Why am I passionate about this?

Iā€™m just a book-loving girl working in a corporate world whoā€™s sick to death of the inaccurate representations of technology in fiction. FYI, tracing a phone call is instantaneous, no need to keep that pesky murderer on the line these days. Technology is so ingrained in our daily lives and most people have very limited knowledge of what it actually does, so I became fascinated with the idea of using real modern-day tech in murder mysteries. I got so obsessed with the idea I decided to write it. No Sci-Fi of future tech, it may seem farfetched, but all the electronic wizardry used in my novels is real and accurately represented.


I wrote

There Is No Cloud

By Kat Wheeler,

Book cover of There Is No Cloud

What is my book about?

Cameron Caldwell is living her best lifeā€¦. Well sort of. Turns out moving to New York City isnā€™t exactly likeā€¦

When you buy books, we may earn a commission that helps keep our lights on (or join the rebellion as a member).

The books I picked & why

Book cover of Digital Fortress

Kat Wheeler Why did I love this book?

Ah, Dan Brown. Love him or hate him, heā€™s a paragon of the modern thriller. Letā€™s go way back to 1998. It was pre-DaVinci Code, and he released his first novel, Digital Fortress. For the time period, it was a unique idea. A woman cryptologist at the NSA gets embroiled in a high-stakes murder mystery and the only way through is to solve the code. There are a lot of issues with this book, primarily that the author couldnā€™t be bothered to check his work and misuses bits and bytes throughout the whole novel which makes the code-breaking premise ridiculous. But to be fair, this was 1998 and for a first novel, itā€™s still a fun ride. So, if youā€™re a Dan Brown fan or love a fast-paced easy read give it a try. If you have even a basic understanding of how encryption works you may want to take a pass.

By Dan Brown, Dan Brown,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Digital Fortress as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

A former National Security Agency programmer threatens to release a mathematical formula that will allow organized crime and terrorism to skyrocket, unless the code-breaking computer that is used to keep them in check but that violates civil rights is not exposed to the public.


Book cover of Jurassic Park

Kat Wheeler Why did I love this book?

I know youā€™re thinking, whatā€™s a dinosaur book doing on this list? Two words, Gene Manipulation. I donā€™t know if Jurassic Park was meant to be an allegory of the dangerous waters humans were wading into when we discovered the human genome could be changed but it sure feels like it to me. Today via CRISPR people with little, to no scientific background can adjust the very makeup of their person in the comfort of their own homes. There are debates over cloning, stem cells, eugenics, and biohacking becoming more prevalent in society today. Ignoring all the sequels (which got more and more ridiculous) this book was fresh, interesting, and sparked an idea that in the last 30 years has far surpassed the future John Hammond dreamed of. Like other books on my list, itā€™s way better than the movie and worth a read. Afterward dig into the really cool fan theory thatā€™s been floating around the internet, that there were in fact, no dinosaurs in Jurassic Parkā€¦.

By Michael Crichton,

Why should I read it?

21 authors picked Jurassic Park as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

'Crichton's most compulsive novel' Sunday Telegraph
'Crichton's dinosaurs are genuinely frightening' Chicago Sun-Times
'Breathtaking adventure. . . a book that is as hard to put down as it is to forget' Time Out

-------------------------------

The international bestseller that inspired the Jurassic Park film franchise.

On a remote jungle island, genetic engineers have created a dinosaur game park.

An astonishing technique for recovering and cloning dinosaur DNA has been discovered. Now one of mankind's most thrilling fantasies has come true and the first dinosaurs that the Earth has seen in the time of man emerge.

But, as always, there is aā€¦


Ad

Book cover of The Flower Queen: A 1970's Suspense Romance

The Flower Queen by Kay Freeman,

It began with a dying husband, and it ended in a dynasty.

It took away her husbandā€™s pain on his deathbed, kept her from losing the family farm, gave her the power to build a thriving business, but itā€™s illegal to grow in every state in the country in 1978.ā€¦

Book cover of Ready Player One

Kat Wheeler Why did I love this book?

If you just saw the movie do yourself a favor and pick this up. This book is just plain fun and the 80s nostalgia is real. The core concept of people escaping their reality into a video game isnā€™t farfetched and we creep closer to this every day. Between the birth of the metaverse and escalating effects of climate change the future Wade lives in may be closer than we think.

By Ernest Cline,

Why should I read it?

21 authors picked Ready Player One as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

SOON TO BE A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE DIRECTED BY STEVEN SPIELBERG

It's the year 2044, and the real world has become an ugly place. We're out of oil. We've wrecked the climate. Famine, poverty, and disease are widespread.

