Ben Oliver's newest thriller, "Kill Factor," centers on the connection between reality TV and the criminal justice system in a near-future world powered by fame and digital money. With echoes of societal commentary and heart-pounding action, Oliver creates a story that goes deeply into the moral issues of entertainment at the price of human lives. The concept is both intriguing and scary.

Oliver's story is a thought-provoking examination of power relations, social voyeurism, and the monetary value of human existence for ratings and online encouragement. While reading, I was struck with the harsh truths of a society where justice is distorted and morality is sacrificed on the altar of pleasure.

Kill Factor" is a heart-pounding thrill trip from beginning to end, with twists and turns that had me on the edge of my seat. Oliver's incisive style and relentless pacing propel the tale ahead, ending in a jaw-dropping climax that forced me to confront my own role in the exploitative culture depicted in the novel.

In a world where reality television blurs the distinction between entertainment and exploitation, "Kill Factor" serves as a sharp reminder of the grim truths that lurk under the surface. It's a book that made me really rethink the morality of our media-saturated world long after I finished it. This book has been absolutely amazing to read and fascinating to think about as well.


Thank you scholastic | chicken house and netgalley for the ARC

I really enjoyed this wild, dystopian book. I appreciated the strange world that Oliver built up, with massive class divides at its core, which put people in incredibly vulnerable positions that force them to make drastic decisions. Without that vulnerability, most of these characters, even the wealthy ones, wouldn't have committed crimes, and thus none of them would have felt the pressure to join the Kill Factor show. Emerson was an extremely sympathetic character to follow. She's not perfect in any way, but she's trying to live by her own ethics in an environment that is completely out of her control. You can feel her frustration which is a sign of strong character development. I was also fascinated by the way that Oliver made the economy of the world completely focused around people's followers and personal brand. The commentary on our social media and influencer-driven world was poignant.

I will definitely be buying this book for my HS library. It is both a page-turner and a book filled with important messages. The best of both worlds!

I loved the idea of freedom and game shows, it was a unique take on reality tv. I thought the characters were interesting and worked in this futuristic world. Ben Oliver wrote this perfectly and thought you could understand why the characters were doing what they were doing. It had everything that I hoped for from the description and hope there is more in this universe and from Ben Oliver.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Scholastic for providing me with an eARC of The Kill Factor in exchange for my honest review!

As a reader who very much enjoyed the Loop series from Ben Oliver (though I still need to read the third book), I've been anticipating The Kill Factor, and now I'm happy to give it praise. I don't even dive into that many YA dystopia tales anymore, but it's still possible for them to captivate me. It's not even like The Kill Factor accomplishes this by being all that groundbreaking with the YA dystopia cliches it dishes out (it's particularly borrowing a ton of vibes from The Hunger Games), but it manages to get me invested in its characters and the ridiculously unjust world they're forced to endure. Whether the characters are endearing, flawed, and/or downright despicable, the majority of them draw me deeper into the narrative. Even with the ones who don't get much time on the page before the book kills them off (and trust me, this is not afraid of hitting us in the face with a variety of brutal deaths), they pull some genuine emotions out of me, encouraging me to grieve them and be indignant toward the agony that this tyrannical society had inflicted against them.

On the thematic side of things, I admire how Oliver continues his focus on the ways in which the wealthy and the powerful use incarceration to exploit and abuse the marginalized and vulnerable members of our world. This is something he'd smartly explored in The Loop as well, but he adds onto this vehement criticism of class inequity and capitalism in The Kill Factor by weaving influencer culture and social media into the mixture. It's not even like this is anything new to navigate—our addiction to the online landscape, the artificial personas we generate there in order to present ourselves in a much more charming fashion, widespread surveillance from governments and corporations, the poisonous ability that influencing has to monetize and quantify everything, the privilege that traditionally attractive and charismatic people have to become successful at influencing—but it all remains absorbing to follow in this book.

Overall, I'm officially rating The Kill Factor 3.75 out of five stars, which I'm rounding up to 4 stars on Goodreads. I'm looking forward to the sequel, and I'll be eager for any more of Oliver's books, too.

Emerson tried to burn down her school and killed someone in the process. After she's arrested, she's offered a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to get out of jail free by competing in a reality show full of 50 other child criminals. All she has to do is gain more social followers and survive.

