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Breakpoint
When a sophisticated group of saboteurs launches a series of attacks designed to bring down the world's technological networks, a dedicated team of experts assembles to find out if the responsible individuals are right-wing militias, Jihadist terrorists, or representatives from enemy nation-states.
309 pages, Hardcover
First published January 16, 2007
28 people are currently reading
365 people want to read
About the author
Richard A. Clarke
30 books234 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.
Richard Alan Clarke was a U.S. government employee for 30 years, 1973–2003. He worked for the State Department during the presidency of Ronald Reagan. In 1992, President George H.W. Bush appointed him to chair the Counter-terrorism Security Group and to a seat on the United States National Security Council. President Bill Clinton retained Clarke and in 1998 promoted him to be the National Coordinator for Security, Infrastructure Protection, and Counter-terrorism, the chief counter-terrorism adviser on the National Security Council. Under President George W. Bush, Clarke initially continued in the same position, but the position was no longer given cabinet-level access. He later became the Special Advisor to the President on cybersecurity, before leaving the Bush Administration in 2003.
Clarke came to widespread public attention for his role as counter-terrorism czar in the Clinton and Bush Administrations in March 2004, when he appeared on the 60 Minutes television news magazine, released his memoir about his service in government, Against All Enemies, and testified before the 9/11 Commission. In all three instances, Clarke was sharply critical of the Bush Administration's attitude toward counter-terrorism before the 9/11 terrorist attacks, and of the decision to go to war with Iraq. Following Clarke's strong criticisms of the Bush Administration, Bush administration officials and other Republicans attempted to discredit him or rebut his criticisms, making Clarke a controversial figure.
Richard Alan Clarke was a U.S. government employee for 30 years, 1973–2003. He worked for the State Department during the presidency of Ronald Reagan. In 1992, President George H.W. Bush appointed him to chair the Counter-terrorism Security Group and to a seat on the United States National Security Council. President Bill Clinton retained Clarke and in 1998 promoted him to be the National Coordinator for Security, Infrastructure Protection, and Counter-terrorism, the chief counter-terrorism adviser on the National Security Council. Under President George W. Bush, Clarke initially continued in the same position, but the position was no longer given cabinet-level access. He later became the Special Advisor to the President on cybersecurity, before leaving the Bush Administration in 2003.
Clarke came to widespread public attention for his role as counter-terrorism czar in the Clinton and Bush Administrations in March 2004, when he appeared on the 60 Minutes television news magazine, released his memoir about his service in government, Against All Enemies, and testified before the 9/11 Commission. In all three instances, Clarke was sharply critical of the Bush Administration's attitude toward counter-terrorism before the 9/11 terrorist attacks, and of the decision to go to war with Iraq. Following Clarke's strong criticisms of the Bush Administration, Bush administration officials and other Republicans attempted to discredit him or rebut his criticisms, making Clarke a controversial figure.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 69 reviews
October 4, 2008
Clarke is at it again, using the novel as a way to tell tales he probably couldn’t get away with in non-fiction. The focus here is on the nation’s communications apparatus. Some nation or group has set about bombing the cables that connect the USA com-network with Europe. Several communications satellites have been hacked and redirected to places other than their usual geostationary orbits. Experts in data and communications and their facilities are being destroyed.
Is it the Chinese who are behind it? Could it be that some other entity is trying to remove the “global” from “global village?”
Illuminated by the dark goings-on there is much discussion of impending scientific advances, some of which could be anathema not only to America’s rivals but to groups within the country.
Clarke trots out familiar types for this educational enterprise of his. They are paper thin, which is ok. The book is competently written, if clearly done by a writer who is no lion in this particular savannah. It is the ideas that are important here, not the characters. It is a cautionary tale of what might be possible, told in an engaging manner by someone who knows a whole lot about the subject he covers.
And Clarke helpfully adds a section After his tale is told in which he identifies the contemporary basis for the notions explored by his futuristic scenario.
Clarke may be the best informed guy on the planet regarding his subject matter and he is worth reading for this alone. That he gets his information across in such an engaging manner is a large plus.
Notions here include “transhumanism” – a philosophy (p 44) that espouses using genomics, robotics, informatics, nanotech, new pharma…to change humanity into a new species.”
Globegrid – The Globegrid Project – a plan to merge the largest US supercomputer farms with ones in France, Russia and Japan to create one virtual machine.
“Living Software” is a huge program designed to write applications sans errors. This is a fantastic notion, used for literary effect, but there are elements of it that are interesting. The software is network based, of course, and asks every system with which it comes into contact if it would like to have a copy downloaded and installed. Once in, the system normalizes software to conform to the LS standard, making them error free. Twenty two years as a programmer inform my view that this is not bloody likely.
There is a place in which the characters view a real-time 3D model of data flow in the internet. Way cool.
Is it the Chinese who are behind it? Could it be that some other entity is trying to remove the “global” from “global village?”
