#Review: THE GOD'S EYE VIEW by Barry Eisler

5 of 5 stars

 In the post-Snowden era, the NSA survived the revealing of several sensitive programs, but the fact that their spying applications were made public, has meant they needed to do things different. Director Anders believes the best way to stop terrorist attacks is to know EVERYTHING. That's what the God's Eye program does. No one is untouchable and all is revealed, but what happens when one man believes any cost is worth protecting his precious program. This is the crux of "The God's Eye View." NSA analyst Evie Gallagher had designed a new camera network and facial recognition program and she does her job well, that is, until the day she sees something she's not supposed. Thus begins the game of cat and mouse, but which one is Evie?

"The God's Eye View" is a fast-paced thriller with lots of twists and turns throughout the story. The main characters, Anders, Gallagher and Manus were nicely fleshed out. The author let us in on their inner thinking and their flaws. Before Snowden had exposed the NSA, I would have thought this book was a bit far-fetched, but now, I think this fictional scenario could very well contain seeds of truth and is entirely plausible. That's what makes the book so good. I was riveted to it until the very last page. Highly recommended.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher for a fair and honest review.

Blurb:

In this intricately plotted thriller from bestseller Eisler (Graveyard of Memories), NSA analyst Evelyn Gallagher warns Theodore Anders, the NSA director, that her worldwide spy system has tagged a senior NSA official meeting in Istanbul with an investigative reporter—an indicator that a major security breach may be happening. But she unwisely expresses her suspicion to the Anders that the NSA seems to be proactive in the permanent removal of such persons, making herself a threat to his highly illegal God’s Eye program. Gallagher, a single mother supporting her deaf young son, Dash, now becomes the target of the director’s wet-work specialists, the sadistic Thomas Delgado and Marvin Manus, a deaf brute with a deadly skill set. But Manus finds himself bonding with Dash and then becomes attracted to Gallagher. When the two fall into a romantic entanglement, all hell breaks loose.

Amazon buy link:

http://www.amazon.com/Gods-Eye-View-Barry-Eisler-ebook/dp/B00XT47SOK/ref=twoen-20 

Author Bio:

Barry Eisler is the New York Times bestselling author of ten thrillers, including the #1 bestseller The Detachment. His two series, the first featuring anti-hero John Rain, a half-Japanese, half-American freelance assassin specializing in “natural causes,” and the second featuring black ops soldier Ben Treven, have received rave reviews, won numerous literary awards, hit various “Best of” lists, and have been translated into nearly twenty languages to date. The Matrix star Keanu Reeves is set to produce and star in Rain, a globe-trotting television series based on Eisler’s books and being developed by Cinemax.

Even as a child, Eisler was intrigued by what he describes as “forbidden knowledge—things the government doesn’t want the general public to know.” He earned a law degree from Cornell University in 1989 and worked in a covert position with the CIA for three years afterward, leaving to join the international law firm Weil, Gotshal & Manges. He then spent a year in Tokyo, earning his black belt at the Kodokan International Judo Center, following which he moved to Osaka to work on technology licensing matters at the headquarters of Panasonic. After returning to the San Francisco Bay Area, he left private legal practice to join a technology startup, and became a full-time writer in 2002.

Eisler’s latest book, THE GOD’S EYE VIEW, a stand-alone thriller about a government surveillance conspiracy ripped from today’s headlines—and tomorrow’s—will be published by Thomas & Mercer on February 2, 2016.

When Eisler’s not writing novels, he works with Human Rights First against torture, including lobbying on Capitol Hill. He also writes for publications like Freedom of the Press Foundation and Techdirt about torture, civil liberties, and the rule of law. He lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.

For more information, visit his website www.barryeisler.com. Follow him on Twitter: @barryeisler and Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/barryeisler.