Questions

Do I need a cryptography background to enjoy this?

No. Some readers have backgrounds in cryptography, incident response, or intelligence, and they tend to read the book as a slightly accelerated version of the conversations they already have at work. Most readers do not, and the book is written for them. Technical terms pick up their meaning from context the first time they appear. The emotional stakes do not require a textbook.

Is the technology in the book real?

The cryptography is. RSA, elliptic-curve, ML-KEM, ML-DSA, AES, Shor's algorithm, the reasons the internet runs on the assumptions it runs on: those are all actual things in the actual world. The fault-tolerant quantum computer in the story is an extrapolation of public research. It is faster than mainstream predictions and slower than worst-case assumptions.

Is this based on a true story?

No. The surveillance architecture in the book is built on real law, real oversight structures, and the actual capability gaps between them. CARDINAL and LOOKING GLASS are inventions. The legal and institutional machinery they use is not.

When is it coming out?

The target release window is late 2026. No release date has been set. The book is in beta reading; revision begins mid-May 2026. If you want to be notified when the date is firm, email contact@cleartextnovel.com and you will get one email the week the book goes live.

Where can I pre-order?

Pre-order links do not exist yet. They will be published here as soon as the release window is set. The most reliable way to catch the announcement is the email above.

Can I get a review copy?

Advance review copies are planned for roughly six to eight weeks before the release date, first through NetGalley and BookSirens, then to direct requests. Bloggers, reviewers, and journalists can send a short note to contact@cleartextnovel.com with an outlet or channel name and the reading format preferred. Priority goes to requesters with a public track record in the techno-thriller or security-research spaces.

Do you do podcast appearances?

Yes. Post-quantum migration, harvest-now-decrypt-later, Bitcoin and the quantum migration, quantum hype vs. cryptographic reality, and the craft of writing fiction from primary-source material are all on the table. Pitches to contact@cleartextnovel.com should include the show, the format, and an approximate recording window.

Is there a sequel?

Cleartext is planned as a standalone. The ending is meant to be an ending. Whether a second book happens depends on whether the story I have not yet finished arguing with myself about is worth ninety thousand words of anyone's attention. If it is, you will hear about it. If it is not, there will not be a sequel pretending to be one.