Illuminated by the dark goings-on there is much discussion of impending scientific advances, some of which could be anathema not only to America’s rivals but to groups within the country.
Clarke trots out familiar types for this educational enterprise of his. They are paper thin, which is ok. The book is competently written, if clearly done by a writer who is no lion in this particular savannah. It is the ideas that are important here, not the characters. It is a cautionary tale of what might be possible, told in an engaging manner by someone who knows a whole lot about the subject he covers.
And Clarke helpfully adds a section After his tale is told in which he identifies the contemporary basis for the notions explored by his futuristic scenario.
Clarke may be the best informed guy on the planet regarding his subject matter and he is worth reading for this alone. That he gets his information across in such an engaging manner is a large plus.
Notions here include “transhumanism” – a philosophy (p 44) that espouses using genomics, robotics, informatics, nanotech, new pharma…to change humanity into a new species.”
Globegrid – The Globegrid Project – a plan to merge the largest US supercomputer farms with ones in France, Russia and Japan to create one virtual machine.
“Living Software” is a huge program designed to write applications sans errors. This is a fantastic notion, used for literary effect, but there are elements of it that are interesting. The software is network based, of course, and asks every system with which it comes into contact if it would like to have a copy downloaded and installed. Once in, the system normalizes software to conform to the LS standard, making them error free. Twenty two years as a programmer inform my view that this is not bloody likely.
There is a place in which the characters view a real-time 3D model of data flow in the internet. Way cool.
April 5, 2015
Cyber Security Blog: http://terebrate.blogspot.com/
twitter: @raceBannon99
Executive Summary: If you like Michael Crichton stories like “Jurassic Park” and “State of Fear,” you will like this book. It is not a must-read for cyber security professionals, but it is an entertaining story that you can hand to your family members, friends and bosses to illustrate what could be done in cyber space by a well-resourced adversary. Along the way, you will learn a little about the ethical issues, pro and con, surrounding the Transhumanist Movement – the avocation of using performance enhancement technology to influence human evolution – and you will enjoy a rollercoaster of a ride as the heroes attempt to determine who the bad guys are and how to stop them.
There is a lot to love in this novel. Richard Clark jams a boat-load of cutting edge cyber security ideas into this little Crichton-esque [1][2] political thriller. He wrote it in 2007 but set it in the near future of 2012 and when I say there is a boat-load of information, I am talking about yacht-sized, not dingy-sized. The bad guys in this novel execute most of the cyber fantasy attacks against the United States that any group of cyber security geeks (including myself) could conger up after a few beers sitting around a bar at the annual Blackhat [3] / DEFCON [4] conventions in Vegas (one of the settings in the boo). Clarke gives us bombings of US beach head routers on both coasts that reduce inbound and outbound internet traffic to just 10%, buffer overflow attacks against a communications satellite that sends it reeling out to space, SCADA attacks that blow up a research institution with a live nuclear reactor and a well-coordinated SCADA attack that takes out all power west of the Mississippi. Of course, in the novel, US government leadership, specifically the Intelligence Community (IC), thinks the Chinese are behind everything and they put all of their efforts into proving it.
All of these “fantasy” attacks are quite possible in the real world and the cyber security community has been talking about them for at least the last decade. Some experts believe that the Chinese government might execute something similar to these attacks in an effort to dissuade the US government from coming down on the wrong side of the “Taiwan” issue [5]. Clarke would know. Before he retired from government service, he served three different Presidents as the Special Assistant to the President for Global Affairs, the National Coordinator for Security and Counterterrorism and the Special Advisor to the President for Cyber Security [6]. The political theory behind these acts is something called Escalation Dominance [7]. It is the idea that China, or any government really, would launch some kind of attack against the US that would hurt the country in an effort to prove that they could launch a much larger attack that would really hurt if the US did something that China did not like. In the afterword to this novel, Clark said that it was easier to talk about these issues in a fictional form then it was to talk about them in dry, academic and political journals. I concur. They are much more exciting and frightening splashed across the fictional page.
The cyber ideas in this novel are not what the story is ultimately about however. They are just the means to an end. [SPOILER ALERT] It turns out that the bad guys are not the Chinese. The real bad guys are a group of people that are not too keen on something called the Transhumanist Movement: a philosophy that espouses using genomics, robotics, informatics, nanotech, and new-pharma to change humanity into a new species [8]. They are worried about the religious and moral implications of man being directly involved in deciding the next steps in human evolution and they have a billionaire benefactor who can fund their terrorist operations. His name is Will Gaudium. In the novel, Gaudium is one of the original Internet founding fathers and made his fortune with an internet startup. I believe though, that Clarke based Gaudium on a real world guy by the name of Bill Joy.
