God of the Internet

Mahaz Al-Dossari is a UCLA professor who is exceptionally skilled in computer network security, so when a cyber attack comes from the Middle East, he is the natural one for the Feds to turn to for help. Originally from Saudi, Mahaz has settled in the U.S., married a beautiful woman Julianna, with whom he has two teenage kids. Julianna works for him at UCLA in a program that is mostly funded by the Saudi King. The first cyber attack, which came from a figure who called himself “God_of_Internet,” shuts down the water supply to all of LA for a couple days, and a second attack cuts all the power supplies. The city is a mess. Then, the third attack is against the financial institutions. The demands of the terrorists – pull all U.S. forces out of all Muslim countries.

The author, Lynn Lipinski, created interesting characters, especially Julianna and Mahaz, and the cyber attacks are well explained and are very believable. The ancillary characters helped support the story lines. However, the plot was too easy to predict. It was no surprise when Mahaz was revealed to be the creator of the cyber attack. While the ending to the story may have been a surprise to Mahaz, it was not a surprise to this reader. This was a quick read, and it had good entertainment value, but ultimately, it did not really grab me enough to give it a high recommendation.