Was this book spectacular? No. Did it have the best writing or character development? Also no. But was it fun and so readable? Absolutely. This is perfect for fans of any of the mid 2000s dystopian books. There was just enough horror to keep you on your toes.

I'll say it over and over, I absolutely love books with deadly games. It keeps me engaged and nervous and ramps up the tension in the story. The setting of this was also interesting, in a not-so-far future where social credit means more than actual money and most people make their living through online content. It's scary to think that we aren't far from something like this happening.

The main character didn't really make an impression on me other than her connection with her younger brother. I thought Emerson was a bit irritating in how she kept trying to be better than other contestants by not following the rules, even when it hurt herself and others. She also came across as kind of weak and helpless a lot of the time and wasn't the lead I wanted.

The ending wasn't quite what I expected and I enjoyed the extra twist. Maybe there will be a sequel at some point?

I voluntarily read and reviewed this book. All opinions are my own. Thank you to NetGalley and Chicken House for the copy.

Although this book is book is primarily for YA readers, I really enjoyed it.
It is a bit like the Hunger Games mixed with Squid Games. It is a gameshow that allows teens who have committed crimes to be allowed to go free. However, the catch is they must compete in each game and try to get people to vote for them based on their social media feed. If they are in the bottom two, the one with the lowest amount of likes is eliminated.
If you are a Hunger Games and or Squid Game fan you will enjoy this.
I would recommend.
I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Kill Factor is a young adult futuristic novel about a group of teens accused of crimes and sent to an island to compete for social media followers. The winner will receive a pardon, while the losers will face a life sentence of solitary confinement.

Emerson was robbing her old high school when something went wrong and a fire started, killing the janitor. Once arrested, she receives an offer to clear her record by joining a competition with other juvenile offenders. Her immediate response is to refuse the offer, but her brother thinks she can win, and the social media followers she picks up could help her entire family. However, the offer isn’t what she thought it was, and the teenagers will be picked off one by one in a series of brutal contests, expected to create engaging video content to gain followers.

The Kill Factor is a fast-paced and easy read that will be great for younger, reluctant readers. Although there is death on the page, it isn’t gory or too detailed. The language and dialogue were a little too spare for me personally, but I could see a reader who appreciates a more action-driven novel enjoying it.

Emerson Ness has a choice to make. Either face the sentence she’s been given for arson and manslaughter or participate in a new game show to try to earn her freedom. The only catch? If she loses the game, she will be sentenced to life in solitary confinement. Deciding to take a risk, Emerson joins the other 49 contestants all looking to clear their sentences. But after they set sail on the Calypso to be taken to the site of the games, they quickly find out that the competition is very different than what they were told and the stakes are much higher. With no way to back out, the contestants must give it their all to make it through each challenge. Does Emerson have what it takes to survive the games and come out on top?

This book was like a cross between The Hunger Games and The Squid Games! The author does such a good job of describing what Emerson was experiencing, that it felt like you were right there with her. Every free minute I had was spent reading this book. It was so good I could not put it down. This book was full of adventure, suspense, friendships, conspiracies, and a little bit of heartbreak. The ideas the author embeds into the storyline about the ups and downs of social media and influencing was done well and will lead to great discussions within book clubs. This is a must-buy for our library and my fingers are crossed there will be a sequel! Overall, this book was excellent!

Thank you to NetGalley and Scholastic for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion!

Look, I am going to be straight with you: this book does require a bit of suspension of disbelief. It just does. But it is so worth it, because once I was able to do that, I could not put the book down. It was so delightfully messed up, and there were so many questions to be answered. Also, the stakes were immensely high, as the author made it very clear from early on that no one would be safe.

Here's the gist: Emerson was arrested for some shenanigans that resulted in a fire and death. She's obviously facing prison time if convicted, even though she swears she did not do it. This guy comes to her and makes an offer: join some messy reality show, win and earn your freedom and some money for your struggling family. Lose and it's life in solitary confinement. Now- this is where my suspension of disbelief came in, because who the everloving heck would accept this offer?! I mean, you have a 98% chance of being imprisoned for life, or worse. And in fairness, Emerson does at least scoff at the offer for awhile, though based on the entire premise of the book, you know she eventually acquiesces. So you just have to go into it accepting that she is making this terrible life choice, and move on.

Because once you do, things get wild. She meets 49 other fools kids who are willing to take this chance, too. Some for fame, some for freedom, but the result remains the same, they find themselves on a cruise ship to hell, where even the winners are losers. Because this is not set up for success, it is set up to be horrifying, and it's also set up for views. Certainly, you can see the relevance in our current culture, yeah? There is a lot of great commentary on current societal problems, which was fabulous too.

