Gene Cards release day!

Science fiction fans: my futuristic/dystopian technothriller GENE CARDS is finally here! And here's the best news: for a limited time only (i.e. one week!) it will be at the special price of $0.99 (Kindle edition, US and UK only). Please share the news, post on Facebook, tweet, send it as a gift to the sci-fi lovers in your family and circle of friends, in other words: help me spread the word.

Read the first chapter here.

Review Highlights:

"I found Gene Cards a rewarding read, one that kept me glued to the pages throughout to see what comes next. And come they did - many suspenseful and nail biting moments." -- MysterySequels.com

"Ms. Giorgi has a very unique voice, a word artist, with a vivid and descriptive vocabulary." -- Juneta Key, Amazon Review

"Packed with action from the first page to the last, the characters are engaging and flawed in a relatable way." -- C., Amazon Review

Book Blurb:
When the cure for some means death for others, how far will you go to save your own?

Yulia Szymanski is a murderer and one of the best hackers of the century. Her mission: break her brother out of a high security jail before he dies of a rare genetic condition. On her trail is Biothreat Agent Skyler Donohue, a decorated Muay Thai fighter with a strange fascination for corpses. The obstacle to overcome: an invisible, deadly disease that strikes at random and has the city of Liasis locked in a bioterrorism siege.

When the latest to fall ill is Skyler's best friend's daughter, Skyler wants to drop the Szymanski case to chase the baffling pathogen that nobody is able to isolate. What she doesn't know is that finding Yulia is the only way to stop the epidemic and save the child's life.

In a world where identities are based on gene cards, and privacy no longer exists, survival is only granted to the rich, the healthy, and those who've learned to become invisible to the system.

First Page Review Blog-Hop: Gene Cards

Today's post is part of the First Page Review bloghop. Here's how it works: if you are writer, on your own blog, post your first 1,000 words of something you're writing or have written, then sign up on this page, linking your 1,000 word post. Visit other people on the list and read theirs, then leave a comment to let them know if you liked it, what worked, what didn't, and if you'd keep reading. And if you don't have any work in progress to share... visit the First Page Review bloghop page to discover new, forthcoming books!

My excerpt is from my new book release, GENE CARDS. Here's the first 994 words:

The blue bar inched forward.
Thirty percent download.

Orange light pooled through the electrochromic windows and drew jagged lines across the walls. Outside, helicopter blades swooshed closer. Yulia waved a hand in front of the switch sensor and the glass went from opaque back to transparent. She watched the chopper—a Sikorsky quadcopter—maneuver through the sky. Thick billows of smoke enveloped it.
A red, angry sun watched with her.

Sirens blasted in the distance, a megaphone barked down the street.
Yulia’s eyes strayed back to the screen in her hand.
Forty percent download.
Nestled in the palm of her hand, the forty panels forming the screen of her Computerized Personal Assistant buzzed with activity. Bites of data rushed across firewalls, swirling through fiber-optic cables and eluding encrypted servers, slowly filling her CPA’s two terabytes of RAM.
C’mon…

“New message,” the CPA said. “Display?”
On the bottom right corner of her screen, Yulia read, Inbox(1).
She tapped the screen and said, “No.”
The blue bar inched to fifty percent. The beat of the quad skycrane hammered against the windows.
“New message,” the CPA repeated. “Display?”
Damn!

Her muscles twitched, her foot rapped the floor. She tapped the Inbox. The screen went black, a new image quickly filled it.
She saw red, at first. Red, like the sun outside.
Red’s not good.
She bit her lip, watching.
He’s sick again.
Sick, like the sun outside. 

Yulia’s fingers wavered. She peeked at the downloading bar at the bottom of the screen—sixty-eight percent—then back to the image: the rusty skeleton of a boat deck stranded on a gray beach. Ravenous ocean waves swelled around it, dark clouds looming above.
No time now.
“Close.” She tapped the screen and the image was gone.
The sirens outside wailed closer. 

A tree on the street burst, sending debris and ashes drumming against the windowpanes.
A loud buzz, the electronic voice of the security system crackling to life. “Code nine-eight-nine. The system has been informed of an emergency.”
“Really?” Yulia snapped.
“Recognition failed. Please repeat.”
She bit her lip. Stay calm. You’ll get out of this. 

