Review: Kill Decision by Daniel Suarez

Kill Decision is a techno-thriller by Daniel Suarez. This non-stop, seat of your pants story follows a very realistic and frighteningly, scientifically plausible plot in which unmanned armed drones are turned against their makers. The scientific accuracy of this novel is a definite strength, which I believe will appeal to sci-fi and military fiction fans alike.

The story itself is well paced with good, well developed characters; I particularly liked the characterisation of McKinney; the ‘ant’ scientist. There was also a real sense of camaraderie amongst the group assembled to find those responsible for the drone attacks. The plot builds well throughout, although the ending, whilst acceptable, was a bit lacklustre for my liking; not entirely satisfying. Looking past the fiction, the science is presented well and in an unbiased way, allowing the reader to make their own decisions on if the progress of this type of technology is good or bad. Some have compared the writing style to Michael Crichton but whilst I saw similarities between Kill Decision and Prey – I wouldn’t say the overall writing compares to Crichton; as there isn’t very much for the reader to work out in Suarez’s work.

Overall a good thriller which will keep you engrossed from start to finish. A perfect book for fans of writers like Tom Clancy and Andy McNab. Kill Decision is available from Amazon UK for £6.43, unfortunately only as a dead-tree book.