Book Review Blurb: Blackout by Marc Elsberg

“OK, so we’ve only ourselves to blame, because back then, everyone wrote off the dangers as so much craziness from doomsday prophets. Naturally, it’s also a question of cost. Security costs money.”
“Well, events have now shown that it costs even more to ignore it.”

This was an excellent thriller – and cautionary tale… Europe suddenly finds itself in the throes of a massive – and inexplicable – blackout. No one can figure out what happened, or why it doesn’t seem to be resolving itself, until an Italian hacker discovers the unbelievable – it was intentional. Incredible as that sounds, the tale as it unfolds from there is more incredible still – not in the sense of unbelievable, but of altogether too much so…

We live in a world that is increasingly susceptible to hacking because we are increasingly reliant on computers to run our lives – daily and on an ongoing basis; personally and globally. This was as timely a thriller as I’ve ever read – and one of the scariest as a result. It’s been said (by a variety of sources, with minimal variations in exact wording) that we are all a handful of meals away from anarchy; the wide-reaching effects of a prolonged power cut (e.g., mechanized farming/animal husbandry, computerized banking, electronic locks and thermostats) render that statement as potent as ever in the modern world. Elsberg delivers the horror and panic of such losses through a well-paced and plotted story populated by all too human characters (on the sides of good and bad). The story is relatable, engaging, and rather horrifying in its implications. Here’s hoping the story remains a story and doesn’t become prophecy…

My review copy was provided by NetGalley.