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The Hacker
All hell breaks loose at a struggling young Gurgaon-based software firm when Shaitan Vikram, one of its ex-employees and a psychopath hacker, swears to revenge his legitimate but ill-timed dismissal from the company rolls. Suddenly it’s corporate espionage, program sabotage, and human drama running at the same time. As crisis after crisis strikes, it falls upon the new-age management brass of the company to appease its major international clients and salvage its reputation.
In a breathless story of vengeance and redemption, many facets of modern India—young and old, rich and poor, corrupt and honest—come together and collide in an island of technology where urban angst, big money, and street dogs coexist.
In a breathless story of vengeance and redemption, many facets of modern India—young and old, rich and poor, corrupt and honest—come together and collide in an island of technology where urban angst, big money, and street dogs coexist.
232 pages, Paperback
First published October 15, 2012
3 people are currently reading
353 people want to read
About the author
Stanley Moss
5 books9 followersStanley Moss (b.1948), also published under the pen name SMoss, is an author, brand guru and traveler. Founder of The Club of Venice and Travel Editor of Lucire, a New Zealand-based fashion magazine. Global Brand Ambassador for Gottschalk + Ash of Zurich. He was CEO of The Medinge Group, a Stockholm-based think-tank. Based in Europe. The Jade Lion published in September 2021, the third volume of the Captain Blackpool trilogy about the adventures of a secret agent, set during the Napoleonic Wars. Also authored "Arborea: a novel", "The Hacker" and its sequel "HACK IS BACK."
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
January 13, 2014
The story takes place in Gurgaon, India and is a dark take on the IT industry in the country.
All the action happens in a small IT company, Talsera where an employee Vikram is dismissed and who, miffed by his dismissal, decides to seek revenge by hacking into the company's confidential data and chats aiming to destroy company eventually. The story explores the different mindsets of people who have all come from different backgrounds with varied principles and who all behave differently when placed in similar demanding situations. There is an over ambitious woman who has earned the nickname of "The Destroyer"
because she is always taking credit and destroying anyone who stands in her way of success. Then there is the nicknamed "Shaitaan", otherwise called Vikram who although very brilliant is also afflicted with sociopathic tendencies. There are simple and loyal people like Hari Bhaiya who has no qualms about taking over work that he is not paid for and seeks happiness and contentment from his efforts towards the company he loves. Finally there are multiple other characters also who all have their own situations to deal with and who all provide varying perspectives of the same "money minting" IT industry.
The first thing that struck me while reading this book was the in-depth knowledge of the author, who although a non resident has provided real colors to an alien setting. He provides a vivid picture of India and of situations that to me only an Indian and that too one who has either seen it or experienced it can convey. His extensive research and excellent plot development skills are evident as we read the story. The story is admirably conceived and presented with no loop holes. The characterization is firm and real like.
The cover of the book is also very innovative and eye catching. I loved the whole crowded scene and the mysterious shadow on a keyboard combination idea which attracts and tantalizes the reader almost at once.
The story moves at a medium pace and successfully manages to keep the reader hooked. The writing is simple, elegant and the author keeps the interest alive all through the book. Kudos to Stanley for writing such a classic and beautiful story.
A story worth every penny spent, I give The Hacker: Client. Coder. Chaos. a 4.0 out of 5 and highly recommend this book to everyone. A must read book on the dark side of the Indian IT Industry with plenty of mystery and a high dose of cyber espionage with high voltage drama to thrill you. :)
I received the book for free through Goodreads First Reads and I am very thankful to the author and publishers for introducing me to this great book. The above review is my honest and unbiased opinion and in no way influenced.
This review is also available on my blog http://njkinny.blogspot.in
All the action happens in a small IT company, Talsera where an employee Vikram is dismissed and who, miffed by his dismissal, decides to seek revenge by hacking into the company's confidential data and chats aiming to destroy company eventually. The story explores the different mindsets of people who have all come from different backgrounds with varied principles and who all behave differently when placed in similar demanding situations. There is an over ambitious woman who has earned the nickname of "The Destroyer"
because she is always taking credit and destroying anyone who stands in her way of success. Then there is the nicknamed "Shaitaan", otherwise called Vikram who although very brilliant is also afflicted with sociopathic tendencies. There are simple and loyal people like Hari Bhaiya who has no qualms about taking over work that he is not paid for and seeks happiness and contentment from his efforts towards the company he loves. Finally there are multiple other characters also who all have their own situations to deal with and who all provide varying perspectives of the same "money minting" IT industry.
