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Connect

By: Julian Gough
Narrated by: Robertson Dean
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Publisher's summary

“Read Connect by the absurdly brilliant Julian Gough - a mind-expanding techno-thriller with a hotly beating human heart.” (Emma Donoghue, New York Times best-selling author of Room)

In the Nevada desert, in the near future, a family crisis sets off a chain reaction that threatens to bring the networked world to its knees. It starts in the home of Naomi Chiang, a biologist and single mother struggling to balance her research with looking after her painfully awkward, homeschooled, ever-growing teenage son, Colt. Naomi worries about him constantly - he's so socially inept that he struggles to order takeout pizza - but then she has a major breakthrough at the lab that could change their lives, and America's future. For his part, Colt seems focused on one thing only: a globe-spanning immersive gameworld in which his phenomenal coding skills set him apart. But after his first real-life romantic encounter goes awry, he realizes mastery of a virtual existence is not enough.

When Colt secretly releases his mother's latest findings, Naomi's worst fears come true. Colt's estranged father crashes into their lives again, backed by the secretive security organization he heads. The US government wants Naomi's research... and Colt, who must leave the comfort of virtual reality to discover the pleasures, and pains, of a life fully lived. Meanwhile, Naomi has to decide how far she would go to protect her child. Would she kill a man? Would she destroy the world?

Connect is a thrillingly smart novel of ideas that explores what connection - both human and otherwise - might be in a digital age. It is a story of mothers and sons; but it is also about you, your phone, and the future.

©2018 Julian Gough (P)2018 Random House Audio
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Critic reviews

“Instantly convincing... Powerful, playful... What feels so fresh is that this predictive novel avoids even a hint of the usual doomsday clichés. Instead, the transformative possibilities of technology are embraced to the point where ‘love is an interface between you and the universe’ comes to sound joyfully life-affirming rather than alarmingly clinical... [Connect] will subtly change the way you see the world.” (Claire Lowdon, Sunday Times - London)

“Mayhem unfolds in the deadly but jaunty style of a Hollywood action thriller... A gonzo hybrid between The Matrix and Fifty Shades of Grey, written in its best moments with the pace and wit of Dave Eggers’s The Circle.” (Anthony Cummins, The Observer)

"Propulsively paced and ingeniously twisting. Gough has written a hyperactive, adrenaline-junkie dystopian thriller that deserves to be made into a belter of a film franchise. As Colt would say: Wow, wow, wow." (Laura Freeman, The Times - London)

What listeners say about Connect

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Strong near sci fi

I'm surprised this book isn't more popular, better than most I've read, especially interesting dive into the mind of a gifted autistic young man.

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A bit of long slog

Might seem unfamiliar to a reader who knows little about virtual reality such as myself. This is a long read for a story that is isn’t particularly complex and with a small group of characters. While interesting, I can’t say it’s totally worth the effort.

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