4 out of 4 stars
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The first in a trilogy, Alex Fayman’s Superhighway, is a suspense-filled urban sci-fi fantasy for young adults. Gun battles, computer hacks, organized crime, international travel, and murder all can be found in this suspenseful and brilliantly written cyber-thriller.
Raised from birth in an orphanage, Alex Fine, the protagonist, learned by chance he could transport himself electronically through computer network tunnels by squeezing a network cable. He enters the wires miraculously, follows the optic wires, and enters channels that have stored in them all kinds of fascinating data. Alex discovers he is able to travel instantaneously anywhere he wants, and can hack into the bank accounts of ordinary people, corporations, and even the CIA. His journeys take him from LA to Hawaii, Amsterdam, Miami, New York, the Caribbean, and further, where he experiences both adventure and ruination.
Alex Fayman, the author, has done a fantastic job describing scenes using detailed vocabulary that allows you to picture scenes and events that are either contrived or based on real places or circumstances. The idea of traveling via the internet that allows Alex the ability to pull up any picture he wants on the web and suddenly transport himself to that very place was just phenomenal to me. Both the descriptive language style and dramatic plot made it feel as though I was traveling with him on his adventures. The author is able to describe characters of the story in a way we can identify with them.
Alex Fine is a warm-hearted but somewhat self-centered young man. Alex’s tragic flaw - that he feels unloved, unappreciated and displaced - is due to his upbringing, so we sympathize with him. The lessons Alex learns are due to his choices, which stem from his encounters with people he meets on his journey and what he has decided to do with his superpowers. Although he is using his hacking abilities to help the poor and mistreated, his decisions are impulsive as he blindly rushes into situations he knows are going to cause him distress and chaos.
This book might not be suitable for young teenagers and children. There's a good deal of violence, such as graphic scenes of torture, murder, sexual encounters, and drugs. I think this story is suitable for a wide audience, including those interested in technology and travel, not just science fiction. The book had a few grammar mistakes but were few and sparse, and did not at all interfere with the flow of the story, in my opinion. Overall, I give this book 4 out of 4 stars as I found the characters to be believable and the plot exhilarating.
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Superhighway
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