The Minders by John Marrs

 This third book in this thriller series is set in the future where information and secrets must be hidden from the Hacking Collective. Many methods to hide this sensitive data have failed and governments are being held hostage to the Collective. Britain has, so far, resisted all blackmail efforts by creating a fantastical way to implant all of this protected confidential knowledge into the DNA of human beings. The first order of business, however, is to find 5 people who will accept the implant, follow the rules of the program, and keep the country's cover-ups etc. out of the electronic devices, data banks, and cloud services. Those selected have a certain ability - synaesthesia - most commonly the type that enables personification of numbers, letters, and days of the week. This group of enhanced individuals come to be known as "The Minders" and after their procedure, extensive training, and plenty of funds for expenses, they are sent off to hide in plain sight until a certain period of time has passed. The caveat for their patriotism is that they must leave all friends and family behind without contact until they are recalled.

The 5 Minders go their separate ways and try to establish themselves in small towns, living quietly without electronics or any type of online presence so they can't be tracked or found. The narrative shifts as each Minder shares his/her experience. Existence for the Minders is not as pleasant as anticipated and soon all are running for their lives. NO SPOILERS.

I've read the previous related books -- THE ONE and also THE PASSENGERS -- so was expecting another mind blowing read. For some reason, the alternating points of view and the first parts of the book were hard to follow and not as engrossing as hoped. I couldn't develop any sense of empathy for the characters, didn't really know who the good guys were, and definitely was unable to relate to any of them. They all seemed kind of a nasty bunch. The climax and reveal were disappointing and the conclusion left me feeling quite unfulfilled. There was lots of action so it should have moved faster, but it took me days to finish this as I felt no compulsion to get back to it. I liked it well enough and am glad I finished it, but it's definitely my least favorite of the 3. The premise drew me in but I was a bit disappointed with the direction the story took and the conclusion.

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for this e-book ARC to read and review. 

Related to THE ONE and THE PASSENGERS -- best to read all in order

Genre - futuristic sci fi thriller