Paul McAuley is a former research scientist at Oxford University and UCLA,and a former lecturer in botany at St. Andrews University. This is his debutthriller and marks the arrival of a major British talent in this field. Heis available for interview and comment, particularly in regard to thedangers of biotechnology and the interface of profit and science.

Paul McAuley's first novel, Four Hundred Billion Stars, won the Philip KDick Memorial Award, and his most recent novel, Fairyland, won the 1995Arthur C Clarke Award for best SF novel published in Britain and the John WCampbell Award for best novel. In 1995 his short story 'The Temptation of DrStein' won the British Fantasy Award, and in 1996 his novel Pasquale's Angelwon the Sidewise Award for Best Long Form Alternate History fiction.