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)

Was not disappointed at all !

What was one of the most memorable moments of Influx?

Finding out who "Leroy Jenkins" really is outside of WoW.

Any additional comments?

Let me say one thing about this book, "Physics rocks!"

I had high hopes for this book being such a fan of the three previous books to this point. I was greatly satisfied. It had me reading at lunch at work, at work, and up late at night. Its not like the other books, but in its self a great work of Sci-Fi.

It was a great read(Listen) , and highly recommend this book if you love tech, and Scf-Fi.

Only one thing I had to get over, John Grady sounded just like John Ross. My mind resolved it quickly.

Beach Reading . . .

Not bad, a few clever twists, a few interesting ideas, capably handled. I'm not a "genre" reader so I probably hold books like this to a higher standard than dedicated sci-fi readers, but I would say I was entertained . . . but not enthralled as I have been by some sci-fi. This book is not Dune . . . or even close . . . but it's probably better than 75% of the sci-fi books I take a chance on.

I was expecting a bit more based on the reviews, but c'est la vie.

Fantastic > Very Good > Umm... > WTF?!

The first few hours are fantastic — a psychedelic exploration of quantum physics and other cool scientific themes, including philosophy. The following few hours are very good — more quantum physics, an alternative reality revealed and explored. The next few hours, unfortunately, began sounding like clichés from comic books. And the last few hours were just plain comical and predictable. It’s almost as if Daniel Suarez wrote the first half, then his 15 yr old son barged in and offered to help, and then Daniel Sr. figured Daniel Jr. was talented enough to finish his book for him. (I’m exaggerating, of course; however, maybe not so much...?)
Narration seemed to follow the exact same trajectory as well. Influx isn’t in the same galaxy as Daemon and Trademark, but it’s still a fun read, nonetheless.

pretty good read

The story was really good but I listened to this right after finishing Ready Player One by Ernest Cline which is one of the best books I have read or listened to lately.

Get through the beginning.

It took me a bit to get used to the narrator but then it was smooth sailing. The story was great.

A spiritual sequel to Snow Crash

Moved quickly for the most part. Nice homage to Neal Stephenson in the 3rd act.

This is a great story with a great reader.

I loved this story, couldn't stop listening to it. if you love techno thrillers this fits the bill perfectly. the reading is a great performance adding to the overall enjoyment of this book. Now I'm going to go listen to Daemon by this author and reader. looking forward to it

Average, barely

It started off really good, but went off the rails about half , maybe 2/3, the way in. Excellant plot set up and twists. Adequate, but not great, character development.
I kept waiting for them to use a Harry Potter wand or maybe the Maurader's Map.

Techno Thriller is Killer!

Where does Influx rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Loved the book. Probably my favorite by Suarez so far. Although Kill Decision was amazing too, and so was Daemon, oh and Freedom too! They're all good!

Great high tech thriller!

Well written and well narrated. Also it's a very conceivable concept. Keeps you guessing. Don't let the first chapter with all the science and technology talk dissuade you. It lightens up soon. Enjoyed every minute.