What if a rogue AI, a distributed process running on tens of thousands of computers all over the internet, could recruit boots on the ground from among "the disaffected, the dispossessed, the displaced, the disgruntled. Worldwide"? What if it created an organization as distributed as itself, with no centralized power structure, with individuals having knowledge of only their local comrades, with no individual knowing the whole big picture? What if it had effectively unlimited financial resources and was able to have its minions manufacture various deadly remote controlled avatars for it (and them) to use? How would corporations and governments stop such an entity? Could they?
These are some of the questions posed in Daemon, probably the most amazing first novel I've ever read. Suarez gets everything right. His mind-bending worldwide plot is remarkably plausible, even with 2004 (the year the book was written) technology. His characters are as authentic as the varied settings where the action plays out, and the action - it never stops. His writing chops aren't the only thing that is so impressive. Suarez has big ideas, too: fascinating takes on globalization, government bureaucracy, legal, correctional and criminal organizations. There's even a dose of philosophy and moral calculus, but nothing heavy handed. His background as an independent systems consultant lends a frighteningly realistic edge to the deadly effective technologies employed by the ruthlessly efficient Daemon.
The coolest thing about this book for gamers is that the whole system was designed by the head of CyberStorm Entertainment, the most popular fictional game company in the world. The company's WW2 FPS and fantasy MMORPG are central to the plot. Suarez is even able to weave elements of game culture into the real world, as the Daemon awards experience points to its minions for completing tasks, and rewards them with ultra-high-tech gizmos that can have almost magical abilities. It even lets them see things in "D-space," a 3D environment superimposed over the real world GPS grid, projected onto specially designed sunglasses, and complete with wireframe buildings and callouts for other Daemon followers which indicate their relative strength and experience level, just like the stuff that appears over a character's head in an MMO. That all may sound goofy and a little dorky, but it is seamlessly integrated with the world of the book and makes perfect sense in the contexts where it's used.
I dread this book being turned into a movie, because it's just the kind of thriller that Hollywood loves, and it's chock full of just the kind of technology that Hollywood inevitably gets so very wrong. Suarez makes it all come to life so effortlessly. You never feel like you're in some technology training seminar, but at the same time, he gets enough of the nuts and bolts across to make it believable and comprehensible even to a technology tyro. The bittersweet thing about this book is that I'm sure that in just a few years it will all be quaint and dated - a snapshot of the possibilities available at the turn of the 21st century.
I recommend reading it while it's still awesome.
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Top reviews from other countries
PD
Si te gustan los techno-thrillers no lo dudes, este libro te va encatar.
Reviewed in Spain on August 12, 2021
Varun
Well researched storyline coupled with powerful writing
Reviewed in India on October 13, 2019J Johnston
A Techno-Thriller Ahead of Its Time, Which Is Right Now
Reviewed in Canada on September 13, 2014
