In 1986, 'Mirrorshades' was first published, introducing and showcasing the brand new genre of cyberpunk, which was characterized the future possibilities of computers and also the concept of virtual reality.. Featuring names such as William Gibson, Bruce Sterling, and John Shirley, the anthology is still considered to be a landmark publication of the genre. Only one woman appeared in it. Her name is Pat Cadigan. She was also included in Cyberkillers, a later anthology specifically featuring stories where crime and the cyberworld meet. In Dervish is Digital, a novel published in 2000, the police procedural enters cyberspace.
The World of Computers
Computers dominate the lives of modern man, so obviously they will play a role when it comes to crime in the future. Always present, they are used for work, play and so much more. Computer databases play a significant role in law enforcement. Applications like Facebook have changed the way people interact with each other. Interactive computer games are replacing the film industry as lucrative entertainment. This is today.
Imagine living in the near future, where you can spend hours or days lost in artificial pleasures of virtual reality. Where you can reshape your appearance digitally and experiment without risk. It is, unfortunately, also a future in which the word crime can sometimes take on a whole new meaning, as Inspector Konstantin learns first hand. As the head of technocrime, it is her job to apprehend cybercrooks, a task that is often easier said than done. In the world of cyberpunk, the bad guys can don encrypted personas and use software to stall the law. Likewise, the police officers that oppose them, must know their way around virtual reality.
The Plot
In Dervish is Digital, Pat Cadigan's protagonist Konstantin pulls the case of Hastings Dervish. That, at least, is what his former wife, designer Susannah Ell alleges. Konstantin battles to find proof. Dervish resides in the exclusive Key West, a no-go area, even for cops on police business. Her excursions in the dangerous virtual reality casino of Lowdown Hong Kong Mound earn her nothing but trouble, and the attention of East-West police operative Goku, who is almost as elusive as Dervish.
To top it all, her dependable ex-partner, Taliaferro, suffers from claustrophobia, making it difficult to enlist his help in virtual reality, where the real fight against crime in the future is fought. As Konstantin battles to keep track of the shady happenings, an exciting story is sketched, with regular plot twists and surprising turnabouts.
Is Cyberpunk Moving to Mainstream?
One has to wonder, though, how long cyberpunk will still be included in the genre of science fiction. Pat Cadigan's 'Dervish is Digital' uses a stalker who employs virtual reality to get to his victim. Several mainstream novels, most notably 'The Blue Nowhere' by Jeffrey Deaver and 'F2F' by Phillip Finch, had featured the theme of stalkers using the power of computers technology to achieve their ends. Is there that much difference left?
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