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 us question where we're heading, and why.