An institutional thriller/dystopian smash-up.

After being arrested for protesting, Riley Diaz gets incarcerated under a new defense act, allowing a psychiatric hold and analysis. But as Riley finds, things are NOT designed to help... rather the treatments, confinement, medications and restricted rations start breaking her and other patients down.

Will Riley... who seems born to protest... take it sitting down? Or will she be able to uncover the evil heart of the plot to the world?

With a nebulous setting, much of this story had to be taken on faith. I do wish we had a bit more character development, as well, with what started off as a promising cast.

Still decent, and a little too close to home!!

My thanks to NetGalley for ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I went into this one pretty blind and ended up not knowing which direction it was going to go in. I thought it was so well done and such an interesting rabbit hole to follow of a not so unrealistic path things could take in the US depending on who’s in power. Unsettling but i thoroughly enjoyed it.

When I started the recorded book, I wasn’t sure I would enjoy the narrator. Some of her vocal decisions in the early pages didn't seem comfortable to me, but as the book went along, I realized that her delivery was appropriate and helped the book’s suspense and impact.

The story was engaging and kept me involved all the way through, and the premise was all too possible. It showed our society as a dystopian environment that could be just a few years away. The injustice of the treatment of people who are calling out the wrong direction the government is going is stunning... but then not so much if you have been paying attention to the world around us. The elements the author included and interpreted by the narrator all worked together to create a compelling listen.

I listened to The Glass Box by J. Michael Straczynski, narrated by Stacy Gonzalez, through the generosity of Blackstone Publishing - Audiobooks and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book was giving me anxiety; in a good way!! The idea of potentially being locked in an institution against your will, while being aware that that is happening is unnerving. The premise of the book is fantastic since you can envision it as plausible, adding to the creepiness of the book. But that is what also makes it really appealing to me.

The characters in this book were very well developed, despite being several, I felt that it was easy to follow the story while listening. The narrator did a great job in creating subtle voice changes between he characters, which is always helpful when listening,

I'm lucky enough to have read Frankenstein, but was wondering if the book would have had as much meaning, or the reader would have been able to understand the character in The Glass Box as well if they hadn't read Frankenstein. That was one thing I kept thinking while listening to the book, would someone understand this as well if they had not read the book?

The concept of this book was great. I think anyone that enjoys a thriller with a twist would enjoy this book. I know I will be recommending it!

Riley is arrested after being present at a protest, something which is sweeping the nation after the American government starts to try and control its citizens more and more. She can choose between a prison sentence or being committed to a psychiatric facility for treatment by the government in hopes of”rehabilitation”. She meets many different patients and an archnemesis in the man who is her doctor.

This is my first book from this author and I just wanted a little bit more! I wanted more of a full picture of the dystopian world the author created as I didn’t feel like it was fully described. I liked Riley and the cast of characters, I thought “Frankenstein” was quite interesting. However, I just found it a bit anticlimatic. Still entertaining in parts, just didn’t totally hit home for me. Thank you to @netgalley and @blackstonepublishing for my review copy!

AUDIOBOOK REVIEW: 3 stars for The Glass Box. If you enjoy books that are: Reflective, Slower paced and Hopeful you may like this book.
The Glass Box follows Riley, a protester who gets sent to a ARC program (equivalent to a mental health establishment) due to her unlawfulness of protesting. During this story Riley is faced with challenges of manipulation and gas lighting from the head parts of the program. During her stay she makes friends with other protesters as well as people on the inside that helps her expose the wrong doing of the program.
I’m giving this 3 stars since it was a decent book and I feel some people may enjoy this more than myself. I would have liked to read about how the corruption is affecting others outside of the 5? People in the ARC program. You get a small glimpse of a protest interference during the end but would have preferred that maybe at the beginning to give me some emotional depth to the story.

Usually I am not too much into YA-stories but this one got me!
It is a truely fast-paced story that sometimes even turns a bit towards the dystopian side and this is something I personally enjoy a lot!
Riley Diaz is a girl who stands her ground and is not willing to give up on gaslighting and manipulation!
Listening to Stacy Gonzalez is a real pleasure and I would like to thank
#NetGalley #Blackstone Publishing - Audiobooks for this audiobook

This was my first book by Straczynski, and the genre is outside of my usual fare. So I'm not his usual reader, and that might affect my take on the book. Overall, it was an interesting novel with a unique plot line. I appreciate the strength of the main character as well as her backstory, and I think young people today will find her both engaging and compelling. The story did, at times, seem info-dumpy, and when that happened, it was clear that the author had an agenda. Though I'm guessing that the author and I would agree on many things in politics, it's hard to digest areas of the book that sounds like political speeches. I loved the subplot about Frankenstein, and it really humanized both that character and the main character. The narration was great on this book. While this wasn't my favorite book, I think the younger crowd will appreciate it very much.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for gifting me an audio ARC of the new book by J. Michael Straczynski and perfectly narrated by Stacy Gonzalez 4.5 stars rounded up!

Riley Diaz was incarcerated for participating in a civil protest and is sent to a psychiatric facility under a new government program called American Renewal Centers (ARC). There, ARC patients are forced to do therapy, take medication, and apologize for their actions. But Riley was born and bred to resist, and resist she does. She refuses medication and sometimes food, all to fight against the gaslighting and inhumane treatment. She finds a fellow patient, known as Frankenstein, fascinating, and begins to develop a bond with him.

