Code Word Access

Code Word #1

by Alex Schuler

The future is in code.

Shawn Muller is a prodigy and he knows it. It is 2051 and the militarized AI he created to hunt terrorists has begun to dominate the network that controls everything from traffic to climate. Fearful of the power of the AI he calls "Lazy Jack" and the politicians who will use it, Shawn installs an algorithm to give his creation a system of ethics.

But when that very ethical standard causes Lazy Jack to declare Shawn a profound threat to society, he is forced into terrified flight to avoid summary execution as a terrorist.

Off the grid for the first time in his twenty-seven years, Shawn will find himself pursued not only by his creation and the government it has started to control, but also by the shadowy elements of society that reject domination by AI. Captured by the outlawed Organites, Shawn falls into the hands of their charismatic captain, Destiny.

Born to be enemies, Shawn and Destiny discover that their lives and the survival of their worlds are inextricably linked. Together with a host of unforgettable characters, they will struggle to bring down the system Shawn thought would save the world, leading them to face one of the most profound questions of human existence: Will we or will our creations decide what is right and what is wrong?


"The main character, Shawn Muller is extremely complex and well developed. The dialogue is excellent. I was totally engaged the whole time. Clever, unique..." - ScreenCraft
 


Fans of Terminator and Total Recall will love this "extremely well-executed" book. (Screencraft.)

Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction, Fantasy, Thriller

1 pages, Audio CD

Published April 4, 2023

About the author

Alex Schuler is a pseudonym for the writing team of William Roetzheim and Randy Becker. William started his career as an early pioneer in the field of AI software development. His systems have been deployed on Navy ships, submarines, and NASA space shuttles, as well as by businesses and government agencies. After launching multiple software companies, William turned his attention to the arts and became an award-winning playwright, poet, and published author. Randy is an Emmy-nominated producer who began his career as an actor starring in film, television, and on Broadway (including the Tony Award–winning play Love! Valour! Compassion!). He now expresses his creativity through writing and producing.

Reviews

[Maria Fledgling Author Park · Rating 5 out of 5]

Far beyond the synthesis of technology and human neurology, farther away from where quantum entanglement meets the joining of our synaptic connections deep within our brains, a consciousness is growing.

Code Word Access is one of the scariest books I've read in years. Far more frightening than any viral plague, than many dystopian landscapes posited by our best science fiction writers.

I am not a science genius, nor am I a technowhiz. I do, however, have a pretty good grasp on what our Military Industrial Complex has planned to face what they see as the emerging enemy.

This war will, actually, is already being fought in cyberspace. You know this, right? You remember the recent rashes of Ransomware attacks on Corporate and Military targets?

Now imagine... imagine an artificial intelligence built to link together every citizen, to monitor and mitigate the disaster of our global climate change. To provide a minimum income to everyone so that no one has to be hungry.

Sounds good? Really? If this AI, as they call it, is run by a brilliant, unique but essentially flawed young man whose brain shares with it a special link no one else can fathom. What could happen?

I stayed up for two days reading this book straight through because I literally was too scared to put it down. I had to find out how the situation was resolved. Now that I'm done, I'm more frightened than before.

1 2 3 4 5 Stars. Read this!

[Join the Penguin Resistance! · Rating 5 out of 5]

CODE WORD ACCESS is a completely engrossing near-future Dystopian Science Fiction thriller, first in a Series. In 2050, AI's capably control climate and weather, all vehicles are autonomous. The "High-Latitude" nations constitute the First World, with guaranteed minimum income ("mincome"), VR, Augmented Reality, addiction to VR, all founded on a minority of "Productives." Shawn Muller, offspring of a physician and a research scientist at the Pentagon, was an early experiment in the brain-machine interface, who comprehends Quantum reality beyond any other human. Developing a Quantum computer to eradicate terrorism, Shawn discovers that like Victor Frankenstein, his wealth of good intentions instead seeds a garden of monstrosity.