Bill Joy is really one of the Internet founding forefathers. He created vi, the original UNIX text editor [12]. He had a big hand in creating BSD UNIX [13], the precursor to LINUX and, for all intents and purposes, created the first working software implementing of the TCP-IP stack [13]. He went on to co-found Sun Microsystems; a company that built some of the most beautiful UNIX machines of the time [13]. And then, out of nowhere, he wrote an article for Wired Magazine decrying the Transhumanist Movement [9]. To have somebody of that stature, a legend really, come out against the advancements of science made the entire scientific community pause for a beat. Some were comparing his manifesto to Albert Einstein’s letter to President Eisenhower that argued against the use of nuclear weapons [13]. If somebody like Bill Joy says that we need to think a bit before we go forward with transhumanism, then maybe we better do it. I may be wrong, but the resemblance between the real-world Bill Joy and the fictional Will Gaudium is unmistakable.
Clarke’s story races across 10 days in March of 2012 as our heroes, Susan Connor – an agent for the Intelligence Analysis Center (IAC) – and Jim Foley – an ex-marine on loan to the IAC from the NYPD, try to out-think the US Intelligence Apparatus and Law Enforcement community and track down the real culprits behind the Internet attacks. Critics have taken Clarke to task for his wooden characters in the story, but I found that not to be true. I liked his portrayal of the misguided internet billionaire especially and I liked the way he portrays New York and Boston cops. And I really appreciated that he did not try to establish some sort of romantic relationship between Foley and Connor. Foley is a little flat as a character, but I am OK with that.
The bottom line here is that this is book is a fun political thriller that gets the cyber security stuff right. I recommend it.
Sources
[1] Michael Crichton is probably best known for writing the novel, “Jurassic Park,” but during his lifetime, he wrote many near-future books that took a new technological idea into the near future to see what would happen. Books like “State of Fear,” “Prey,” “Timeline,” “Airframe,” and “Disclosure,” were some of my favorites.
[2] “Michael Crichton: The Official Site,” Last Visited: 1 January 2013,
http://www.michaelcrichton.net/
[3] “blackhat USA 2103,” Last Visited: 1 January 2013,
http://www.blackhat.com/us-13/
[4] “DEFCON,” Last Visited: 1 January 2013,
https://www.defcon.org/
[5] “China and Taiwan’s Running Dispute,” The Real Clear Politics Blog, 8 March 2007, Last Visited: 1 January 2013,
http://realclearpolitics.blogs.time.c...
[6] “Bio: Richard A. Clarke,” Cyber War by Richard A. Clarke and Robert K. Knake, Last Visited: 1 January 2013,
http://www.richardaclarke.net/bio.php
[7] “Navigating the Taiwan Strait: Deterrence, Escalation Dominance, and US-China” by Robert Ross, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, Fall of 2002, Last Visited: 1 January 2013,
http://belfercenter.ksg.harvard.edu/p...
[8] “United Nations Envisions Transhumanist Future where Man is Obsolete,” by Aaron Dykes, Infowars.com, 10 June 2012, Last Visited: 1 January 2013,
http://www.infowars.com/united-nation...
[9] “Why the Future Doesn’t Need Us,” by Bill Joy, Wired Magazine, April 2000, Last Visited: 1 January 2013,
http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/8....
[10] “The Joy of Programming,” by Andy Ross, AndyRoss.net, Last Visited: 1 January 2013,
http://www.andyross.net/bill_joy.htm
[11] “Bill Joy, ‘Outliers-The Story of Success’, ‘The Dream of a Lifetime’, and No MTS Charges?” Michigan Terminal Archive System, Last Visited: 1 January 2013,
http://archive.michigan-terminal-syst...
[12] “Bill Joy’s Greatest Gift to Man – the vi Editor,” by Ashlee Vance, the Register, 11 September 2003, Last Visited: 1 January 2013,
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2003/09/...
[13] “BSD UNIX: Power to the People, from the Code,” by Andrew Leonard, Salon Magazine, 16 May 2000, Last Visited: 1 January 2013,
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2003/09/...
[14] “Hope is a Lousy Defense,” by Spencer Reiss, Wired Magazine, 11 December 2004, Last Visited: 1 January 2013,
http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/11...
twitter: @raceBannon99
Executive Summary: If you like Michael Crichton stories like “Jurassic Park” and “State of Fear,” you will like this book. It is not a must-read for cyber security professionals, but it is an entertaining story that you can hand to your family members, friends and bosses to illustrate what could be done in cyber space by a well-resourced adversary. Along the way, you will learn a little about the ethical issues, pro and con, surrounding the Transhumanist Movement – the avocation of using performance enhancement technology to influence human evolution – and you will enjoy a rollercoaster of a ride as the heroes attempt to determine who the bad guys are and how to stop them.
