Zero Days by Ruth Ware

 Zero Days by Ruth Ware-356 pages

This is Ruth Ware's latest. I got to meet her and have my copy signed and personalized, which was very cool. I've liked everything I've read by Ware so far and this one did not disappoint. I really liked this one, also. Jacintha "Jack" Cross is a pen tester (breaks into security systems to make reports on weaknesses and strengths) along with her husband, Gabe. After what seemed like a routine pen test job Jack comes home to find Gabe's throat slit. She waits a while to call the police and partially because of that she becomes their number one suspect. She decides to go on the run from the police and leaves a voluntary interview when one of the officers voices her opinion that Jack is suspicious. Jack vows to find out who's responsible for Gabe's death and she won't stop running until she's figured it out. What she figures out turns her life upside down, however. I did guess who was responsible somewhat early, but not the reasons why. I also didn't guess a different twist at the end of the story. I really liked the ending. I would rate this 4 out of 5 stars.

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, by Stieg Larsson, 465 pages

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, by Stieg Larsson, 465 pages

Mikael Blomkvist has been convicted of libel against a pretty corrupt businessman.  So when Henrik Vanger calls and says that he can give Blomkvist proof of the man's corruption if he agrees to investigate an unsolved murder, of course Blomkvist agrees.  He starts investigating a family mystery from the 1960s, and with the help of Lisbeth Salander, hacker extraordinaire, he comes so close to the truth that his life is in jeopardy.

I really wanted to like this book, because Lisbeth Salander is an appealing character- a tech-savvy young woman who doesn't care about anyone or anything, but handles her own and takes care of business.  However, this book was really unpleasant with the amount of graphic violence and rape.  I want everything to turn out alright for Lisbeth Salander, but not enough to finish the series.

Wizzywig: Portrait of a Serial Hacker, by Ed Piskor

Wizzywig: Portrait of a Serial Hacker, by Ed Piskor, 288 pages

I'll admit it- based on the title, I thought that this was a sort of biography.  Don't be fooled, however- the subject of this book, Kevin "Boingthump" Phenicle, is fictional, but based on several real-life hackers.  Kevin is a hacker, who grew up in the 1970s and 80s and started with manipulating the phone companies.  With the inception of the PC, Kevin became a computer whiz who taught himself how to do just about everything-- even unethical and illegal things.  This book isn't a defense of hacking, but it does explore the mindset of a hacker and raise some interesting questions about the Internet and online rights, in general.