This book was nothing like what I expected and I enjoyed it quite a bit. The title may read Utopia PR, but don’t let that fool you, the content in this book is often more dystopian than anything else.

This book is from the point of view of Blake Hamner, public-relations rep for the president of the United States who is often out of control. Blake has put is life (and wife) mostly on hold because of the rigorous climb to the top and the grueling hours putting out fires caused by “Our Leader”. Blake begins to question if any of his sacrifices are worth it as everything starts to spiral out of control and he begins to question all of his decisions.

This book is absurd, comical, and contains a fair bit of satire. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It was an entertaining look of a dystopian future from an unexpected perspective.

Utopia PR follows Blake Hamner on his mission to fix/improve the dystopian creation in his state. We follow him through ridiculous plans, humorous dialogue, and his interactions with amazing characters.

The language use in this book was done amazingly, while the pacing did seem to be a bit on the slow side. The comedy made me laugh out loud in some instances. The characters are just so ridiculous, be they aggravating or delightful. I appreciate how the narration was unreliable for the most part, and how the reader has the opportunity to question Blake's morality in many instances. The plot was also written well, I can tell that a large amount of thinking went into writing the story, as most of these events are completely bizarre (in a good way)!

I can't seem to pinpoint anything that went wrong in the story other than the fact that the end of the story was very rushed, and made it hard to catch up with the story. The characters' true intentions were introduced at a very confusing point in the story, had they been included a bit earlier, it would have been easier to understand how and why they came into play.

Overall, this was an interesting story at the very least, and I enjoyed the light-hearted tone of the book!

ᴛʜᴀɴᴋ ʏᴏᴜ ᴛᴏ ɴᴇᴛɢᴀʟʟᴇʏ ᴀɴᴅ ᴛʜᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪꜱʜᴇʀ ꜰᴏʀ ɢʀᴀɴᴛɪɴɢ ᴍᴇ ᴀᴄᴄᴇꜱꜱ ᴛᴏ ᴛʜɪꜱ ʙᴏᴏᴋ.

"Utopia PR" is brimming with all the absurdities facing a Public Relations department and is shepherded by Crisis Communications Manager, Blake (the ‘n’ is silent) Hamner.

Blake and the team are regularly tasked with providing outrageous diversions to all kinds of crazy with more kinds of crazy. Principally, this is in order to influence the President’s popularity among his enthusiastic and impressionable followers, which isn’t a simple ask considering ‘Our Leader’ is an unabashed megalomaniac whose actions require frequent damage limitation.

Poor Blake finds himself in the eye of the storm every which way he looks. He works long hours. He’s underappreciated. He’s not at home as much as he should be, and the fraying ties he shares with his wife are fast becoming threadbare. As his professional issues grow, so too does his waistline due to his inability to resist a doughnut or three.

At a time when it may feel like the world has gone to hell in a handcart the exuberant mockery in this speculative political landscape is a gift. That ‘Robo-Pup’ naming competition, among others, were an amusing and welcome distraction.

*** Actual rating: Rating: 3.5 / 5 ***

My expectations for Bender’s novel were relatively low; I thought I would laugh at some situations, and that would be it. I ended up reading the entire book in one sitting and was surprised by how much I could relate to Blake’s work ethic dilemmas.

The book follows Blake Hamner, Crisis Communications Manager for the president, as he navigates some strange and entertaining situations caused by the United States’ blundering leader. Some of the problems are dark, for example, a fabricated missile crisis and robot dogs killing pedestrians, but the novel’s tone is very light and amusing as Blake stumbles through how to ensure Our Leader stays ahead in the news and social media.

There isn’t much depth to the situations or into many of the characters. Still, I was pleasantly surprised at how much insight we get into Blake and how much of a relatable character I found him to be relatable. Blake thought he loved his job, which turned out to be a huge mental burden on him, and how much the career took over his life that he struggled to separate his identity from the job. I found that situation to hit close to home for me and made me identify with Blake.

Some of the situations bordered on ridiculous, and most of them lack depth beyond the initial introduction, and we don’t get much insight into other characters. But the novel is highly amusing and a quick, easy read. I recommend reading Bender’s Utopia PR as some light, very entertaining reading.