Here at Books Outside the Box, we love a dystopia. We have recently included in our sub boxes Suicide Club by Rachel Heng and Dark Lullaby by Polly Ho-Yen. Like Suicide Club, Guy Morpuss's debut imagines a world in which humans are essentially indestructible -- but also considers the sustainability of the overpopulation that is inherent in this eventuality. What follows is an intriguing premise for a murder mystery with Agatha Christie-like twists and turns.

Guy Morpuss's Five Minds is worked on the premise of five consciousnesses time-sharing one body. Each is allotted four hours and, in return, they will receive a new body every twenty-five years and have a longer lifespan than people who choose other population-sustaining options. In this world, time is currency, and the protagonist(s) enter a death park where remaining lifetime can be gambled for the highest stakes.

What follows is a combined whodunnit interspersed with escape room narratives. Being a huge fan of both these things, this book was a perfect novelty for me. The different personalities housed in the single body are brilliantly realised, and the narrative is carefully written in a way that obscures which of the five knows more than the others (putting me in mind of The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie).

Besides providing an exciting and intriguing story, the world-building in this book is truly excellent. Morpuss has considered so many possibilities through to fascinating conclusions -- from the question of population sustainability to simulation and the future of VR/AR to the future of currency. The book touches on ideas of post-gender (and post-humanism?) in a way I would have loved to explore in more detail, but wanting more is really my only criticism of this book. I really hope we get more stories in this world -- not necessarily with these characters, but exploring different aspects of this future from different perspectives.

With thanks to Netgalley.com and the publishers for the e-advanced review copy of this book.

I'm not sure if I have ever read a more intelligently planned book in my life. This will be a modern classic. Every single ounce of this book is genius, you cannot fault any single line. I was absolutely blown away

Wow I’m still trying to put into words this book! Set in a dystopian world where people have a specified lifespan to control and curb the population on Earth. There are those who want to live life to the fullest, those who work and those who share a body aka ‘a commune’. Alex, Sierra, Ben, Kate and Mike are the commune in question. A deadly game where you could be a murderer or sharing your body with one.
This was so different from my usual reads and it was brilliant. It took me a little while to get into it and it’s worth it. Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for this arc in exchange for my honest review.

I first heard about this book on social media and the plot absolutely intrigued me, so I was delighted to receive an ARC copy from Netgalley.

This is now easily one of my favourite books of all time! The plot is completely unique and full of mystery and twists. The writing is brilliantly captivating and I can't stop thinking about the story's universe, which is really fascinating.

I highly recommend everyone have a look at the author's interactive fiction 'Death Park' on his website for a taste of what this book is all about.

I have the physical book on preorder and will definitely recommend it to everyone.

Five Minds by Guy Morpuss is quite possibly the most original book I have ever read.
Earth has finally taken control of it’s population; now, teenagers must choose how they will live the rest of their existence. Will they choose to become an Android, a Commune, a Hedonist or a Worker?
In Five Minds, the book follows one commune, where there are, wait for it, five minds in one host body. Each chapter is from the point of view of the different people in the commune.
In this fantastic book, the main currency is time, and people can play dangerous simulations to be awarded more time. I really enjoyed these simulations and found myself biting my nails as I questioned what I would do in those situations.
This book intrigued me from the get go, but I found myself a little bit apprehensive. I was unsure whether Morpuss would be able to write so many different voices and making them all distinguishable. But hey, guess what? He did it, and then some.
I devoured Five Minds within a couple of days – the dystopian world is so easy to immerse yourself in. Each personality within the host body is so very different and so cleverly crafted. Despite being written from different points of view, the book flows effortlessly and I really got a feel for every character in it.
I’ve already been recommending Five Minds to anyone who will listen, and I will definitely be going out and purchasing a copy when it comes out in September 2021, where I will read it again before placing it on the bookshelf containing my most loved books.
Guy Morpuss is an absolute genius, and if you go onto his website, you can take a personality test to see what type of existence would suit you – I got Worker, by the way. If you read this book and take the quiz, I would be interested to hear what you got.
Massive thank you to Netgalley for an ARC copy of Five Minds, and an even bigger thank you to Guy Morpuss himself for such a work of brilliance.

