51LsoaLf+3S._SL500_Book synopsis: “In a futuristic world, danger awaits…if you loved The Last and The Handmaid’s Tale you will love this!
To keep her children safe, she must put their lives at risk….
In suburban Australia, Mim and her two children live as quietly as they can. Around them, a near-future world is descending into chaos: government officials have taken absolute control, but not everybody wants to obey the rules. When Mim’s husband, Ben, mysteriously disappears, Mim realises that she and her children are in great danger. Together, they must set off on the journey of a lifetime to find Ben. The government are trying to track them down, but Mim will do anything to keep her family safe – even if it means risking all their lives.
Can the world ever return to normality, and their family to what it was?“

My Review

This was a brilliant audiobook and a fantastic thriller set in the near future in Australia.

As soon as I started listening to this I was was quite scared. In Mim’s world the Government is watching you and your family, especially a part of it called The Department who oversee all aspects of your life including your passport, banking and your chip, and I’m not talking about potatoes! Everyone is chipped, well nearly everyone.

When Mim is told that her husband is missing, and that The Department want her and her kids passports, and is then told to not leave the family home, she realises that something is very wrong. She wants to find him, but isn’t sure how she can when the chips in all three of them will tell The Department that they’ve left home!

Well this gripped me so much that I listened to it in just over 24 hours! I loved the writing, and loved getting caught in Mim’s journey to keep her and her kids safe, whilst looking for her husband. It was fraught with danger but also with kindness from family and friends. Mim wasn’t a super mum, she was very ordinary, she struggled to make decisions and worried constantly about whether she was being a good parent or not. It made a nice change to have a character who felt so real and made me like her even more,

I really didn’t know what was going to happen, whether they’d find Mim’s husband or if it would just be a wild goose chase. I’d definitely read or listen to more by the author.

Claudia Karvan’s narration was excellent, she’s a new-to-me narrator who I’d definitely listen to again.

I definitely recommend this one on audio!