This was a fascinating, somewhat dystopian take on real world protests and personal rights, but done without being overtly political although it feels very realistic. Instead, it becomes personal as we follow Riley in her stay at this facility and her determination to not cave to those in charge who are following their own agendas. Riley is a fascinating character, as are others in the facility, and you'll find yourself rooting for them, especially Frankenstein. This is a fast-paced thriller that I couldn't stop reading.

This book didn't do it for me, sadly. Although it's classified as adult, it felt very YA in themes and writing level.
I do think some people will like it, but it was not for me. Sorry.

Thanks to NetGalley for the alc

Great story about a protester, from the protester's view point. Reilly is head strong, but also compassionate. She is put into a re-education center, which is just another name for prison. This might be fiction, but if you follow current politics - this just might be a window into the future. I received this from Net Galley.

An absorbing account of what feels like a true life experience offering the reader an alarming insight into the ways of modern governments and their fears. Disturbing and scary in equal measures

After being arrested while attending a protest, Riley Diaz, is sent to a minimum of 6 months at a new program called the American Renewal Centers (ARC). ARC, a government run defense act, is for those who do not conform with the norm, modeled after psych wards which includes forced therapy, medication, and isolation. As Riley figures out how to fight back, she makes friends and enemies in ARC.

I loved Riley’s inner thoughts. This was well portrayed by the narrator as I was listening to the audiobook. The diverse cast of characters that were in ARC, made for some interesting moments. A fast-paced, entertaining read that I enjoyed more than I thought I was going to. However, I don’t feel that the title or the cover art matches the story. This is a frightening look into what could happen when the government tries to not allow freedom of speech and punishes people for it.

I remember very clearly reading One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest in High School and then watching the movie. It had a huge impact on me and the choices that I had made up to that point. I can't help but feel like The Glass Box is Straczynski's homage to Kesey. Riley, the main character is great, the cast of supporting characters is great, Kaminsky is a perfect foil and antagonist, and the whole book, hinging on the idea of protesting and protecting that right was a master stroke of a plot line. I'm really happy with this book and loved the story and the way it was told. Total 5 star read.

Omg this is so real. It is also so creepy and sad.
I loved the narrator too!
I was super uncomfortable with the way the staff shared patient information. Literally WTF? But it fits with this whole narrative. No one cares about the rights of the people in these facilities.
I will read the next book by this author for sure.

Thanks to NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for an advanced audio book in exchange for an honest review.

4 stars

In the future the government puts dissidents in American Renewal Centers (ARC) under the authority of a new defense act. Riley was arrested for protesting and put in the ARC, which is basically a psychiatric facility led by a manipulative doctor with an agenda.

Excellent narration by Stacy Gonzalez.

A realistic and frightening look at what happens when the government violates the individual’s rights to freedom of speech. The characters are well rounded and come across as believable, whether you love them or hate them. Ryley Diaz is a strong woman protagonist with an unerring sense of justice who you can’t help but love. The fast-moving story line leaves you breathless and at the edge of your seat. I couldn’t put it down. This thriller grabs you from the first page and doesn’t give you a moments rest until the last page.

Thank you to NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing who provided me with a copy of this book. I am voluntarily leaving an honest review.

Fast-paced and at times infuriating, this was a slightly dystopian story about a girl who stands her ground and earns the respect of her fellow "inmates" while navigating a corrupt system none of them were supposed to escape.

Young adult thrillers aren't usually my thing, but this one was a real page-turner, with characters you can't help but get attached to and cheer on.

This was an absolutely phenomenal book. It was well-written, perfectly paced, and wonderfully narrated. Mostly, though, it was TERRIFYING. Not terrifying in the sense of a horror book -- it wasn't that. No. This book was terrifying because of how plausible this future seems to me.

Set in a relatively near future United States where the president and senate have criminalized peaceful protests and are willing to go to extreme measures to shut down political dissention, this book genuinely unnerved me. I CAN SEE our government instituting similar laws and policies. I can see them justifying the unjustness of what they're doing by claiming it's "in the interest of public safety."

This book was thrilling, infuriating, and so scary. I legitimately couldn't stop listening to it. (I read the audio book.) I started it late last night and stayed up until about 3 am this morning because I wanted to see how it all turned out.

I truly empathized with the MC, and I fell totally in love with one of the side characters, dubbed Frankenstein.

My only complaint with this book is that a few of the conversations had between staff members of the (basically) institution and the patients didn't seem entirely realistic. I realize that some of the staff members felt that the government was overreaching and thought the patients shouldn't have been there, but even so, I find it hard to believe that they would risk their careers -- and possibly their freedom -- to share sensitive information with patients.

Even with that complaint, though, I can't rate this book any less than 5 stars. I highly recommend that everyone read it. It may help some people understand why it's so important that we continue to fight for our rights and what's right.

A lot like Divergent... where adults are obsolete, and only dramatic teenagers really know what's up. Lots of dialog. Very little action. I feel like this is a niche book for teens with more estrogen than testosterone.