From the moment I’d seen the teasers about Five Minds appearing on Twitter, I was eagerly awaiting my opportunity to read this. I’d trawled Morpuss’s website and played the games (I struggled to even think about which option I’d go for). Eventually I struck lucky and was granted access by NetGalley to read this before publication. All I had to do was write my honest thoughts. That sounds straightforward, but having just finished Five Minds my mind seems incapable of coherent thought!
So, let’s look at what we are told beforehand…
Five Minds is set in an alternate future. In an attempt to control the Earth’s growing population lifespans are carefully monitored, and people are made to choose their life at seventeen. Some become workers…they are educated for the next five years and then take their chance as to what comes next. Some become andis…their minds are uploaded into a body requiring little physical maintenance. They are granted a lifespan of eighty years. A few become hedonists. This group have wealth and are granted free choice…but they die at forty-two. The last group are, perhaps, the hardest to understand. The schizos. Five minds are merged in one body, each having control of it for a four hour period in the day. Each mind is granted a lifespan of twenty-five years, and the host can be updated regularly. Their life ends after the fifth mind has had their twenty-five years.
Our focus is on one schizo group, or commune. Alex, Dan, Kate, Sierra and Mike have been together for some time. They regularly compete in the Death Parks, underground competitions allowing people to try and win additional time. When Kate is offered the chance to win an obscene amount of life, she takes it. Unfortunately, it results in one of their group disappearing. No one seems to know what’s happened, but all too quickly it becomes apparent that someone does…and until this person is caught, the commune is at risk.
The concept of a group under threat isn’t new. But the idea that the murderer could well be one of the minds within the commune lends it a chilling feel. As soon as the murder element comes to the fore it becomes a very different style of book to read. I was gripped, and found myself wholly immersed in the story as I tried to work out who was behind it and how - or if - they would succeed.
Huge thanks to NetGalley and Viper books for letting me read this early, and thank you to Guy Morpuss for a fascinating debut that makes me wonder what on earth could come next.

Thanks NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book. This was amazing and a very different premise to the average thriller. Totally gripping from the start and I’d happily recommend it to anyone looking for a good twisty read.

This book is incredibly unique - it focuses on a world where humans are all allocated a finite amount of resources and choose a way of living - hedonist, android, worker or commune - based on how quickly they wish to use their resources. Our characters all live as a commune - five minds sharing one body, but find themselves being mysteriously killed off whilst participating in games within a Death Park - a place where you do challenges to obtain additional time. I would strongly recommend this to anyone seeking a truly unique thriller.

I received an ARC of the Five Minds novel via NetGalley. Five minds is set in a dystopian future Earth that is overpopulated, so the "Government" makes each human decide, at the age of 17, how they wish to live the rest of their existence. Workers, whom have a natural life expectancy. Androids, guaranteed 80 years. Hedonist, 42 years, basically live fast, die young. Commune (Schizos), five minds sharing one body with almost 150 years of existence. But you only have 4 hour windows each day.

Our protaganist(s) has/have chosen to live out their existence as a commune. They have been together for 25 years so far. Alex, Kate, Sierra, Ben and Mike. They discover someone is trying to kill off their commune members one by one. They also realize it is very difficult to solve this "crime" when you can't see what the others are doing and are only able to go by the messages left by each other.

This novel made you really think about how you would choose to live your life. Including how you would solve the challenges and puzzles in the death parks.

Excellent read,. Well written and thought provoking.

Five minds was right down my alley! The beginning started off a bit slow for me! But like many others it quickly picked up the pace and before I knew it I was done with this great thriller!
Really enjoyed this book! Thanks NetGalley Publishers and author for this great advanced readers copy

Wow. That was one hell of a journey. I loved it though!

‘Five minds’ is a dystopian/sci-fi novel, with a mystery twist, following the lives of a commune: 5 people living inside one body, a choice they made in order to live a longer life.

The world building and character development were both amazing; I could picture the setting in my mind perfectly and felt like I fully understood the characters from the start. This was helpful as it meant I didn’t get confused with the multiple POV’s.

The plot was a bit slow to begin with but it did get better as it went on, and I couldn’t put it down from around 200 pages onwards. The plot twists were also great as I didn’t really see any of them coming.

But overall I really enjoyed this and it was a really unique read, I don’t think I’ve ever read similar. I highly recommend!

An intriguing dystopian thriller, this book has been compared to The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle but really the similarities are superficial and this book is better-written anyway. I wonder if Guy Morpuss was partly inspired by the song 'Down in the Park' by Tubeway Army. I had the song in my head the whole time I was reading.

