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Code Thief
New Edited Edition July 2017
The book is based around a young hacker, Dylan Charles and CIA Cyber agent John McGovern. It is a cyber, espionage thriller, following the development of a super-virus, created by the CIA and the Israeli government, to end the Iranian Nuclear Program.
Dylan is caught hacking into the CIA main database and is subsequently entrapped by McGovern into helping the CIA develop the virus, at a serious cost to himself.
The story follows Dylan and his family, over a five year period, along with John and his team of Cyber Agents from Iran to Iraq and all the way to Wall Street.
It's a fast-paced thriller from page one to end.
The book is based around a young hacker, Dylan Charles and CIA Cyber agent John McGovern. It is a cyber, espionage thriller, following the development of a super-virus, created by the CIA and the Israeli government, to end the Iranian Nuclear Program.
Dylan is caught hacking into the CIA main database and is subsequently entrapped by McGovern into helping the CIA develop the virus, at a serious cost to himself.
The story follows Dylan and his family, over a five year period, along with John and his team of Cyber Agents from Iran to Iraq and all the way to Wall Street.
It's a fast-paced thriller from page one to end.
- GenresThriller
380 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 8, 2017
531 people are currently reading
281 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 43 reviews
June 28, 2016
I give up. I totally give up. I finally quit at about 10% in. Every page added a new insult to my intellect. In something like 60 years of reading, I have never before encountered such an egregious piece of crap. Total crap. The author doesn't know a megabyte from a 7-Eleven Big Bite. He knows nothing about the subject; nothing about the CIA, nothing about cyber, nothing about the Internet or networking. It's like he was abandoned as a baby, was raised by wild animals on Borneo, and decided to write a book. He should be banned from publishing for life. If he had an editor, s/he should be drawn and quartered, shot, hanged, fired and fined. Maybe not in that order. Amazon should be ashamed to not only offer this piece of total crap -- did I mention it was crap? -- for sale, but to push it on their Kindle home screen is unforgivable. I will never buy another book suggested by Amazon. Never. So, the CIA (the entire CIA, no less) had a 1 MB/sec limit on downloads, so their head of cyber security wants a list of servers with 99.9-100.1 MB/sec downloads going on. How could this be? He writes that "The [CIA] SWAT team were [sic] an assuming [sic] force." WTF does that mean? It gets worse. Of course, the CIA doesn't have SWAT teams and doesn't hold people in their secret interrogation rooms in CIA HQ (all of their secret interrogation rooms are overseas and reserved for non-US persons). And, geez, the miscreant was downloading data from "the CIA mainframe." Holy Stupidity, Dipshit Man. Adding insult to injury is the incredibly bad writing.
April 14, 2017
I read this because my kindle suggested it and it was free on kindle unlimited.
The writing in this book was not good. There were way too many sentences that ending with something like "Dylan said nervously!" My brain almost got distracted just looking for them and wondering how it could be re-written to portray the emotion without just saying, "he said excitedly!" Either the "he said" part had an exclamation point or the actual speech did. That many exclamation points are not necessary! That many sentences are not exclamations! Stop it!
This book is set in the USA, but British English words are used in a couple of places. In the USA, we call them diapers, not nappies. We put stuff in the trunk of the car, not the boot.
Given the lack of acknowledgements at the end of the book, I doubt whether the author did any real research into the operation of the CIA or if he understands software development. It is totally unbelievable that the trial for Dylan would take place so quickly and only involve community service that is really not enforced. A software developer would not put the word "JUnit" in quotes as if it were some mysterious fake thing. As a software developer, I do not at all believe that the Russians were able to so quickly change the "virus" to working against nuclear power plant equipment to working against water treatment plants.
I was also disappointed with the character development. The relationships between Dylan and mother felt inconsistent and the relationship between Dylan and Jeff felt inconsistent. Was Amy really mad at Dylan for his actions? It says so, but she didn't really act like it in that she kept letting him come around and let him move in. Jess says Dylan lies a lot, but where is the background for that? Are they set up to be a perfect couple or not? How does this family go from fighting to big group hugs so often?
