A radical new scientific discovery has unlocked the past. Now anyone can, for the right price, undergo a procedure to bond dead people to them, using their DNA to summon forth memory and personality. You can be implanted with anyone whose DNA is available, from singers to writers to religious figures to ancient leaders. Of course, how well you get along with the new voice in your head is another matter entirely. While this subject has been covered before, in the Past Lives Present Tense anthology, Elizabeth Ann Scarborough expands the idea for a full novel.
Egyptologist Leda Hubbard is on the trail of Cleopatra, but she’s not the only one. It’s a desperate race to see who will acquire the priceless DNA first, and in what form. Whoever controls that, controls Cleopatra herself, now and forevermore. And not everyone wants her for the right reasons.
The concept is relatively fresh, the twist on it enjoyable, and the follow-through gripping. This is a fast-paced, fun novel that finds something new to say about an old subject. It’s definitely worth a look.