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The Killables #3
The System (The Killables Book Three) by Gemma Malley
To survive you need people watching you, following your every move. That's the only currency now: being interesting, being liked ... And, of course, you have to update every fifteen minutes. It means everyone knows where you are, what you're doing; it means that there are no secrets...
Everybody watches everyone else; nothing is hidden. And for those who fail to 'update' every fifteen minutes, the consequences are deadly. Evie and Raffy may have escaped the City but they still fear for their lives. Now the only person who can help them is Frankie, a total stranger, the most popular girl in the world, watched every second by millions of people. But Frankie has other ideas...
And all the time, Lucas is waiting desperately for word from Evie, word that she is coming back to him.
The conclusion to Gemma Malley's terrifyingly dark vision of our near future will leave you gasping for air.
Everybody watches everyone else; nothing is hidden. And for those who fail to 'update' every fifteen minutes, the consequences are deadly. Evie and Raffy may have escaped the City but they still fear for their lives. Now the only person who can help them is Frankie, a total stranger, the most popular girl in the world, watched every second by millions of people. But Frankie has other ideas...
And all the time, Lucas is waiting desperately for word from Evie, word that she is coming back to him.
The conclusion to Gemma Malley's terrifyingly dark vision of our near future will leave you gasping for air.
Paperback
First published December 5, 2013
12 people are currently reading
549 people want to read
About the author
Gemma Malley
12 books470 followersGemma Malley studied Philosophy at Reading University before working as a journalist. She edited several business magazines and contributed regularly to Company magazine and the Sunday Telegraph before moving into the Civil Service in a senior communications role at Ofsted. The Declaration, her first novel for a teenage audience, and its sequel, The Resistance, were published to critical acclaim. She lives in South London.
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
June 15, 2015
1.5 stars
Thank god that was over. So much POV changes, too much new characters, no real ending, yet a perfect ending.
Thank god that was over. So much POV changes, too much new characters, no real ending, yet a perfect ending.
January 14, 2021
A good end to the series, just not the way I was expecting the series to go! It’s good, but books 1, 2 and 3 all feel like different dystopian worlds.
December 11, 2013
She's done it again. Queen Gemma Malley has once again written one of the best trilogies I've read in my life. Everything she writes just makes me so so happy
August 7, 2014
I guess this series is like - first book =meh.... second book = good good... bit this third = SUPERFREAKINGMEALY AWESOME
It has a sense of 1984 and i love how human these characters all are... normaly i guet the feeling that characters are not so human as they should be, but this is just right :D
So you have this psyco tyrant that blindly thinks that he's a genius and that the world he had "created" is WONDERFUL like a BRAVE NEW WORLD to him. People respect him and are happy in that brave new world but they are not! i loved that system thing that shows people emostions with diferent colors... something like Phoenix write, Athena's ability we get it, he is drunk with power and thinks thats the only way to get respect from people is to control everything. And he likes that. So he will do whatever it takes to get WHAT HE WANTS.
the thing is, Linus is much smarter XDDDDD he has always a plan in his sleeve xD. but actually the plan was Raffy's. You know that bloddy traytor that his the brother of the Poker face of the first book? Well i hated him for beggining being an obssessive person and trying to always take control of everything, like this system did, like thomas did, like milo's though he could do with Frankie. but no. Everyone is human and human's make mistakes: Raffy did them and notice them, so he tried his best to reverse what he'd done. thats why i'm Proud of him ^^
And they had to kill my fav character Benjamin, aka DEVIL but at least it made raffy realise what he has done.
No one is perfect and niether of those characters are.