There is a lot to love in this novel. Richard Clark jams a boat-load of cutting edge cyber security ideas into this little Crichton-esque [1][2] political thriller. He wrote it in 2007 but set it in the near future of 2012 and when I say there is a boat-load of information, I am talking about yacht-sized, not dingy-sized. The bad guys in this novel execute most of the cyber fantasy attacks against the United States that any group of cyber security geeks (including myself) could conger up after a few beers sitting around a bar at the annual Blackhat [3] / DEFCON [4] conventions in Vegas (one of the settings in the boo). Clarke gives us bombings of US beach head routers on both coasts that reduce inbound and outbound internet traffic to just 10%, buffer overflow attacks against a communications satellite that sends it reeling out to space, SCADA attacks that blow up a research institution with a live nuclear reactor and a well-coordinated SCADA attack that takes out all power west of the Mississippi. Of course, in the novel, US government leadership, specifically the Intelligence Community (IC), thinks the Chinese are behind everything and they put all of their efforts into proving it.
All of these “fantasy” attacks are quite possible in the real world and the cyber security community has been talking about them for at least the last decade. Some experts believe that the Chinese government might execute something similar to these attacks in an effort to dissuade the US government from coming down on the wrong side of the “Taiwan” issue [5]. Clarke would know. Before he retired from government service, he served three different Presidents as the Special Assistant to the President for Global Affairs, the National Coordinator for Security and Counterterrorism and the Special Advisor to the President for Cyber Security [6]. The political theory behind these acts is something called Escalation Dominance [7]. It is the idea that China, or any government really, would launch some kind of attack against the US that would hurt the country in an effort to prove that they could launch a much larger attack that would really hurt if the US did something that China did not like. In the afterword to this novel, Clark said that it was easier to talk about these issues in a fictional form then it was to talk about them in dry, academic and political journals. I concur. They are much more exciting and frightening splashed across the fictional page.
The cyber ideas in this novel are not what the story is ultimately about however. They are just the means to an end. [SPOILER ALERT] It turns out that the bad guys are not the Chinese. The real bad guys are a group of people that are not too keen on something called the Transhumanist Movement: a philosophy that espouses using genomics, robotics, informatics, nanotech, and new-pharma to change humanity into a new species [8]. They are worried about the religious and moral implications of man being directly involved in deciding the next steps in human evolution and they have a billionaire benefactor who can fund their terrorist operations. His name is Will Gaudium. In the novel, Gaudium is one of the original Internet founding fathers and made his fortune with an internet startup. I believe though, that Clarke based Gaudium on a real world guy by the name of Bill Joy.
Bill Joy is really one of the Internet founding forefathers. He created vi, the original UNIX text editor [12]. He had a big hand in creating BSD UNIX [13], the precursor to LINUX and, for all intents and purposes, created the first working software implementing of the TCP-IP stack [13]. He went on to co-found Sun Microsystems; a company that built some of the most beautiful UNIX machines of the time [13]. And then, out of nowhere, he wrote an article for Wired Magazine decrying the Transhumanist Movement [9]. To have somebody of that stature, a legend really, come out against the advancements of science made the entire scientific community pause for a beat. Some were comparing his manifesto to Albert Einstein’s letter to President Eisenhower that argued against the use of nuclear weapons [13]. If somebody like Bill Joy says that we need to think a bit before we go forward with transhumanism, then maybe we better do it. I may be wrong, but the resemblance between the real-world Bill Joy and the fictional Will Gaudium is unmistakable.
Clarke’s story races across 10 days in March of 2012 as our heroes, Susan Connor – an agent for the Intelligence Analysis Center (IAC) – and Jim Foley – an ex-marine on loan to the IAC from the NYPD, try to out-think the US Intelligence Apparatus and Law Enforcement community and track down the real culprits behind the Internet attacks. Critics have taken Clarke to task for his wooden characters in the story, but I found that not to be true. I liked his portrayal of the misguided internet billionaire especially and I liked the way he portrays New York and Boston cops. And I really appreciated that he did not try to establish some sort of romantic relationship between Foley and Connor. Foley is a little flat as a character, but I am OK with that.
The bottom line here is that this is book is a fun political thriller that gets the cyber security stuff right. I recommend it.
Sources
[1] Michael Crichton is probably best known for writing the novel, “Jurassic Park,” but during his lifetime, he wrote many near-future books that took a new technological idea into the near future to see what would happen. Books like “State of Fear,” “Prey,” “Timeline,” “Airframe,” and “Disclosure,” were some of my favorites.
[2] “Michael Crichton: The Official Site,” Last Visited: 1 January 2013,
http://www.michaelcrichton.net/
[3] “blackhat USA 2103,” Last Visited: 1 January 2013,
http://www.blackhat.com/us-13/
[4] “DEFCON,” Last Visited: 1 January 2013,
https://www.defcon.org/
[5] “China and Taiwan’s Running Dispute,” The Real Clear Politics Blog, 8 March 2007, Last Visited: 1 January 2013,
http://realclearpolitics.blogs.time.c...
[6] “Bio: Richard A. Clarke,” Cyber War by Richard A. Clarke and Robert K. Knake, Last Visited: 1 January 2013,
http://www.richardaclarke.net/bio.php
[7] “Navigating the Taiwan Strait: Deterrence, Escalation Dominance, and US-China” by Robert Ross, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, Fall of 2002, Last Visited: 1 January 2013,
http://belfercenter.ksg.harvard.edu/p...