The writing in this book was not good. There were way too many sentences that ending with something like "Dylan said nervously!" My brain almost got distracted just looking for them and wondering how it could be re-written to portray the emotion without just saying, "he said excitedly!" Either the "he said" part had an exclamation point or the actual speech did. That many exclamation points are not necessary! That many sentences are not exclamations! Stop it!
This book is set in the USA, but British English words are used in a couple of places. In the USA, we call them diapers, not nappies. We put stuff in the trunk of the car, not the boot.
Given the lack of acknowledgements at the end of the book, I doubt whether the author did any real research into the operation of the CIA or if he understands software development. It is totally unbelievable that the trial for Dylan would take place so quickly and only involve community service that is really not enforced. A software developer would not put the word "JUnit" in quotes as if it were some mysterious fake thing. As a software developer, I do not at all believe that the Russians were able to so quickly change the "virus" to working against nuclear power plant equipment to working against water treatment plants.
I was also disappointed with the character development. The relationships between Dylan and mother felt inconsistent and the relationship between Dylan and Jeff felt inconsistent. Was Amy really mad at Dylan for his actions? It says so, but she didn't really act like it in that she kept letting him come around and let him move in. Jess says Dylan lies a lot, but where is the background for that? Are they set up to be a perfect couple or not? How does this family go from fighting to big group hugs so often?
August 12, 2016
Enjoyed this read. Setting in U.S. however later in the book terms from the UK were frequently used. It did not detract from the story but it affected continuity.
Read
February 26, 2017No, no, no.
April 4, 2017
It was definitely a fast-paced thriller.
It was also a very quick read, but sloppily written... sadly! In an early chapter, one of the main characters talks about his wife and two daughters, then in a later chapter, the character returns to his wife and two sons, so you are left wondering about the sex-change operation that was performed on minors?!?!? There are also numerous grammatical errors: one sentence had two commas and didn't need any / there were also missing words and extra words. Definitely needs a good editor to go through the book.
The story line was interesting enough; the accomplishments of coders is thoroughly discussed and explained and how coding is used in the war against evil (or potential evil) is interestingly presented. And, we discover that sometimes the good guys do bad things and sometimes the bad guys do good things. Not many likable characters though, so it was difficult to root for anyone other than a good outcome against the potential evil.......
It was also a very quick read, but sloppily written... sadly! In an early chapter, one of the main characters talks about his wife and two daughters, then in a later chapter, the character returns to his wife and two sons, so you are left wondering about the sex-change operation that was performed on minors?!?!? There are also numerous grammatical errors: one sentence had two commas and didn't need any / there were also missing words and extra words. Definitely needs a good editor to go through the book.
The story line was interesting enough; the accomplishments of coders is thoroughly discussed and explained and how coding is used in the war against evil (or potential evil) is interestingly presented. And, we discover that sometimes the good guys do bad things and sometimes the bad guys do good things. Not many likable characters though, so it was difficult to root for anyone other than a good outcome against the potential evil.......
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 27, 2016
Sub-Par
Sub-Par for me. Legal proceedings in the first part of the book were shallow and used odd terminology and odd relationships. Often direct first party conversations seemed more second or third party than first party exchanges. Central figure's emotions were all over the street. Conversations with his wife did not seem to be conversations that a married couple would have or the terminology was stilted. At one point it is getting dark in Baghdad and the hero calls his wife on the east coast in the middle of the night. Hello? I read half the book and called it quits.
Sub-Par for me. Legal proceedings in the first part of the book were shallow and used odd terminology and odd relationships. Often direct first party conversations seemed more second or third party than first party exchanges. Central figure's emotions were all over the street. Conversations with his wife did not seem to be conversations that a married couple would have or the terminology was stilted. At one point it is getting dark in Baghdad and the hero calls his wife on the east coast in the middle of the night. Hello? I read half the book and called it quits.
February 9, 2017
A rare book that grabs you at page two, and never turns you loose. Part way into the book our protagonist is peeing his pants from all the tension, and let me tell you Justin Conboy almost had me peeing mine... you get so wrapped up in - will it happen/won't it happen, and this pendulum swings back and forth for the entire novel. Nods to actual historical events added to this novel's realism.
