T.G. Browning, Wired (ESP Fiction, August 2002)
Reviewed by C. Clifford

You know what CAD means, don't you? Computer Assisted Design? Right? Wrong!

CAD means Computer Assisted Demon. So reads the back cover of Wired by TG.Browning, ESP Fiction, 2001.

Wired opens with a computer hacker busily trying to crack the code to a new game called Wired. His reward? Unleashing a demon within his computer. By the second page, said hacker's head is missing. Within days a second hacker is found all the way on the other side of the country. He too minus his head; only this time there's an ear left behind embedded in the computer screen.

Sound like the beginning of a ghost in the machine type horror story? Well, yes and no. While Wired does seem at first to be a horror novel with a taste for the supernatural it turns out to be much more than that. With demons and gods, good, bad and ambiguous brought to life and magic playing a pivotal role, Wired quickly proves to be more dark fantasy.

Mike Baldwin of the Boston PD is investigating the case of the beheaded hackers and calls in a favor from old friend Pam Whitby whom he hasn't seen in years. Pam now runs a computer security firm with her partner and lover, Kevin McKinley. Just as the book itself, Pam and Kevin are more than they appear to be. Pam Whitby is a lot more than just a computer geek. She's a gun-toting black belt, with an unpredictable nature, who can kick some serious butt. Kevin is also a Magician, not the rabbit out of the hat variety, think Merlin or Pug here, serious magery. Together the three form an easy, and formidable alliance that must chase down the necromancer responsible for Wired before - well, before all hell breaks loose.

From the cover art to the last page, Wired is extremely suspenseful and enjoyable read. The characters were believable and well written - I was cheering for Pam (my favorite character) all the way. I do, however, wish I could have seen a bit more of the effect the demon was having on the outside world. We get a glimpse, but the story is tightly woven around the central characters with little of the outside world coming through. It might have strengthened the story to have more of an immediate sense of the dangers to the outside world, but with a story and characters as unique as these, I'm not complaining too loudly.

Mr. Browning is a wonderfully talented writer, with a highly developed imagination. Wired is a definite must read for all fans of horror or fantasy. This book without doubt has the best of both….and a little bit more.

To purchase Wired and read an excerpt go to http://www.revisedevilsdictionary.com/wiredadvert.htm