The premise was wild, the execution even more so. It's a pretty dark concept, but there were some lighter moments, a hint of romance (that was a little insta-lovey but also was not at all the main focus so it was fine) and a lot of very solid friendships being made. Of course, there was also backstabbing and awfulness, but it's a reality show about teen murder, so. I thought I had figured some stuff out, and I had, but the stuff I had figured out was just the tip of the iceberg, and there were so many twists and turns and secrets that I had no idea were coming!

It ends in a sort of satisfying way, but it also very much lends itself to a sequel. Like, it definitely seems like it was designed for one, so fingers are very much crossed!

Bottom Line: Truly could not put this book down- it was so messed up in the very best way!

The Hunger Games book series (like the HP book series) influenced not only a slew of contemporaries at the time of their release but the tweens and teenagers who read The Hunger Games growing up have carried their love of those books through the last 13 or so tumultuous, anxious years since its release to write their own YA dystopian novels in which it’s teenagers against the system. Some of them have brilliant writing and excellent takes on the genre, and some of them just reach a little too far and don’t exactly pay off in the end.

The Kill Factor feels very much like The Hunger Games in a lot of ways (in more ways than not, in my opinion), but it just didn’t touch me in any meaningful or emotional way. The book wants to go deeper and philosophical, and that was actually a great plot choice for author Ben Oliver, but in the third act it felt a little like going “deeper” was switched out for going “brutal” and those aren’t the same thing.

It’s not a bad read, just an average one.

I was provided a copy of this title by NetGalley and the author. All thoughts, opinions, views, and ideas expressed herein are mine and mine alone. Due to a three star or lower rating this review will not appear in my social media. Thank you.

File Under: Dystopian Fiction/YA Fiction/YA Horror/YA Science Fiction/YA Thriller

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this eARC.

In the realm of dystopian fiction, Ben Oliver's "The Kill Factor" emerges as a harrowing tale that intertwines the thrill of a game show with the stark reality of survival. Set in a near-future society fueled by virtual currency and digital content, Oliver crafts a world where fame is the currency and life is the stake.

The novel introduces us to Emerson, a young offender who finds herself in a high-stakes game show offering a shot at freedom. The catch? It's win or die. As the contestants are whittled down through a series of mental and physical challenges, the reader is taken on a journey that is as much about internal struggle as it is about external survival.

Oliver's prose is sharp and engaging, masterfully setting scenes that are vivid yet not overwrought with detail. The pacing is relentless, propelling the reader through twists and turns that are as unpredictable as they are satisfying. The author's ability to weave social commentary into the narrative is commendable, touching on themes of elitism, the dehumanization effect of social media, and the voyeuristic nature of reality TV.

Emerson, as our protagonist, is a character of depth and complexity. Her evolution throughout the story is both believable and compelling, making her someone readers will root for. The supporting cast is equally fleshed out, each with their own motivations and backstories that enrich the narrative.

"The Kill Factor" is a book that provokes thought and discussion about the society we live in and the direction we're headed. It's a must-read for fans of "The Hunger Games" and "The Maze Runner" series, offering a fresh perspective in the crowded field of YA dystopian literature.

Ben Oliver's "The Kill Factor" is a gripping, thought-provoking read that will resonate with readers. It's a testament to Oliver's storytelling prowess and his ability to craft a narrative that is both entertaining and enlightening. A solid addition to any dystopian aficionado's collection.

This is a dark YA novel for fans of The Hunger Games. In a futuristic dystopian world where social media followers are all that matters, teen criminals are invited to participate in a game show that offers redemption -- or a lifetime in prison. This is a fast-paced, action-packed thriller that teens will devour. Recommended!

3.5 out of 5 stars (3.5 / 5) What a fabulous premise! Young criminals are offered the chance of freedom if they go against 49 others in a competition. The one that wins gets freedom. Those that lose either die or get solitary confinement for life. The trick to winning is to win over the audience and get the most followers on social media.

Right from the start you know this will be an exciting story. We follow Emerson throughout the trials and surprises of the competition. She gives us a first-hand look into the extreme challenges that end up being life or death.

