In this gripping debut novel, seventeen-year-old Cat must use her gene-hacking skills to decode her late father’s message concealing a vaccine to a horrifying plague. Catarina Agatta is a hacker. She can cripple mainframes and crash through firewalls, but that’s not what makes her special. In Cat’s world, people are implanted with technology to recode their DNA, allowing them to change their … change their bodies in any way they want. And Cat happens to be a gene-hacking genius.
That’s no surprise, since Cat’s father is Dr. Lachlan Agatta, a legendary geneticist who may be the last hope for defeating a plague that has brought humanity to the brink of extinction. But during the outbreak, Lachlan was kidnapped by a shadowy organization called Cartaxus, leaving Cat to survive the last two years on her own.
When a Cartaxus soldier, Cole, arrives with news that her father has been killed, Cat’s instincts tell her it’s just another Cartaxus lie. But Cole also brings a message: before Lachlan died, he managed to create a vaccine, and Cole needs Cat’s help to release it and save the human race.
Now Cat must decide who she can trust: The soldier with secrets of his own? The father who made her promise to hide from Cartaxus at all costs? In a world where nature itself can be rewritten, how much can she even trust herself?more
great book! there is a lot of activity, and the plot twist was incredible! defiantly something I’ve never read before!
When there is a spectacular death in the first couple of pages, you know you’re in for a ride. This apocalyptic story has enough sci-fi cred to truly satisfy, although some of the tech developments start to get a little bit on the convenient-for-progressing-the-plot side by the end. It certainly delves into the ethical questions around how much genetic manipulation is healthy for the human race, and explores possibilities I haven’t seen before. Isn’t that exactly what sci-fi is supposed to do? The romance themes were all there, and done believably, although it seemed just a little flat to me. There’s a good chance I’m getting a tad desensitised to that though, so don’t take my word for it. The story is certainly a fun one that took me almost no time to gobble up, and that says a lot for a book.
This futuristic, post apocalyptic novel had me hooked from the first chapter.
Catarina needs to survive. She has been stuck in this disease ridden world since her father was kidnapped by the organization, Cartaxus. Her only friend is Agnes, an older lady she talks to over russian satellite. In this world, humans can communicate, heal and enhance themselves with technology. When Cole, a soldier from Cataxus, shows up, everything Catarina has known will be questioned.
Wow, I absolutely loved this book! I really liked the main character, Catarina, because she is a tough and smart suvivor who is also an amazing computer hacker. I am a computer nerd as well so I really wanted to be Catarina.
I also really enjoyed the post apocalyptic vibe, how the virus lives and how it is spread. Also, how in-depth the author goes to explain everything about the virus and the technolgy. It was so interesting!
I will add a warning that some of the scenes are a bit graphic so I wouldn’t recommend eating while your read this book. It did not bother me, but if you are a bit squeamish then I could see it bothering you.
I highly recommend you check out this book!
This Mortal Coil delivers a fast-paced thriller that’s “The Walking Dead” meets Michael Crichton. Lots of great world-building that brings up lots of moral questions regarding genetic tinkering without sacrificing pacing. Lots of great twists in this novel. Emily Suvada’s debut novel turned me into an instant fan.
See my reivew here:
https://thebibliophagist.blog/2018/10/25/this-mortal-coil-this-cruel-design-emily-suvada/
Emily Suvada is skilled at developing characters that jump off the page, quickly becoming real in your mind. Her world building is excellent, & will pull you in. The storyline is fast paced, action packed, filled to the brim with twists & turns that will leave you gasping for more! An innovative, well researched, sci-fi laced thrill ride with a side of romance to make you swoon! Loved it, & will always be an all time favorite read for me!! I highly recommend it! A true must read!!
I give this a low 3 stars. Not sure why everyone is rating it so high. The romance aspect of the novel is so cliche, it detracts from the overall story. The last quarter of the book has some major plot twists, which make it worth finishing, but I considered DNFing the book multiple times. There’s much better scifi YA out there. I appreciate the main character being a female coder but I didn’t like much else about it. The world building needed work. I don’t recommend it.
Read this book as part of our high school’s annual Kindle Tournament (like the March Madness but with books). An interesting twist to dystopian literature – viruses affect the human race to extinction but can it be stopped? When Cat’s father is kidnapped by a supposedly evil force, Cat has to survive on her own until a soldier, Cole, is sent to retrieve her to help stop the virus. Why Cat? Her father created a vaccine but they need help getting it to the people as it is encrypted. Why Cat? Cat is an excellent hacker. Excellent world-building with a little romance, adventure, and the technology used is great. Really surprised me and will be reading the second book when it comes out.