INFLUX by Daniel Suarez

Published in 2014 by Dutton Adult (Penguin Group)

Have you heard the stories of the engineer that invented the engine that gets 200 miles per gallon and the oil companies put a stop to it? Or, of the Japanese inventor that created the car that burns hydrogen from water but he suddenly disappeared? Or, the story that cold fusion really was invented but the energy companies nixed it?

Well, that is the premise behind Influx by Daniel Suarez. The Bureau of Technology Control (BTC) is a secret government agency that was established to identify and isolate "disruptive" technologies - technologies that would seriously de-stabilize the world economy and/or the current social order. The inventors are imprisoned or, if they are willing to cooperate, allowed to develop their technologies for the good of the BTC.

Now, imagine if the BTC's lead on technology kept on growing and the BTC started to disdain the government that it was supposed to report to (think about our own news and imagine an NSA that started to turn on its own leaders with its listening program). That's where the story starts.

Jon Grady is a physicist who has just invented a gravity mirror - it reflects gravity. The BTC has determined that this will be very disruptive and kidnaps Grady and imprisons him. But, Grady won't make it easy on his captors...

No one currently writing does near-future sci-fi better than Daniel Suarez and this book keeps that trend going with an interesting story line and a true David vs. Goliath story. He has picked up where Michael Crichton left off.

I rate this novel 5 stars out of 5.

This book can be found on Amazon.com here: Influx by Daniel Suarez. 

Reviewed on March 30, 2014.

KILL DECISION by Daniel Suarez

Great sci-fi always asks, "What if...?" and gives the reader something to think about.

Published in 2012 by Dutton (Penguin Group)

The premise behind Kill Decision is really quite simple: What if the concept of attack drones was re-thought a bit and instead of having them be small airplanes carrying big missiles, have them be the size of hobby-sized toy helicopters (about the size of a two year old person) and instead of spending almost $17 million per drone (according to Wikipedia) you spend just a few thousand dollars per drone and have them attack low and in close and in a swarm?

Think about it. Instead of one $17 million drone that fires a missile that may or may not hit its target,  let's say you have 170 $100,000 drones that swarm over an area using facial recognition software that already exists (the government uses more advanced versions of it but you may already be familiar with the simple recognition system Facebook uses to let you tag people and your digital camera may have it) to swarm over a GPS-targeted area and shoot every face that it finds in that area. Then imagine if they can be fitted with a variety of weapons such as guns, poison gas or plastic explosives so that some part of the swarm has the right tool for the job at hand.

All that is missing is the programming that enables this swarm to work together...

Three weaver ants working together to build a nest.
Photo by Karmesinkoenig

In Kill Decision, the programming is provided quite by accident by Linda McKinney, an expert in ants. To be more specific, she is an expert in weaver ants, an aggressive species that works so well together that some ask if the collective of all the ants should really be thought of as a single mind. McKinney has described their swarming behavior mathematically and when her research is stolen and applied to the swarm of small drones they become an almost unstoppable force that can overwhelm traditional defense systems on the cheap.

But, when McKinney is rescued/kidnapped right before a old-style single drone missile attack destroyed her research facility in Tanzania, her rescuers tell her that she was killed so her research could not be duplicated and her expertise could not be used to counter the swarm drone attacks. But, she does not know whether this odd group of soldiers and their enigmatic leader are truly what they say they are or if she is on the wrong side of this fight...

In the background of the main story is an ongoing story of the escalation of international drone warfare and a series of terrorist attacks in the United States that is fueling the drive to automate America's drone fleet and have them go on a perpetual hunt for America's enemies without having anyone actually having to  make the kill decision, or the decision to attack. 

This is a thoroughly enjoyable sci-fi action adventure with just enough near-future realism to make everyone pause and wonder where our current policy of using attack drones may lead. It seems to me that all we are missing is the software. If you are a fan of Michael Crichton, you will enjoy this book.

I rate this book 5 stars out of 5 and it can be found on Amazon.com here: Kill Decision by Daniel Suarez. 

Reviewed on January 28, 2014.

Daemon by Daniel Suarez

Top-notch techno-thriller, with equal emphasis on the "techno" and the "thriller"

Published in 2009 by Signet

Daemon is part 1 of a series. I do not know if there will be more than one sequel but the next book, Freedom, is coming in 2010. (Note: Click on this link to see the review I wrote about Freedom)

A computer program created by a mad genius has infiltrated the world's computers and is creating a 'new world order'. A revolution is in the mix and it will be led by the world's disaffected and misfits - the tattooed computer geeks, the pierced gamers, crazed psychopaths that treat all life like it is a NPC in a computer game, etc.

There have been plenty of books, movies and TV shows about the computer that has taken over a building or a spaceship, such as 2001: A Space Odyssey . but this is the first one I've heard of in which the entire world economic system has been hijacked. I'm no computer expert, but and I am competent at most things concerning computers and the thing is, Daniel Suarez makes it seem so possible...

Daniel Suarez

Lots of techno stuff, tons of action, lots of death and destruction. The book is a rolling rampage and I'm going to be looking for the sequel!

I rate this book 5 stars out of 5.

This book can be found on Amazon.com here: DAEMON

Reviewed on June 9, 2009.

Freedom by Daniel Suarez

Sci-fi at its best - full of meaty themes - a great book for serious discussion as well as being a thrill ride.

Published in 2021 by PRTTYCESS

At its best sci-fi becomes a forum for more than whiz bang technology - it becomes a forum for discussion about philosophy. The best Twilight Zones did this. Star Wars becomes a stage to discuss the nature of good and evil and if an evil person can be redeemed. Star Trek becomes a lesson in the strength that can be possible in diversity and the power of friendship over all else.

What does the Daemon/Freedom series bring to the table? Well, Daemon is the whiz bang introduction to the series that finally matures in Freedom. The computer Daemon program introduced in the first book is re-creating society throughout Freedom. Themes explored include "Is Freedom economic as well as political?" and "Can there be real freedom when so much of the economy is controlled by multi-national corporations?" Throw in a lot of action and lots of "skin of your teeth" moments and you have something special.

Daniel Suarez

In Freedom we learn that the Daemon is not evil - it is, however, radically re-making society by re-creating the political and economic systems of the world by introducing a second (online) economy. But, the new idealistic society is subject to the same weaknesses as the old economy - some people control more than others and use it for their own ambitions to the detriment of all. The ultimate question of the book (and left un-answered, making me hope that there's a third book coming soon!) is, perhaps, best expressed by The Who in their song Won't Get Fooled Again: " "Meet the new boss, Same as the old boss."

In other words, is this new birth of freedom in jeopardy from within and be just as bad as what it rebelled against in the first place or will it reform itself?

Click here to see my review for the first book in this series: Daemon.

I rate this book 5 stars out of 5.

You can find this book at Amazon.com here: Freedom (TM)

Reviewed on December 20, 2009.