Frankie: was "fabricated" by Infotec to be an entertainement, but then she realised that and fight for her beliefs and do as her own will asked her :) no more phonyness people! xD
Evie: never like she is a good person, as frankie said, she is irritating but determinated and stubborn - her own person :)
thats all folks, i totally recomend you this series ^^ you MUST READ TILL THE LAST BOOk ^^
It has a sense of 1984 and i love how human these characters all are... normaly i guet the feeling that characters are not so human as they should be, but this is just right :D
So you have this psyco tyrant that blindly thinks that he's a genius and that the world he had "created" is WONDERFUL like a BRAVE NEW WORLD to him. People respect him and are happy in that brave new world but they are not! i loved that system thing that shows people emostions with diferent colors... something like Phoenix write, Athena's ability we get it, he is drunk with power and thinks thats the only way to get respect from people is to control everything. And he likes that. So he will do whatever it takes to get WHAT HE WANTS.
the thing is, Linus is much smarter XDDDDD he has always a plan in his sleeve xD. but actually the plan was Raffy's. You know that bloddy traytor that his the brother of the Poker face of the first book? Well i hated him for beggining being an obssessive person and trying to always take control of everything, like this system did, like thomas did, like milo's though he could do with Frankie. but no. Everyone is human and human's make mistakes: Raffy did them and notice them, so he tried his best to reverse what he'd done. thats why i'm Proud of him ^^
And they had to kill my fav character Benjamin, aka DEVIL but at least it made raffy realise what he has done.
No one is perfect and niether of those characters are.
Frankie: was "fabricated" by Infotec to be an entertainement, but then she realised that and fight for her beliefs and do as her own will asked her :) no more phonyness people! xD
Evie: never like she is a good person, as frankie said, she is irritating but determinated and stubborn - her own person :)
thats all folks, i totally recomend you this series ^^ you MUST READ TILL THE LAST BOOk ^^
February 18, 2017
This is the first Malley book I have read and once I got past the first few chapters it had me hooked. The concepts of being sucked into being watched are current and the storyline developed well with largely believable characters and an intriguing approach regarding the UK - with a slight twist or two. It is an easy read for a lazy afternoon when you want to skim into another world for a bit.
April 24, 2020
I am in two mindsets about this last book in the series. I expected more and was handed something else.
The story continues where it left off, with Lucas back at The City with proof that the System was wrong and unneeded, where as Evie, Raffy and Linus are being held captive by Thomas all the way in Paris and are on a deadline to mass produce the System for the rest of the world.
Once again, we are introduced to various other characters throughout the book, the main being Frankie- in a new sculptured world by Thomas after the horrors everybody is watched and is needed to “check in” every 15 minutes. There are those who are watched and the watchers, Frankie being one of the most popular watched individuals. A new kind of celebrity where they are not praised by their talents but for the way that they live. The more followers and watchers you have the more luxurious life you lead, but in turn gives you more watches. It reminded me of an episode of the Black Mirror where people are judged on a scale.
Frankie’s fame quickly collapses, and she is in danger of her life, because this new Big Brother world is not all it seems. As the readers we of course know that Thomas and his ideology of the perfect world is wrong, and Frankie learns more than she bargains for when she posts a blog post about the UK not being completely destroyed like the whole world claims.
The majority of the book centres around Frankie, which I found enduring, I enjoyed the new added characters and being able to see the story unfold through different pairs of eyes. As for Frankie she was a welcome addition and her character development from watcher obsessed to a humble and truth-seeking girl was nicely captured throughout the pages.
As for the ending to the series, I thought it was good. It wrapped up the series nicely and the characters each got what they deserved. It wasn’t perfect but it was a good storyline. There are of course many plot holes that I could think of in terms of this dystopian idea however I do think most of them stem from the fact that it’s hard to imagine society and the world we see as now to something different.
The reason why I mentioned being in two minds over this last book, and in fact the series is that although I enjoyed it, it definitely was missing something. I’ve spoken about how the characters are very two dimensional and that has stayed true throughout the series, the plot was carried forward with enough mystery and wanting to know what was going to happen next. And yet there was something missing.
My main pet peeve with Gemma’s decision in her series was Raffy’s character. In the second instalment we witnessed how he did a complete 180 as a character and became obsessive and jealous of Evie and in this final book he once again completely transforms from his characterisation in the second book to somewhat of the character we were first introduced to. I know that the main reason for his complete change in the second was to drive forward the love triangle between Evie and Lucas however I can’t help but hate the fact that this character had to suffer so much because of it. The love triangle itself was not needed, I don’t understand how after having completely no feelings for Lucas in the first book, apart from their one kiss they were able to fall in love while separated and without being in contact with each other. I cannot root for someone’s relationship when I don’t exactly know about it!
