Municipalists

(The humour is off-kilter, irreverent, and quirky – really appealed to me!)

The book tells the story of a terrorist who becomes disillusioned with the weakness to vested interests of the wealthy of the United States Municipal Survey (an agency of the US federal government that constructs infrastructure for municipal governments) and the civil servant and robot who end up bringing him to justice, who realizes that the terrorist is correct on the principles and that the USMS is a deeply flawed institution.

Truly unlocking the enormous benefits of agglomeration economies would require a fair distribution of infrastructure, which the USMS struggles with – the USMS refuses to challenge local political leaderships in how unequally they distribute infrastructure.

What a gem. A quick-paced, hilarious spec-fic mystery with a lot of heart. Its quirky, straight-forward protagonist reminded me of the lead character I adore from Rivers of London, but his "alcoholic super-computer" partner stands totally on his own. Ready to read anything else by this author.

This was an impulse buy on my part, but man oh man am I happy I had that impulse. This was a great read, filled with action, relevant commentary, and smart humor. It is the perfect blend of corporate bureaucracy, action sequences, and wit in an interesting setting. Despite it being quickly paced, I didn't feel rushed or as if I missed anything. The characters were charming and had great development. While "technically" sci-fi, I'd consider this more of a social commentary/action story with a sci-fi backdrop. I'd highly recommend it.