CODE WORD ACCESS capably develops the fascinating themes of Artificial Intelligence, the interface of A.I. and humanity (are machines our servant? Or our overlords?), and the inescapable evolution of machine Intelligence into Sentience without Ethics.


There are also fascinating parallels to the political and moral climate of 2016-2021.

[Kristjan · Rating 1 out of 5]

"Secretary of Defense 'SecDef' Elizabeth Milhouse Perry, New Humanitist Party, Texas, steel-gray hair and dark blue suite, watched the OpCenter's vault doors unseal with a pop and start to sigh open." Uh ... what? This is the opening sentence and it reads like the author is just throwing words against the wall to see what sticks. I can't imagine a more clumsy and awkward way to start a story. A few more pages in we get this "Madam Secretary, allow me to introduce Fouad bin Ahmad bin Ismail bin Bahadur al Bakhtiari al Tehrani." So this man is the son of Adam son of George son of Bob? I could be wrong, but I don't think Arabic names work that way. The writing seems a tad lazy here and this is just in the first three (3) pages. After that we get an encounter with a wunderkind sucking down a milk shake while briefing "SecDef" on the "ultimate" quantum based AI surveillance/weapons platform that he developed on his own ... 'cause you know ... genius. Unforunately ... I am not sure the author knows what any of these terms actually mean, but they are trending so throw 'em in. What follows is a rather sophomoric attempt at fanfic that is so ridiculous it must actually be ... parody ... okay ... you got me. I was expecting a serious "terminator" style story here and not some progressive lampoon on the current political climate in the US. Maybe I just need to requisition a new sense of humor because I am not a fan. Perhaps it is just the confusing mess of terms and jargon used incorrectly, but I don't think this is even good parody.

So yeah ... an Artificial Intelligence (AI) is given an upgrade to have a conscience based upon a simple concept: do the greatest good for the greatest number [of people]. Unlike say ... Asimov's much better developed three (3) laws of robotics, which are very specific, this rule doesn't really define anything as good. So of course, the AI goes rogue and becomes a computer/network star chamber now able to deceive (aka lie) to its minders in order to control its "Internet of weapons" to eliminate all threats to itself (because that is obviously the greatest good for the greatest number). Seriously ... it is bad enough that I debated putting this on the DNF shelf about every other page ... with a morbid fascination, I wondered if it would be possible to actually get worse ... so I soldiered on until I hit the wall about half way through ... I just can't do it :-(

I was given this free advance reader copy (ARC) ebook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.
#CodeWordAccess #NetGalley

[Sandy S · Rating 4 out of 5]

CODE WORD ACCESS is the first instalment in Alex Schuler’s post apocalyptic, near future, CODE WORD speculative / science fiction series focusing on prodigy Shawn Muller in the year 2051.

Told from several third person perspectives CODE WORD ACCESS follows PhD prodigy Dr. Shawn Muller in the aftermath of an attack by a counterterrorism AI (Artificial Intelligence) he designed to eliminate terrorists for the military-controlled Cyber Command, but LAZ-237 is unable to distinguish between good and bad, and in this, many innocents are about to die. Hoping to stop the onslaught of death and destruction, Shawn Muller secretly uploads a ‘virus’ but his command for the ‘Greatest Good for the Greatest Number’ pushes the AI to go rogue killing anyone and everyone it deems to be bad. As Shawn struggles to stay one step ahead of the AI he calls Lazy Jack, his commands are seemingly countered by the military and politicians in charge.


Dr. Shawn Muller is considered a ‘transhuman’-an enhanced human with a ‘fully integrated brain to operating system interface –a highly sophisticated CPU’ that allows our ‘hero’ to communicate with both man and machine. As a young child, Shawn’s parents implanted a neuro-chip into his brain rendering Shawn a virtual participant in a virtual world. Everything about his life was an illusion, an illusion of which he was completely unaware.

