The temps

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The temps

Title :

The temps / by Andrew DeYoung.

Title:

The temps

Author:

DeYoung, Andrew

Format:

Books

Physical Description:

258 pages ; 24 cm

ISBN:

9781684427611

9781684427604

Production / Publication Information:

Nashville, Tennessee : Turner Publishing Company, [2022]

Summary:

"Jacob Elliot doesn't want a temporary job in the mailroom at Delphi Enterprises, but after two post-college years of unpaid internships and living in his parents' basement, he needs the work. Then, on his first day, the unthinkable happens: toxic gas descends on a meeting in Delphi's outdoor amphitheater, killing all the regular employees and leaving Jacob stranded inside the vast office complex. Wandering through Delphi headquarters Jacob finds other survivors: Lauren, the disillusioned classics major who's now writing online personality quizzes; Swati, the yoga instructor with derailed college ambitions; and Dominic, the business school student who will do almost anything to get ahead. Stranded in the wreckage of the company that employed them, the temps band together to create a miniature world that's part spring break, part office culture-until a shocking discovery disrupts the survivors' self-made paradise and drives them to find the truth about the apocalypse that brought their world to an end"--

Language:

English

Genre:

Dystopian fiction.

Thrillers (Fiction)

Subject Term:

Survival -- Fiction.

Interpersonal relations -- Fiction.

Holds: Copies:

Available:*

Material Type	Library	Call Number	Item Barcode	Location
Book	Searching... Andover - Memorial Hall Library	FICTION DEYOUNG	31330009144647	Searching... Unknown
Book	Searching... Billerica Public Library	FICTION/DEYOUNG	33934004511508	Searching... Unknown
Book	Searching... Chelmsford Public Library	FIC/DEYOUNG	31480011548564	Searching... Unknown
Book	Searching... Dracut - Moses Greeley Parker Memorial Library	FIC/DEYOUNG	31482003002519	Searching... Unknown
Book	Searching... Groton Public Library	FIC DEYOUNG	37003701949688	Searching... Unknown
Book	Searching... Hamilton-Wenham Public Library	FIC DEYOUNG	30470001980696	Searching... Unknown
Book	Searching... Haverhill Public Library	FIC/DEYOUNG A	31479007533226	Searching... Unknown
Book	Searching... Methuen - Nevins Memorial Library	FIC DEY	31548003409761	Searching... Unknown
Book	Searching... Newbury Town Library	DEY	32127001314627	Searching... Unknown
Book	Searching... Newburyport Public Library	FIC DEYOUNG A	32128004050630	Searching... Unknown
Book	Searching... Tewksbury Public Library	FICTION DEYOUNG	32132003308635	Searching... Unknown

Bound With These Titles

On Order

Summary

*Named a Best SFF Book of 2022 by Book Riot*

They're underemployed. Underpaid. And trying to survive the end of the world while trapped inside an office complex. Who knew temp work could be this dangerous?

Jacob Elliot doesn't want a temporary job in the mailroom at Delphi Enterprises, but after two post-college years of unpaid internships and living in his parents' basement, he needs the work. Then, on his first day, the unthinkable happens: toxic gas descends on a meeting in Delphi's outdoor amphitheater, killing all the regular employees and leaving Jacob stranded inside the vast office complex.

Wandering through Delphi headquarters, Jacob finds other survivors: Lauren, the disillusioned classics major who's now writing online personality quizzes; Swati, the fitness instructor trying to escape a toxic relationship; and Dominic, the business school student who will do almost anything to get ahead. Stranded in the wreckage of the company that employed them, the temps band together to create a miniature world that's part spring break, part office culture--until a shocking discovery disrupts the survivors' self-made paradise and drives them to uncover the truth about the mysterious corporation that employed them and the apocalypse that brought their world to an end.

A surprising, profound tribute to the absurdities and paranoia of modern life, The Temps is an epic exploration of survival and human connection in the digital age.

Reviews (2)

Publisher's Weekly Review

DeYoung's diverting apocalyptic adult debut (after the YA novel The Exo Project) delivers a smart critique of modern life. Mail room temp Jacob Elliot gets lost on his first day at Delphi Enterprises. He has no idea what the company does, and overhears cryptic conversations from higher-ups ("We've got a scope-creep issue on the variable data extraction project and I need to force a decision," one says). There's a big meeting with Delphi's founder, but temps aren't allowed. During the meeting, a strange yellow gas suffuses the room and turns people into "rage monsters," who all kill each other or themselves. The only survivors are Delphi's 350 temps, all of whom are trapped inside the sealed building. Among them are Swati Sidana, who lumps Jacob in with her ex-boyfriend from college as "angry white boys" but gives Jacob points for "seem gentler, less sure of himself"; and Morgan, a young woman who beta-tested video games for Delphi and offers clues as to what the company is up to. But by the time the group finds answers in the company's computers, it might be too late to save themselves. DeYoung cleverly deconstructs academia, video game culture, and capitalism from the perspectives of the temps. The author has a lot to say, and has crafted a fine vehicle for doing so. (Mar.)Correction: An earlier version of this review misidentified the name of one character and the race of another character, and has been updated for clarity.

Booklist Review

Jacob Elliot's big post-college plans didn't include a temp job at mega-corporation Delphi Enterprises, but he shows up on his first day grudgingly ready to work. He's annoyed to discover that the CEO is about to announce a new project, but only to permanent employees in a big outdoor amphitheater--annoyed, at least, until a toxic gas descends on the meeting, throwing the employees into a frenzied rage. Only a few hundred temps are left standing--including classics-major Lauren, ambitious business-grad Dominic, and skeptical yoga-instructor Swati. As they struggle to survive, Jacob can't let go of his questions--such as, what does Delphi even do? And, how sure are they that the apocalypse actually happened? It's a suspenseful story that explores the pain points of community-building and survival, from paranoia to the wide range of trauma responses--and it's populated by protagonists who feel true-to-life: some obnoxious, some hopeful, some barely holding on. This boiling-pot of a novel is a vivid experiment in millennial disillusionment, delivering a fierce warning about the dangers of data-mining and biometrics, and the politics of capitalist power. Simultaneously a dark dystopic and a hilarious tale of bureaucratic absurdity, The Temps is bizarre--and unexpectedly fun.