The Final System - by Anthony Tardiff (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

A vigilante hacker and a young politician must risk everything to destroy a chilling new advancement in artificial intelligence in this action-packed science fiction thriller about the blurry boundary between human and machine.

Decades ago, the Cybercrash destroyed the internet, and almost destroyed the nation. From the ashes rose OverNet, a new realm of cybersecurity created by tech genius Dr. Andrew Norman.

But gamer Jason Cromartie witnesses a brutal side to Norman's system when his twin sister becomes a casualty of its algorithmic choices. Now Jason will do anything to bring down the man he holds responsible, even become a "phreaker" working for a dangerous hacker ring via Sprite, his secretive handler.

For Chloe Dunne-Carr, an ambitious politician who has reaped only the benefits of OverNet despite being one of Norman's staunchest opponents, the algorithm's growing control means raising her daughter in a world that's losing touch with its humanity.

When Norman unveils the Final System, a revolutionary Artificial General Intelligence set to impose a new world order, Jason and Chloe find themselves pawns in Norman's twisted game of man versus technology. Now, may the best player win.

(c) 2026 by Anthony Tardiff, all rights reserved.

Review Quotes

"An interesting look into a future where every aspect of human life is connected to and controlled by a network, and people have become deeply dependent on the ratings determined by these networks." --Amy Van Epps, Director of Science and Engineering Services, Cabot Science Library, The Harvard Gazette