Blog Tour: The App – Stuart James

The App…

Once you’re in, they’ll never let you leave.

Whatever happens, don’t download The App.

* It will come in the form of a link. Maybe in your DM’s on a social media account, the junk folder of your emails or a WhatsApp message from a friend.

* You’ll be enticed by the chance of winning one hundred thousand pounds on offer every Friday, wired straight into the winner’s bank account.

* It’s not a joke.

* This part is genuine.

* Someone can and will win the money.

* But at what cost?

Marty Benson gets the link sent to him by a friend. So what is the harm in looking?
He clicks it, downloads the app and enters a few basic details.
A message prompts him to wait while he’s loaded onto the system.
An hour later, another message.

• Do not delete the app.

• Do not tell anyone outside of your family about the app.

• Send the link to one person who is close to you.

* Do not throw your phone away.

* Always narrate while streaming.

• If you break any of the rules, we’ll kill a member of your family. Then we’ll kill you.

Marty is sent a picture of his wife, who is shopping with her mother in Oxford Street.

As Marty struggles to breathe, he clicks the links and watches the most recent streams, realising what happens within the
app.

Every Friday morning, a person is randomly picked from social media.

They now have a bounty on their head—a death warrant. But they don’t know it.

Their profile appears on the app’s main page; all their details are displayed.

Every app member must play the game at least once a month or face the consequences.

Kill the person randomly selected from social media.

Win one hundred thousand pounds.

As Marty watches the terror unfold and everyone streaming the hunt within the app, he realises he has to do something.

But how do you stop a murder, when everyone could be the killer? Buy Links

I have always loved scary stories, especially ones that shocked me, left me terrified, looking under my bed or in the wardrobe before going to sleep.

There was just a fantastic buzz whenever I watched or read something that took my breathe away.

I remember going to my nan’s house in Ireland as a youngster with my mother and sister, on the West Coast, staying in a cottage, surrounded by miles of fields and my family sitting around the table in the kitchen at night telling ghost stories. Going out and exploring derelict farmhouses in the middle of nowhere. I remember clearly the field at the end of the road was supposed to be haunted by headless nuns. My cousins often remind me of the great times we had, frightening each other and running for our lives whenever we’d see something that didn’t look right.

This is why I love nothing more than to tell a story.

I’m so grateful when people not only read my thrillers but also take the time to get in touch and leave a review. To me, that is the greatest feeling, hearing from people that have enjoyed my work. I know then that I’m doing something right.

I’m 49, married and have two beautiful children. Currently, I’m a full-time plumber but would love nothing more than to make a living from my writing. I hope I write stories and people continue to enjoy them for years to come. That would be completely amazing and a dream come true.

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My thoughts: this was super creepy. An app that essentially forces you into a terrible situation – murder a stranger or have a loved one murdered in front of you. All for the enjoyment of a sadistic millionaire and his equally disturbed minions. Oh, and if you do kill someone, streamed live, you get a chunk of money. But you probably lose your humanity. What a lovely choice.

Marty won’t play along, even when his beloved daughter becomes a target. He’s a genuinely good person and tries to stop the madness by warning potential victims and saving his family from the machinations of a madman.

His family are strong, and even his aggravating mother-in-law (there are more things in life than tv) comes along as the family attempt to stop the madness.

Heartstopping and tense, I cheered for Marty and co as they outran and then out thought the sinister figure behind the app and put a stop to it. Or did they?

*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.