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NSA
It’s early 2017, and the United States is suffering a thin-skinned popularity-obsessed President and a sluggish economy. (Though this is a work of fiction, it just happens to be an astonishingly prescient one.)
The USA’s woes are nothing, however, compared to those of the NSA, the nation’s surveillance specialists. Senator Carolyn Bigsley, a one-woman force of nature, is on the cusp of shuttering the rudderless intelligence agency for good.
Until General Whiteley is appointed NSA Director, just as a series of terror attacks led by bearded men suddenly rocks the nation, and that’s when things start to get a little crazy. Everyone’s involved: the Amish, hipsters, wild-eyed Irishmen, lizard people, something called the Mirror, and – worst of all – the CIA.
This scathing satire of governance and modern media is the book you need to read if:
—You found Trump vs Clinton depressing
—Snowden’s revelations made you hopping mad
—You want to laugh instead of cry
The USA’s woes are nothing, however, compared to those of the NSA, the nation’s surveillance specialists. Senator Carolyn Bigsley, a one-woman force of nature, is on the cusp of shuttering the rudderless intelligence agency for good.
Until General Whiteley is appointed NSA Director, just as a series of terror attacks led by bearded men suddenly rocks the nation, and that’s when things start to get a little crazy. Everyone’s involved: the Amish, hipsters, wild-eyed Irishmen, lizard people, something called the Mirror, and – worst of all – the CIA.
This scathing satire of governance and modern media is the book you need to read if:
—You found Trump vs Clinton depressing
—Snowden’s revelations made you hopping mad
—You want to laugh instead of cry
441 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 27, 2016
6 people are currently reading
575 people want to read
About the author
Benny Neylon
10 books19 followersBenny Neylon was hand-reared on the west coast of Ireland.
Neylon is the author of several short story collections, including Yarns, Thumbprints, and the sci-fi SUPERIntelligent. He is also author of the satire thriller NSA, as well as an irreverent retelling of Genesis: The Holiest Bible, Ever.
Neylon is the author of several short story collections, including Yarns, Thumbprints, and the sci-fi SUPERIntelligent. He is also author of the satire thriller NSA, as well as an irreverent retelling of Genesis: The Holiest Bible, Ever.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
February 19, 2017
NSA by Benny Neylon is a political satire that is goofy, funny, and sometimes true! The book is clever, witty, and the reader never knows what is going to be coming up next. The author must have had a crystal ball because some of what he wrote is eerily like today's politics, scary! Lots of crazy fun with politics in here, good laughs, and clever fiction. I won this book on Goodreads.
March 30, 2017
This is satirical, dystopian science fiction taking a brutal swipe at the media, politicians, conspiracy theorists, security experts and the military. All of it richly deserved.
The writing is good, characterisation is thorough, creating archetypes rather than indulging in stereotypes as is so often the case with books of this type. The humour is hard, bordering on the cruel. But, as such exposure and comment is necessary, it is certainly not out of place here.
For me, and this is a very personal issue, the many references to things exclusively American were a barrier. But I know this won’t be the case for the majority of readers, so I place it here simply to put my review in context.
Written in the style of a thriller, with fast action and multiple twists and turns, the convoluted story ranges over many incidents and touches on topics that most readers will appreciate. No one escapes here. All those who deserve our disapprobation are roundly condemned by their actions, distortions of truth, expedient manoeuvres and total disregard for reality. Vanity describes the leading politicians and, bearing in mind the current incumbent of the White House, this book is extraordinarily prescient.
There is a protagonist to carry readers through the melange of antagonists who carry most of the action, and she has a trusty side kick; both provide a hint of sanity in a world gone utterly insane.
I found the tale a touch lengthy and felt it could lose a quarter of the content and gain pace and holding power as a result.
But this is a well-written, brilliantly observed and cleverly depicted potential future for the world as it currently exists. Without substantial, even radical, change, we may well be doomed to experience the outcome described so potently in these pages.
The writing is good, characterisation is thorough, creating archetypes rather than indulging in stereotypes as is so often the case with books of this type. The humour is hard, bordering on the cruel. But, as such exposure and comment is necessary, it is certainly not out of place here.
For me, and this is a very personal issue, the many references to things exclusively American were a barrier. But I know this won’t be the case for the majority of readers, so I place it here simply to put my review in context.
