Terrence used to be the head of Kestrel Dynamics, a cutting-
edge security firm he founded. Pushed aside by the men he
hired, they now need his help in running a surreptitious
operation. It seems someone is plotting to disable an
American power grid. Terrence insists, over strong
objections, on using Jae, a genius analyst and roboticist
who spends her time in the desert indulging in illicit
drugs, for the job. It is apparent she will require expert
protection.
Skinner, an ex-CIA agent whose early isolation in an
experimental chamber earned him his moniker, is now a
highly paid security tech specializing in safeguarding
clients, known as assets, such as Jae. The two head out on
a treacherous mission fraught with violence and duplicity.
When their paths cross those of a young boy in Mumbai, the
impact is crucial in their quest to foil the terrorist
plot.
Charlie Huston's SKINNER has lots of wild plot
twists and tons of techno jargon to navigate as it
progresses to its shocking, unexpected conclusion. This
hard-edged, cyber-crime thriller has it all for fans of
this genre.
Skinner founded his career in "asset protection" on fear. To
touch anyone under his protection was to invite destruction.
A savagely effective methodology, until Skinner's CIA
handlers began to fear him as much as his enemies did and
banished him to the hinterlands of the intelligence community.
Now, an ornate and evolving cyber–terrorist attack is
about to end that long exile. His asset is Jae, a roboticist
with a gift for seeing the underlying systems violently
shaping a new era of global guerrilla warfare.
At the root of it all is a young boy, the innocent seed of a
plot grown in the slums of Mumbai. Brought to flower, that
plot will tip the balance of world power in a perilous new
direction.