Blog Tour - Proximity
Proximity
(iMe Series Book 1)
by Jem Tugwell
On my blog today I have the pleasure of sharing with you.........
Proximity
I would like to thank Shannon from R&R Reads and Jem Tugwell for inviting me on the blog tour.
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Book Information
Genre: Techno Thriller/ Procedural
Publisher: Serpentine Books
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
Purchase Links
Amazon.com: https://amzn.to/2rtAWc4
Amazon.ca: https://amzn.to/2qMK6Qv
Amazon.co.au: https://amzn.to/2Q89TgE
Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/2Q7dbRr
Kobo.ca: http://bit.ly/32BAC80
Kobo.us: http://bit.ly/33Decoj
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Guest Post
Proximity - A crime thriller set in a world that’s nearly here by Jem Tugwell
When I wrote my debut novel, Proximity, I wanted to explore where the current technology advances would take us. It was therefore important that Proximity felt like it was set in an alternate now so that the reader got a very real ‘that could be me’ reaction. I worry that it is all closer than we think.
However, I didn’t want to write a book about technology and fill it full of jargon. I wanted to write an accessible, enjoyable, fast paced thriller. Proximity therefore combines a crime fiction thriller with a sprinkling of science fiction in order to explore the relationship between the physical human body and data in a future where citizens are monitored at all times by the government and a technology company. Partly to imagine the potential positives, partly to act as a warning about good intentions and unintended consequences.
Proximity is not a novel about super-computers or technology building an empire to turn humans into slaves. Proximity aims to take a relevant look at what people could do with technology. It’s about who holds the power. It’s about us getting lazier.
Throughout the police investigation into an ‘impossible’ killing, Proximity asks the reader to question the value of having privacy and autonomy over their lives and how far they are willing to relinquish this for safety and security.
Technology should be a tool for humans, but even today, we are swimming in a technology-regulated universe. It seems like AI and robotics are advancing with the aim of replacing us, not complementing us. It may all start with good intentions, but like with many good things, if we overdose, the side effects can be worse than the illness.
We need to recognise the importance of our data and the potential implications of sharing our data. What happens when you share your biometric data with the state for security purposes? Who do they then pass it onto? What happens when technology that is invented for convenience is used for security purposes and to make people ‘model citizens’. What is you are forced to become ‘a better you’?
Proximity challenges us all. We are accustomed to, and actively participate in, being monitored on a daily basis, but what if by going too far, we erase what makes us human, only to turn us into living machines without a free will?
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Excerpt 4
I couldn’t face another pious episode, so leaving my chair behind, I sauntered down the empty corridor to the office’s snack area. The exuberantly muraled vending machine stretched across one wall. As I approached, my embedded iMe device connected with the machine and its synthesised human voice said: ‘How can I serve you, Clive?’
I crossed my fingers behind my back. ‘Give me some chocolate – a Mars bar.’ I spoke slowly and clearly to aid the voice recognition.
‘Sorry, Clive, but you still have an Excess Consumption Order and your iMe reports: high blood sugar level. You are already at 59% of your restricted daily calorie allowance and 60% of your saturated fat allowance,’ it stated and then added in an upbeat tone. ‘Please make another selection.’
I uncrossed my fingers – it never worked, but I had to try. ‘Give me a coffee then.’
‘Sorry, Clive, but your iMe reports: slightly raised pulse and blood pressure, and high caffeine levels. Please make another selection.’
I banged the glass, ‘Just give me the drink, machine.’ The only reason I had a raised pulse and blood pressure was because these damn things wouldn’t do what I wanted.
‘Sorry, Clive, but your anger and violence towards me have been marked on your personnel file. I can provide you with water. Please take two glasses as your iMe reports: slightly dehydrated.’
‘OK, OK. Give me the bloody water then.’ I picked up one cup and took a reluctant sip. I left the other cup in the serving hatch as a show of dissent and unfurled a one-finger salute.
I trudged back along the corridor. My churning resentment of the machines weighed me down. I glanced out at the vivid April morning, but the sun, bright enough to make me squint, cast deep shadows inside me.
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Giveaway
Win A signed copy of the book for each week
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About the Author
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/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/JemTugwell
Twitter Tags
@JemTugwell
@RRBookTours1
@SerpentineBooks
#Thriller #TechnoThriller #RRBookTours
Facebook Tag: @JemTugwellAuthor
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