Turing's Delirium
Edmundo Paz Soldan
2007
West of today, Bolivia is in turmoil caused by zealous privatization and inequality. The government of ex-dictator and president Montenegro struggles to hold on to power against a coalition of unionists and indigenous people. The government's secretive Black Chamber department is called into action to track down crackers who attack their systems. Expatriate Ramirez-Graham is the recent head of this department, after the previous head, Albert, suffers a breakdown. Miguel Saenz was Albert's favorite cryptologist, but Ramirez-Graham has moved him to manage the archives. Deprived of his purpose and his mentor, Miguel drifts through life, unaware that his wife Ruth has been collecting evidence of his activities with the former regime, and that his daughter Flavia is flirting with danger. Unknown to them, former judge Cardano is looking to avenge the murder of his friend by government agents.
This is a carefully written novel, transplanting the recent history of Bolivia to a plausible and not too distant future, where the effects of the privatization of public assets on poorer citizens are played out. However, the cyber elements are minimal and conventional, and Albert's recitation of the history of cyptography is tedious. Once you read past the introductory chapters and know which parts to overlook, the novel is reasonably engrossing as each character finds their goal.
3 out of 5 stars.
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