Proximity – Jem Tugwell / #Extract #BlogTour @RRBookTours1 @JemTugwell @SerpentineBooks

On 27 november 201917 november 2019 door elsinTugwell Jem - Proximity2 reacties

iMe Book #1

You can’t get away with anything. Least of all murder.

DI Clive Lussac has forgotten how to do his job. Ten years of embedded technology – ‘iMe’ – has led to complete control and the eradication of crime. Then the impossible happens. A body is found, and the killer is untraceable. With new partner Zoe Jordan, Clive must re-sharpen his detective skills and find the killer without technology, before time runs out for the next victim…

Leading the trend in speculative crime thrillers, Jem Tugwell’s thrilling and thought-provoking debut sits alongside Black Mirror and The City and the City in a compelling exploration of our near future. Proximity draws on Jem’s 20 years of professional experience as a software developer in the city to give an unnerving insight into how our world might be transformed by the rapid advance in embedded technology and fitness trackers.

What if the cash-strapped public healthcare system can be given a second life by using tech to regulate our health and behaviour?

What if we can eradicate gun, knife and other proximity crimes by tracking everyone’s activity?

What if civil liberty is seen as an acceptable sacrifice for the greater good?

What if the convenience of technology is used for control?

“Proximity is inspired by the fascinating possibilities of technology, AI and the law of unintended consequences. From my own experience, technologists are often amazed or horrified about the other uses that people imagine for their products. Clive and Zoe’s world might be closer than we think, but is it heaven or hell? How do we decide the perfect balance of free will and greater good?” – Jem Tugwell

Extract

Get what you wanted from the machines, sir?’ asked DC Zoe Jordan.

She’d been my partner for two weeks. The latest in a long line of officers forced to rotate through the Proximity Crime Unit. Her hair was a shade darker brown than her eyes and seemed wilfully stubborn. She pushed a piece behind her ear, but it flounced back to its original position, like a sulky teenager dropping into a chair.

‘Of course not,’ I grunted as I slumped into a chair.

Looking at her, I was painfully aware of every one of the twenty-five years between us and every wrinkle on my face. Our clothes summed the pair of us up perfectly: my black trousers were slightly grubby, creased and worn; her colourful suit gleamed new with an elegant, crisp collar.

‘And I’ve told you before, Zoe – Clive or Boss. There’s only two of us.’

‘Sure… Boss,’ she said.

Her carefree smile brightened the room around her, especially when she flashed her teeth. Like with everyone under thirty, they were glaringly white. I felt all gaunt and washed-out next to her, just like when I stood under the harsh, over-bright lights above my sink.

Thank you, Jem Tugwell and R&R Book Tours

About the Author

I am a crime fiction author with a Crime Writing MA from City University. Proximity is my thrilling debut novel, inspired by the fascinating possibilities of technology, AI and the law of unintended consequences. Available on 6 June 2019.

In a past life, I had a successful career in investment management, and now live in Surrey with my wife. I have two great children and dog. Outside of my family and writing, my loves are snowboarding, old cars and bikes.

Author Links

Website: http://www.jemtugwell.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JemTugwellAuthor/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/JemTugwell