In his debut novel, Bazaar, Miles Joyner puts a new spin on a technothriller. What happens when assassinations are tied to a prediction market on the dark web?
Siblings Yemi and Karen Usunma are part of an executive protection team. The company they work for, Raptor, is hired by political VIPs in Washington, D.C. Making their lives even more difficult, a new online prediction market is laying odds on political assassinations happening within a given 24 hour period. Successful jobs can earn enterprising killers a tidy sum.
Joyner explores how the anonymity and ease of the dark web can bring out the worst in people—and the chilling possibilities that can arise. “The antagonist, Aaron Williams, is young and tech savvy but by no means is he a prodigious computer hacker. Anybody with an internet connection and access to a ghost gun is capable of the same things he pulls off. He’s simply an opportunist who sees the Bazaar as being a solution to his dire financial situation.”
He drew inspiration from real-life events. “The plot definitely took shape first after I came across a 2013 news article regarding assassination markets on the online Silk Road. From there, I developed the idea of an executive protection team handling VIP clients whose livelihoods are threatened by the online dead pool.”
For readers not well-versed in the dark side of the Internet, Silk Road was an online black market on the dark web, where users could buy things such as illegal drugs (an estimated 70% of Silk Road’s business), pornography, and fake driver’s licenses.
The site was shut down by the FBI in October 2013, but other versions have arisen (and shut down) since then.
Joyner grew up in Silver Spring, Maryland, steeped in the culture of the greater D.C. area. “When I left the region temporarily for college, I realized the widespread diversity I experienced growing up wasn’t the norm. I had spent so much energy on trying to leave that I didn’t even take time to appreciate how unique the D.C. suburbs are. I also realized how much of the area’s economy was tied to government contracting and the ‘beltway bandit’ phenomenon.”
He was also inspired by the work of S.A. Cosby. “Prior to reading Razorblade Tears, I was largely still committed to being strictly a filmmaker/videographer. After reading some of his books, I realized they were the most cinematic experiences I had over the past five years compared to anything I saw on a screen.”
Joyner is looking forward to writing more novels centered around Raptor and the cast of characters he’s created. “My goal is to explore the ramifications of technological innovation on society as a whole and everyday life. Themes of entrepreneurship, political corruption, and issues regarding class are the pillars of what drove the writing in Bazaar.”
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