I must say I loved the ending. So often a great plot is ruined by a weak ending. Not here. While this was a little more "and everyone lived happily ever after" than I'd prefer, it was all consistent with the overriding plot development.
I must say I loved the ending. So often a great plot is ruined by a weak ending. Not here. While this was a little more "and everyone lived happily ever after" than I'd prefer, it was all consistent with the overriding plot development.
July 1, 2016
Terrible!
I had to skip to the end of the book so I could write this review and save anyone else from the pain of reading it. This book is truly painful to read. The grammar is awful, there are misplaced commas throughout, and just about every third sentence ends in an exclamation point! Just like this! I feel bad writing such a negative review but it is warranted. Please save yourself the trouble.
I had to skip to the end of the book so I could write this review and save anyone else from the pain of reading it. This book is truly painful to read. The grammar is awful, there are misplaced commas throughout, and just about every third sentence ends in an exclamation point! Just like this! I feel bad writing such a negative review but it is warranted. Please save yourself the trouble.
February 11, 2018
I actually enjoyed this book. It was a quick read, interesting twist and I wanted to know more. I wanted to know more on what Patrick did and more on his background / story because I felt that was touched on, but could've had more details/ information. John really had a chip on his shoulder, so of course I felt for Dylan and his family. I definitely was pulling for Dylan and wanting John to get screwed. In the end though, everything worked out for all parties, which made for a good / happy ending. The world of computer viruses just fascinates me and I can never understand why people would actually build such things. However, this book gives you some insight to one of the many reasons people do it. I would definitely recommend this book to others who like suspense, government drama, and like to read about computer coding.
April 12, 2017
The writing here is simply appalling. Riddled with typos, grammatical errors and just the most amateurish sentences imaginable.
Some of my favorite lines:
* Dylan looked at him in disbelief. John’s arrogance was unbelievable.
* “You promised them, John. You gave them your word.” He appeared to not hear her, but he knew he had to say something. After all, he had made a promise and given his word
* The director couldn’t help but act like the jerk he was.
* Being the coward he was, John backed down.
* Dylan said ignorantly
* Dylan said, wholeheartedly meaning it
* she asked worriedly
* she said jokingly
* John said commandingly
* John said seriously
* John said probingly
(Probingly? Sounds like an alien abduction gone wrong.)
As for the author’s grasp of the subject matter, for someone who claims to have been “writing code for twenty five years,” his understanding of technology is embarrassingly poor. He speaks erroneously about bit torrent, encryption, software patches, viruses and virus detection, networking, and operating systems.
For example, mention is made of “encryption bit rate.” Such a term does not exist. Bit rate is a measure of data transfer. In encryption, the bit size (say, 256 bit encryption) refers to the length of the key. So “encryption bit rate” is a nonsensical term.
We’re told of anti-virus software that ignores a virus because “it didn’t think it was a threat because it had been on the system for that long” as if anti-virus software checks the dates of files instead of their content.
And the scene where the source of the hack into the CIA is discovered (little lights on a map showing every internet connection in the country) is so far beyond ridiculous that eye rolling and head shaking are inevitable.
Infuriatingly sloppy writing is rampant throughout the book. For example, when the CIA/SWAT team raids the hacker’s house, we’re told the room is “very neatly kept” and then later on the same page we’re told of the “games and electronics left untidily around the place.”
In the same scene, the authorities, arriving at the house that has been identified as the source of the hack, find two young men and immediately arrest not the one who has been arrested twice for hacking but the other one. Why? It makes no sense.
And the sloppiness continues.
A billion dollar, covert uranium enrichment plant has such poor security that they can’t detect a drone right outside their door.
An Iranian woman is eating a sandwich for lunch.
A Japanese-American is named Chan.
During the IPO, the stock price goes (in a single day) from sixteen dollars a share to 4 cents (all because of a rumor which would be impossible to verify in such a short time). This then leads to Dylan’s house and car being repossessed on the same day.
We’re told, “Vincent was the one who had been most affected by his years in Iran.” (he had actually been in Iraq).
A bit torrent with 47,000 seeders is described as “one of the biggest downloads in ages.” Hardly.
A severely autistic person gives spontaneous bear hugs.