The concept of this book is fascinating. In the future, to save resources and solve overpopulation, everyone has to make a choice at the age of 17. They can terminate their existence, or become a short-lived hedonist, or a worker with a natural lifespan, or put their mind into an android body, or join a 'commune'. The latter is a group of minds sharing the same body (on rotation), which presents challenges but allows the longest lifespan. The five protagonists of the story are a commune and the problem is that one of them may be a murderer or in league with some shady characters to mess with their minds. They are in a 'death park', where people go to play games where the losers die and the winners gain more time added to their lifespans (this being the most valuable currency).

I did find the story confusing sometimes, trying to remember who was narrating (the voices weren't always distinct enough for me), who knew what, whose mind was in which body, etc. On the plus side, the novel was the right length, the games were exciting to read about, the chapters were short and the vision of the future seemed scarily plausible. Five Minds is an impressive debut and I look forward to the author's next book.

[This review will be on my blog, 20th August]

Thank you so much to Netgalley and Viper for the eARC!

'Earth has been severely overpopulated, so new rules have been put in place to establish control. At the age of 17, everyone must make a choice that will give them a certain lifespan, and lifestyle. One of those options is a Commune, 5 minds within 1 body.

Alex, Kate, Sierra, Ben and Mike are a commune. They have spent 25 years together so far, but something isn't right. Someone is trying to kill off members of their commune. And when the 5 minds cannot see what the others are doing, it makes it very difficult to catch the killer..'

Challenging and brutal competitions, untrustworthy viewpoints and a lot of drama, Guy has created an incredibly clever and highly unique story, which I could not put down.

The games within Death Park were written incredibly well and were very, very clever; I was eagerly trying to solve them myself alongside the characters. Each character also had their own distorted perspective, which created a blend of chaos when trying to figure out who the killer really was.

The concept itself is very thought-provoking, what would you choose, if you had to? I took the personality test on Guy's website (https://guymorpuss.com/five-minds/) and got Worker, which is not much different to real life, but I told myself I think I'd choose to be a Hedonist, live the life of luxury and die happily at 42 (actually living that would probably give me a completely different perspective though).
I certainly would never have chosen Commune, especially after reading this book!

The ending was something I did NOT see coming, which I absolutely loved. Being able to figure something out before it happens is great, but it also can be a bit anti-climactic, whereas this ending was very much a surprise!

An incredibly well written, thoughtful and inspiring debut novel from Guy, it absolutely blew my mind!

Will be recommending to everyone!

How do you turn a murder mystery into something utterly refreshing and different? Simple - set it in a dystopian future where people can choose how long they live, or to become androids, oh and make the main character one person with 5 minds who each only get 4 hours 'awake' each day. Oh and one of those minds in the main character may actually be behind all their woes. And if that sounds weird - it is. But in a brilliant mind-bending way. The way society works is explained in such a way at the beginning you soon understand whats going on and the 'voice' of each character is so distinct there's no confusion - a testament to the skill of the writing in here. And at it's heart it's just a very clever. twisty who (and how) dunnit and who doesn't love those?

When I first saw people talking about Five Minds on Twitter, I realised that firstly, I needed to get my hands on it, and secondly, I wondered if it was going to live up to the hype. Netgalley solved my need to get my hands on it, and as for it living up to the hype I would say it does that and then some!

This is one of the most original books I think I have ever read. It is so well written that within the first few pages you get such a clear understanding of how the five very different people end up sharing one body, with each taking four hour shifts throughout the day (with a four hour downtime for good measure). One by one they appear to be being killed off, and the killer may be someone else, or it may even be one of them.

The games that they are compelled to play while living in the Death Park were really varied and exciting puzzles and races, and the puzzles really made me question how I would have reacted if faced with the same options.

Each of the five minds had such unique voices that it was easy to differentiate between them, and the intrigue kept me guessing. Every time I thought I had worked out who the killer was, I was taken in an unexpected direction.

This debut is easily one of my favourite reads of 2021. It is so cleverly constructed, and so dynamic that I can seriously picture this on the big screen one day. Each of the characters have such brilliant depth to their nuanced personalities, and as an intelligent futuristic murder mystery it will keep you guessing until the end.

I'm struggling with how I felt reading this novel - the premise was great, the setting definitely up there...maybe it was the characters (character) that pulled me out a little? So, the Earth was overpopulated and we were able to download a humans consciousness in different ways - one of which meant sharing a body with another 4 people that you've only just met. I guess, for me, I thought this would be a little more 'schizophrenic' and delve a little more into the issues that sharing a body can be - it's not that. What this novel is, is a cool murder mystery which borrows elements from disparate sources - it's an easy read and recommended for those days when you want to sit by the beach and read something not too taxing. For that, I recommend this novel.