Years earlier, a terrorist attack by the al Tehrani killed Shawn’s parents, and along with his mentor Lt. Colonel Amun Gurk, Shawn set to work on an counterterrorism AI that would eliminate the man and people responsible but as pandemics, environmental disasters and wars ravaged the earth, a resistance group known as the Quills, members of the organization who call themselves Organites, takes aim at our hero, in an effort to shut down the systems destroying the world.


CODE WORD ACCESS is a complicated, complex and multi-levelled tale of what if. A dramatic, richly detailed and gritty story of a world controlled by artificial intelligence. CODE WORD ACCESS is a philosophical and sociological look at the ethical conundrum of integrated man and machine; of the potential for sentient and self aware artificial intelligence; a computer with a conscience and reasoning, and the ability to act on its’ own. There are numerous references to late 20th and early 21st century sci-fi movies and stories including The Matrix ™, Terminator ™, Star Wars ™ and War Games™; climate change, plagues, pandemics, nuclear power, the ‘Cloud’ and social media- reading like a warning of things to come if man doesn’t change the current direction of power and control.

www.thereadingcafe.com

[Sean Evans · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'll save you the time of reading it with this summary: "Woke libs are dumb and will destroy the county."

[Helen Garraway · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well written, futuristic novel about a world where everything is AI driven, everyone uses a neural chip implanted in their brain, and those who do not embrace technology are persecuted as terrorists. It was a bit slow to get started, but well worth persevering.

Shawn Muller, a naïve young man who has never experienced real life, is a genius. He lives in an artificial world, thinking he understands life. He creates an all powerful AI, and gives it an ethic command demanding that all actions be for the greater good. The book is an interesting exposition on what would happen if the AI started to learn and evolve, but without an understanding of life or emotions or real morals. Can you trust an AI to make the right decisions based on programming and protocol? And if you can’t how do you stop it before it kills you?
An excellent book, keeping you engaged throughout. Quite scary when you think about smart technology and the direction it could take.

[Matthew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Code Word Access is a well-crafted adventure into the morally complex world of advanced artificial intelligence. In this futuristic world, we explore where to draw the line with human decision-making and automated systems. The book's pace ebbed and flowed to keep the book moving without overtaxing the reader. My only concern for the book is at the end, where everything runs up to a monumental conclusion and then drops off without a good sense of resolution or clear understanding of what moral values I, as a science fiction reader, should walk away with. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[David Wallace · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just okay

First, congratulations to the authors for writing and publishing a book. This is something I have not personally accomplished, so congrats.

So, I am writing this review as a reader and not an author.

As a reader, I feel I could summarize the entire book in three pages or less. If this book was written in 1980, it would have been pretty groundbreaking, however, it was not. I found nothing new or interesting in the story. For me, it was a long read with little reward.

[Diana N. · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book started a bit slow, but started to pick up about a third of the way through when running from the AI that had been given a "conscience." I liked it overall, but it took a little bit for the characters to be fully developed. I had a hard to picturing the overall world/scenes in the book and could have used more descriptions.

[Kathryn Cameron · Rating 1 out of 5]

I win a copy of this book through a Goodreads giveaway. I believe this is the first book I’ve never been able to finish. After a month of reading, I was still only 25% through. The plot isn’t gripping to me. I feel as if the author is just writing to be “woke” rather than just writing for pleasure.

[Govno Nichevo · Rating 1 out of 5]

I thought that this story started well and was an imaginative view of the future in some ways. But to me the story seemed to have lost its way by the half way point. There were also some very bizarre characterisation of New Zealanders thrown in the mix for no obvious reason.

[Helen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved it. Had to skip some bits as too graphic for me but really loved it.

[Art]

I’m still not sure about this book. The conspiracy theories threw me off but the plot was engaging enough to urge me to finish it.

[Thomas Lennek · Rating 4 out of 5]

Was not for me, quit reading.

[Tony · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent story on the dangers of AI.

[Kym Gamble · Rating 4 out of 5]

It took a little to get into the book but ultimately, it was an interesting book. The characters were decently developed and there was a tinge of what could happen.

[Heather Samsa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good, would certainly read more from this author