The Manuscript (Macmillan New Writing) - Tapa blanda

The hunt is on for the manuscript. This fast-moving thriller, set in the USA, includes a gun-toting urban professional with a tragic weakness for internet discussion groups; a chemistry student and hacker turned wildly successful online drug dealer; a pair of slacker post-grads with big questions and escalating problems; a demonstrably unstoppable hitman; a dodgy federal agent on the take; a cadre of menacing and well-armed mercenaries (possibly employed by one of the world's major religions); and an entire gang of Angry Young Taoists, calmly blasting the hell out of everyone. This unlikely group of people are brought together by their quest for the meaning of life, discovered in the remote highlands of South America by an infamous 19th century explorer, which is now said to be concealed in the inaccessible spaces of a hidden website on the perimeters of a shadow Internet. During the course of their perilous quest, they come up against others who stop at nothing to keep the truth hidden. The novel explores the power of the Internet and the dangerous implications for those who become entranced and manipulated by it.

Michael Stephen Fuchs is a 35-year-old techie with a degree in philosophy. He has worked in the internet industry for almost as long as there has been one to work in. He is the author of short stories and other material published on the Net. The Manuscript is his debut novel.