The Book of the Year was just released! - "Daemon" by Daniel Suarez

Last week one of the coolest book in a very long time were released. I have already written some about Daemon, and the existing reviews as well as the praise it has gotten from some pretty prominent people (the two sheets of praise which came with the book were even cooler, read in Wired about how they achieved that) should be sufficient and tell you enough about the book, just read it!


After manically reading Daemon while sick over Christmas (why do cool things always come when I'm sleepless?), I have a few, simple comments:

• Laymen can (and should) read the book, since its style is a bit like a Dan Brown adventure, but with proper background research. Which makes it fundamentally unlike anything Dan Brown would ever write


• Suarez is a computer guy come author, and several ideas in the book are truly innovative, or taken straight out of research labs and polished very well. I have no idea how he could do that


• Several times I had to put the book down and ask myself "why hasn't anyone done this already?" as I will also mention in future posts about computer security. In places the book is very credible


• Even if not the particular events described in Daemon will take place, the scenario is the best, most terrifying and credible ideas about our near future I have ever read. It will definitely to some extent affect the way I think and act


• The book doesn't have the amazing narrative style of for example "The Illuminatus! trilogy", but we'll forgive him for that


• The pieces of the story which are shared with the reader, with some essential exceptions, are such that they leave a feeling that they were chosen at random from a much much greater process of events. That's a really cool feeling


• I'm waiting eagerly for the sequel "FreedomTM"

Go get it! It's released in Barnes and Nobles now, and I should get a bunch more as well...

See my other posts about Daemon or my virtual bookshelf.