The story continues where it left off, with Lucas back at The City with proof that the System was wrong and unneeded, where as Evie, Raffy and Linus are being held captive by Thomas all the way in Paris and are on a deadline to mass produce the System for the rest of the world.
Once again, we are introduced to various other characters throughout the book, the main being Frankie- in a new sculptured world by Thomas after the horrors everybody is watched and is needed to “check in” every 15 minutes. There are those who are watched and the watchers, Frankie being one of the most popular watched individuals. A new kind of celebrity where they are not praised by their talents but for the way that they live. The more followers and watchers you have the more luxurious life you lead, but in turn gives you more watches. It reminded me of an episode of the Black Mirror where people are judged on a scale.
Frankie’s fame quickly collapses, and she is in danger of her life, because this new Big Brother world is not all it seems. As the readers we of course know that Thomas and his ideology of the perfect world is wrong, and Frankie learns more than she bargains for when she posts a blog post about the UK not being completely destroyed like the whole world claims.
The majority of the book centres around Frankie, which I found enduring, I enjoyed the new added characters and being able to see the story unfold through different pairs of eyes. As for Frankie she was a welcome addition and her character development from watcher obsessed to a humble and truth-seeking girl was nicely captured throughout the pages.
As for the ending to the series, I thought it was good. It wrapped up the series nicely and the characters each got what they deserved. It wasn’t perfect but it was a good storyline. There are of course many plot holes that I could think of in terms of this dystopian idea however I do think most of them stem from the fact that it’s hard to imagine society and the world we see as now to something different.
The reason why I mentioned being in two minds over this last book, and in fact the series is that although I enjoyed it, it definitely was missing something. I’ve spoken about how the characters are very two dimensional and that has stayed true throughout the series, the plot was carried forward with enough mystery and wanting to know what was going to happen next. And yet there was something missing.
My main pet peeve with Gemma’s decision in her series was Raffy’s character. In the second instalment we witnessed how he did a complete 180 as a character and became obsessive and jealous of Evie and in this final book he once again completely transforms from his characterisation in the second book to somewhat of the character we were first introduced to. I know that the main reason for his complete change in the second was to drive forward the love triangle between Evie and Lucas however I can’t help but hate the fact that this character had to suffer so much because of it. The love triangle itself was not needed, I don’t understand how after having completely no feelings for Lucas in the first book, apart from their one kiss they were able to fall in love while separated and without being in contact with each other. I cannot root for someone’s relationship when I don’t exactly know about it!
August 29, 2017
I finally got round to reading the conclusion to The Killables trilogy!
It's been quite a long time since I read the first books, so I had forgotten some of the details. But as I read, I started to remember what had happened previously and was able to appreciate the current story.
After escaping the City, Evie, Raffy, Linus and Benjamin are now trapped in a world where everyone is being Watched. People actually made a living off of being Watched by strangers around the world, by having people see their daily lives and every thought. But Thomas, the leader of Infotec, isn't satisfied; he still wants Linus to create the System he had originally thought of.
Frankie is one of the most Watched girls; her boyfriend, Milo, is high-up within Infotec and has really boosted her Watcher numbers. But an anonymous message encourages Frankie to write a blog post about the UK, and Milo suddenly turns pretty hostile. Suddenly Frankie is being thrown in the back of a van, her ID chip removed and given to some random doppelganger now claiming her identity. Frankie isn't about to go down without a fight, though, and with the help of the anonymous messager, she escapes the Infotec enforcers.
There are a lot of switches between the POV this story is being told by, but after few chapters, the characters start to come together in one story.
A group of people are determined to tell the rest of the world about the UK - which was believed to have been destroyed by the Horrors. But Thomas is not going to let that happen easily - he's more than happy to dispose of anyone threatening his company.