Like most of humanity, Wade Watts escapes this depressing reality by spending his waking hours jacked into the OASIS, a sprawling virtual utopia where you can be anything you want to be, where you can live and play and fall in love on any of ten thousand planets. And like most of humanity, Wade is obsessed by the ultimate lottery ticket thatā€¦


Book cover of The Circle

Kat Wheeler Why did I love this book?

The book is far superior to the dumbed-down movie version. We live today in a society willfully ignoring how much of ourselves we voluntarily give away to tech companies and what they do with it. The concept in this book that large corporations collect and sell data on all of us isnā€™t Sci-fi, it is our reality. It was proven in 2013 that internet and phone companies were selling our information to the government. Either no one noticed, or no one cared because regardless of if people are aware we are all living in the Circle now.

By Dave Eggers,

Why should I read it?

10 authors picked The Circle as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?


NOW A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE starring Tom Hanks, Emma Watson and John Boyega

THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - a dark, thrilling and unputdownable novel about our obsession with the internet

'Prepare to be addicted' Daily Mail

'A gripping and highly unsettling read' Sunday Times

'The Circle is 'Brave New World' for our brave new world... Fast, witty and troubling' Washington Post

When Mae is hired to work for the Circle, the world's most powerful internet company, she feels she's been given the opportunity of a lifetime. Run out of a sprawling California campus, the Circle links users' personal emails,ā€¦


Ad

Book cover of Victoria Unveiled

Victoria Unveiled by Shane Joseph,

A fast-paced literary thriller with a strong sci-fi element and loaded with existential questions. Beyond the entertainment value, this book takes a hard look at the perilous world of publishing, which is on a crash course to meet the nascent, no-holds-barred world of AI. Could these worlds co-exist, or willā€¦

Book cover of Little Brother

Kat Wheeler Why did I love this book?

Cory Doctorow, the champion of nerds everywhere really hit the nail on the head with his book about the state of current politics and society with Little Brother. This book was released in 2008 but seems truer to life now than ever. His protagonist Marcus, watches appalled as the government begins to strip away citizens' rights under the guise of our protection. This book has been called dystopian young adult fiction, but I disagree. It all feels very familiar to the current climate we live in. It can get a little preachy but regardless of your personal politics itā€™s a must-read for all.

By Cory Doctorow,

Why should I read it?

3 authors picked Little Brother as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 13, 14, 15, and 16.

What is this book about?

Marcus, a.k.a "w1n5t0n," is only seventeen years old, but he figures he already knows how the system worksā€“and how to work the system. Smart, fast, and wise to the ways of the networked world, he has no trouble outwitting his high school's intrusive but clumsy surveillance systems.

But his whole world changes when he and his friends find themselves caught in the aftermath of a major terrorist attack on San Francisco. In the wrong place at the wrong time, Marcus and his crew are apprehended by the Department of Homeland Security and whisked away to a secret prison where they'reā€¦


Explore my book šŸ˜€

There Is No Cloud

By Kat Wheeler,

Book cover of There Is No Cloud

What is my book about?

Cameron Caldwell is living her best lifeā€¦. Well sort of. Turns out moving to New York City isnā€™t exactly like Sex and the City. But she does have her dream job working for the world's largest Smart Home Technology company. Her job is basically herding cats with an expense account. The monotony of being a corporate sales rep is made tolerable by her two supportive work besties Bill and Phil. But when Cameron discovers something strange in one of her customer's technology her life takes a dramatic turn. Partnering with NYC homicide detective Will Justus, Cameron uses her insider knowledge to help solve a series of murders with the same technology used to commit them.

Book cover of Digital Fortress
Book cover of Jurassic Park
Book cover of Ready Player One

Share your top 3 reads of 2024!

And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.

1,711

readers submitted
so far, will you?

Ad

šŸ“š You might also likeā€¦

Book cover of Defection in Prague

Defection in Prague by Ray C Doyle,

Pete West, a political columnist, travels to Prague to find a missing diplomat, later found murdered. He attempts to discover more about a cryptic note received from the diplomat and is immediately entangled in the secret Bilderberg Clubā€™s strategy to form a world federation.

Pete meets a Czechian agent whoā€¦

Book cover of Subjugation: Zanchier

Subjugation by S.G. Boudreaux,

Harper Brinley is running for her life.

After escaping from a government holding facility where she, along with other scientists, was being forced to build a deadly weapon. She headed for the most remote place she could think of, the wild Xantifal Mountains.

The one place where no one wouldā€¦

5 book lists we think you will like!

Interested in technology, hackers, and genetic engineering?

Technology 131 books
Hackers 16 books