Before Five Minds was made available on NetGalley, the author created a personality test (you can find it on his website) that would let you know what you would be. You are faced with four choices: hedonist / commune / worker / android. I was designed as a commune. A rarity. I was quite pleased with it. Then I read more and wondered if the control freak I am would be happy sharing a body with four other minds, only getting four hours of freedom to do whatever I wanted. That quiz only made me even more curious about the novel and when finally the day arrived and I was able to open the novel on my Kindle, I thought I was ready.

I was not.

Imagine being 17 and being selected with four other people you don’t know to share a body. Sure, you’ll live longer than anyone, but you’ll only be able to control your body for four hours per day and not much to say about what others do. Kate, Mike, Sierra, Alex, and Ben are chosen to live together. Or to cohabit. What a gamble, on everyone’s side. What if you are paired with total nutjobs who spend their allocated time doing drugs or trying to kill others? And of course, there is no way back! 142 years with strangers. Of course, you get to know each other, having to live one after the other, but you can’t actually see or hear what happens when it’s not your turn. I was uneasy just reading one POV after the other. Uneasy in a very disturbed way as I simply felt that if I kept reading, I’d understand. Did I understand? Yes, and no. And that’s one of the reasons I enjoyed this novel so much. Guy Morpuss pushes you to the edge, literally. Five Minds read like a game. A deadly one. Mystery, mistrust, games you actually play, games you witness and games you have no idea about.

You are bound to take sides. But will you take the right side? Or is there a right side? This book is real entertainment with extraordinary consequences. Don’t worry, the flawless narration doesn’t leave room for confusion, and you always know who is in charge, for better or for worse! I was utterly captivated by how the author managed to turn his idea into a tangible and plausible world, so far from us and yet the foundations of humanity are always at the heart of the novel. What do we want? How do we get it? What is freedom? Those were some of the questions flinging back and forth in my head, in a tiny corner that subtly but firmly kept me connected to the characters.

Five people. One body… and a lot of intrigue, blood, mystery, lies. Guy Morpuss created a brilliant experience threaded with beautiful and dark layers of exquisite fiction.

Captivating, riveting, entertaining, Five Minds is twisty and twisted. Absolutely unique.

This is an incredible book. Planet Earth is overrun with humans, who are destroying the environment, so new rules have been made. At the age of 17, everyone must make a choice of how they will spend the rest of their lives. The protagonists decide to become schizos - five minds inside one body.

The idea is ingenious, and the author carries it off with great skill. Each character has their own distinct personality, and the different threads of the story come together seamlessly. Five Minds had me hooked right from the beginning, I couldn't put it down! And the ending didn't disappoint either!

This is a cleverly written novel with many layers, coupled with lots of action, twists, and intrigue. Highly recommend!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC in return for an honest review.

Five Minds by Guy Morpuss is a dystopian type sci-fi novel where 5 minds inhabit one body.

When I first read the description of this book, I was intrigued about how it would work. Let me tell you - I LOVED THIS BOOK. It was such an interesting concept and I loved getting to know all the characters! It was very entertaining and I loved the 'games' as they were like a little side adventure!

Definitely recommend!

Wow. Westworld meets Maze Runner meets The Running Man meets Seven Deaths splattered with murder and riddles to solve. Such an immersive experience.

This is such an intelligent novel and so expertly plotted. How did Guy even think this one up? I was all over the place trying to figure it all out. Also the world these characters live in is fascinating - there are so many tiny details that enrich the setting. And the concept? Oh my goodness. Imagine sharing your body with four others. I thought it about it all the time, which shift would I prefer and would it be better just to be a hedonist. I am still not sure!

Let's talk about the games at the Death Park. A place where you gamble time and your life. They were riveting and as they played along you were there with them. Sifting through all the evidence like you were a detective. Trying to figure out the clues yourself and deciding how to win. I adored those games. So inventive.

Then when you were finished you were right back to finding out who was attempting to kill you. Honestly it is like two books in one. The action never lets up. And the narrative is so compelling. You just have to find out what happens in the end.

And how does Guy ensure five characters - that live in the same body - have unique voices? His craft in doing so is astounding. I especially enjoyed hearing about their pasts and what happened before they arrived at the park. I would love to say more but can't for risk of spoilers. Suffice to say the narrative has a rich depth that is often lacking in such a genre. This isn't just about the thrills and spills it's about life and it's meaning. At times it is terrifying, exhilarating and thrilling. But it is also sad and poignant.

Such a mind blowing original book. I have no doubt this will be on cinema screens soon. You should buy it.