The future Malley has created is, in my opinion, quite plausible. Vlogs on YouTube are already super popular, and this isn't that big a step up from that. And the System Thomas wants from Linus is probably not too far-fetched, either.
Frankie and Milo are probably the most important new characters in this book. Frankie was developed pretty well throughout the story, slowly discovering the truth and realising how she had been manipulated by Infotec. She's not a big fan of Evie when they first meet, though, and I kind of thought Malley emphasised that more than was necessary. Milo also developed a bit, but with more of a sudden switch being flicked later in the book.
This was a good conclusion to the trilogy, and I enjoyed reading it. It maybe tries a bit too hard to be edgy, with swear words being thrown around and things like that. Still, I liked it. I felt a bit of Scott Westerfeld's Uglies coming through at times, but not enough that it felt samey or anything. 4 stars for the final Killables book.
It's been quite a long time since I read the first books, so I had forgotten some of the details. But as I read, I started to remember what had happened previously and was able to appreciate the current story.
After escaping the City, Evie, Raffy, Linus and Benjamin are now trapped in a world where everyone is being Watched. People actually made a living off of being Watched by strangers around the world, by having people see their daily lives and every thought. But Thomas, the leader of Infotec, isn't satisfied; he still wants Linus to create the System he had originally thought of.
Frankie is one of the most Watched girls; her boyfriend, Milo, is high-up within Infotec and has really boosted her Watcher numbers. But an anonymous message encourages Frankie to write a blog post about the UK, and Milo suddenly turns pretty hostile. Suddenly Frankie is being thrown in the back of a van, her ID chip removed and given to some random doppelganger now claiming her identity. Frankie isn't about to go down without a fight, though, and with the help of the anonymous messager, she escapes the Infotec enforcers.
There are a lot of switches between the POV this story is being told by, but after few chapters, the characters start to come together in one story.
A group of people are determined to tell the rest of the world about the UK - which was believed to have been destroyed by the Horrors. But Thomas is not going to let that happen easily - he's more than happy to dispose of anyone threatening his company.
The future Malley has created is, in my opinion, quite plausible. Vlogs on YouTube are already super popular, and this isn't that big a step up from that. And the System Thomas wants from Linus is probably not too far-fetched, either.
Frankie and Milo are probably the most important new characters in this book. Frankie was developed pretty well throughout the story, slowly discovering the truth and realising how she had been manipulated by Infotec. She's not a big fan of Evie when they first meet, though, and I kind of thought Malley emphasised that more than was necessary. Milo also developed a bit, but with more of a sudden switch being flicked later in the book.
This was a good conclusion to the trilogy, and I enjoyed reading it. It maybe tries a bit too hard to be edgy, with swear words being thrown around and things like that. Still, I liked it. I felt a bit of Scott Westerfeld's Uglies coming through at times, but not enough that it felt samey or anything. 4 stars for the final Killables book.
June 2, 2019
Subiectul e bun, de aceea am si citit-o. E scrisa intr-un stil urban care probabil place adolescentilor. Nu veti gasi aici figuri de stil si fraze rasucite frumos. Personajele nu sunt conturate asa cum am asteptat, sunt creionate vag, fara detalii subtile. Impresia pe care mi-o lasa e aceea a unei grabe de a arunca pe hartie o insiruire de idei. Nu am citit alte carti ale autoarei, dar vad ca e bine cotata. Poate un film ar fi mai bun decat cartea. Daca va place subiectul lumilor distopice, cititi-o pentru ca are idei bune. Finalul e cel mai interesant, predictibil, dar interesant. Daca ar fi sa ma iau dupa titlu, as fi vrut sa citesc mai mult despre partea tehnica a unui sistem, dar aceasta parte a fost lasata mult in background si autoarea a pus accent pe intamplarile personajelor. Uneste in final concluziile, dar demersul de-a lungul cartii e neconvingator. Dar cititi-o. E tare faina ideea de la care a pornit.