Written in the style of a thriller, with fast action and multiple twists and turns, the convoluted story ranges over many incidents and touches on topics that most readers will appreciate. No one escapes here. All those who deserve our disapprobation are roundly condemned by their actions, distortions of truth, expedient manoeuvres and total disregard for reality. Vanity describes the leading politicians and, bearing in mind the current incumbent of the White House, this book is extraordinarily prescient.
There is a protagonist to carry readers through the melange of antagonists who carry most of the action, and she has a trusty side kick; both provide a hint of sanity in a world gone utterly insane.
I found the tale a touch lengthy and felt it could lose a quarter of the content and gain pace and holding power as a result.
But this is a well-written, brilliantly observed and cleverly depicted potential future for the world as it currently exists. Without substantial, even radical, change, we may well be doomed to experience the outcome described so potently in these pages.
May 16, 2017
While this is not one of my normal reads (I won this on good reads). I found it to be a funny, interesting read. And very, very similar to various going ons currently in our politics. Which can be a little frightening if truly dwelled on. Otherwise, the writing was good and consistent with the way the story and characters evolved.
September 1, 2017
For disclosure purposes, I received a free copy of this book through Goodreads' Giveaways.
I don't know that I would have picked up this book if left to my own devices, and when I was notified that I would be receiving a free copy, I don't know that I was even excited. Boy was I wrong. A thoroughly entertaining read from start to finish, it was nearly impossible to put down. And despite the length of the book (423 pages), this was a relatively quick read.
What this book gave me was a chance to laugh, and that has become increasingly difficult to do given our current political climate. Most surprisingly, this also helped me take a step back and maintain perspective. ... Who would have thought?
Give this story a shot. The characters, though a-plenty, will give you endless comedic relief. And the story, for as far-fetched yet entirely plausible and probable (and maybe relatable?), will give you respite.
P.S. The book cover alone is enough reason to pick this bad boy up. Arguably one of my more favorite aspects of it all.
I don't know that I would have picked up this book if left to my own devices, and when I was notified that I would be receiving a free copy, I don't know that I was even excited. Boy was I wrong. A thoroughly entertaining read from start to finish, it was nearly impossible to put down. And despite the length of the book (423 pages), this was a relatively quick read.
What this book gave me was a chance to laugh, and that has become increasingly difficult to do given our current political climate. Most surprisingly, this also helped me take a step back and maintain perspective. ... Who would have thought?
Give this story a shot. The characters, though a-plenty, will give you endless comedic relief. And the story, for as far-fetched yet entirely plausible and probable (and maybe relatable?), will give you respite.
P.S. The book cover alone is enough reason to pick this bad boy up. Arguably one of my more favorite aspects of it all.
November 11, 2017
I won this book from Goodreads Giveaways. I was intrigued by the combination of a political satire and an Irish author. (I first encountered the Irish wit when the Irish Times debate team competed at my college. They won the audience over with their sheer humor and storytelling prowess.)
Very reminiscent of Sinclair Lewis's 1930s dystopian cautionary tale It Can't Happen Here, NSA presents a similar vision of a power coup when a jingoistic military general is appointed by an ineffective, distractable president to head the United States' National Security Agency (NSA), an agency slated to be underfunded and drowned in the proverbial bathtub. General Whiteley's attempt to justify the agency's existence leads to "mission creep" (to put it mildly) with scare tactics, disinformation campaigns, dirty tricks, secret ops sites, suspension of Constitutional norms and persecution of political enemies. At breakneck speed, he successfully co-opts willing fools while effectively neutralizing elected leadership. Many short chapters advance the narrative quickly, with unexpected twists and an action-filled conclusion. Unlike Lewis's novel, though, this book is very much tongue-in-cheek, with many laugh-out-loud "honey listen to this one!" moments, Lyttonesque purple prose, and deft skewering of modern day politics, social media, news media, technology and consumer trends.
Benny Neylon is a capable author, his characters (with Dickensian names like Meeke, Smugh, Bigsley, Hoodwinkl) well drawn, his language excellent, his grasp of American politics on the mark. I especially appreciated the intrepid female Senator protagonist. The inclusion of Irishmen in the story was a clever tip o' the hat to his homeland.
Humor aside, Neylon was eerily prescient with some of his themes, such as crippling political infighting and manipulation of social media to influence politics, scapegoating of cultural "others," as real-life events have unfolded even since the book's publication.
This was a thoroughly enjoyable read. Thank you to the author for the copy, and good luck!
