Title: RandomizeAuthor: Andy Weir
Series: Forward Collection #6
First Published: September 17, 2019
Publisher: Amazon Original Stories
Pages: 27
Genre: Science Fiction, Short Stories
Format: Ebook
Source: Prime Reading
Rating:
Synopsis:
In the near future, if Vegas games are ingeniously scam-proof, then the heists have to be too, in this imaginative and whip-smart story by the New York Times bestselling author of The Martian.
An IT whiz at the Babylon Casino is enlisted to upgrade security for the game of keno and its random-number generator. The new quantum computer system is foolproof. But someone on the inside is no fool. For once the odds may not favor the house—unless human ingenuity isn’t entirely a thing of the past.
Buy the Book: AmazonReview
Quantum computing has been one of those exciting things that you hear about once in a while. There have been new milestones reached this year in 2020 that has the whole world talking about the future. The idea of someday having a full quantum computer is inevitable, and it’ll be interesting to see the genius of mankind put quantum computing to use. Randomize focuses squarely on one such possibility, and how this new technology can revolutionize the gambling industry and the con artists that seek to cheat their way to riches along with it.
I liked the premise for this book and the characters in it in all their geeky and arrogant glory. The idea of quantum computing upsetting the establishment of a seemingly unrelated industry like casinos was an interesting prospect. The writing is solid and there is a touch of humor. I even learned a thing or two about quantum computing, despite previously knowing nothing about it besides hearing the name come up once in a while in headlines over the past twenty or so years.
The only downside was that I found the ending to be dissatisfying, partially because it is easy to predict. It was an opportunity for this story to be a little more bold and go outside of the tired gambler tropes. As a heist story though, it’s not too bad and I liked the technology twist.
Quote
“See, there you go, being all smart again. Thinking like a quantum physicist. I tend to think more like a criminal.”
About the Author
About Andy Weir
Andy Weir built a two-decade career as a software engineer until the success of his first published novel, The Martian, allowed him to live out his dream of writing full-time. He is a lifelong space nerd and a devoted hobbyist of such subjects as relativistic physics, orbital mechanics, and the history of manned spaceflight. He also mixes a mean cocktail. He lives in California.
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