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The Protector
"The Protector" presents a Virtual Reality action/thriller set "Down Under" in Australia, and was a pre-cursor to later films like "The Matrix". First published in 8 parts as a series of Short Stories in Australia's Megadisk Amiga Diskazine from 1994-95, and in the Quatermas Experiment in Great Britain from 1995, this E-Book was released online in 1996, and the paperback version on 11 March, 2000. Both formats contain the entire twenty episodes woven into an action-packed, fast-paced cyber-thriller. This popular Cyberpunk-type novel is suitable for everyone from teens to senior citizens, anyone who enjoys a solid Virtual Reality story-line. A number of Tasmanian and Australia High Schools have purchased this book for their libraries and for class work in Fiction Studies using the Teachers' Resources section included at the end of this E-Book. "The Protector" has been evoking fan emails from the Norther Territory and Sydney, Australia to Atlantic Beach, Florida, USA since 1995! "Deathless Prose" --Megadisk Computer Magazine, Sydney, Australia"Intriguing"--Mercury Newspaper, Hobart, Tasmania This E-Book also features part of Chapter 1 of the Fantasy series from Philip S Weeks "The Scattered Realm Series. Book 1: The High Kingdom". Soon to be available on Amazon.com in both Paperback and E-Book formats!
301 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 6, 2011
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January 8, 2026
I have a print edition from the year 2000.
This book reminded me of the 1982 version of the movie Tron, one of my favourites. Russel has been abducted by AusTechnic, a ruthless organised crime syndicate, and plugged into their mainframe as "The Protector". He has no memory of his previous life or of the "accident" that has disabled and disfigured him. But then his father arrives... and Russel is rescued, restored to his family, rebuilt both physically and cybernetically, reunited with his fiancee and helped by Browntronix and their mysterious CEO, Mad Dog.
But the Yakuza crime lords of AusTechnic want Russel back and, if not, they want wide and spectacular vengeance. They're not particular who gets wasted in the process. The matter becomes more complicated when the Bund, a neo-Nazi outfit, also start pursuing Russel. In trying to escape, Russel needs a new identity, a new face, a new location and new work. The stormtroopers of the Bund almost have him when he is "saved" by Seoul Mates, a Korean gang who insist he pay off his indebtedness to them for saving his life by becoming a hacker in their underground bunker.
Eventually able to leave, Russel is still in constant danger. He also realises he's getting slower with age and is not so sure that those he thought were the good guys of the virtual reality world are really so. Has the Sunshine Corporation turned its back on benevolent work to chase profit through murder? Is Datarat a safe source of information? Are the American government agencies Mad Dog trusts really as stacked with integrity as he believes? "The Protector" isn't so sure any more.
The epilogue was fabulous. Such a nifty reflection of the beginning. I loved the way it tied up various sections of the novel, lacing together loose ends that I didn't even know were loose.
This book reminded me of the 1982 version of the movie Tron, one of my favourites. Russel has been abducted by AusTechnic, a ruthless organised crime syndicate, and plugged into their mainframe as "The Protector". He has no memory of his previous life or of the "accident" that has disabled and disfigured him. But then his father arrives... and Russel is rescued, restored to his family, rebuilt both physically and cybernetically, reunited with his fiancee and helped by Browntronix and their mysterious CEO, Mad Dog.
But the Yakuza crime lords of AusTechnic want Russel back and, if not, they want wide and spectacular vengeance. They're not particular who gets wasted in the process. The matter becomes more complicated when the Bund, a neo-Nazi outfit, also start pursuing Russel. In trying to escape, Russel needs a new identity, a new face, a new location and new work. The stormtroopers of the Bund almost have him when he is "saved" by Seoul Mates, a Korean gang who insist he pay off his indebtedness to them for saving his life by becoming a hacker in their underground bunker.
Eventually able to leave, Russel is still in constant danger. He also realises he's getting slower with age and is not so sure that those he thought were the good guys of the virtual reality world are really so. Has the Sunshine Corporation turned its back on benevolent work to chase profit through murder? Is Datarat a safe source of information? Are the American government agencies Mad Dog trusts really as stacked with integrity as he believes? "The Protector" isn't so sure any more.
The epilogue was fabulous. Such a nifty reflection of the beginning. I loved the way it tied up various sections of the novel, lacing together loose ends that I didn't even know were loose.
Displaying 1 of 1 review