Very reminiscent of Sinclair Lewis's 1930s dystopian cautionary tale It Can't Happen Here, NSA presents a similar vision of a power coup when a jingoistic military general is appointed by an ineffective, distractable president to head the United States' National Security Agency (NSA), an agency slated to be underfunded and drowned in the proverbial bathtub. General Whiteley's attempt to justify the agency's existence leads to "mission creep" (to put it mildly) with scare tactics, disinformation campaigns, dirty tricks, secret ops sites, suspension of Constitutional norms and persecution of political enemies. At breakneck speed, he successfully co-opts willing fools while effectively neutralizing elected leadership. Many short chapters advance the narrative quickly, with unexpected twists and an action-filled conclusion. Unlike Lewis's novel, though, this book is very much tongue-in-cheek, with many laugh-out-loud "honey listen to this one!" moments, Lyttonesque purple prose, and deft skewering of modern day politics, social media, news media, technology and consumer trends.
Benny Neylon is a capable author, his characters (with Dickensian names like Meeke, Smugh, Bigsley, Hoodwinkl) well drawn, his language excellent, his grasp of American politics on the mark. I especially appreciated the intrepid female Senator protagonist. The inclusion of Irishmen in the story was a clever tip o' the hat to his homeland.
Humor aside, Neylon was eerily prescient with some of his themes, such as crippling political infighting and manipulation of social media to influence politics, scapegoating of cultural "others," as real-life events have unfolded even since the book's publication.
This was a thoroughly enjoyable read. Thank you to the author for the copy, and good luck!
October 5, 2017
This is the first book I have read by the author Benny Neylon. I found this to be a very interesting book that was well written. It has lots of chapters and some are short. I love having short chapters when some days I may only have 15 min to read. The story did have a variety of sub-plots and most were defined and resolved. There were definitely a few surprises and twists. Even though this is a science fiction story it is amazing and how scary some of the government topics could actually happen. With so many fake stories these days in our current media environment this may me think even more about our government and what is really true versus fake. This is definitely worth reading.
May 23, 2018
4 stars!
I was sent this book by the author in exchange for an honest review.
This was interesting, fun, hilarious, as well as sometimes scary in terms of the fact that a lot the things that transpire in this novel seem conceivably realistic in the sense that they could potentially happen. This a politics heavy satire, leaning heavily on the satire even in the names of the characters like Smugh and Bigsley, etc and I honestly enjoyed it so much more than I had anticipated.
I was sent this book by the author in exchange for an honest review.
This was interesting, fun, hilarious, as well as sometimes scary in terms of the fact that a lot the things that transpire in this novel seem conceivably realistic in the sense that they could potentially happen. This a politics heavy satire, leaning heavily on the satire even in the names of the characters like Smugh and Bigsley, etc and I honestly enjoyed it so much more than I had anticipated.
December 25, 2017
I don’t even know where to start. First, I️ received this book free through a Goodreads Giveaway. I️ was curious to learn what it was about. As someone that has been a fan of Clancy and the like, I️ thought this would be an interesting political thriller. It wasn’t.
Instead, it was more like the “Mars Attacks” version of a Clancy novel. I️ could almost picture one of the characters saying “you have two of three branches of government still working for you, and that’s not half bad.” It was bizarre, absurd, and plain goofy. Unfortunately, it wasn’t really a fun silly.
I️ am not sure if the author was trying to be funny, or trying to make a point. Either way, I️ didn’t find it successful.
Instead, it was more like the “Mars Attacks” version of a Clancy novel. I️ could almost picture one of the characters saying “you have two of three branches of government still working for you, and that’s not half bad.” It was bizarre, absurd, and plain goofy. Unfortunately, it wasn’t really a fun silly.
I️ am not sure if the author was trying to be funny, or trying to make a point. Either way, I️ didn’t find it successful.
December 3, 2023
BEWARE, the NSA is Watching!
I found this story easy to read and hard to put down. Having worked for NEW in the 1970s I found the concept of the NSA taking over the government difficult to swallow. However, as the world is turning in and on the USA, it sadly becomes more believable all the time. Read this, ok get the implications, and do whatever you can to prevent it from actually ever occurring.
I found this story easy to read and hard to put down. Having worked for NEW in the 1970s I found the concept of the NSA taking over the government difficult to swallow. However, as the world is turning in and on the USA, it sadly becomes more believable all the time. Read this, ok get the implications, and do whatever you can to prevent it from actually ever occurring.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews