Fantasy, Technothriller || Alif is an Arab-Indian computer hacker in an unnamed repressive emirate to whom two bad things have just happened. The aristocratic woman he loves has dumped him for a prince chosen by her parents, and Alif's computer has been breached by the state's electronic surveillance. Then it turns out his lover's fiancé and the head of the government's electronic security are the same man. The security police come after Alif and he must go underground.