The Social Code (Start-Up, #1)

by Sadie Hayes

Eighteen-year-old twins Adam and Amelia Dory have been bounced around foster homes for as long as they can remember, relying only on each other. But their lives change dramatically when they start out as freshmen at Stanford University. They are suddenly introduced to the dazzling world of Silicon Valley, where any person with a good enough idea can skyrocket to money, power and fame...Amelia is almost as pretty as she is smart-not that she notices or cares much about either. She has always been a genius with computers and would happily spend all day in the lab if she could, making her ideas come to life. But Adam has plans for her skills that will thrust her into the spotlight whether she likes it or not. He sees the beautiful and entitled children of wealthy executives and wants to run in their circles...especially Lisa Bristol's, the stunningly gorgeous daughter of one of the biggest names in town. And then there's Amelia's roommate, Patty Hawkins. She may have a glitzy Silicon Valley background, but she has her own carefully concealed problems - including the one secret that could tear apart her family if it ever came out.
As Adam and a reluctant Amelia begin to hatch their new company, they find themselves going from nothing to the verge of everything seemingly overnight. But no amount of money or prestige can prepare them for the envy and back-stabbing of their powerful competitors...

• ISBN10: 1250035651
• ISBN13: 9781250035653
• Publish Date: 3 September 2013
• Publish Status: Active
• Out of Print: 20 December 2014
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Saint Martin's Griffin,U.S.
• Format: Paperback
• Pages: 320
• Language: English

Reviews

[Leah]

I’ve had The Social Code sitting on my Kindle for a while, but when it came up on the Netgally rotation, asking what I thought of it, I decided to give it a read. I absolutely adore books about entrepreneurs, especially young entrepreneurs, like Amelia and Adam Dory. I was immediately sucked in to their world of youth, exuberance, and the startling fact every eighteen-year-old in Silicon Valley is allowed to drink without being told off from their parents. If you read The Social Code you will probably have to take everything you read with a pinch of salt, because a lot of it is hard to believe. But I enjoyed it for what it was, and didn’t think too hard about how “real” it may or may not have been, because when I’m reading I just like to immerse myself in the new world. And who knows? Silicon Valley may well really be like that.

The Social Code was such an intriguing start to the series, I love that the book had a girl coder. I have never read a book about a coder, period, so it’s nice that the first one I’ve ever read is about a girl coder and Amelia seriously kicks ass. She’s my kinda girl, and Adam was also so very, very sweet. It’s hard to see how these two very nice people fit in to the very nasty world of Silicon Valley, and it’s clearly not going to be an easy ride for either of them here on out, which makes me want to cover my eyes and run away because they’re just such good people, and deserve all the good stuff that comes from Doreye.

There are other very interesting characters in The Social Code, TJ particularly intrigues me; although I did have to hold back a laugh the first time he ever met Roger, in his shiny suit and with his presentations – at 22, really? It was a bit OTT, but he grew on me after that.

I can’t wait to dive in to the other books in the series – there are two more so far, and there was whisper of a fourth, but that was back in 2012, and since I can’t find Sadie Hayes on social media, who knows if she’s still writing books? But considering how much I enjoyed The Social Code, I very much wish she was, but I’ll savour the two I have left, for now.