[8] “United Nations Envisions Transhumanist Future where Man is Obsolete,” by Aaron Dykes, Infowars.com, 10 June 2012, Last Visited: 1 January 2013,
http://www.infowars.com/united-nation...
[9] “Why the Future Doesn’t Need Us,” by Bill Joy, Wired Magazine, April 2000, Last Visited: 1 January 2013,
http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/8....
[10] “The Joy of Programming,” by Andy Ross, AndyRoss.net, Last Visited: 1 January 2013,
http://www.andyross.net/bill_joy.htm
[11] “Bill Joy, ‘Outliers-The Story of Success’, ‘The Dream of a Lifetime’, and No MTS Charges?” Michigan Terminal Archive System, Last Visited: 1 January 2013,
http://archive.michigan-terminal-syst...
[12] “Bill Joy’s Greatest Gift to Man – the vi Editor,” by Ashlee Vance, the Register, 11 September 2003, Last Visited: 1 January 2013,
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2003/09/...
[13] “BSD UNIX: Power to the People, from the Code,” by Andrew Leonard, Salon Magazine, 16 May 2000, Last Visited: 1 January 2013,
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2003/09/...
[14] “Hope is a Lousy Defense,” by Spencer Reiss, Wired Magazine, 11 December 2004, Last Visited: 1 January 2013,
http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/11...
September 12, 2007
The writing/plot didn't especially grab me, but it was interesting to think about how "out of touch" and "in the dark" (literally) we'd all be if our globally intertwined technology was disconnected by a group, an individual, or agents of a nation-state, for whatever reason - terrorism, competition, fear, or just to prove it could be done. Written by the former Special Adviser to the President for Cyberspace Security (among several federal posts), Clarke adds a few notes about existing and emerging technology featured in the novel - and, as he says, "Sometimes you can tell more truth through fiction."
August 31, 2008
President Bush’s former counter terrorism chief, Richard Clarke wrote this spy thriller. Found it intriguing to read a fictional story about terrorism written by someone who was inside and at the top of U.S. counter terrorism. How much is pure invention, and how much reality-based observation?
November 18, 2012
This book will scare the bejeezus out of you considering the cv of the writer.
June 18, 2025
Esta leitura foi um verdadeiro desafio. Apesar de um início promissor — e até meio humorístico, com personagens como o subsecretário Clyde Fetherwill —, a narrativa rapidamente se torna densa, repleta de termos técnicos que me fizeram sentir mais perdida do que envolvida. Embora o autor tenha incluído um glossário no final, teria feito toda a diferença ter esse apoio ao longo do livro ou pelo menos uma indicação durante a leitura.
A escrita em si não é difícil, mas o conteúdo exige bastante, especialmente para quem não domina o vocabulário técnico da área da tecnologia. O ritmo melhora na reta final, onde a leitura se torna mais acessível e menos sobrecarregada de conceitos.
Outro ponto que me deixou confusa foi o suposto “romance” — mencionado em sinopses e categorias — que simplesmente… não encontrei. Talvez tenha sido subtil demais, ou apenas inexistente.
Ainda assim, reconheço o mérito do livro: levanta questões importantes sobre o avanço tecnológico, a ética no desenvolvimento de softwares e as desigualdades sociais que podem ser agravadas pela tecnologia. As conversas entre Gaudium e Soxster foram das poucas partes que realmente me prenderam — com visões diferentes, mas igualmente válidas.
O Soxster é sem dúvida a minha personagem favorita, ele cria dinâmica na leitura e torna-a menos aborrecida, porque realmente é um geek da informática, mas comunica as suas mensagens de forma clara e com sentido de humor. Sem ele, o livro teria sido bem mais difícil de digerir.
Para quem é da área da tecnologia, o livro pode ser mais apreciado — há referências a filmes como Matrix e piadas escondidas que só quem entende do assunto percebe. Para o leitor comum, pode tornar-se uma leitura densa e, por vezes, frustrante.
Uma leitura interessante em teoria, mas com uma execução que teria beneficiado de mais equilíbrio entre profundidade técnica e acessibilidade narrativa.
A escrita em si não é difícil, mas o conteúdo exige bastante, especialmente para quem não domina o vocabulário técnico da área da tecnologia. O ritmo melhora na reta final, onde a leitura se torna mais acessível e menos sobrecarregada de conceitos.
Outro ponto que me deixou confusa foi o suposto “romance” — mencionado em sinopses e categorias — que simplesmente… não encontrei. Talvez tenha sido subtil demais, ou apenas inexistente.
Ainda assim, reconheço o mérito do livro: levanta questões importantes sobre o avanço tecnológico, a ética no desenvolvimento de softwares e as desigualdades sociais que podem ser agravadas pela tecnologia. As conversas entre Gaudium e Soxster foram das poucas partes que realmente me prenderam — com visões diferentes, mas igualmente válidas.