The first thing that struck me while reading this book was the in-depth knowledge of the author, who although a non resident has provided real colors to an alien setting. He provides a vivid picture of India and of situations that to me only an Indian and that too one who has either seen it or experienced it can convey. His extensive research and excellent plot development skills are evident as we read the story. The story is admirably conceived and presented with no loop holes. The characterization is firm and real like.
The cover of the book is also very innovative and eye catching. I loved the whole crowded scene and the mysterious shadow on a keyboard combination idea which attracts and tantalizes the reader almost at once.
The story moves at a medium pace and successfully manages to keep the reader hooked. The writing is simple, elegant and the author keeps the interest alive all through the book. Kudos to Stanley for writing such a classic and beautiful story.
A story worth every penny spent, I give The Hacker: Client. Coder. Chaos. a 4.0 out of 5 and highly recommend this book to everyone. A must read book on the dark side of the Indian IT Industry with plenty of mystery and a high dose of cyber espionage with high voltage drama to thrill you. :)
I received the book for free through Goodreads First Reads and I am very thankful to the author and publishers for introducing me to this great book. The above review is my honest and unbiased opinion and in no way influenced.
This review is also available on my blog http://njkinny.blogspot.in
August 11, 2016
I received this book as a part of Goodreads giveaway programme.
A nice read involving Indian IT underworld and corporate espionage. The pace of the novel is even and the plot is interesting. The ending too is apt for all the characters except Vikram. I think he didn't deserve what he got at the end.
Overall the novel was a nice and light read and gives an insight in the Indian IT industry.
A nice read involving Indian IT underworld and corporate espionage. The pace of the novel is even and the plot is interesting. The ending too is apt for all the characters except Vikram. I think he didn't deserve what he got at the end.
Overall the novel was a nice and light read and gives an insight in the Indian IT industry.
December 15, 2013
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Book Review: The Hacker By Stanley Moss: Entertaining Cyber Crime Suspense Melodrama
Intro: The Hacker - Client. Coder. Chaos written by Stanley Moss is an interesting and entertaining suspense thriller based on cyber crime. This 228 pages book talks about a company engaged in software projects for local and overseas clients and had a good name in the market. The company Talsera is owned by 3 Indian entrepreneurs. There are projects, project managers, project management teams, management, HR and admin guys who have a role to play in this book.
Story: Story line of the book goes like this. There are software projects that Talsera is having from their clients based in the U.S. and Europe. Vikram is one of the guys of Talsera,s development and deployment team who has gone onsite to their U.S. client. Shivani is the project manager managing this team of Talsera. Vikram and Shivani have their own attitudinal problems. Shivani on one hand is arrogant and high flyer, Vikram on the other hand has some criminal bent of mind due to his perception of his life not taking right path. He is good at gambling due to his experience online and hence decides to visit Reno one night before the whole team has to return back to India. There he wins a big amount and that is where starts a new twist in his life.
The hefty amount that he won in the U.S. is brought to India. He is summoned in his office for his unwanted activities and is terminated from his services. Shivani has a big role in his termination. Vikram decides to plant a hacking game to take a revenge for what has happened to him. Vikram has lot of inside information and login credentials for such information. He plans to write absurd about Talsera and the inside negative things happening in their ongoing projects, on an anonymous blog site. He also plans to start his own company to run similar kind of operations, what Talsera does, with the money he won in gambling. Vikram decides to snatch Talsera's potential European client who is about to present them with a big value project.
It becomes difficult for Talsera management to absorb what is happening publicly on blog sites against their ongoing projects with the information that is confidential and is putting negative impact on their prospects and existing customers. The top management comes into action and finally with a sequence of interesting incidents, finally Vikram is exposed and put behind the bars for hacking and misusing Talsera's confidential inside information and trying to get advantage out of it.
The Good Factors: Story, presentation and plot are handled in a good manner by Stanley. He has a good art of writing in a style so as to keep reader's interest intact. He has kept the pace and curiosity alive right since the beginning of The Hacker - Client. Coder. Chaos.