With its syncopated cadence, the central computer dictated its impersonal warning: “The system will proceed to shut down at seventeen-oh-five GMT on August ten, two thousand fifty-six. Shut down will complete in ninety seconds.”
Yulia locked her fingers around her CPA. She had ninety seconds to finish the download and leave. The shutdown was irreversible. She could yell some random command at the speakerphone, but the voice recognition software would reject it.
Come on! 

“Gas. Disconnected.”

Through the electrochromic windows, she could now see the plume of smoke loom over the horizon. The sky darkened, the red disk of the sun glimmered through the haze like a reversed eclipse. 

“Electricity. Disconnected. Battery life. Fifteen seconds.”

Light burst through the OLED TV screen one last time and then died. Suddenly muted, digital frames scattered on the white walls flickered and went black. The wireless power source tower faded from red to gray.
Ninety percent download.
Come on!

Down the street, barked the impersonal voice of a security drone: “Mandatory evacuation for all residents. Please evacuate. Now.”
Heedless, the central computer resumed its warning. “Q-Network. Dis—”
Another loud buzz, this time followed by sparks.
The system exhaled its last breath, Yulia thought.

Electronically controlled, all doors in the apartment closed. Sprinklers came down from recesses in the ceiling.
Yulia ducked to cover her CPA from the water.
The shelves rattled, one of the picture screens fell and crashed into a million fragments. The metal cabinet shook, its long forgotten treasures trembled: a black and white picture in an old-fashioned wood frame. A seashell. A vintage 35mm camera. 

The CPA emitted a brusque bleep.
Download complete.
Yulia exhaled. She unplugged the cat-5 cable, morphed her CPA to a cube, and slid it in her pocket.
This is all I need.
The sprinklers spit rust-smelling water on her face.
Car keys. Check. Data. Check.
My K45. 

A whiff of gunpowder emerged over the reek of fire smoke. And blood. Not much, just a trickle snaking its way on the floor. Duane stared at her with vacant eyes, an arm loosely wrapped across the back of the couch as if he’d just sat down to chat. A hint of surprise lingered in his gaze. His wet forehead was plastered with strands of ash blond hair.
Yulia brushed her fingers along the back of his hand, the same hand that yesterday had run on her breasts, teasing, caressing. 

Her two-millimeter H&K K45 lay on the cushion next to him. She picked it up, pressed the release and checked the magazine.
Twenty more rounds.
Plenty.

She snuck the handgun in her waistband and kissed Duane’s forehead—a wet kiss, lulled by the monotone hiss of the sprinklers.
“Bye, babe. Sorry you didn’t enjoy the ending.”
The acrid smell of wildfire welcomed her outside, stinging. The plume loomed and covered the sky, as if night had fallen. She heard the chopper but couldn’t locate it. Ashes prickled her face like soft raindrops. The metallic voice of the security drone sounded far away now, its distant call an unheard lullaby. 

Her Toyota SX waited on the curbside, under a layer of soot. She climbed behind the wheel, called the engine on, then the wipers.
The fifteen-year-old engine roared. Without a GPS or QNet communicator to inform it of the current emergency, the navigator’s greeting seemed surreal.
“Welcome, Alex. Where should I take you today?”
“Away,” Yulia ordered the navigator. “As fast as you can.”

Headlights on, the Toyota whipped into the street.
She saw the flash first, through the rearview mirror. Then came the blast, so strong it made the car jump and propel forward. Glass shattered and exploded. Debris washed on the windshield. 

She didn’t stop to look back. It no longer mattered.
Nothing mattered anymore.
Tires skittered on soot.
The Toyota lost ground, then gained it back.
Run.
Away.



Book Blurb:
When the cure for some means death for others, how far will you go to save your own?

Yulia Szymanski is a murderer and one of the best hackers of the century. Her mission: break her brother out of a high security jail before he dies of a rare genetic condition. On her trail is Biothreat Agent Skyler Donohue, a decorated Muay Thai fighter with a strange fascination for corpses. The obstacle to overcome: an invisible, deadly disease that strikes at random and has the city of Liasis locked in a bioterrorism siege.

When the latest to fall ill is Skyler's best friend's daughter, Skyler wants to drop the Szymanski case to chase the baffling pathogen that nobody is able to isolate. What she doesn't know is that finding Yulia is the only way to stop the epidemic and save the child's life.

In a world where identities are based on gene cards, and privacy no longer exists, survival is only granted to the rich, the healthy, and those who've learned to become invisible to the system.

Preorder GENE CARDS on Amazon (release date October 15).

