BATTERY REVOLUTION

In Pierson’s debut novel, a scientist accidentally discovers room-temperature superconductivity and founds a company that revolutionizes the power grid.

In his first novel, the author, an energy technology executive and business adviser, draws on his professional experience and knowledge of contemporary scientific innovations to depict a high-stakes corporate environment. After Dr. Amelia Chen observes quantum tunneling while conducting research, she and Dr. Toshi Yoshida, her graduate school adviser and mentor, set out to use room-temperature superconductivity (a concept generally considered impossible) to create a battery that stores electricity with unprecedented efficiency. Joined by Mark Levinson, the former chair of the American Energy Storage Association, they found QuantumCell technologies. As the company grows and their technology is successfully applied to improve the power grid, questions surrounding the system’s vulnerability to cyberattacks and the troubling implications and potential benefits of artificial intelligence usage begin to arise. Rx Battery, a competitor to QuantumCell led by former Army Cyber Command Officer Brooke Reilly, is building a power grid defense system called Quantum Shield. Meanwhile, Amelia can’t help but wonder whether her father’s warning years earlier—that she should “be careful with energy”—might be tied to his own mysterious work prior to his sudden death. Switching among multiple characters’ perspectives, the story is at its best when exploring internal conflicts, personal relationships, and broad ethical questions about the benefits and dangers of AI in the modern world. But while the novel presents compelling characters and a creative plot, these elements are often overshadowed by the frequent introduction of complex technical concepts and dense scientific jargon. (“Traditional transformers work through electromagnetic induction. There’s no direct electrical connection between the primary and secondary windings. That’s what gave us an idea. We created quantum-isolated channels mimicking the transformer coupling.”) While those with background knowledge of the concepts and the industry covered here will likely enjoy this novel, as it is well written and elegantly constructed, it may prove a bit inaccessible to general readers.

The cognoscenti will enjoy this dense, intelligently rendered techno-thriller.