The book jumped right into the excitement, which I love. There wasn’t much build-up, which is both good and bad. It took me a bit to understand the influencers, what they did to earn followers and the currency. As much as I liked the characters, there were a lot. 50 contestants and the producer at minimum. While it’s not expected to know all 50 contestants, each were named multiple times making me feel as if I should know them or need to remember them for a future scene. I believe this also made it hard to connect with the characters as much as I would’ve liked. I didn’t feel emotions during deaths which says to me that the characters and story were not developed enough to make me invested. The romantic relationship also felt somewhat forced. Yes, I understand the extreme circumstances make angsty teens feel extensively but throwing around “love” so easily was not fitting. The whole game only lasted a few days. It was intense at times then very somber, then the intensity came again, back down to a minimum. The back and forth I didn’t love which also made the intense moments lose some of their impact. I do still have a few questions about that ending but it sounds like there will be a book 2 with that cliffhanger!

Ultimately this was a fun spin on the teen life and death competition trope. I recommend this for YA dystopia lovers!


Thank you to Scholastic for the copy through NetGalley!

The book releases April 16, 2024.

Okay let me first say that if you’re looking for something wildly original…this isn’t the book for you. If you’re a fan The Hunger Games or Battle Royale and are looking for a fun new adventure that is similar and yet adds a few different twists then step right up. Even before the explosion of ‘reality’ TV or content streaming, the idea of society using people competing against each other as a form of entertainment had already been explored. The first thing at jump to mind is Stephen King’s The Running Man. (Both the book and the movie…which are radically different and are both entertaining in their own ways.) Well Ben Oliver’s The Kill Factor adds some interesting wrinkles in the formula. As with The Hunger Games, our contestants are children, anywhere from 12-18 I believe. And if you’re a fan of that series you’ll no doubt notice and appreciate other similarities. However in The Kill Factor the contestants are also criminals and this contest is a chance at freedom…and fame. Besides being pitted against each other to win challenges, their goal is also to gain followers. On the surface that might sound strange or if you’re like me, it actually sounds like (and heaven help us if this true) the direction society seems to be moving towards, lol. While the some may find the first 20-25% of the story a little on the slower side, I actually feel the slower pacing is works well as it allows us to come to grips with the quirks of how this society is reliant on social media as well as allowing us to get to know the various contestants. But once things really get going, if you’re like me, you’ll be glued to the book and won’t want to put it down. This story can easily be enjoyed on a surface level or on a deeper level as a commentary on society and social media ‘influencers’. As I said at the start some my just see this as a retread of The Hunger Games, but I think this is an adventure well worth taking. 4.5 stars. I’d like to thank Scholastic | Chicken House and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review an eARC of The Kill factor.

https://www.amazon.com/review/R336K10HMP34E7/ref=pe_1098610_137716200_cm_rv_eml_rv0_rv

This was a fun ride. Nothing fantastic but was fun. Recommend as a pallet cleaner between a thick book

This book hooks the reader with an interesting premise and then makes good on that promise in keeping the engagement up. It took time for me to warm up to the main character, but I did find myself rooting for her by the end. The ending was great too. It was a fun read.

If you like Hunger Games, a sick twisted version of Survivor, with Maze Runner vibes this might be the book for you. I read this book in about a day. The writing was easy to devour, and I found myself connected to almost every character in this book, which I suppose was my downfall lol. The concept of this book is very similar to Hunger Games I would say, and that made me feel torn in how I felt about it. There were SO many similarities that if I were Suzanne Collins I’d feel like you copied my homework a little bit…but it was also the reason I liked it so much because well who didn’t love the Hunger Games or Maze Runner?
The connections I can see between our current society and what it could become through this book makes me uncomfortable and I’m sure that’s the point. 😊 I will say I enjoyed that content creation and the followers from that equating to the amount of currency you have is very interesting and almost Black Mirror-esque.
The author also did a great job at making the reader feel torn between the FMC and other characters, it’s hard to root for someone when you’re also attached to their competitors. The ending was interesting and I’m curious to see if a second book might come of this.

As a huge fan of The Hunger Games, I wanted to love this book so badly. However, that just wasn’t the case. I didn’t click with the writing at all which made me want to DNF pretty quickly.

This is the start of what appears to be a series which I predict will be popular among middle and high school students. Fans of Hunger Games, the Maze Runner and Divergent will love this! The twist in Kill Factor is the underlying commentary on social media’s impact on the world. This makes it a great choice for book club discussions!

Thank you @netgalley for the ARC.