Kill Decision

This is my fourth by Daniel Suarez and I'm constantly surprised at how versatile he is.

This one is a straight Techno-Thriller, right down to the tight and crafty combat cell, nifty science-types, and even a great little section of programmers. But most of all, it's all about the explosions, the close calls, the gunfire, and the smells.

The smells? Oh yes. I won't give away anything plot related because learning and discovery is the name of the game for this novel... but suffice to say: swarming is a big thing. Whether computationally, socially, or otherwise.

Suarez is really great at seeing technology and taking the consequences one or seven steps further, grounding us in our world strongly, and then making us adapt or die. It's a show more blast.

But if I was to simplify the hell out of this novel, I'd just say, "RUN FOR YOUR LIVES! :) It's Drones!"

:) show less

Kill Decision is a non-stop action thriller featuring advanced technology and an all too plausible near future scenario. This book drops you right in the middle of the action with a high-tech drone attack and just keeps going. The first part of the book contains a lot of information on high-tech warfare and some background science, which was as fascinating as the action sequences. Once this information is established, the action comes even faster in an almost non-stop ride to the finish.

This is a classic page-turner that doesn’t let you go until you’ve reached the end. Author Daniel Suarez does a great job making you feel that no one and nowhere is safe. This fuels the sense of danger and excitement. Paranoia, after all, is just show more smart when everyone really is out to get you.

The heroes are convincing and dedicated while the bad guys are nebulous and operate in shadow. You could nit-pick on some characterization which isn’t really all that deep, but the concepts and the action are what this novel is about and it is more than worth it. If you like high-adrenaline action that doesn’t let up paired with plausible and frightening technology development, you are going to love this book. Highly recommended. show less

Daniel Suarez hits another home run with "Kill Decision," this time with the subject of military drones. More precisely with autonomous drones, which are drones programmed to operate without human input and potentially able to determine when to deploy its weapons. Couple this with the increase of drone production around the world and this makes a very real scenario and scary novel.

Professor Linda McKinney was a myrmecologist studying African weaver ants. They were one of the few extirpator species on earth (along with humans) - meaning they sought out and destroyed rival organisms, even their own species, to maintain absolute control of their territory. McKinney had written an algorithm to predict the swarming action of the weaver ants, show more a technique that had enabled them to survive for thousands of years. Someone with nefarious intentions wanted that software and when it was stolen, professor McKinney became expendable. Rescued from a drone attack by a man known as Odin, McKinney was whisked away to safety.

Odin was an operative in a secret branch of the special operations delta force unit. He was tasked to uncover the source of a series of drone attacks perpetrated on US soil by an unknown entity and bring those attacks to an end. The government was covering up the nature of the attacks to prevent widespread panic, and was passing them off as terrorist bombings. But someone inside the government didn't want Odin to succeed in his mission, and soon Odin's group and professor McKinney were under drone attack also. The race was on to stay one step ahead of the drones while toppling those responsible for their actions.

This book was scary because drone technology is already here, and is increasing in its scope every day. The case made for autonomous drones is a compelling one - all our enemies would need to disable a human operated drone is a good jamming device to disrupt the signal. The next logical step would be to incorporate a "kill decision" into the drones to ensure their missions were completed. The technology exists for such actions to occur. The only thing standing in the way are the politicians (and we know how reliable they are) and the general public who elects them. Daniel Suarez has raised the alarm to the dangers in this book. It is up to us to use this information wisely.

This book was a very exciting read, as well as being technologically informative. Full of military special forces action, political intrigue, and cutting edge science, it is reminiscent of Tom Clancy novels. If that is your cup of tea, then you will enjoy this read as much as I did. show less

Tercera novela que cae de Daniel Suárez en un mes. Lamentablemente este señor no tiene nada más publicado, y habrá que esperar a 2014 para ver su cuarta novela. Se trata de un technothriller a la vieja usanza, con los acontecimientos precipitándose los unos tras los otros y con una idea y un armazón fantásticos. Me tuvo enganchado de principio a fin. El autor siempre les da a sus novelas el toque de "esto podría estar pasando ahora mismo y el gobierno podría estar ocultándonoslo", pero incluso con esa pátina de "quiero vender más" la novela es muy buena. Altamente recomendable.

Daniel Suarez has become a mix between Neal Stephenson and Michael Crichton. He takes the high tech, mixes in conspiracy and intrigue with a dash of octane. This produces a wonderfully interesting book.

Kill Decision is a story about the possible future of unmanned drones and how they impact warfare. The story is built on the modern U.S. war success using drones such as the Predator and Raptor. Suarez then asks the question of what will the next generation of drones look like? He postulates that they will be completely autonomous. Programmed to follow an algorithm that removes the human element. This gives the basic story of the book without giving spoilers.

It was an excellent read.

Author: Daniel Suarez   Rating: 2.5 of 5 Stars   Synopsis Somebody is using unmanned drones to attack targets in the United States and their ulterior motive remains unclear.   My Thoughts First off, there is NO A.I.! That in itself knocked a star off for me. After Suarez's Daemon duology, I was hoping for more scary super brains. Instead, we get The Hidden Powers That Be [and feel free to say that in a super SPOOKY voice] trying to make autonomous unmanned aircraft the future of war.   Only one man, deep undercover and practically rogue, along with his heroic team and one sexy ant studying lady, stand in the way.   Yeah, really, that truly sums it up. And it doesn't get any better.   Near the beginning Suarez overwhelms us with show more technobabble that doesn't add anything to the story except confusion. And many aspects of the story felt very klug'ed together.   On the positive side, there are lots of gun battles, action out of the whazoo and near the end, a whole BOATLOAD of killer robots, err, drones.   I'll read whatever Suarez writes next, but that is the tipping point. This just wasn't good enough.       Crossposted at Bookstooge.booklikes.blogspot.wordpress.com " show less

Excellent thriller set in the present day, following a entomologist whose research into ant behavior is stolen for use by the mysterious makers of a drone army. We follow her and the secret military team as they track the drones and attempt to stop a move to drone warfare.
Suarez spins tech tales that sound very plausible, and he seems to grasp well the technology about which he's writing. This isn't as good as Daemon, but very few books are.