Reviewed by
Ashley Alquine

Reviewer Rating:    * * *
Title:     Dissent In Real Time
Category:     Suspense
Author:     Cathy McCarthy
Publisher:     Gaithersburg
Release date:     Available Now
ISBN:  1-58749-050-1

Dissent in Real Time is a suspense E-book written by Cathy McCarthy.

The story is placed in the near future in Canada and tells of a
rebellion against the government and the numerical ID system that they have put into place. The author poses the often wondered about question of our personal security and how much the government knows of us. What follows is a generally entertaining tale of espionage and computer hacking that keeps the suspense reader fairly engrossed in the story.

This numerical ID system in the story in effect serves as a person's name and all data on an individual is attached to that ID number. The rebellion starts with one dissident programmer who begins to question the use of these numbers and who has control of them. As he witnesses the effects of this new power over the people of Canada, he formulates a plan to overthrow the computer that is the backbone of the whole system. The story really begins after his arrest and is
peppered with a romance between him and his lawyer.

The author has a rather persuasive style to her writing and her
values and opinions are quite apparent through the book. The book is in effect 5 stories in one: One tale deals with the overthrow of the computer and co-stars a talk-show like editorial writer whose number was erased and was replaced with the name Belizaire. A second tale involves a normal citizen whose life was affected by the numerical system. The man lost his job because he voted the wrong way in the elections, and through this numerical system they were able to
discover that. A third tale deals with the formation of  "The
Committee" (a group of dissidents that joined with the programmer) and gives a brief introduction of the members. Fourthly, there is the romance between the programmer and his lawyer, and last of all, a courtroom drama and the subsequent effects of the programmer's work. At times these stories trip over each other. At one point, the author
was introducing "The Committee" and, right in the middle of it, put the continuation of the story of the normal Joe, causing me to get a bit lost as to what exactly the author was writing about.

All in all, the story's plot kept things moving well except in the
courtroom drama of which I felt was a tad long.  I also would have liked a bit more elaboration on the other members of the programmer's group. While the romance was sweet, all the sex the lawyer and the accused were able to have is a bit of a stretch in my suspension of belief. I did feel that the romance helped to humanize the programmer, as some of his weaknesses and fears were revealed through that story line.  Some of the subject matter in the book deals with prison torture, however she doesn't get too graphical in the accounts, and they are not too gratuitous. Except for the sex and the mixing of the stories during the flashback, the elements of this novel worked well together, and I would recommend it to those who enjoy a suspense novel with a lighter touch.



Copyright © 2001 by Ashley Alquine