“Fans of stories centered on the conflict between the virtual and the real will find plenty to enjoy.” — Publishers Weekly
No one goes out anymore.
Society is sheltered indoors. The economy is in ruins. People spend their lives addicted to a breakthrough virtual reality technology, desperate for escapism in a troubled world. The Nirvana Effect has taken over.
Aaron and Clarissa are members of a subculture of realists who resist the lure of a fake utopia. They watch in horror as the technology spreads across the country with willing participants who easily forgo their freedoms for false pleasures. When the young couple discovers a plot to enforce compliance for mind control, the battle for free will begins. What started as a playful diversion turns deadly. The future of the human race is at stake.
Flame Tree Press / Simon & Schuster (2021)
Available in Paperback, Hardcover, and Ebook
Also available from: Simon & Schuster, Flame Tree Press, Books-a-Million, Waterstones, Indigo, Apple Books, Google, Kobo
Praise
“Millions tune into a virtual reality program while society collapses around them in this thoughtful cyberpunk novel from Pinkerton… he does a good job drawing readers into the characters’ anguish and fear, and builds to a clever, desperate climax. Fans of stories centered on the conflict between the virtual and the real will find plenty to enjoy.”
— Publishers Weekly
Extras
Q&A: The Nirvana Effect interview
Interview with Third Coast Review
Interview with Frugalmatic
Are we all doomed? Fearing The Nirvana Effect
Up Close: Brian Pinkerton
Charts
The Nirvana Effect reached #2 technothriller book on Amazon in February 2023