Daemon

By: Daniel Suarez

Narrated by: Jeff Gurner

Length: 15 hrs and 55 mins

Publisher's summary

Daniel Suarez's New York Times best-selling debut high-tech thriller is “so frightening even the government has taken note” (Entertainment Weekly).

Daemons: computer programs that silently run in the background, waiting for a specific event or time to execute. They power almost every service. They make our networked world possible. But they also make it vulnerable....

When the obituary of legendary computer game architect Matthew Sobol appears online, a previously dormant daemon activates, initiating a chain of events that begins to unravel our interconnected world. This daemon reads news headlines, recruits human followers, and orders assassinations. With Sobol’s secrets buried with him, and as new layers of his daemon are unleashed, it’s up to Detective Peter Sebeck to stop a self-replicating virtual killer before it achieves its ultimate purpose - one that goes far beyond anything Sebeck could have imagined....

©2009 Daniel Suarez (P)2009 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

“A riveting debut.” (Publishers Weekly, starred review)

“This thrill-a-nanosecond novel is certainly faithful to the techno-traditions of Michael Crichton and should delight not only readers of the 'science gone awry' genre, but general adventure readers as well.” (Booklist)

“Suarez's not-just-for-gamers debut is a stunner.” (Kirkus Reviews)

Great Listen

If you could sum up Daemon in three words, what would they be?

Technology run amuck

What did you like best about this story?

I like how the plot ran, with characters making decisions for them that were difficult. And what technology could soon do and what some could do with it.

What about Jeff Gurner’s performance did you like?

Making characters distinct

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

When computers think for us.

great potential, poor execution

The concept is interesting, but the writing is lackluster with contrived dialog. The narrator makes already flat characters completely one dimensional. The writer seems to have a strong understanding of technology at the time this was written.

Great read, very fun!

Very entertaining with a great twist. It's a 2 book series, don't expect a conclusion at the end of this first book.

Interesting premise, poor execution

Very interesting premise, which is why I finished this in the first place.

Unfortunately, it can get fairly graphic (and it takes a lot to get me to say that) and being audio you can't really skip/skim those parts.

It also has a ton of forced techno-babble and acronym soup. I've been in IT for over 20 years, I understood it all, but I frequently find myself feeling like the author was going out of his way to impress the reader. I haven't met anyone who's been in IT for a length of time who talks like this in real life.

Some examples:
- "there was a spot for the CAT 5" (network cable is a fine, less jargon-y substitute)
- spelling out WPA
- "a map showed up on the car's LCD" (just say display, screen, or navigation)
- "his mpeg video closed" (what value does the type of video file add to the story, plot, or reader understanding? Hint: none)
- Listing out names of programs Gragg/Ross use. (just say the function, ie "port scanner app", "password cracker", "sniffer", etc. There's no need for that much specificity. Though this is the most tolerable of the bunch)
- "In his hurry, Ross knocked over the PBX phone." (outside of an exam, work, or textbook, there is zero reason to specify what type of system a phone is running on. Adds no value.)


If someone is "in the know", they don't need the type of cable or specific program spelled out. We know pretty much everything in the last two decades is CAT 5, for example. It goes without saying. Programs don't need to be specified, we know the best ones to use for what we want to accomplish. For those who don't have that knowledge, it becomes meaningless jargon that hinders readability.

Additionally, due to this heavy handed use of technical jargon, the book is starting to show its age much sooner than it would've otherwise. CAT 6 is becoming the new standard, many programs or exploits mentioned (the ones that are correct at least) are obsolete, WPA is something my grandpa used, etc. This wouldn't have happened if he just kept things slightly less specific.

The performance was good, not great. The narrator spoke very quickly (and I listen to podcasts at 1.5x speed). I had to turn this book down to 0.9x for it to sound normal.

With all this being said, if you're in a technology field I recommend giving this a read. The premise is very interesting and it's fairly fast paced. Just read it so you can skim over the jargon and other such areas.

Get ready for an adventure...

Amazing read...but be warned. If you have a short commute (like I do)...you will be punishing yourself every time you jump into your car to catch up. This book will not disappoint and as soon as you are done, you will want to jump directly into his sequel Freedom.

Best book (no really)

A stunning start to a world that could exist today. The story is amazing the cacting is great read freedom tm also! I even purchased the hard back books.

gripping story

unsatisfying ending. this review requires at least fifteen words but that's all I have to say.
edit: must read the second book, freedom tm, to make it worth it. and it is worth it.

Loved it.

I like any author who can surprise me. This guy writes smart and assumes his audience is likewise. Can’t wait to start book 2!

Great story. Really interesting use of story

Best use of off the shelf technology I've seen in a good long while! A must read for anyone wanting to see how technology could be used to change the world for the better.

For a younger generation

Some of the content seems to be written for a younger group of minds.
I would have loved this in High School!