Sunday Snippet: Gene Cards

From GENE CARDS, Chapter 1:

The blue bar inched forward -- thirty percent download.
Orange light pooled through the electrochromic windows and drew jagged lines across the walls. Outside, helicopter blades swooshed closer. Yulia waved a hand in front of the switch sensor and the glass went from opaque back to transparent. She watched the chopper—a Sikorsky quadcopter—maneuver through the sky. Thick billows of smoke enveloped it.
A red, angry sun watched with her.
Sirens blasted in the distance, a megaphone barked down the street.

The above is my Sunday snippet submission for the Weekend writer Warriors (you can find the Snippet Sunday group on Facebook, too). Make sure you check out all Weekend writer Warriors participants, it's a fun way to find forthcoming books -- all genres welcome, there's something for everyone's tastes.

Download the first chapter of GENE CARDS here. You can also enter the Goodreads giveaway to win one of two signed copies! Thanks for visiting!

Sunday Snippet - GENE CARDS

From GENE CARDS, Chapter 2:

The pain--the hardest thing is the pain.
He doesn’t mind the darkness, or the stench of latrine. He doesn’t mind the rats gnawing his cot, or the screams haunting the hallways like drunken ghosts.
The hardest thing is the pain.
It slices through his chest like a chilled blade. His lungs freeze, his throat gags for air. There’s no escape. Pain is his harshest prison.

This is from Julian's POV. He's not a happy lad. ;-)

The above is my Sunday snippet submission for the Weekend writer Warriors (you can find the Snippet Sunday group on Facebook, too). Make sure you check out all Weekend writer Warriors participants, it's a fun way to find forthcoming books -- all genres welcome, there's something for everyone's tastes.

Download the first chapter of GENE CARDS here. You can also enter the Goodreads giveaway to win one of two signed copies!

On other news, my short story Lady Lilith is now Amazon! But wait, just read it for free, free is better! ;-) --> sign up!

Snippet Sunday: Gene Cards

From GENE CARDS, Chapter 14:

Guarded by firewalls, connected by underground tunnels, nourished by stocks of bioengineered food and the lake’s twenty cubic miles of water, the city of Liasis was an unbreakable fortress to the outside world. Yet pockets of underworld existed within the city, too. Dark alleys where you could trade a joint for cheap sex, where eyes had no color and faces no mouth. Here, the QNet warped into black holes of solitudes: Internet games, cybersex, virtual worlds where lives melted into a multitude of non-existing possibilities, the rabbit hole where Alice kept falling and falling and falling...

Skyler knew such world well. She was once an Alice too, and climbing out of the rabbit hole was the hardest thing she ever did in her life.

It's actually 5 sentences, but it felt complete like that, without adding the following 3.

The above is my Sunday snippet submission for the Weekend writer Warriors (you can find the Snippet Sunday group on Facebook, too). Make sure you check out all Weekend writer Warriors participants, it's a fun way to find forthcoming books -- all genres welcome, there's something for everyone's tastes.

Now that MOSAICS is out in the world, I thought I'd switch gear and introduce you guys to my next thriller, GENE CARDS, a dystopian mystery set in the future which is due out in October (you can read the blurb at the end of the post). I know, two book releases in less than a month, how crazy is that? The truth is that I've been waiting so long to push these out -- you can read this post if you're curious about the whole story behind my books and why they've been sitting in my drawer for so long.

On other news, I've polished a short story I wrote a while ago and I'm planning to send it out to all my newsletter subscriber before I release it on Amazon. So, if you want to read for free... sign up! :-)

GENE CARDS (A Skyler Donohue Mystery)

When the cure for some means death for others, how far will you go to save your own?

    Yulia Szymanski is a murderer and one of the best hackers of the century. Her mission: break her brother out of a high security jail before he dies of a rare genetic condition. On her trail is Biothreat Agent Skyler Donohue, a decorated Muay Thai fighter with a strange fascination for corpses. The obstacle to overcome: an invisible, deadly disease that strikes at random and has the city of Liasis locked in a bioterrorism siege. 

    When the latest to fall ill is Skyler's best friend's daughter, Skyler wants to drop the Szymanski case to chase the baffling pathogen that nobody is able to isolate. What she doesn't know is that finding Yulia is the only way to stop the epidemic and save the child's life. 

   In a world where identities are based on gene cards, and privacy no longer exists, survival is only granted to the rich, the healthy, and those who've learned to become invisible to the system. 

Download the first chapter here.

