The Store

Jacob and Megan Brandeis are writers in New York, down on their luck. They submitted what they thought was a winning book to The Store but were denied. They decide to try to get inside The Store and report on what really happens by accepting jobs and moving their two kids to a small town in Nebraska. The good part is that most of their living expenses are covered by their employment with The Store. However, when they find hidden cameras in their new home and strange people reminiscent of Stepford wives, Jacob starts to question the town and The Store, to the chagrin of his family, who are happy to be blind consumers. A race across the country to prove his point may be a race against time.

This Patterson story is reminiscent of many he’s written lately with a co-author. The dialogue is simple, and the characters are not fully developed. But also like Patterson’s latest stories, it is fast and worth at least a beach read. The twist at the end will justify the time spent, and the correlation to America’s online shopping habit will be apparent…and appalling when you consider the lengths to which such habits could go.