Криптономикон

Bannus.van.der.kloot

Enjoyed it enough to read all 900+ pages. The fundamental concept of the book (juxtaposing the origins of cryptography in WWII with modern technology) is great. I found the historical fiction bits way more enjoyable, but unfortunately, those parts have less of an overarching plot than the modern bits. The prose isn't particularly great but flows well and has a nice knack for using technical words in unexpected ways.