O Soxster é sem dúvida a minha personagem favorita, ele cria dinâmica na leitura e torna-a menos aborrecida, porque realmente é um geek da informática, mas comunica as suas mensagens de forma clara e com sentido de humor. Sem ele, o livro teria sido bem mais difícil de digerir.
Para quem é da área da tecnologia, o livro pode ser mais apreciado — há referências a filmes como Matrix e piadas escondidas que só quem entende do assunto percebe. Para o leitor comum, pode tornar-se uma leitura densa e, por vezes, frustrante.
Uma leitura interessante em teoria, mas com uma execução que teria beneficiado de mais equilíbrio entre profundidade técnica e acessibilidade narrativa.
December 1, 2020
Fiction With A Point
Written by Mandi Scott Chestler on June 25th, 2009
Book Rating: 4/5
Counterterrorism expert Richard A. Clarke's 2nd fictional thriller provides a chilling wake-up call. This guy knows what he is talking about when it comes to our nation's vulnerabilities to rouge terrorists, and exactly what these weaknesses entail will surely surprise even the most savvy reader/listener. As a relatively new author of fiction, Clarke needs some practice with dialogue and character development, but the fast-paced plot and the factual information he provides about national security more than makes up for any awkwardness as he hones his artistic skill.
Written by Mandi Scott Chestler on June 25th, 2009
Book Rating: 4/5
Counterterrorism expert Richard A. Clarke's 2nd fictional thriller provides a chilling wake-up call. This guy knows what he is talking about when it comes to our nation's vulnerabilities to rouge terrorists, and exactly what these weaknesses entail will surely surprise even the most savvy reader/listener. As a relatively new author of fiction, Clarke needs some practice with dialogue and character development, but the fast-paced plot and the factual information he provides about national security more than makes up for any awkwardness as he hones his artistic skill.
May 24, 2021
As others have reviewed, not well-written as a thriller. 2* readability as a thriller. But it is a pretty quick read so his ability as a fiction writer is not a huge issue. More important, Clarke has informed us on the last page that he can only get away with telling us about developments in technology in fictional form. He is informing us that debates about man vs. machine should no longer be put off to some distant point in the future because the future has arrived. 4* informational value.
September 29, 2025
It's always interesting to read SciFi of the near future. For a book that was published in 2007, the author took a big gamble on placing his story just 5 years in the future. Now that 2012 is far behind us, we can readily see where his predictions missed the target. Nevertheless, the story raises some concerns that are relevant today.
June 23, 2018
While Richard Clarke is a fiction writer, he accurately shows what our future technology advances may hold. A good read, although some sections were a bit wordy with descriptions that did not add to the narrative.
August 1, 2018
Facinating thriller about the convergence of different scinece disciplines that will result in superhumans. Transhumanists play a big role. Trio of Fed, NYPD, and hacker save the day.
June 26, 2019
Got through most of it and then realized that I just don’t care. Too technical and not enough character development. A guys book.
August 2, 2019
Good and entertaining cyberwarfare techno-thriller
September 14, 2019
Interesting science fiction, light.
April 17, 2020
Thrilling
May 2, 2024
3.5, a little far fetched, but fun and short on audio
April 25, 2008
The last sentence of this book speaks volumes: "Sometimes you can tell more truth through fiction."
The basic point is this: Our technological infrastructure is woefully underprotected, and a terrorist organization with enough resources would be able to bring not only our country, but the world itself, to its knees with a few well-placed explosives and a series of ones and zeroes.
While reading this book it becomes clear that the author, former counterterrorism czar Richard A. Clarke, is not so much trying to entertain us, as he is trying to warn us. While the story is decent, it is as if Clarke built the story around the underlying warning, like scaffolding around a building. As a result, the plot line is somewhat thin, and the ending anti-climactic. Character development is almost non-existent. Susan Connor and Jimmy Foley are likeable, but we never really seem to get to know them on a personal level. Indeed, any exploration into their personal lives (e.g. upbringing, ideology, motivation, personal relationships, etc.) is stunted and almost entirely peripheral.
Clarke is a competant writer, but he is at his best when discussing the technical aspects of the threat. Had this been a collaborative effort with a more seasoned author, one more adept at storytelling (a Clancy, for example), this could have been a truly enticing and frightening book. As it stands, it is enjoyable, but nothing terribly special.
The basic point is this: Our technological infrastructure is woefully underprotected, and a terrorist organization with enough resources would be able to bring not only our country, but the world itself, to its knees with a few well-placed explosives and a series of ones and zeroes.
While reading this book it becomes clear that the author, former counterterrorism czar Richard A. Clarke, is not so much trying to entertain us, as he is trying to warn us. While the story is decent, it is as if Clarke built the story around the underlying warning, like scaffolding around a building. As a result, the plot line is somewhat thin, and the ending anti-climactic. Character development is almost non-existent. Susan Connor and Jimmy Foley are likeable, but we never really seem to get to know them on a personal level. Indeed, any exploration into their personal lives (e.g. upbringing, ideology, motivation, personal relationships, etc.) is stunted and almost entirely peripheral.
