Influx

By: Daniel Suarez

Narrated by: Jeff Gurner

Length: 13 hrs and 46 mins

Publisher's summary

What if our civilization is more advanced than we know?

The New York Times best-selling author of Daemon - "the cyberthriller against which all others will be measured" (Publishers Weekly) - imagines a world in which decades of technological advances have been suppressed in an effort to prevent disruptive change.

Are smartphones really humanity's most significant innovation since the moon landings? Or can something else explain why the bold visions of the 20th century - fusion power, genetic enhancements, artificial intelligence, cures for common diseases, extended human life, and a host of other world-changing advances - have remained beyond our grasp? Why has the high-tech future that seemed imminent in the 1960s failed to arrive?

Perhaps it did arrive…but only for a select few.

Particle physicist Jon Grady is ecstatic when his team achieves what they've been working toward for years: A device that can reflect gravity. Their research will revolutionize the field of physics - the crowning achievement of a career. Grady expects widespread acclaim for his entire team. The Nobel Prize. Instead, his lab is locked down by a shadowy organization whose mission is to prevent at all costs the social upheaval sudden technological advances bring. This Bureau of Technology Control uses the advanced technologies they have harvested over the decades to fulfill their mission.

They are living in our future.

Presented with the opportunity to join the BTC and improve his own technology in secret, Grady balks, and is instead thrown into a nightmarish high-tech prison built to hold rebellious geniuses like himself. With so many great intellects confined together, can Grady and his fellow prisoners conceive of a way to usher humanity out of its artificial dark age?

And when they do, is it possible to defeat an enemy that wields a technological advantage half a century in the making?

©2014 Daniel Suarez (P)2014 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"You'll hear a lot of reviewers compare Suarez to [Michael] Crichton, including me for his previous book Kill Decision. And Suarez deserved the honor in the truest sense...he had achieved a truly Crichton-level of storytelling. But with Influx, Suarez becomes the master, and Crichton is the one who is honored by the comparison." (Stephen L. Macknik, Scientific American)

"[Influx is] done with the dazzling sophistication, the play of ideas, the hints of a new understanding almost within our grasp that characterize sci-fi in the cybertronic age." (The Wall Street Journal)

“With this terrifying thriller, Suarez provides further support for the proposition that he’s a worthy successor to the late Michael Crichton… Suarez once again mixes science and fiction perfectly.”(Publishers Weekly, starred review)

Suarez is the Real Deal

Like many others, I devoured his first two books ("Daemon" and "FreedomTM") which were essentially a single concept split into books. After being underwhelmed by his third- which struck me as more "Michael Bay Movie" than thought-provoking Sci-Fi- I thought Suarez might have been an author with one great story to tell. Thankfully, I was wrong. "Influx" is very much a perfect Thriller, with plenty of intelligent Sci-Fi and Dystopian elements woven in. I think this is best place for any new Suarez reader to start.

Outstanding

Simply outstanding. What a great read. The story line is very inventive and provides the listener with lots to think about. What if....?

Great writer, loved all his books. Want more!

Thanks D! Great work! Loving every book. Oh the future... What will it be? Kaboom

Excellent Story, Brilliantly Read

In these days of series after series, it's really nice to find a well-written, well-read single book that tells a complete story. It was easy to follow, even in traffic; techy enough to give it substance without bogging down too deeply in the science; twisty enough to keep one's attention without being too tangled to follow; and it all wrapped up into an ending that made sense and left me feeling fulfilled. The narration was as rich and clear as the story, with enough vocal inflection and variance to make the characters easy to identify, and nary a mispronounced word to be found. All-in-all, one of my best audiobook experiences yet!

Good but doesn't live up to Kill decision

What made the experience of listening to Influx the most enjoyable?

Enjoyed the story overall but the payoff isn't as great as Kill Decision was.

If you’ve listened to books by Daniel Suarez before, how does this one compare?

Probably the worst one of the 4

Wish he wrote more books...

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

In my opinion, Daniel Suarez is one of the best Techno-SciFi writers out there today. As always the story is good, the writing superb, the science doesn't overwhelm and narrated beautifully by Jeff Gurner.

Amazing

It's new! Okay, there are elements reminiscent of other stories and ideas. But it really, really is new. There might be some flummery, but what really sold it all was the feelings of the protagonist.

Great sci-fi

Fascinating scientific concepts mixed with
Well fleshed out characters involved in a
Great conspiracy story
It has everything you want in a audiobook

Great Performance

Loved it! And I have a new favorite narrator. Jeff Gurner is amazing. He seamlessly changes from one character into another and his accents are great. I could listen to this man read math textbooks and still be entertained.

another good story

the beginning is a bit slow, but its worth it. once the roller coaster this story becomes gets over the first hill, hang on for one helluva ride.