What Could Go Better: Stanley has kept it a light read which could have been presented in a much more serious and in-depth manner. Story has diverted to a couple of unwanted events that had no relation with the main story line and even if were not there could keep the interest alive. Overall the plot is excellent but presentation has a lot of scope of improvisation.
Rating: I would give 3 out of 5.
Book Review: The Hacker By Stanley Moss: Entertaining Cyber Crime Suspense Melodrama
Intro: The Hacker - Client. Coder. Chaos written by Stanley Moss is an interesting and entertaining suspense thriller based on cyber crime. This 228 pages book talks about a company engaged in software projects for local and overseas clients and had a good name in the market. The company Talsera is owned by 3 Indian entrepreneurs. There are projects, project managers, project management teams, management, HR and admin guys who have a role to play in this book.
Story: Story line of the book goes like this. There are software projects that Talsera is having from their clients based in the U.S. and Europe. Vikram is one of the guys of Talsera,s development and deployment team who has gone onsite to their U.S. client. Shivani is the project manager managing this team of Talsera. Vikram and Shivani have their own attitudinal problems. Shivani on one hand is arrogant and high flyer, Vikram on the other hand has some criminal bent of mind due to his perception of his life not taking right path. He is good at gambling due to his experience online and hence decides to visit Reno one night before the whole team has to return back to India. There he wins a big amount and that is where starts a new twist in his life.
The hefty amount that he won in the U.S. is brought to India. He is summoned in his office for his unwanted activities and is terminated from his services. Shivani has a big role in his termination. Vikram decides to plant a hacking game to take a revenge for what has happened to him. Vikram has lot of inside information and login credentials for such information. He plans to write absurd about Talsera and the inside negative things happening in their ongoing projects, on an anonymous blog site. He also plans to start his own company to run similar kind of operations, what Talsera does, with the money he won in gambling. Vikram decides to snatch Talsera's potential European client who is about to present them with a big value project.
It becomes difficult for Talsera management to absorb what is happening publicly on blog sites against their ongoing projects with the information that is confidential and is putting negative impact on their prospects and existing customers. The top management comes into action and finally with a sequence of interesting incidents, finally Vikram is exposed and put behind the bars for hacking and misusing Talsera's confidential inside information and trying to get advantage out of it.
The Good Factors: Story, presentation and plot are handled in a good manner by Stanley. He has a good art of writing in a style so as to keep reader's interest intact. He has kept the pace and curiosity alive right since the beginning of The Hacker - Client. Coder. Chaos.
What Could Go Better: Stanley has kept it a light read which could have been presented in a much more serious and in-depth manner. Story has diverted to a couple of unwanted events that had no relation with the main story line and even if were not there could keep the interest alive. Overall the plot is excellent but presentation has a lot of scope of improvisation.
Rating: I would give 3 out of 5.
August 6, 2016
Thanks to Author, Publisher and Goodreads - I received this book as a part of giveaway.
Set in NCR, India it is a believable story of ongoings in Indian IT Sector. Storyline and characters are life-like. These are the people we encounter in our daily life. Emphatic bosses who do anything for business, mid level supervisors that claim the credit for others' work and lastly low level employees who do most of the work and yet get no credit. One such employee though being wrong, turns against the company by unethical means - hacking and hijacking deals. The drama ensues...and the end is appropriate.
Written in a simple, clear, fluid style it is a entertaining read.
Cover is good, depicts typical Indian scenario. Printing is clear and highly readable without strain to eyes.
Recommended.
Set in NCR, India it is a believable story of ongoings in Indian IT Sector. Storyline and characters are life-like. These are the people we encounter in our daily life. Emphatic bosses who do anything for business, mid level supervisors that claim the credit for others' work and lastly low level employees who do most of the work and yet get no credit. One such employee though being wrong, turns against the company by unethical means - hacking and hijacking deals. The drama ensues...and the end is appropriate.
Written in a simple, clear, fluid style it is a entertaining read.
Cover is good, depicts typical Indian scenario. Printing is clear and highly readable without strain to eyes.
Recommended.
February 20, 2014
Good book
April 19, 2014
I received this book for free in return for a review.
The title of the story is a bit misleading. I had assumed that the book would delve deep in to the world of hacking. However, technically speaking there is no hacking being done in the book.
