First published 2017
Jack sails the oceans in her submarine, cooking up knockoff medications for people who cannot pay corporate prices. She sees herself as a pharmaceutical Robin Hood, stealing formulas and undercutting the patent system. Her newest hack goes wrong when users become obsessed with their jobs, working themselves into madness and death. Military agent Eliasz and his robot partner Paladin hunt Jack across the globe to stop the deadly drug at its source. Paladin serves as indentured property, bound by law to obey commands. As the chase intensifies, Eliasz and Paladin develop feelings that neither can fully grasp. Paladin starts questioning why robots must live as slaves while humans walk free. Jack must confront the consequences of her actions while Paladin wrestles with what it means to choose your own path in a world that treats thinking machines as property.
Genres: science-fiction, adventure, thriller, cyberpunk
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, found-family
Setting: Global
Period: 21st-century
301 pages · Paperback · Tor
Content warnings: drug-use, medical-trauma