Clarke is a competant writer, but he is at his best when discussing the technical aspects of the threat. Had this been a collaborative effort with a more seasoned author, one more adept at storytelling (a Clancy, for example), this could have been a truly enticing and frightening book. As it stands, it is enjoyable, but nothing terribly special.
May 20, 2007
Richard Clarke's strong spot is espionage pulp fiction, and it shows here. He makes a valiant attempt to paint a picture of what a coordinated attack on America's network infrastructure would look like, and he does a fairly good job of staying accurate with terminology. But it all comes across a little too simplistically, with frequent attempts at "geek culture" that don't translate well, and a poor excuse at a "gotcha" surprise ending.
If you enjoyed The Scorpion's Gate, you might enjoy this too. That's why I read it. But if you're a geek, you may feel like a fish gasping for water; I walked away promising not to read another Richard Clarke fiction. I felt I needed to re-read a Charles Stross hardcover to get the taste back.
This book's saving grace is that, at just under 300 pages and with college-style line spacing, it's a quick read. You won't lose a lot of time if you try it.
If you enjoyed The Scorpion's Gate, you might enjoy this too. That's why I read it. But if you're a geek, you may feel like a fish gasping for water; I walked away promising not to read another Richard Clarke fiction. I felt I needed to re-read a Charles Stross hardcover to get the taste back.
This book's saving grace is that, at just under 300 pages and with college-style line spacing, it's a quick read. You won't lose a lot of time if you try it.
September 7, 2007
Breakpoint is another warning about the high voltage danger to our communication networks illustrated in my novel PeaceMaker. Both novels, set in 2012, warn of the vulnerabilities of our computer-linked societies. Disrupt these networks and society crumbles. The equation is simple: Technology + Terrorism = Destruction.
The strength of Breakpoint is Richard Clarke's insider knowledge of the federal government's alphabet agencies. As a high-level pro in the Clinton and both Bush administrations, he understands how things work (or don't, as the case may be). Clarke also has a generally good handle on advanced technologies, although the idea of Living Software --- an intelligent operating system that can construct defect-free code to solve any problem --- is unrealistic.
If you are looking for well-rounded characters that strike a chord, Breakpoint is not for you. But if you're interested in an exciting techno-thriller with a dramatic portrayal of our high-tech society's increasing vulnerability to terrorism, strap this one on.
The strength of Breakpoint is Richard Clarke's insider knowledge of the federal government's alphabet agencies. As a high-level pro in the Clinton and both Bush administrations, he understands how things work (or don't, as the case may be). Clarke also has a generally good handle on advanced technologies, although the idea of Living Software --- an intelligent operating system that can construct defect-free code to solve any problem --- is unrealistic.
If you are looking for well-rounded characters that strike a chord, Breakpoint is not for you. But if you're interested in an exciting techno-thriller with a dramatic portrayal of our high-tech society's increasing vulnerability to terrorism, strap this one on.
October 8, 2007
This work of near-future fiction by the former "Anti-Terrorism Czar" looks at the investigation of a series of terrorist attacks on the United States centered on internet and other computer infrastructure. Examined in a cursory manner are issues regarding performance-enhancing pharmaceuticals used, for example, by police or soldiers; genetic enhancements; reverse engineering of the human brain; artificial intelligence; and others.
I'm not sure if the techies out there would enjoy this book. It has a Tom Clancy-light feel. I just don't know if Clarke's setting forth of the technology and issues is enough to satisfy the true techies. It also may bother some that Clarke doesn't necessarily take a side.
All told it was an enjoyable, quick read. The plot was enough to keep my interest even though the characters didn't move me. It was worth my time.
I'm not sure if the techies out there would enjoy this book. It has a Tom Clancy-light feel. I just don't know if Clarke's setting forth of the technology and issues is enough to satisfy the true techies. It also may bother some that Clarke doesn't necessarily take a side.
All told it was an enjoyable, quick read. The plot was enough to keep my interest even though the characters didn't move me. It was worth my time.
October 31, 2016
"In Against All Enemies, Richard Clarke warned about how we were conducting the war against terror. In his bestselling first novel, The Scorpion's Gate, he demonstrated what could happen. And now, in Breakpoint, America's preeminent counterterrorism expert and #1 bestselling author shows us all what might come next.
The global village--an intricately intertwined network of technology that binds together the world's economies, governments, and communication systems. So large, so vital--and so fragile. Now a sophisticated group is seeking to ""disconnect the globe""--destroying computer grids, communications satellites, Internet cable centers, biotech firms. Hard to do? If only that were so.
