First published 1986
Case was once a master of cyberspace until his nervous system was damaged, cutting him off from the digital realm that defined his existence. Now he survives as a small-time hustler in the neon-soaked underworld of Chiba City. When a mysterious employer offers to repair his damaged nerves in exchange for one final job, Case cannot refuse. The mission seems impossible: penetrate the most heavily protected computer system in the solar system and extract a single security code. Case must navigate deadly ice programs, corporate assassins, and his own fragmented psyche as he jacks back into the matrix he thought he had lost forever. But this heist will demand more than technical skill. Case discovers that his employers have their own agenda, one that could reshape the nature of artificial intelligence itself. The job becomes a race against time through cyberspace, where the line between human consciousness and digital reality dissolves completely.
Genres: science-fiction, adventure, thriller, cyberpunk
Vibes: dark, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, heist
Setting: Chiba City
Period: Future
288 pages · Library Binding · Turtleback Books