April 27, 2020
As other readers have mentioned, the second and third books of this trilogy are better than the first - deeper characterisation and great to see the redemption of characters who do some terrible things, and so full of twists. Love the way the world they are in starts off small and contained and gets increasingly bigger as they leave its confines (but believably so - more than books like Divergent). My only gripe is the constant bias against religion (really Christianity) from several of the characters and the mockery of ministers/pastors.
March 25, 2024
Really good book and different POVs. Definitely work to binge read this book otherwise you can easily forget the characters.
March 24, 2015
What a book and what a series! Each book just got better and better. This final book in the series brought the Killables trilogy to an epic conclusion.
Gemma Malley introduced new characters who brought the world she envisioned to life in amazing style. I can't quite get over how intricate and detailed the storylines in the entire series were. What started out as what seemed like a simple Dystopian, stick-it-to-the-man story, wound up as a global conspiracy with a madman behind it.
The way Gemma has taken the world we live in now and thrown it into a future so different from the one we hope to see blows my mind. Her use of cities we know so well and landmarks like the London Underground and the Eurotunnel was brilliantly creative and I enjoyed every single second of reading the series.
And *SPOILER ALERT!!* I was so beyond happy to see Evie and Lucas safely reunited and getting a well deserved happily ever after. And I loved how she ended the series on Raffy, finding redemption and moving on from the past to hopefully find some happiness of his own with Frankie.
Gemma Malley has done it again. I swear, if this woman wrote the phone book, I'd read it.
Gemma Malley introduced new characters who brought the world she envisioned to life in amazing style. I can't quite get over how intricate and detailed the storylines in the entire series were. What started out as what seemed like a simple Dystopian, stick-it-to-the-man story, wound up as a global conspiracy with a madman behind it.
The way Gemma has taken the world we live in now and thrown it into a future so different from the one we hope to see blows my mind. Her use of cities we know so well and landmarks like the London Underground and the Eurotunnel was brilliantly creative and I enjoyed every single second of reading the series.
And *SPOILER ALERT!!* I was so beyond happy to see Evie and Lucas safely reunited and getting a well deserved happily ever after. And I loved how she ended the series on Raffy, finding redemption and moving on from the past to hopefully find some happiness of his own with Frankie.
Gemma Malley has done it again. I swear, if this woman wrote the phone book, I'd read it.
May 15, 2014
This book was so good, I finished it in one day. Loved the note that Malley ended the series on, particularly the paths of the characters. World domination ended. Characters happy. I'm happy. Loved it. Fabulous!
It once again followed the alternate voices of Evie, Lucas and Raffi our main characters and we were introduced to new characters Frankie, Jim and Glen who all worked to overthrow the System and the tyrant that is Thomas.
This book is not just some made up dystopia that looks at a utopian society that is so far fetched. This is the real deal folks and can happen due to our addiction to cyber space and technology. This was really thought provoking book and is not just for persons looking for an entertaining read. It is a total high obtain ride of conspiracy, politics and total government control and technological addiction. Those who want a real eye opener of a book, this one is for you!
It once again followed the alternate voices of Evie, Lucas and Raffi our main characters and we were introduced to new characters Frankie, Jim and Glen who all worked to overthrow the System and the tyrant that is Thomas.
This book is not just some made up dystopia that looks at a utopian society that is so far fetched. This is the real deal folks and can happen due to our addiction to cyber space and technology. This was really thought provoking book and is not just for persons looking for an entertaining read. It is a total high obtain ride of conspiracy, politics and total government control and technological addiction. Those who want a real eye opener of a book, this one is for you!
July 16, 2014
Raffy has betrayed his friends, allowing Thomas to take Evie, Linus, Benjamin, and himself captive. They are taken to Paris, to the headquarters of Infotec–the company that controls the world. Infotec watches everyone, and everyone watches everyone. The more Watchers you have, the richer you are. Only, if someone forgets to update every fifteen minutes, Infotec gets nasty. Start updating about matters Infotec doesn’t want anyone knowing about, and they get even nastier.
The System was a great conclusion to Malley’s The Killables trilogy. It was very engaging and kept me interested through the end of the book, and I would recommend the entire series to anyone who loves dystopian novels and science fiction. I give this book four out of five stars.
