The Kill Factor - Ben Oliver

 

Fifty contestants. Five mental and physical challenges. One winner. In a near-future where a virtual currency of digital content fuels a fame-hungry society, a brand-new experiment that combines social media and reality TV has been greenlit. Voted on, and contestants are sent to a maximum-security reform camp on an island where they can have no contact with the outside world. 

To lose means prison. But to win is to be free. The most popular young offender with the most upvotes by the end is given both a second chance in society and a cash prize. This kind of money could mean everything to Emerson and her family who live in the Burrows, one of the subterranean villages where the government have buried affordable housing. It's more than freedom. It could mean the chance to change her family’s circumstance and finally find a place in the society they’ve never been allowed into. 

But what Emerson doesn’t know, what the viewers don’t know, is that the prison on the island is empty. Those who lose, those who are voted off aren’t incarcerated. Each challenge will leave more and more contestants to die. And the only choice they have is to win over viewers before it’s too late.

Highlighting the worst of the influencer culture, this book managed to creep me out and fascinate me. Imagine a bunch of kids with a criminal past thrown into dangerous situations and forced to "perform" to gain followers. The one with the least amount of followers is killed.

The book is set in a world where creating a brand is everything and collecting followers is not a hobby, it's a life or death situation. Money is basically worthless, everything revolves around creating content - the more followers you have, the more "credits" you can use to buy stuff, so if you aren't popular, you can end up homeless, without food, education, etc. 

I absolutely loved the way this world was created to resemble some parts of the real one. That's why it's so horrific - you can imagine something like that in our future.

Emerson is a character who hates the world she lives in but she can't change it. She is constantly torn between wanting a better future for herself and her brother, but also not wanting to be a puppet - performing and humiliating herself just to succeed in life.

Every other character is fleshed out as well - you hate some, you love some but they all bring out a certain emotion. Of course, nothing is black and white and each character has their flaws.

The reality show was brutal and no one is safe, you never know who's gonna get hurt or die. You can only hope your faves die a quick death.

Lots of shocking things happened and the ending surprised me a lot. I won't spoil it, but there was a tiny bit of an open ending which you can interpret in various ways.