Quickly, a dedicated team of men and women assembles to try to track the group down, searching through right-wing militias and Russian organized crime, Jihadist terrorists and enemy nation-states. But the attacks are coming more swiftly now, and growing in destructiveness. Soon, they will reach the breakpoint--and then there may be nothing anybody can do."
The global village--an intricately intertwined network of technology that binds together the world's economies, governments, and communication systems. So large, so vital--and so fragile. Now a sophisticated group is seeking to ""disconnect the globe""--destroying computer grids, communications satellites, Internet cable centers, biotech firms. Hard to do? If only that were so.
Quickly, a dedicated team of men and women assembles to try to track the group down, searching through right-wing militias and Russian organized crime, Jihadist terrorists and enemy nation-states. But the attacks are coming more swiftly now, and growing in destructiveness. Soon, they will reach the breakpoint--and then there may be nothing anybody can do."
Read
January 17, 2009Richard Clarke's Breakpoint is a thriller of bizarre proportions. Reading it on the heels of Michael Crichton's Next makes me feel that perhaps there certain fairly interesting ideas out there that makes the future full of interesting possibilities. It is one of the more entertaining books I've read this year. I recommend it.
Richard Clarke is another person whose material contributions to the country have been completely obliterated by the politics of vicious ripping and staunch defending of the Bush Administration. As I parse back through a large number of unfinished posts, this pattern is emerging - details that have become politically insignificant as the MSM, opposition, loyalists and blogosphere move their debates to new ground.
These days Petraeus is about to become another symbolic goat or hero in the same way. I am rather ashamed at how juvenile our democracy can become.
Richard Clarke is another person whose material contributions to the country have been completely obliterated by the politics of vicious ripping and staunch defending of the Bush Administration. As I parse back through a large number of unfinished posts, this pattern is emerging - details that have become politically insignificant as the MSM, opposition, loyalists and blogosphere move their debates to new ground.
These days Petraeus is about to become another symbolic goat or hero in the same way. I am rather ashamed at how juvenile our democracy can become.
October 2, 2010
Richard Clarke has doe it again - created a novel of fiction with such a believable story line that it can only be called "real fiction." Much of the technology presented in this book seems beyond belief but within the reach of science. The basis of the story in that how vulnerable this technology is is scary to say the least. It will surely open your eyes to see how close we are to our technology and how a few smart hackers could bring it all down.
July 16, 2011
Really a 4+ for me. I have read all of Clarke's books since 9-11. Breakpoint is fictional but filled with implications of where rapid increases in technology, man-machine connections, genome study, weapons design, and international relations and competition may be taking our world and, esp., the USA. I have listened to this book before but it's better this time around. I picked it up to re-listen just after I listened to Clarke's Your Country Failed You.
More to come. . . .
More to come. . . .
May 14, 2018
The book just took me over for a few nights, even though I've read it before. I can no longer be sure if the plot points I remember are from the book, or from recent news.
I'm pleased that this former government agent and White House insider has found a way to share with us what he knows.
Written in 2007, I'd guess even more horrible exploits are currently happening. Still it's always good to make sure you understand this stuff.
I'm pleased that this former government agent and White House insider has found a way to share with us what he knows.
Written in 2007, I'd guess even more horrible exploits are currently happening. Still it's always good to make sure you understand this stuff.
January 2, 2020
One of the few books that i simply couldn't finish. I kept falling asleep so for some it might be a good thing to have on your night stand.
The author seems to know what he's writing about but to me it felt like pages upon pages of acronyms and name drops, and boring technological language that may all be very interesting for someone who knows about all that stuff. I think this is more a book for tech-savvy people and not really one for lovers of cozy mysteries.
The author seems to know what he's writing about but to me it felt like pages upon pages of acronyms and name drops, and boring technological language that may all be very interesting for someone who knows about all that stuff. I think this is more a book for tech-savvy people and not really one for lovers of cozy mysteries.
December 8, 2008
Kind of hard to follow, but the premise is we have reached a point where technology and biology co-mingle. It's amazing to realize how far along we are in the process we are and to think about where we might be heading. Clarke has the ability to make you realize how the future isn't that far away and really makes you think about the direction we are headed as a society.
September 26, 2009
Richard Clarke used to be a the counter-terrorism chief of the National Security Council so any book written by him on terrorism is going to be different from most writers. In Breakpoint he extrapolates from current technology trends to outline what could happen to America. It's a mixture of optimism and pessimism at 100 miles an hour.
January 13, 2016
Wow, talk about science fiction? The technology and biotechnology imagined in this book seem believable and alarming! I hope they are not actual products, and the terrorist actions against our infrastructure are VERY troublesome - I hope we have safeguards in place in the event someone attempts to implement them!
January 1, 2012
This novel is set in 2010. It is about cyberterrorism. A group of terrorists blows up the transatlantic cable between the US and Europe, sends major communications satellites spinning off into space and shuts down the electric grid throughout the western US. A pair of CIA operatives, along with a hacker they recruit try to track down who the bad guys are, and bring them to justice.
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