It's a pretty good social commentary on our dependence on or interaction with computers, smartphones, tablets and other technology right now. The book covers how he came to be in that position and how the Lattice was developed in the first place and its implications for society. Byron Shaw is charged with defending the Lattice when the book begins. The society of the near future has enacted helmet laws and developed self-driving cars to protect its members due to the pervasiveness of the problem.

We read of people's being so absorbed by their smartphones while walking that they bump into things or walk into traffic. The Lattice is the ultimate VR experience which enables users to enter the thoughts of any person past or present without that person's being aware of it. If their mere presence will freak you out, don't get the book. I felt they were logical additions in the story. There are a couple f-bombs scattered throughout and a few not-too-graphic sex scenes, but I did not find them overly gratuitous, frequent or offensive. I had more trouble going with the thoughts of people in the past than I did with the present day people's thoughts, but the book concentrates mainly on the involvement of persons in the present, so it wasn't a big distraction. As this is sci-fi, you are just going to have to accept and run with the idea that the thoughts of people in the past as well as in the present can be accessed by anyone at any time by the Lattice. As the title of this review indicates, the book was surprisingly good and the narration equally so. I hadn't heard of the author or listened to the narrator before. I got this book for $1.99 after browsing for something inexpensive to listen to, being between credits and something of an audiobook addict, so I wasn't expecting much.

The Lead Cloak by Erik Hanberg