The book is set in the world of corporate espionage rather than in the world of hacking. It deals with the day to day workings of Talsera and, provides an insight into the lives and relationships of its owners and employees. Because of this I would have preferred a different title for the book.
I liked the authors writing style. Even though he is not an Indian, he has done his research and describes the life in Gurgaon and Old Delhi through the eyes of a foreigner, quite well. Though, the day to day workings of a software company are not as exciting, and action filled, as portrayed in the book, the author has done a good job of depicting the lives, and relationships of people working in the Indian software industry.
The plot of the book was good, but there were too many subplots for my liking. The story moves at a sedate pace for the first one third of the book but, after that it picks up the pace and, the author manages to maintain the suspense till the end.
The author had developed the characters really well. I loved the was he portrayed the character of Shivani. At the beginning of the book I liked her character but, by the end I hated her more than the main Villain Vikram.
I also felt that certain characters were completely unnecessary. The most prominent example being the character of Neha. She appears out of nowhere and, for no apparent reason.
The book has suspense but, its a light read and cannot be called a thriller. However, I enjoyed reading the book.
The title of the story is a bit misleading. I had assumed that the book would delve deep in to the world of hacking. However, technically speaking there is no hacking being done in the book.
The book is set in the world of corporate espionage rather than in the world of hacking. It deals with the day to day workings of Talsera and, provides an insight into the lives and relationships of its owners and employees. Because of this I would have preferred a different title for the book.
I liked the authors writing style. Even though he is not an Indian, he has done his research and describes the life in Gurgaon and Old Delhi through the eyes of a foreigner, quite well. Though, the day to day workings of a software company are not as exciting, and action filled, as portrayed in the book, the author has done a good job of depicting the lives, and relationships of people working in the Indian software industry.
The plot of the book was good, but there were too many subplots for my liking. The story moves at a sedate pace for the first one third of the book but, after that it picks up the pace and, the author manages to maintain the suspense till the end.
The author had developed the characters really well. I loved the was he portrayed the character of Shivani. At the beginning of the book I liked her character but, by the end I hated her more than the main Villain Vikram.
I also felt that certain characters were completely unnecessary. The most prominent example being the character of Neha. She appears out of nowhere and, for no apparent reason.
The book has suspense but, its a light read and cannot be called a thriller. However, I enjoyed reading the book.
March 6, 2015
The book is a slow pacer at start. It really gets the reader going after some pages. You can peek to the world of a typical IT company and their daily lives. The book sheds light to the much misunderstood field of the IT professionals. Their lives and daily practices are described well by the author. Although I like the characterisation and other aspect of the story, I felt the climax as some sort of weak. The author should have used some more imagination and suspense element in the last few chapters. Its just my opinion. This is a good book for anyone who loves cyber stories. The starters can try the novel as it will help you understand quite easily with the way the author recites the story. Giving it a 4 star rating. :)
November 25, 2017
This book does give you a small insight to the politics of the Indian I.T industry. The story of an insider job in a big corporate which looks out for their employees is far fetched in the story. There was too much of a confusion with multiple unwanted side stories that was going on and felt broken without a continuous flow. Having said that author have done some research on Indian culture and Indian IT industry. It is definitely a great try by the firangi author, but could've been much much more better.
November 2, 2015
I picked this book from street vendor who was selling old books, the prime reason to pick the book was to find out how english author has written a story about IT firm in Gurgaon.
Its total fiction, but the book is not disappointing read, however its not great either. Its nothing less then a movie which is full of drama and some colorful characters.
If you have nothing to read then this is decent read and its not very thick. Just about 250 pages.
Its total fiction, but the book is not disappointing read, however its not great either. Its nothing less then a movie which is full of drama and some colorful characters.
If you have nothing to read then this is decent read and its not very thick. Just about 250 pages.
October 19, 2014
The book was quite pacy to read. It includede several subplots and read quite like a movie screenplay.
But the ending is really disappointing, expected much better ending from it. However. the writer's insight about India being a foreigner should be really credited.
But the ending is really disappointing, expected much better ending from it. However. the writer's insight about India being a foreigner should be really credited.
December 26, 2013
Lacked the excitement and mystery that its bookcover suggested.
October 9, 2014
its quite confusing , author is switching to characters one by one very randomly .making it , a bit complicated for readers .
January 3, 2016
Not worth the effort trying to turn the pages. The whole thing made no sense what so ever.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews