The Cloud Collector
A Thriller
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2.0 • 2 Ratings
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- $11.99
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
In The Cloud Collector, acclaimed spy novelist Brian Freemantle turns his expert's eye to the frontlines of today's war on terror: the cryptic world of cyber warfare.
When Western intelligence services recognize that a global jihadist attack has been initiated, the United States and the United Kingdom---its primary targets---lead a desperate counteroffensive. Sally Hanning, a brilliant British MI5 agent, is assigned to assist the CIA task force. She must help them hunt down the enemy mastermind along an intricately disguised online trail. To do so, she entails the services of Jack Irvine, a guilt-burdened NSA code-cracker, using enticements both personal and professional.
Though they foil the terrorists' plans, the mastermind seems to elude the MI5 and the CIA every time. And as Sally and Jack prepare to head off a major, potentially devastating attack, they realize that the plot is far more sinister than they had ever thought possible.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
The in-depth knowledge of the espionage business that Freemantle (The Namedropper) brings to this fly-on-the-wall look at the technical and bureaucratic aspects of the spy world helps compensate for the novel's lack of excitement. CIA officer Jack Irvine, who heads a mission known as Operation Cyber Shepherd, and his operators troll the "darknets" of cyberspace searching for terrorist groups. Once Irvine and company hack into these groups, they uncover attack plans, turn various terrorists against one another, and alert security agencies. Working with smart, stubborn British MI5 agent Sally Hanning, Irvine racks up several conspicuous successes thwarting attacks on the Coliseum in Rome, a nuclear reactor in Sellafield, England, and the Washington Monument in the U.S. but mastermind terrorist Ismail al Aswamy escapes. Irvine's most dangerous foes are members of his own team and hostile politicians who need these government cyber warriors to cover their own asses. This realistic, disheartening thriller may be too downbeat for some fans of the genre.