A quick flashback to Dylan’s “frat days” showing him waking up in bed next to some anonymous coed is so far out of character that the reader, again, must laugh.
Dylan’s company is listed on the NYSE but, as a tech company, it should be listed on the NASDAQ.
I hope the author was paid by Audi, otherwise the many seemingly gratuitous references to Dylan’s Audi R8 are inexplicable. For example, when he is about to rush his wife to the hospital: “He was happy to take her SUV; it meant his Audi R8’s beautiful blue suede interior wouldn’t be destroyed by her water breaking.” (Wow, what a likable character.)
The word “quintessential” is used often, as a lazy way of avoiding in-depth characterization, as in the “quintessential boring accountant” or the “quintessential computer nerd.”
Oh, and here’s a good technique for giving a dumbed down explanation of technology you don’t fully understand. Have one of your characters say, “My brain wouldn’t be able to take the in-depth explanation right now, so just give me the simple version.”
This is amateur hour. Don’t waste your time.
Some of my favorite lines:
* Dylan looked at him in disbelief. John’s arrogance was unbelievable.
* “You promised them, John. You gave them your word.” He appeared to not hear her, but he knew he had to say something. After all, he had made a promise and given his word
* The director couldn’t help but act like the jerk he was.
* Being the coward he was, John backed down.
* Dylan said ignorantly
* Dylan said, wholeheartedly meaning it
* she asked worriedly
* she said jokingly
* John said commandingly
* John said seriously
* John said probingly
(Probingly? Sounds like an alien abduction gone wrong.)
As for the author’s grasp of the subject matter, for someone who claims to have been “writing code for twenty five years,” his understanding of technology is embarrassingly poor. He speaks erroneously about bit torrent, encryption, software patches, viruses and virus detection, networking, and operating systems.
For example, mention is made of “encryption bit rate.” Such a term does not exist. Bit rate is a measure of data transfer. In encryption, the bit size (say, 256 bit encryption) refers to the length of the key. So “encryption bit rate” is a nonsensical term.
We’re told of anti-virus software that ignores a virus because “it didn’t think it was a threat because it had been on the system for that long” as if anti-virus software checks the dates of files instead of their content.
And the scene where the source of the hack into the CIA is discovered (little lights on a map showing every internet connection in the country) is so far beyond ridiculous that eye rolling and head shaking are inevitable.
Infuriatingly sloppy writing is rampant throughout the book. For example, when the CIA/SWAT team raids the hacker’s house, we’re told the room is “very neatly kept” and then later on the same page we’re told of the “games and electronics left untidily around the place.”
In the same scene, the authorities, arriving at the house that has been identified as the source of the hack, find two young men and immediately arrest not the one who has been arrested twice for hacking but the other one. Why? It makes no sense.
And the sloppiness continues.
A billion dollar, covert uranium enrichment plant has such poor security that they can’t detect a drone right outside their door.
An Iranian woman is eating a sandwich for lunch.
A Japanese-American is named Chan.
During the IPO, the stock price goes (in a single day) from sixteen dollars a share to 4 cents (all because of a rumor which would be impossible to verify in such a short time). This then leads to Dylan’s house and car being repossessed on the same day.
We’re told, “Vincent was the one who had been most affected by his years in Iran.” (he had actually been in Iraq).
A bit torrent with 47,000 seeders is described as “one of the biggest downloads in ages.” Hardly.
A severely autistic person gives spontaneous bear hugs.
A quick flashback to Dylan’s “frat days” showing him waking up in bed next to some anonymous coed is so far out of character that the reader, again, must laugh.
Dylan’s company is listed on the NYSE but, as a tech company, it should be listed on the NASDAQ.
I hope the author was paid by Audi, otherwise the many seemingly gratuitous references to Dylan’s Audi R8 are inexplicable. For example, when he is about to rush his wife to the hospital: “He was happy to take her SUV; it meant his Audi R8’s beautiful blue suede interior wouldn’t be destroyed by her water breaking.” (Wow, what a likable character.)
The word “quintessential” is used often, as a lazy way of avoiding in-depth characterization, as in the “quintessential boring accountant” or the “quintessential computer nerd.”
