Utopia Five (Paperback) by A E Currie

A compulsive techno thriller that challenges everything you think you know about the future.

In 2036, during a global disaster that killed both their parents, Lee Sands saves the life of younger brother Nemo. Eighteen years later, they run the most successful games company on the planet.

While testing Nemo's latest game - codenamed Utopia Five - Lee is almost killed in what appears to be a terrible accident. Nemo suddenly disappears, and Lee discovers they have been locked out of Control - a world simulator and the centrepiece of their games empire, which would have identified who was behind the explosion. Without it, Lee is powerless.

To rescue Nemo and regain access to their metaverse, Lee is forced to travel across England, which is under the eye of an omniscient global surveillance system called the Panopticon. On the journey, Lee meets an aged judge, an executioner, and an ex-soldier who are roaming the country with a young, adopted family. As the group navigates the post-apocalyptic landscape, they discover the secret behind the virtual world of Utopia Five and realise Lee and Nemo's immersive games have become fundamental to the new world order.

Finally, the full power of the technology Lee and Nemo possess becomes clear. It begins to look as if Nemo himself may be the threat they are running from...

"The only series I've read that touches on every topic I care about: Artificial Intelligence, surveillance, climate change, individual vs state, space, programming, infosec" - Marco Abis

Utopia Five is a gripping science fiction thriller set in a high-surveillance future. It is both a standalone action novel and the first in a new series: the Panopticon.

• "I loved this book" - James Cox, reviewer Amazon
• "an unexpectedly deep and conceptual sci-fi techno thriller. Take all the moral quandaries of modern technology and give them a mix with ecological disaster and you've got yourself a good idea of the future this book is set in" - OldBird, Amazon
• "Thought-provoking on the world today and future - couldn't put it down!" - J Collins, Amazon
• "The author writes some compelling characters and reveals a near future which asks what happens if some of the things we see today get turned up to 11" - Neville White, Amazon
• "Full of innovative and thought-provoking ideas. Story was engaging and fast-paced" Jon, Amazon
• "all too believable picture of one possible (probable?) future" - NIck B, Amazon
• "a page-turning thriller, and shot through with mordant humour" - PJ Barber, Amazon
• "Great fast paced story backed with a lot of detail and a huge amount of thought about how the world might develop!" - Mark Mitchell, Amazon
• "Kept me hooked throughout" - Amazon Customer
• "Nice to read such an original book. I couldn't put it down" - SgravenHage, Amazon US
• "A thought provoking and intelligently written sci-fi novel that I couldn't put down" Nikki, Amazon
• "A fun read, compelling world, great premise" O, Amazon