Techno-thriller

The inner workings of technology and the mechanics of various disciplines (espionage, martial arts, politics) are thoroughly explored, and the plot often turns on the particulars of that exploration. This genre began to be distinguished from its parent genres in the early 20th century, receiving further developments and focus in the mid 20th century. The genre dates back to early in the 20th century. Invasion of the Sea by Jules Verne (1905) has been called an early techno-thriller. Many techno-thrillers are comparable to science fiction—and several modes within science fiction. The popularity of the genre has maintained itself and evolved over the years. One of the earliest techno-thrillers is thought to be The Satan Bug (1962) by Alistair MacLean, while much of what counted for science fiction in the pre-war and early post-war Soviet Union were essentially techno-thrillers, full of technical details and featuring complex spy-rich plots, one of the most enduring examples being the Grigory Adamov's The Mystery of the Two Oceans (1939). Michael Crichton and Tom Clancy are considered to be the fathers of the "modern techno-thriller"; Crichton's book The Andromeda Strain and Clancy's book The Hunt for Red October set out the type example which defined the genre, although many authors had been writing similar material earlier, such as Craig Thomas.