cover image Fishbowl

Fishbowl

Matthew Glass. Atlantic/Corvus (IPG, dist.), $14.95 trade paper (448p) ISBN 978-1-78239-263-7

This unconventional thriller from Glass (Ultimatum) charts the career of social media entrepreneur Andrei Koss, from his early success while a student at Stanford University to ownership of the world’s most powerful Internet program. With the help of two Stanford classmates, Koss launches Fishbowll.com, “a dating site for the mind,” which connects people of like interests anywhere on the planet. As the site grows, so do the challenges it faces. Andrei and his friends argue over philosophical questions as well as practical ones, and their energy goes into growing and improving the capabilities of the site while maintaining control of it. Meanwhile, the FBI wants access to some of its data; competitor Mike Sweetman tries to block Fishbowl, then to buy it; and right-wing Arizona senator Diane McKenrick targets Fishbowl on security grounds. Glass takes an intriguing look at the myriad possibilities of the Internet for both good and evil. (May)