Read the full review at http://eatbooksforbreakfast.com/2014/....
The System was a great conclusion to Malley’s The Killables trilogy. It was very engaging and kept me interested through the end of the book, and I would recommend the entire series to anyone who loves dystopian novels and science fiction. I give this book four out of five stars.
Read the full review at http://eatbooksforbreakfast.com/2014/....
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March 2, 2016At last, a dystopian series that doesn't have a predictable ending! I loved the trilogy but I loved the third book even more than the second! The story changed and we were finally able to see the whole picture. It does have elements that have been used in other stories, but it is truly original in others. I loved how it focused on old characters as well as new ones and how it showed the clash between two worlds trying to get to grips with what is true and what isn't. I also loved the references to elements that actually exist in our world, such as the exasperation of using social networks (such as instagram, twitter and facebook, for example) and the fact that we lose actual contact with each other.
This is a unique trilogy, and I can't wait to read more books by this author!
This is a unique trilogy, and I can't wait to read more books by this author!
September 27, 2015
In The System we meet a lot of new characters, and the focus is no longer mainly on Evie, Lucas, Linus or Raffy. But this didn't bother me at all, because this new girl - Frankie - is extremely awesome! As are Glenn and Jim :)
I loved how all the different story lines came together in this last book and I liked this book even better than The Killables - the first book in the series. This series was an amazing and original read! I would totally recommend it to all dystopian lovers out there.
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I loved how all the different story lines came together in this last book and I liked this book even better than The Killables - the first book in the series. This series was an amazing and original read! I would totally recommend it to all dystopian lovers out there.
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Lees mijn complete review op Met het Oog op de Toekomst!
April 24, 2014
While the series needed this book to wrap up all ties and give it a purpose I do feel that it was a bit drawn out and a little bit obvious in places. There were not really any twists in this one that the two books had had.
Again, I saw lots more sides to the characters than I had previously seen. I actually started to like 'Frankie' by the time the book ended...but that wasn't enough for me to give the book more stars. Disappointed unfortunately...
Again, I saw lots more sides to the characters than I had previously seen. I actually started to like 'Frankie' by the time the book ended...but that wasn't enough for me to give the book more stars. Disappointed unfortunately...
August 10, 2016
I'm not surr how i feel now that i'm finished. The idea is quite topical for the times we live in. After all that the characters have been put trough these series and then ending - it felt a bit fast and a bit easy-to-achieve in the last pages. Yet, it was a good book for this genre. In case you are a fan the books/movies of The Hunger Games and Divergents you'll probably love this trilogy.
March 30, 2014
This is a fantastic dystopia that investigates serious morals and life lessons. A first for a dystopia with a satisfying ending. Highly recommend to young adults for a great read and to provoke meaningful discussions. 4-5 star.
May 3, 2014
This one is definitely the best in the trilogy... It almost feels like the other two were just introductions leading to this one.
Scary thought: Frankie's world is the world we will one day live in. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram,... They will all lead to this...
Scary thought: Frankie's world is the world we will one day live in. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram,... They will all lead to this...
August 27, 2014
I loved the whole watchers part! and the way the world was and how everyone lived their lives on camera!
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August 25, 2014Epic and just... Amazing
November 17, 2014
Third book was great. Tied everything together
February 10, 2015
Out of the killables trilogy, I found the 3rd book was definitely the best. I really enjoyed reading the system where as the other two I found quite meh.....give it a go!
May 21, 2016
Took me an absolute age to read this book. This entire series was rubbish, however - this book is better than the other in the series and is completely different in terms of plot etc
August 1, 2016
Brilliant
I absolutely loved it. Very gripping, wish there were more books to carry on the story as I loved all of the characters and the idea behind the story
I absolutely loved it. Very gripping, wish there were more books to carry on the story as I loved all of the characters and the idea behind the story
October 31, 2016
Good book again
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May 3, 2017bad ending. yet a great finish to the series.
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews