Going Zero

Intriguing premise + snappy writing = Four star book! Yay. What satisfaction to find one that's not hyped yet (recommended by the NYT no less) and so one is free to go in with pure expectations.

Now let me add that Going Zero is written by a screenwriting heavweight. No wonder I soon began to sense a moviemaking influence in its pacing and character exploration. When we begin, social media giant Fusion has selected 10 contestants for a very interesting challenge: Go underground, remaining unfound for 30 days, while we use all the might of the billions of pieces of data we've mined on you, surveillance technology, and plain old digital snooping to hunt you down. If you succeed we give you 3 million dollars, tax free.

The stated premise show more behind all this is noble: protect the country (USA, who else) from any imaginable threat. And the contention is that citizens willingly give up their data, their right to privacy. Private entities have long managed and manipulated these vast data banks, so why not use it all for the national good? So says Cy Baxter, Fusion founder, along with Erika Coogan, his right hand.

So far, so so good, as the ten contestants start getting captured by a truly breathtaking mix of techniques at Fusion's disposal. But then it emereges that one particular one, a seemingly low-profile librarian named Kaitlyn Day, has started leading Fusion on a clever, even playful, cat-and-mouse game. How come? Cy is intrigued even as other contestants keep getting captured.

Now mind, the actual US government is also involved in all this, albeit in a slightly behind-the-scenes capacity. And as we follow the exploits of Kaitlyn the shadowy details begin to emerge. Why is she so able to evade capture? What role does the CIA actually play? Who is Warren Crewe? And what are the true motivations behind the Going Zero project?

Dang, Anthony McCarten is good. I hear that this novel has already been snapped up for a movie, no surprise there. Meanwhile he has entertained me thoroughly, no easy feat these days seeing as I have turned into an authentic curmudgeon.

Never mind. Dear Anthony and others of his ilk shall keep delivering surprises to my jaded soul and thus keep me on the sunny side of the street. On to the next! show less

Anthony McCarten is so successful as a screenwriter that it is no surprise when he writes a novel that seems like raw material for a screenplay. Genre doesn’t seem to matter to him. His films include works as different as Darkest Hour, Bohemian Rhapsody, The Two Popes, and The Theory of Everything, and his novel, Going Zero, is something different yet. It is a tech thriller about surveillance and big data used to track suspects. A software company wants to sell its products to Homeland Security and the CIA, so it hires ten people with diverse backgrounds to try to evade its predictive software for a month.
The action moves back and forth between the hunters and the hunted, and all the characters have complex motives. Even Cy, the show more surveillance software developer, tells himself that he is doing the right thing in building tools to destroy privacy. He says, “People don’t want privacy, not anymore. Privacy is passé. Privacy is a prison. People can’t wait to give it away, if you really want to know the truth. The fact is, they’re so damn lonely … that they barter away their privacy with relief, first chance they get.” He goes on to argue that loneliness makes people “crave to be watched,” so being spied on becomes a pleasure. show less

In partnership with the CIA, a Google-esque tech company run by a loose cannon Elon Musk type claims that it can stop terrorism using an arsenal of new surveillance products and techniques. To test the claim, the company invites 10 Americans to participate in a trial run of the software suite. If the contestants can go on the run and remain undiscovered for 30 days, they will win $3 million; if the company catches all 10, it will win a multi-billion $$ security contract with the CIA. Several are caught in the first few days/hours, but one mysterious participant threatens the entire course of the project. Of course shenanigans and twists ensue. Super fun, fast read. It gets a bit tricky and melodramatic in part 2, but overall I was show more highly entertained.

I enjoy thrillers from time to time, but I usually find they aren't that well written and the point (for me) is the plot, fast pacing, and enjoyment of the formula. Going Zero had these three elements and strong writing to boot. Much more literary than the typical thriller writing, without sacrificing the forward momentum. Parts of the book read like dystopian science fiction, but I wouldn't be surprised if all the "new initiatives" the company uses are already possible, here and now. Certainly made me think about what "terms and conditions" I've blindly agreed to in the past. show less

This was amazing; I barely put it down once I started reading. Thrillers aren’t my usual genre of preference, but it was impossible not to become invested in this story. The chase led by Zero 10 had so many unexpected twists that the reader could almost feel the frustration of Cy and the CIA; the plot was so smartly written that I found myself repeatedly holding my breath in moments of near-capture. In the lead-up to the reveal at the end of Part 1, when we find out that Zero 10 wasn’t actually Kaitlyn at all, my heart was pounding as I saw the pieces coming together. Just unbelievably mind-blowing.

Also love the ending, leaving us with one last burst of suspense. We don’t get all the answers about where things will end, and show more that’s perfectly in tune with the entirety of the book. Love it. show less

In this tense future thriller by Anthony McCarten, ten people attempt to ‘Go Zero’, by eluding a sophisticated computer system called FUSION for 30 days for the chance to win 3 million dollars in cash.

Though it’s difficult to disappear in the age of electronic dependence, anyone determined enough can still manage it. Tech wunder-kind Cy Baxter has developed a program designed to close the loop holes, and if he can prove it works, he’ll earn a $90 billion-dollar contract from the CIA and revolutionise global surveillance.

Among the contestants is Kaitlyn Day, for whom winning is everything. As FUSION locates one target after another, Cy’s frustration with the meek librarian’s ability to evade him grows while the clock ticks show more relentlessly down to Zero Day.

Going Zero is a pacy read, with the tension building from the moment the competition begins. The ten contestants, who vary in age and background, use different methods to disappear but FUSION proves itself from the first, and within ten days, half of them have been found.

I found the ways in which Cy’s team, with the help of FUSION, tracked their targets down to be interesting. While laws regarding access to, and the collation of, data currently provides individuals some protection, the information is available, and if it could be combined with aggressive surveillance, and behavioural and predictive analysis as it is with FUSION, few would be able to remain invisible. Kaitlyn’s ability to stay one step ahead of FUSION seems due to luck as much as planning at first. I was definitely cheering her on, especially after Cy dismissed her as ‘a book person’.

A little suspension of belief is required at times In the story, but it’s part of the fun. Just as FUSION closes in on the last of the competitors, McCarten raises the stakes with a clever twist. Though I knew something was coming, the details were a surprise and I enjoyed the change of direction.

If you’ve ever watched Hunted you’ll have an idea as to what expect from this novel. Going Zero is an undemanding and quick, but thoroughly entertaining read. show less

OK here’s something neat - Anthony McCarten’s new novel, Going Zero, has already been snatched up for the small screen - and it only releases today!

What’s it about you ask? Fusion, a tech giant, has created a sophisticated piece of spyware - with the blessing of the CIA. They want to test it out on real folks, and ten Americans have taken up the challenge. They have thirty days to hide and not be found. And the carrot? $3 million dollars if you make it to thirty days.

Oh boy, this was a scary one to read. Why? McCarten’s imagining of the levels of scrutiny, the information available in our tech laden world, the backing of the government, and more is probably not that far from the truth.

The narrative switches between Fusion and show more the ten ‘Zeroes’. The antagonist is so well drawn - a billionaire megalomaniac, with no scruples, that you’ll just love to hate. And I have to say I was somewhat reminded of an actual figure from our newspaper headlines.

The zeros are a mixed bunch, with each having strategies planned to avoid being captured for the month of beta testing. I had been mentally thinking of ways to go off grid and hide as I read. McCarten’s ideas were brilliant. But, one by one, the Zeros are being found. But not all of them… and that’s our protagonist, Kaitlyn Day. She’s a librarian with her own plan of evading Cy Butcher’s capture teams. And she has her own reasons for wanting to beat him. Again, another unexpected twist in a already fresh story from McCarten.

Going Zero is a non-stop, stay up late read that I couldn’t put down. Fans of Harlan Coben and Linwood Barclay would really enjoy Going Zero. show less

This reads like a tv script treatment. The setup is that a private company working in partnership with the CIA - ostensibly promises technology that effectively ends privacy and promises to find anyone, anything, anywhere in exchange for keeping people safe.

Before getting the trademark and a lucrative government contract, the tech company has to prove to the CIA that the tech works. To do that, they recruit 10 U.S. citizens to participate in a trial run like a contest. The 10 get a two-hour headstart to go dark and elude capture. If there's a winner - and there can only be one - they get a huge cash payout.

Though phase 1, I was loving the idea of a librarian on the lam, outsmarting all the dark tech/CIA types. Regular people vs. show more advanced technology, analog vs. digital, street smarts vs. AI. That, I could relate to and cheer for.

But, it wasn't meant to be: in phase 2, we learn that things aren't what they seem and the story takes a different turn. It becomes more of a shadowy conspiracy story which for me was harder to relate to or identify with. It was a quick, mostly entertaining read, but I think I'd have liked it better without the phase two plot twist. show less