Meet My Character Blog Hop -- Skyler Donohue, from my forthcoming sci-fi mystery GENE CARDS

First off, I wanted to share Combining Genetics, Photography, and the Power of Smell: E.E. Giorgi Answers Her Muse, an interview with fellow author and bioengineer Anthony J. Melchiorri, in which I talk about genetics, photography and my forthcoming books Mosaics and Gene Cards. I really enjoyed answering Anthony's questions, and Anthony will be a guest here on Chimeras, too, to talk about his thriller Enhancement.

Now to the blog hop: I was tagged by Cindy Amhrein in the MEET MY CHARACTER BLOG TOUR. Cindy is a historian and fellow writer whose recently released book, Bread and Butter: the Murders of Polly Frisch tells the story of one of the first women to go on trial for murder in the rural town of Alabama, NY. Cindy and her co-author, Ellen Bachorski, put a lot of work into the book, and were literally "history sleuths" as they dug out trial transcripts and old documents to reconstruct Polly Frisch's story.

Cindy is also one of my most valuable beta readers, but that I'm keeping a secret before other writers "steal" her from me. ;-)

I like the idea behind this blog hop, Meet My Character, because it gives authors a chance to introduce their characters and the book they are currently working on. Since I've been talking plenty about Track Presius, the main character in my detective thriller CHIMERAS, I think this time I'll take the chance to talk about another character of mine, Skyler Donohue, who will be featured in GENE CARDS (to be released October 2014).

What is the name of your character? Is she fictional or a historic person?
EEG: Skyler Donohue is a Biothreat Agent from the fictional city of Liasis. She investigates all crimes that fall under the "biothreat" category, including pathogens (whether natural or manmade), biological weapons, and anything that could be used in a bioterroristic attack.

When and where is the story set?
EEG: The story is set in the city of Liasis in 2056, in a society that is ruled by wi-fi technology and genetic identification. Different law enforcement agencies compete with one another for turf, and mutual mistrust is the norm. Every person is under the radar, making hackers and those who manage to fall off the grid the best criminals of the century.

What should we know about her?
EEG: Skyler was born in 2024 and raised by an abusive mother, from whom she fled when she was 16. Forced to make her way through society on her own, Skyler learned the hard way to always stick for herself. Her quaint fascination for cadavers -- likely a consequence of being sick all the time when she was a child -- prompted her to seek a career in law enforcement.

What is the main conflict? What messes up her life?
EEG: Skyler's main conflict is a woman, Yulia Szymanski, a murderer, and one of the most wanted hackers of the century. Szymanski has been dubbed the "DNA chameleon" because of her ability to hack into the country's super secure genetic database so that every time her DNA is found on the scene a new ID -- never hers -- turns up in the system.

What is the personal goal of the character?
EEG: Her main goal, at first, is to find Yulia Szymanski and bring her to justice. As the story unfolds, though, a new deadly pathogen randomly strikes people in the city of Liasis. Skyler, given her background, feels that she's the best person to be put on the new task force, yet her line manager excludes her from the investigation. So, as she keeps tracking down Szymanski, she also fights the higher forces in her own agency who want to keep her in the dark about the new investigation.

Is there a working title for this novel, and can we read more about it?
EEG: The title is Gene Cards and I have a page up on Goodreads, where you can read the blurb and also enter a giveaway for two signed ARC copies of the book. Hurry up, the giveaway ends August 20! :-)

When can we expect the book to be published?
EEG: I'm hoping to release the book this coming October. Anyone interested can sign up for ARC copies (e-books I'll be sending out to early reviewers) here.

Here is the blurb:

When the cure for some means death for others, how far will you go to save your own?

Yulia Szymanski is a murderer and one of the best hackers of the century. Her mission: break her brother out of a high security jail before he dies of a rare genetic condition. On her trail is Biothreat Agent Skyler Donohue, a decorated Muay Thai fighter with a strange fascination for corpses. The obstacle to overcome: an invisible, deadly disease that strikes at random and has the city of Liasis locked in a bioterrorism siege.

When the latest to fall ill is Skyler's best friend's daughter, Skyler wants to drop the Szymanski case to chase the baffling pathogen that nobody is able to isolate. What she doesn't know is that finding Yulia is the only way to stop the epidemic and save the child's life.

In a world where identities are based on gene cards, and privacy no longer exists, survival is only granted to the rich, the healthy, and those who've learned to become invisible to the system.

