Tantalum Mass is a riveting cyber thriller with a mind-blowing high concept. The notions of Dyrette, the wafers, and World Heartbeat are so compelling because they are simultaneously fantastical and disturbingly plausible, as if this is speculative fiction only five minutes in the future. It’s thought-provoking, because we are allowed to see both the wondrous possibilities of technology as well as the dark and chilling side. Dyrette could dominate the world and enslave mankind, but perhaps it is capable of benevolence as well. Mags is an endearing protagonist both cunning and inventive enough to take on such a massive conspiracy.Her relationship with Hayward makes the conflict all the more loaded and intense. These are two geniuses at the top of their game, and the stakes could not be higher. The late sequence where we see planes falling out of the sky and the stock market panic is exhilarating and shows us what the scope is.