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Alif the Unseen

Published
Jun 2012
Main Genre
Literary Literary
Rating
Pages
320

About This Book

In an unnamed Middle Eastern security state, a young Arab-Indian hacker shields his clients—dissidents, outlaws, Islamists, and other watched groups—from surveillance and tries to stay out of trouble. He goes by Alif—the first letter of the Arabic alphabet, and a convenient handle to hide behind. The aristocratic woman Alif loves has jilted him for a prince chosen by her parents, and his computer has just been breached by the State's electronic security force, putting his clients and his own neck on the line. Then it turns out his lover's new fiancé is the head of State security, and his henchmen come after Alif, driving him underground. When Alif discovers The Thousand and One Days, the secret book of the jinn, which both he and the Hand suspect may unleash a new level of information technology, the stakes are raised and Alif must struggle for life or death, aided by forces seen and unseen. With shades of Neal Stephenson, Neil Gaiman, Philip Pullman, and The Thousand and One Nights, Alif the Unseen is a tour de force debut—a sophisticated melting pot of ideas, philosophy, religion, technology and spirituality smuggled inside an irresistible page-turner.

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Paperback

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Trade Paperback
Apr 2013 Grove Press ISBN13 9780802121226 ISBN10 0802121225
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Jul 2012 Emblem Editions ISBN13 9780771089084 ISBN10 0771089082
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Jul 2013 Emblem Editions ISBN13 9780771089091 ISBN10 0771089090
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Hardcover

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First Edition Jun 2012 Grove Press ISBN13 9780802120205 ISBN10 0802120202
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eBook

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Jun 2012 Allen & Unwin (AUS) ISBN13 9781742699974 ISBN10 1742699979
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Jun 2012 McClelland & Stewart (Canada) ISBN13 9780771089107 ISBN10 0771089104
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Jun 2012 Grove Press ISBN10 B0087GJVPO
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Jun 2012 Grove Press ISBN13 9780802194626 ISBN10 0802194621
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Sep 2012 Corvus ISBN13 9780857895684 ISBN10 0857895680
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MP3 CD
Jul 2012 Brilliance Audio ISBN13 9781455895427 ISBN10 1455895423
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Jul 2012 Brilliance Audio ISBN10 B008GZWNEW
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Playaway
Jul 2012 Brilliance Audio ISBN13 9781469212951 ISBN10 1469212951
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Jul 2012 Brilliance Audio ISBN13 9781455895403 ISBN10 1455895407
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Jul 2012 Brilliance Audio ISBN13 9781455895441 ISBN10 145589544X
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Jul 2012 Brilliance Audio ISBN13 9781455895434 ISBN10 1455895431
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Sep 2012 Audible Studios ISBN10 B009ENLZC6
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Oct 2012 Audible Ltd ISBN10 B00BMR8MH8
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Apr 2013 Brilliance Audio ISBN13 9781455898091 ISBN10 1455898090
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Apr 2013 Brilliance Audio ISBN13 9781455895458 ISBN10 1455895458
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Dec 2016 Brilliance Audio ISBN13 9781536626568 ISBN10 1536626562
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