User Deadly

Georgina Powers #1

by Denise Danks

Londoner Georgina Powers, a reporter for Technology Week, is horrified to hear of her cousin Julian's death--caused, it seems by a bit of autoerotica he couldn't escape when he forgot to place his handcuff keys nearby. But when Georgina and best friend Warren, a black, brilliant East End hacker, enter Julian's PC, they find a subliminal message programmed in it: Forget the key. Who wanted Julian dead? The path leads to Lifestyle Software, a dummy company spawned by Julian, Georgina's ex-husband Eddie, and Eddie's boss (and latest mistress) Kay Fisher, a nabob at financial brokers Broadwick & Klein. Georgina, barely deterred by arson, burglary, fisticuffs, and phone threats (but shaken by a falling out with Warren), eventually uncovers another subliminal message--this one triggering the stock crash of '87. A twist, another twist, and several betrayals later, Georgina is ready to write up the story for her acerbic boss Max and begin seeing Detective Inspector Falk for dinners.

212 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1990

Reviews

[Mark · Rating 3 out of 5]

Georgina Powers is a reporter for a computer magazine, whose cousin gets headhunted by a Californian company and then kills himself by accident. From here, Powers is drawn into a city scandal that could threaten her life. I’ve had this book on my shelf for years and, unfortunately, the delay hasn’t been kind - the computer stuff has dated badly and the plot (whilst clever in itself) is so convoluted and complicated, Danks is forced to put in page-after-page of mind-numbing exposition about the global currency markets (chapter 10 is a particular snoozefest and I found myself scanning paragraphs - if there was an acronym, I skimmed straight by it). Having said that, when focussing on character and action, this is very good and Powers is likeable in a cynical, noir-ish fashion. The characters are strong and clear and the writing is fresh and very English and I’d certainly be interested in another Danks/Powers book, but this probably wasn’t the best place to start.

[Dean White · Rating 1 out of 5]

I could not finish it. The main character just gets angry and rages around every corner like an unstable woman with mental issues. She is not a hacker, that is her friend. I've made it half way through the book and cannot go any further. I usually read a book a week, but this one has kept me busy for roughly 3 months simply because it is so boring and the author knows very little about computer science.

[Vivienne · Rating 1 out of 5]

I couldn't finish it, although I'm going to keep trying as I want to know whether it really was a computer program wot done it.... :( It had a great start, funny, great voice, and a murder. But it combined technical finance and computing with chick-lit in a way that was too silly to be believable and too technical to be funny. I hate to say that I skipped send of the technical explanations and I couldn't figure out what was happening in places.