Mirkat Always Reading

I received this as a free uncorrected-proof ebook  from NetGalley.  This does not prevent me from writing an honest review.

Buzz starts off 14 months from the end of Game.  HP has been living away from Sweden, living a nomadic life under an assumed name.  He suddenly finds himself framed for a crime and is barely able to clear his name.  He receives a lead about a mysterious company headquartered back home in Sweden, so he impulsively decides to return and infiltrate it.  The company is in the business of controlling "buzz" about companies and even issues on social media, blogs, and online forums (though I think the author uses "troll" the way most of us use "sock puppet").

Rebecca, reacting to a perceived threat during an overseas security assignment, finds herself suspended with pay pending the results of an investigation for possible misconduct. As she waits for that to be resolved, she finds herself to be the subject of a series of increasingly personal online attacks from a pseudonymous poster on a "police" forum.

The two storylines, as in the first installment, become intertwined.  Once again, the stakes become increasingly high while HP investigates the reach of the company (and its possible connection to the Game) and Rebecca chases after her online tormentor.  And another cliffhanger has me eager to read Bubble.

The topic of "buzz" strikes me as especially timely, as there has been much controversy about false reviews and sock-puppetry online.  New York State's AG had a crackdown on this very practice fairly recently.