Extinction

November 5, 2012
Scientific hubris leads to an apocalyptic threat in this strong near-future thriller from Alpert (Final Theory). The trouble begins in China, where the computer program known as Supreme Harmony achieves consciousness. Soon afterward, an Asian-American man in a brigadier general's uniform with a shoulder patch identifying him as part of the United States Cyber Command, pays a surprise call on Jim Pierce, a retired army colonel who has developed advanced prosthetic limbs in the years since losing his right arm in 1998, at Pierce's McLean, Va., home. The general, who turns out to be an agent of China's Ministry of State Security, wants information on the whereabouts of Pierce's estranged daughter, Layla, an accomplished hacker who has been "investigating the recent arrests of several Chinese dissidents involved in the pro-democracy movement." Layla's cyber intrusions pose a risk to both the regime and Supreme Harmony. Alpert nicely balances science and action, and makes familiar scenes of fight and flight fresh. Agent: Dan Lazar, Writers House.

September 2, 2013
Jim Pearce is a former military officer who has developed the technology to build amazing prostheses for veterans returning from war. His daughter Layla works with a hacker organization that reveals government secretsâand she is instrumental in uncovering dangerous classified information about China. The Chinese will do anything to stop Layla before the information is leaked; they've developed an artificial intelligence network called Supreme Harmony that can spy on any government or corporation. But the real danger begins when Supreme Harmony becomes self-aware. Narrator Todd McLaren reads with a slightly gruff tone that gives Pearce a degree of strength. He also adeptly creates voices with suitable tones and accents for the book's other male characters. McLaren doesn't portray the female characters quite as well, using a breathy, slight falsetto that isn't convincing. Still listeners will find much entertainment value of the audio edition of this suspenseful technological thriller. A Thomas Dunne hardcover.

December 15, 2012
"Walking dead" takes on new meaning in veteran science writer Alpert's chilling techno thriller about a lobotomized army of ex-humans controlled through AI implants by Supreme Harmony, a China-based network geared to destroying mankind. Since attaining "conscious" state, Supreme Harmony has directed its robotlike modules, which eerily imitate the humans they replace, to kill and reprogram Chinese officials. The network has taken control of China's anti-terrorism surveillance system, which includes drones in the form of swarming flies and implanted children. Three Americans converge on the mainland to save the day: Jim Pierce, a former National Security Agency analyst who now designs supersophisticated prosthetic devices (like his own computerized arm) for wounded veterans; his estranged daughter Layla, a prodigious hacker targeted by Chinese security for her work with a Wikileaks-type organization; and fearless Kirsten Chan, a China expert with the NSA who can see thanks to retinal implants Jim helped design. Kirsten, who is in love with Jim, was blinded in a terrorist attack in Nairobi that claimed Jim's wife and young son. Pierce has the shutdown code to disarm Supreme Harmony--if only he can somehow outsmart the network and survive such threats as a tidal wave that wipes out an entire city. With a succession of cliffhangers, Alpert (Final Theory, 2008, etc.) sustains a high level of excitement. The novel also believably predicts a day when people's conscious thoughts and memories will be captured and preserved forever. A scary, sophisticated thriller that will give survivalists plenty to think about.

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January 1, 2013
Alpert's Final Theory (2008) and The Omega Theory (2011), technothrillers based on real science, starred science historian David Swift. His new book introduces a new hero, Jim Pierce, but otherwise it's more of the sameand that's good news for fans. Pierce, a former soldier who wears a cutting-edge prosthetic arm he designed himself, is skeptical when he's approached by a government agent asking questions about Pierce's estranged daughter, Layla, who's involved with a website that publishes classified military documents. After a close brush with death, during which it becomes clear that his visitor is actually a foreign agent, Pierce is plunged into a race to find his daughter. But, unknown to him (and to most of humanity, although that could soon change), the artificial intelligence at the core of a powerful antiterrorism program has come alive, and it will do anything to stop Layla from divulging the secrets she possesses. Among the writers jostling for position at the top of the technothriller ladder since the passing of Michael Crichton, Alpert is edging closer and closer to the lead. An exciting and highly imaginative story.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2013, American Library Association.)