yearn for what they have lost. I loved the premise as well as the comparisons to Station Eleven and Never Let Me Go, two of my favorite books. However, I think the storytelling and character development might have needed a bit more. Following the various characters was a bit difficult, and some were more developed than others. It was an engaging read, however, and definitely held my interest. I look forward to reading more from this author in the future.