“My wife, Megan, wrote an e-vite to our dinner party that was like Megan herself: funny, sharp, and a touch mysterious.”

From James Patterson and Richard DiLallo’s The Store.

Jacob Brandeis is being constantly watched by a giant mega company called the Store.  Life had been good not long ago for Jacob and his wife, Megan; the authors were strapped financially, but had been able to keep up appearances as they and their children, Lindsey and Alex, lived in Manhattan.  After Ann, a family friend and publishing CEO, is unable to publish Jacob and Megan’s latest manuscript because of financial issues, the couple turned to the Store and their publishing division.  While initially very interested in publishing their book, the Store suddenly backs out as well.  Shunned and scorned by the Store, Jacob and Megan decided to write a book about the giant business… from the inside.  After applying to the Store under false pretenses, they are hired to the newly-built distribution center in Nebraska, so the entire family moves to become spies for their next book.  Along with their employment, the Store also provided housing for the family, neighbors, groceries, education, and even “security.”  Almost immediately after arriving in Nebraska, the world of the Store quickly transforms from impressive to terrifying, as the Brandeis family realizes that the Store is far more powerful, controlling, and dark than anyone could ever have imagined.  The Brandeis family befriends their rebellious, pot-smoking neighbors, Budd and Bette, but surrounded by the chilling world of the Store, they are unsure who they can truly trust.  What Jacob and Megan expected to be an easy and even a bit exciting chance at investigative journalism, becomes the stuff of nightmares where everyone else knows them, the police strictly enforce strange rules, and drones watch their every move.

Patterson and DiLallo’s thrilling book is eerie and captivating.  The story is obviously loosely inspired by the real life Amazon; the book is also similar in tone as Egger’s The Circle in terms of possible futures.  The Store is a thrilling page-turner that will keep readers engaged until the very end.