{"product_id":"simulacra-scott-randolph-9798261737773","title":"Simulacra: Cheat","description":"\u003cb\u003eThe market is rigged. But not by banks. By the universe itself.\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003eAdrian Shaw has a secret. He cheats at reality.\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eOn paper, he's a brilliant but unremarkable AI scientist, grinding away at an optimization startup. Off the books, he's discovered something else entirely-a hidden \"backdoor\" in the universe that lets him nudge probability, rewrite outcomes, and quietly correct the parts of life that offend his sense of order. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAt first, it's harmless. A job interview goes a little better than it should. A trader's algorithm misfires in just the right direction. A friend survives a car accident that should have been fatal. The world doesn't notice. The math holds. And Adrian tells himself what any good cheater tells himself: \u003ci\u003eI'm not hurting anyone. I'm just fixing the bugs.\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003eBut every edit leaves a fingerprint.\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003ePatterns accumulate. Systems strain. Soon, Adrian isn't the only one looking at the numbers. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eA ruthless hedge-fund prodigy, a government black program, and a shadowy online collective all start hunting the anomaly in the data-the invisible hand that keeps tilting the game. To them, Adrian isn't a man; he's an exploit. A weapon. Proof that the world is malleable. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAs markets buckle, wars twitch off-script, and entire lives pivot on his sleepless choices, Adrian realizes he's crossed an invisible line. He's no longer testing a trick; he's running an unsanctioned experiment on eight billion people. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThe more he \"fixes\" things, the worse the cascades get. Every solution spawns side effects he didn't foresee. Every mercy has a cost he can't fully calculate. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eTo protect the people he loves-and the fragile fabric of a world he's already bent out of shape-Adrian has to answer a question the math can't settle for him: \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003eIf you really can cheat reality, where does responsibility end?\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003eSimulacra: CHEAT\u003c\/b\u003e is high-concept, character-driven speculative fiction about power, probability, and the first step from an ordinary human to something dangerously close to a god. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003ePERFECT FOR FANS OF BLAKE CROUCH, TED CHIANG, AND NEAL STEPHENSON.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Scott Randolph\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9798261737773\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Independently Published\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 01\/01\/2026\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 242\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.72lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.00h x 6.00w x 0.55d","brand":"Scott Randolph","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":49171345867007,"sku":"9798261737773","price":12.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/simulacra-scott-randolph-9798261737773","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}