First published 2017
Marîd Audran hustles through the Budayeen, a high-tech Arab ghetto where people swap personalities with electronic modules and reshape their bodies at will. He values his independence above all, refusing cybernetic enhancements while others modify their minds and bodies. When brutal murders sweep through his neighborhood, Audran catches the attention of Friedlander Bey, the district's most feared crime boss. Bey forces the reluctant loner to join his organization or face death. As Bey's lieutenant, Audran must infiltrate local police while hunting serial killers through neon-lit streets. The deeper he digs, the more he uncovers the corrupt politics beneath the city's surface. When enemies exile both Audran and Bey to the Arabian Desert, they must survive the wasteland long enough to reclaim their territory. Audran discovers that survival means abandoning his cherished independence for something more valuable.
Genres: science-fiction, dystopia, adventure, mystery, crime, action, cyberpunk
Vibes: dark, fast-paced, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, fish-out-of-water
Setting: Budayeen, Arabian Desert
Period: 20th-century
1262 pages · Kindle Edition · Open Road Media Sci-Fi & Fantasy
Content warnings: violence