Bandwidth

an analog novel

No cover

Eliot Peper: Bandwidth (2018)

252 pages

English language

Published Nov. 11, 2018

ISBN:
978-1-5039-5442-7
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OCLC Number:
1033620794

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4 stars (1 review)

A rising star at a preeminent political lobbying firm, Dag Calhoun represents the world's most powerful technology and energy executives. But when a close brush with death reveals that the influence he wields makes him a target, impossible cracks appear in his perfect, richly appointed life. Like everyone else, Dag relies on his digital feed for everything--a feed that is as personal as it is pervasive, and may not be as private as it seems. As he struggles to make sense of the dark forces closing in on him, he discovers that activists are hijacking the feed to manipulate markets and governments. Going public would destroy everything he's worked so hard to build, but it's not just Dag's life on the line--a shadow war is coming, one that will secure humanity's future or doom the planet to climate catastrophe. Ultimately, Dag must decide the price he's willing to pay to …

1 edition

Review of 'Bandwidth' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

What if what we see isn't reality but the reality others want us to see? What does it mean when one company has more users who use it daily than any country has citizens? Who has the power, and who has influence?

I loved the questions raised by Elliot's book. And I imagine I'm going to be thinking about them for some time -- he does a great job laying out a very plausible near-term future, one where the levers of power are not what you'd expect.

Why 4 stars then? This is a story that could have easily been twice as long, with room for the characters to more fully emerge. I felt at times that they existed in service of the story, and I wanted more time with them. But that's a minor quibble. It's a fun read, and it's a worthy contribution to a genre that makes …

Subjects

  • Climatic changes
  • Near future
  • Hackers
  • Digital communications
  • Technology
  • Fiction