Daemon, the book review

Tom Root lent me an uncopyedited not-for-sale manuscript of Daniel Suarez’s (aka Leinard Zeraus) Daemon.

Techno thrillers are generally disappointing. Anyone who has seen Swordfish or Antitrust will understand. And by the second page of Daemon, I was already cringing on my couch. The writing is oh so painfully self-conscious. He uses brand names to introduce his cast (the reporter with her Louis Vuitton bag, the consultant and his BMW, the mastermind’s Hummer of Doom). He tells you matter-of-factly every character’s motivation and personality, leaving nothing to the imagination. Then there’s the (surprisingly few) clichés, such as the clueless experts. At one point in the story, representatives from the CIA, DARPA, FBI, and NSA are meeting to discuss the cyber crime issue on their hands. The young NSA doctor (one of the lead characters) has to explain to them how a Denial of Service attack works. Aw heck, if they don’t know what a DDOS is, we’re beyond screwed. Has no one in the room been briefed?

Heavy-handed writing aside, the technology is spot-on. Everything from database hacking to MMORPG’s to software development to WAP setup. It’s all airtight.

Halfway into the book the technology he describes turns from “current day” to more “current day if someone would just do it already.” I especially love the HUD glasses with overlay information on real world space. Imagine wearing a pair of glasses that delivers additional information on the physical space you’re moving in. You could be walking past a restaurant and see a call-out above it with its star rating. Or real-time directions superimposed on the streets. All the components already exist, so why isn’t this here yet?!

I’d recommend you wait for the movie instead, but it won’t be made. The technology  isn’t cutting edge enough to outlive the production period. So I’ll just tell you right now how it ends. It doesn’t. I hear he’s planning a sequel.