Tuesday, April 11, 2023

Going Zero - Anthony McCarten

OK here’s something neat - Anthony McCarten’s new novel, Going Zero, has already been snatched up for the small screen - and it only releases today!

What’s it about  you ask?  Fusion, a tech giant, has created a sophisticated piece of spyware - with the blessing of the CIA. They want to test it out on real folks, and ten Americans have taken up the challenge. They have thirty days to hide and not be found. And the carrot? $3 million dollars if you make it to thirty days.

Oh boy, this was a scary one to read. Why? McCarten’s imagining of the levels of scrutiny, the information available in our tech laden world, the backing of the government, and more is probably not that far from the truth. 

The narrative switches between Fusion and the ten ‘Zeroes’. The antagonist is so well drawn - a billionaire megalomaniac, with no scruples, that you’ll just love to hate. And I have to say I was somewhat reminded of an actual figure from our newspaper headlines.

The zeros are a mixed bunch, with each having strategies planned to avoid being captured for the month of beta testing. I had been mentally thinking of ways to go off grid and hide as I read. McCarten’s ideas were brilliant. But, one by one, the Zeros are being found. But not all of them… and that’s our protagonist, Kaitlyn Day. She’s a librarian with her own plan of evading Cy Butcher’s capture teams. And she has her own reasons for wanting to beat him. Again, another unexpected twist in a already fresh story from McCarten. 

Going Zero is a non-stop, stay up late read that I couldn’t put down. Fans of Harlan Coben and Linwood Barclay would really enjoy Going Zero. See for yourself – read an excerpt of  Going Zero

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