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A review by lazy0718
The God's Eye View by Barry Eisler
4.0
A fast-paced techno-thriller, this book is a product of its time. As the author notes in his Author's note, if this book had come out after Snowden's leaks, this would seem way more fictional than it does now. Eisler takes the revelations we've learned about the NSA and its domestic surveillance apparatus, and shows what it could be like just a few steps further down the road.
I enjoyed some of the characters, which has some nice depth to them. I think the one real misstep here is the main villain, who comes off a bit too one-dimensional and "mustache-twirling" to be convincing. The villain's selfish motivation is clear, though, which helps keep the plot moving along at a brisk pace.
Right before I read this book, I watched the documentary Citizenfour, which let me understand most of the backstory and the concerns of all the characters. If you're like me and didn't follow the Edward Snowden leaks (or worse, just assumed Snowden and Chelsea Manning were leaking the same info), then check out the Citizenfour documentary as a good primer for the world this book inhabits.
I enjoyed some of the characters, which has some nice depth to them. I think the one real misstep here is the main villain, who comes off a bit too one-dimensional and "mustache-twirling" to be convincing. The villain's selfish motivation is clear, though, which helps keep the plot moving along at a brisk pace.
Right before I read this book, I watched the documentary Citizenfour, which let me understand most of the backstory and the concerns of all the characters. If you're like me and didn't follow the Edward Snowden leaks (or worse, just assumed Snowden and Chelsea Manning were leaking the same info), then check out the Citizenfour documentary as a good primer for the world this book inhabits.