Oh, and here’s a good technique for giving a dumbed down explanation of technology you don’t fully understand. Have one of your characters say, “My brain wouldn’t be able to take the in-depth explanation right now, so just give me the simple version.”
This is amateur hour. Don’t waste your time.
December 6, 2016
Fingernail biter to the end
As complex as coding of this magnitude is, the author was able to bring even the least IT person to an understanding of what was happening. I read it over a period of 2 days in between working and sleeping. Best read of this type I've read for some time.
As complex as coding of this magnitude is, the author was able to bring even the least IT person to an understanding of what was happening. I read it over a period of 2 days in between working and sleeping. Best read of this type I've read for some time.
August 3, 2016
Code breaking
A brilliant book . If you like espionage and double dealing you will love this book. Enough twists and turns to keep you hooked.
A brilliant book . If you like espionage and double dealing you will love this book. Enough twists and turns to keep you hooked.
July 3, 2016
Great plot, but the book was not very deep.
January 24, 2017
Good
Much better than I thought it would be.
I don't know what else to say about this book.
But I will quit now.
Much better than I thought it would be.
I don't know what else to say about this book.
But I will quit now.
October 27, 2017
Good
I really liked this book, it was good. I reccomend it to anyone who enjoys tech and knows something about it.
I really liked this book, it was good. I reccomend it to anyone who enjoys tech and knows something about it.
June 23, 2017
This seemed like a book about a smart kid doing something really really dumb and someone else really really losing their mind over it - not quite the espionage thriller I was hoping for. Then one night I had to force myself to put it down because I realized I was on the edge of my seat totally anxious to find out what the next desperate act would be, and trying to remember whose turn it was to take revenge. I was actually hooked on the soap opera! ☺ Not sure the author would care to hear his book compared to a soap, but I was having fun reading and thats what matters. I liked the ending, even if it was a bit too clean and quick than I normally care for. I also liked a couple of the underlying themes, though I won't list them for fear of spoilers!
I read other reviews that mentioned mispellings and funky grammar, and it almost seemed like it was translated at times. It took a long time to get distracting for me though. I don't think it was a spectacular book but I did enjoy it, and I think the author has potential. I hope he writes again soon.
I read other reviews that mentioned mispellings and funky grammar, and it almost seemed like it was translated at times. It took a long time to get distracting for me though. I don't think it was a spectacular book but I did enjoy it, and I think the author has potential. I hope he writes again soon.
January 5, 2017
A solid first novel.
The good: The plot. I really enjoyed the storyline. Despite the book's problems, it kept moving and the book held my interest. I found myself thinking about the story while I was not reading it.
The bad: I felt that it was written for a mainstream audience. Conboy clearly knows a lot about coding it seemed he felt he had to "dumb it down". I felt that for this book's audience he could have given us some some cooler tech talk. The CIA came off as incompetent too - which I felt was realistic.
In closing: It's not Steinbeck, but I'll read his next book.
The good: The plot. I really enjoyed the storyline. Despite the book's problems, it kept moving and the book held my interest. I found myself thinking about the story while I was not reading it.
The bad: I felt that it was written for a mainstream audience. Conboy clearly knows a lot about coding it seemed he felt he had to "dumb it down". I felt that for this book's audience he could have given us some some cooler tech talk. The CIA came off as incompetent too - which I felt was realistic.
In closing: It's not Steinbeck, but I'll read his next book.
June 15, 2017
Entertaining, simple enough for non technical for non geeks. Few characters.
This is entertaining book. Easy to read. If you are a geek is intriguing. If you aren't hold up by the threads to the end. Finish is not that surprising but it keeps you wanting to read more to confirm it. I wish there was a bit more development at the end to elaborate a complex political and legal set of questions that the government and congress would obviously investigate. It offers too much of a simplistic end.
This is entertaining book. Easy to read. If you are a geek is intriguing. If you aren't hold up by the threads to the end. Finish is not that surprising but it keeps you wanting to read more to confirm it. I wish there was a bit more development at the end to elaborate a complex political and legal set of questions that the government and congress would obviously investigate. It offers too much of a simplistic end.
