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The Demolished Man

by Alfred Bester

A murder in a world of telepaths

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AlbakiReads Editorial

A murder in a world of telepaths

In a society where telepaths police crime, murder has become almost unthinkable—until industrialist Ben Reich decides it is the only way to stop his company from losing its long-running struggle with D’Courtney Enterprises. After killing his rival, Reich tries to conceal the crime with help from a bribed telepath. Police prefect Lincoln Powell believes he knows who is responsible, but telepathic knowledge does not automatically make admissible evidence. The setup brings crime investigation into direct contact with corporate rivalry and raises a practical question for this world: what can a mind-reading police force prove?

Good fit for readers who enjoy

  • Science-fiction readers interested in telepathy as part of a society’s law enforcement.
  • Readers who enjoy crime plots shaped by corporate conflict.
  • Readers curious about speculative questions of evidence and guilt.

Themes

Telepathy and policingMurder and investigationCorporate rivalryEvidence and guilt

Based on publisher information and book metadata.

Book overview

Winner of the First Hugo Award. #14 in the Millennium SF Masterworks series, a library of the finest science fiction ever written. "Bester's two superb books have stood the test of time. For nearly sixty years they've held their place on everybody's list of the ten greatest sf novels" -Robert Silverberg "One of the all-time classics of science fiction."-Isaac Asimov "Alfred Bester wrote with the pedal to the floor and the headlights on full beam. His work combined erudition with an unparalleled imaginative inventiveness. Bester was writing cyberpunk while William Gibson was still running around zapping the other kids at school with a toy raygun."-James Lovegrove In a world policed by telepaths, Ben Reich plans to commit a crime that hasn't been heard of in 70 years: murder. That's the only option left for Reich, whose company is losing a 10-year death struggle with rival D'Courtney Enterprises. Terrorized in his dreams by The Man With No Face and driven to the edge after D'Courtney refuses a merger offer, Reich murders his rival and bribes a high-ranking telepath to help him cover his tracks. But while police prefect Lincoln Powell knows Reich is guilty, his telepath's knowledge is a far cry from admissible evidence.
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