- The Execution Channel
"The Execution Channel", a
science fiction novel byKen MacLeod , focuses on the early decades of the 21st century. The military of the United States of America and some of its allies have conducted a war on terror for some time and terrorist atrocities have continued, including an unspecified one atRosyth inScotland . Divisions between ethnic groups have formed as a result.The novel takes its title from a mysterious TV channel that broadcasts state-sponsored executions.
Plot
The novel follows the lives of
software developer James Travis and his daughter Roisín. Roisín, apacifist living at apeace camp outsideRAF Leuchars , has witnessed and recorded the unloading of a strange device from an aircraft. She then receives a text-message from her brother Alec — who serves in the British army in Central Asia — apparently warning her of impending trouble. As she and her fellow protestors leave the area, an enormous explosion devastates both the air-base and the neighbouring town.She also witnesses an attack on
Grangemouth Refinery .Unknown to her, her father has been working as a
spy . He witnesses theethnic cleansing of Britain's Muslims and their migration to France. He also witnesses an attack on Spaghetti Junction.Other characters include a
blogger who specialises in conspiracy theories, Mark Dark; and his mother, Sandra Hope, who works at a camp for eco-refugees in the United States. Some other bloggers work for anintelligence agency , writing under various pseudonyms to spreaddisinformation .Alternate history
*
Al Gore won theUnited States presidential election, 2000 , and was succeeded by Hillary Clinton.
* TheSeptember 11, 2001 attacks targeted Boston and Philadelphia.
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