August 24, 2017
I wanted to love this book. I read it super fast. It's a great trashy novel quick page turner. If you can get back the lack of a good editor (misspellings, and sub par grammar) what you have is a pedestrian yet fun little read. No real surprises in the mix, but the right people get got, the good guys win, and there's some fun adventure along the way. Certainly won't test your intelligence or broaden your horizons, but if you are looking for a mindless little vacation read, this one passes the time. :)
June 24, 2017
This easy to read thriller is about a hacker who hacks into the CIA as a teenager. Little does he know that his sentence will take him down a path full of twist and turns. The story is broken up into about 4 parts where the game and stakes keep intensifying. It is a game of cat and mouse to see who will end up with the upper hand when the computer virus is used any a variety of different ways.
This was a great book to read while floating in the pool this summer.
This was a great book to read while floating in the pool this summer.
July 20, 2017
Family
Fantastic story! Exceptionally written with just the right amount of twist and turns to keep you reading to see what the characters do next. One mans anger and smug pride had so many devastating effect on so many lives. Dylan Charles has more loyalty for his family and others. We know who is the very best coder!
Fantastic story! Exceptionally written with just the right amount of twist and turns to keep you reading to see what the characters do next. One mans anger and smug pride had so many devastating effect on so many lives. Dylan Charles has more loyalty for his family and others. We know who is the very best coder!
October 2, 2017
While I wanted to like it, and I did manage to make it to the final page, the story has a lot of room for improvement. There are annoying things like pronoun mis-matches (references to his sons, then to his "girls") , a lack of detail around government workings, and some meandering plot lines (what was Patrick's role in all this?).
July 17, 2017
This book was boring and not (just) because I know next to nothing about coding or IT related topics. The story was slow, the characters dull and the conversations lame. I couldn't wait to finish it
August 30, 2017
This is probably a good book but is way to close to my actual work life so I didn't finish.
June 24, 2017
Horrible writing!
The story is interesting in a way, but poorly told.
Dialogues are the worst of it...
Further, there is no character you can root for.
I finished it, just to don't let it unfinished.
The story is interesting in a way, but poorly told.
Dialogues are the worst of it...
Further, there is no character you can root for.
I finished it, just to don't let it unfinished.
February 20, 2017
way too hard to believe, read about 30% and decided it wasnt for me
February 18, 2017
Boring with no depth and suspense at all...
July 14, 2018
This book was extremely difficult for me to slog through. One of the basic premises of the book is a young man hacks into the CIA servers, downloading a considerable amount of data. He is handed a sentence of 5 years community service to be served at the behest of the CIA. They magically don’t have him do one once of service until almost the end of this 5 year period when he’s about to make his successful tech company go public.
The author obviously has very little insight into how the American government, court systems and just about everything else works and apparently didn’t even do a modicum of research to get even basic facts correct. I read books as a means to “escape” reality, but this one asked me to suspend reality a little more than I could tolerate. If you don’t mind reading books that have a somewhat decent storyline with no basis in fact, this book is for you. Otherwise, I wouldn’t waste my time.
The author obviously has very little insight into how the American government, court systems and just about everything else works and apparently didn’t even do a modicum of research to get even basic facts correct. I read books as a means to “escape” reality, but this one asked me to suspend reality a little more than I could tolerate. If you don’t mind reading books that have a somewhat decent storyline with no basis in fact, this book is for you. Otherwise, I wouldn’t waste my time.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 30, 2016
I thought this was a good book
After negative reviews, I was skeptical, but since it was free I tried it. There are deceptions aplenty and I enjoyed the ending. The only real editing problem I saw was the word yeah is spelled "yea" which bugged me a little, although maybe that is a way to spell it. Overal, a good read
After negative reviews, I was skeptical, but since it was free I tried it. There are deceptions aplenty and I enjoyed the ending. The only real editing problem I saw was the word yeah is spelled "yea" which bugged me a little, although maybe that is a way to spell it. Overal, a good read
November 12, 2016
It seemed like an interesting story, but the writing needs help. If a professional editor worked with it, it would probably be a good read. As it's written, I couldn't get through it. Too spoiled by exceptional writers. Sorry.... keep writing....
Displaying 1 - 30 of 43 reviews