And here are the awesome authors who accepted my invitation to join along. Stop by and visit them when they post on August 11th!

• Juneta Key - Writer's Gambit - Author of the forthcoming series Guardian of the Seals.
• Laura Mullane - author of Swimming for Shore, memoirs of a reluctant mother.
• Cole Alpaugh - author of The Bear in a Muddy Tutu and The Turtle Girl from East Pukapuka.
• Heather Holden - author of Echo Effect, a Greek myth-based webcomic starring an antisocial stutterer and a popular pretty boy!

Upcoming books and ARC sign-ups: read to find out more!

Last week I announced the upcoming release of MOSAICS, Book 2 in the Track Presius Mystery series. This week I'm excited to announce yet another book that I would like to release this fall: GENE CARDS -- another mystery, set in the future this time:

Book Description: Yulia Szymanski is a murderer and one of the best hackers of the century. Her mission: break her brother out of a high security jail before he dies of a rare genetic condition. On her trail is Biothreat Agent Skyler Donohue, a decorated Muay Thai fighter with a strange fascination for corpses. The obstacle to overcome: an invisible, deadly disease that strikes at random and has the city of Liasis locked in a bioterrorism siege.

When the latest to fall ill is Skyler's best friend's daughter, Skyler wants to drop the Szymanski case to chase the baffling pathogen that nobody is able to isolate. What she doesn't know is that finding Yulia is the only way to stop the epidemic and save the child's life.

In a world where identities are based on gene cards, and privacy no longer exists, survival is only granted to the rich, the healthy, and those who've learned to become invisible to the system.

Download the first chapter here (epub, mobi or pdf available).

CAN'T WAIT UNTIL THE FALL TO READ?
Well, then, I've got the answer for you: sign up to get an ARC copy book. EDITED to add: at this time ARCs have already been sent out. You can still sign up and you will get the next release.

What is an ARC copy?

ARC stands for Advanced Reserved Copy and it's a pre-proofed, electronic copy of the book that, if you sign up, you will be receiving in your inbox in exchange for an honest review to be posted on Amazon on (or shortly after) the book release date.

What happens after I sign up?

Nothing for a few weeks. I'm still getting the books ready, and by that I mean I'm finishing up one last round of edits. In about a month or so I will start sending out the ARC copies to all people who signed up.

What file format will the book be in?

My preference is to send out the book as a .mobi file, which can be read on any Kindle or Kindle App. Kindle Apps for Mac, Windows, Android, iPad, etc. can be downloaded for free from Amazon. I can also send pdf and ePub formats upon request. At this time I can't offer paper copies for ARCs. However, I'm giving away 2 paper copies of GENE CARDS through Goodreads, click here to enter.

What am I supposed to do with the mobi file?

You can open it from your computer or iPad simply using the Kindle App from Amazon. You can also send it to your Kindle device. In order to upload the mobi file to your Kindle or Kindle device, you need to forward the email I sent you with the mobi file attached to your Kindle email. To find your Kindle email, go to your Amazo account: at the top of Amazon's home page, click on "Your Account" and from the pull-down menu select "Manage Your Content and Devices." Click on the third tab (Settings) and look for "Send-to-Kindle E-Mail Settings." Here you can see, set, or change an address in the form "name@kindle.com" -- that's the address to which you will need to forward the email I will send you with the ARC book attached. (Note: it usually takes a few minutes for the document to appear in the Kindle after you've sent the email.)

What am I NOT supposed to do with the mobi file?

The mobi file I will be sending you is copyrighted material. As such, I ask you not to distribute, forward, copy or alter in any way. If you know somebody who would be interested in reading the book, please tell them to contact me directly to request their own ARC copy. Also, notice that the copy you will be receiving is only meant as an ARC and not for sale. It is un-proofed, and you may still find typos and other minor editing needs that hopefully will be addressed in time for the release date.

Where do I write the review when I'm done reading?

Please write the review on the Amazon link I will be sending you on the release day.

So, are you ready to sign up?
EDITED to add: at this time ARCs have already been sent out. You can still sign up and you will get the next releases.

If you would like to receive an ARC copy of MOSAICS in exchange for an honest review to be posted on Amazon please sign up here <- Track Presius Mystery ARCs

If you would like to receive an ARC copy of GENE CARDS in exchange for an honest review to be posted on Amazon please sign up here <- Skyler Donohue Mystery ARCs

Thank you to all who've signed up already! You guys are now officially part of my team of early reviewers.