The perfect dystopian offering a powerful but cautionary warning to readers… meet The Warehouse by Rob Hart.

The plot:

Cloud isn’t just a place to work. It’s a place to live. And when you’re here, you’ll never want to leave.

Paxton never thought he’d be working for Cloud, the giant tech company that’s eaten much of the American economy. Much less that he’d be moving into one of the company’s sprawling live-work facilities.

Zinnia never thought she’d be infiltrating Cloud. But now she’s undercover, inside the walls, risking it all to ferret out the company’s darkest secrets. And Paxton, with his ordinary little hopes and fears? He just might be the perfect pawn.

As the truth about Cloud unfolds, Zinnia must gamble on a desperate scheme – one that risk both their lives, even as it forces Paxton to question everything about the world he’s so carefully assembled here.

Together, they’ll learn just how far the company will go… to make the world a better place.

It’s unpredictable, feisty and has done the genre proud

I always find it takes for a lot for dystopians to impress me, as once you’ve picked 1984 by George Orwell as your favourite book since you were 15, it’s hard to compete. But boy, The Warehouse is really up there with 1984 for me.

It’s a realistic, near-future dystopian, which makes the book very haunting. The story as a whole is incredibly impressive and well thought-through with complex messages, written to a first-class standard.

The Warehouse covers issues from global warming, minimum wage, working conditions which seem unfathomable but are still happening, to power, homelessness, death/violence, and instant gratification from consumers all over the world.

It has a thriller-y edge, especially when you look into this deeper and think about how sinister it is that things like this are already happening in our world. Hart does well to provide an important and thought-provoking message to readers, whilst also offering a solid fiction piece to keep you engaged and wanting more.

I’d already made my mind up about how much I liked this book about 70 pages in when I realised I’d neglected everything around me to sit and read.

Each chapter was split between Paxton, Zinnia and Gibson, with the occasional message from the Cloud (LOVED), so it was relatively easy to get attached to the two protagonists. The language is exquisite and every page packs a punch.

What made this, and it sounds minor but marks a good dystopian for me, is the repetition. There’s a set of 10 pages written brilliantly, which hammers home the message seldom seen in recent dystopians. It actually gave me CHILLS.

I wouldn’t change anything about The Warehouse. It’s unpredictable, feisty and has done the genre proud.

There’s a note from the author at the end, which you must read. It’s eye-opening and makes the book all that more believable and near-future.

Big big big props to Hart for this. A book which I’ve already put on my re-read shelf.

The Warehouse, Rob Hart, RRP £12.99 (hardback); Book Depository 

Pages: 481

Publisher: Bantam Press

Genre: Dystopian