2054: A Novel

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From the acclaimed authors of the runaway New York Times bestseller 2034 comes an explosive work of speculative fiction set twenty years further in the future, at a moment when a radical leap forward in artificial intelligence combines with America's violent partisan divide to create an existential threat to the country - and the world From the acclaimed authors of the runaway New York Times bestseller 2034 comes another explosive work of speculative fiction set twenty years further in the future, at a moment when a radical leap forward in artificial intelligence combines with America's violent partisan divide to create an existential threat to the country - and the world It is twenty years after the catastrophic war between the US and China that brought down the old American political order. A new party has emerged in the US, one that's held power for over a decade. Efforts to tighten its grip have resulted in mounting violent resistance. The American president has control of the media, but he is beginning to lose control of the streets. Many fear he'll stop at nothing to remain in the White House. Suddenly, he collapses in the middle of an address to the nation. After an initial flurry of misinformation, the administration reluctantly announces his death. A cover-up ensues, conspiracy theories abound, and the country descends into a new type of civil war. A handful of elite actors from the worlds of computer science, intelligence and business have a fairly good idea what happened. All signs point to a profound breakthrough in AI, of which the remote assassination of an American president is hardly the most game-changing ramification. The trail leads to an outpost in the Amazon rainforest, the last known whereabouts of the tech visionary who predicted this breakthrough. As some of the world's great powers, old and new, state and non-state alike, struggle to outmanoeuvre one another in this new Great Game of scientific discovery, the outcome becomes entangled with the fate of democracy. Combining a deep understanding of AI, biotech and the possibility of a coming Singularity, along with their signature geopolitical sophistication, Elliot Ackerman and Admiral James Stavridis have once again written a visionary work. 2054 is a novel that reads like a thriller even as it demands that we consider the trajectory of our society and its potentially calamitous destination.

Reviews

This kind of fiction can induce a kind of sublime awe at the complexity of the global networks in which were enmeshed . . . 2034 and 2054 are near-future tales, extrapolating from the present to a carefully imagined next five minutes, designed to elicit a little spark of recognition, the feeling of being shown a possible path from here to a utopian or dystopian there -- Hari Kunzru * New York Times *
This book tells us more about the present than the future, it does so with dry wit, and offers philosophical insights into our relationship with technology . . . a satisfying combination of two very different things: chilling vision of things to come and page-turning beach-read -- Jake Kerridge * Daily Telegraph *
As well as being a pacy, gripping page-turner of a thriller, 2054 has the advantage of being written by two men who have seen the future, and have thought profoundly about it. It would make a sensational sci-fi movie, with powerful modern-day overtones. Dont venture into the future without having read this book -- Andrew Roberts
2054 is a compelling, terrifying and totally plausible thriller of future world history and calamity not so far away crafted into a sophisticated geopolitical narrative superbly handled by this unique partnership of retired admiral/NATO supremo, and a prize-winning literary writer of beautiful novels who also happens to be a decorated Marine who served in Iraq and Afghanistan. Excellent and a worthy sequel of their thriller 2034 -- Simon Sebag Montefiore, author of The World: A Family History
In 2054, the US President dies unexpectedly, the Dreamers and Truthers are at odds across America and a second Civil War beckons. A terrifying glimpse into the near future -- Lawrence James
Another top-shelf thriller about near-future geopolitical turmoil . . . Ackerman and Stavridis paint a sweeping and resonant portrait of a world faced with a powerful technological advancement it doesnt fully understand. The results are genuinely chilling * Publishers Weekly *
Gripping and imaginative . . . an enjoyable techno-thriller that explores the chaotic, self-destructive potential of human ingenuity
An enjoyable, intelligent and ultimately frighteningly plausible version of a future -- James Crabtree * FT *

Author Bio

Elliot Ackerman (Author) ELLIOT ACKERMAN is the New York Times bestselling author of the novels Halcyon, 2034, Red Dress In Black and White, Waiting for Eden, Dark at the Crossing, and Green on Blue, as well as the memoir The Fifth Act- America's End in Afghanistan, and Places and Names- On War, Revolution and Returning. His books have been nominated for the National Book Award, the Andrew Carnegie Medal in both fiction and nonfiction, and the Dayton Literary Peace Prize among others. He is a contributing writer at The Atlantic and Marine veteran who served five tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan, where he received the Silver Star, the Bronze Star for Valor, and the Purple Heart. He divides his time between New York City and Washington, D.C. James Stavridis (Author) Admiral Jim Stavridis, USN (Ret.), spent more than thirty years in the U.S. Navy, rising to the rank of four-star admiral. He was Supreme Allied Commander at NATO and previously commanded U.S. Southern Command, over-seeing military operations throughout Latin America. At sea, he commanded a Navy destroyer, a destroyer squadron, and an aircraft carrier battle group in combat. He holds a PhD from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University, where he recently served five years as dean. He received fifty medals in the course of his military career, including twenty-eight from foreign nations. He is the author of ten other books, including Sea Power- The History and Geopolitics of the World's Oceans and Sailing True North- Ten Admirals and the Voyage of Character, and is Chief International Analyst for NBC News and a contributing editor of Time magazine. He is currently the vice chair, global affairs, and managing director of the Carlyle Group and the chair of the board of the Rockefeller Foundation.