Playing with Fire (Gene Hax: Brass Lamp Series Book 1) (English Edition) [Kindle-editie] beoordelingen het boek quotes

Join Eris Kandake as she chases a dragon, finds a man in a dumpster, makes an unexpected trade, battles bloodsucking butterflies, and tries to evade the thing that scares her the most: the possibility of her family finding out what she really does for a living.Welcome to Gene Hax, a universe in which evolution has gone utterly, uncontrollably mad."No one is safe." Eris threw her hands up. "At any minute, nanites could get hacked to consume everything in sight. A flash-plague could hit. A necrotic fang-rat could bite us and kill us with a slow, painful, flesh-consuming death. There is no 'safe' in this world."It all started with a few careless mishaps in gene-splicing and a swell in public interest. A few weedkiller-resistant grasses became a nuisance, but what’s a little extra greenery?This soon led to leaps of technology that brought about a new age of prosperity and science. An experimental strain of zucchinis spread rapidly across the United States, evidence of a successful effort to end world hunger. Once endangered species started to thrive again. Nanites revolutionized the medical industry. Thanks to an ambitious and philanthropic entrepreneur, artificially-induced rainclouds brought hope to regions suffering famine and drought.However, in the world of science, especially genetic science, things progress rapidly. Exciting advances have unforeseen consequences, and sometimes even the most miraculous solutions turn into monumental problems. By 2021, gene-splicing equipment had escaped government control by emerging on the black market in Japan. Humans began to enjoy gene modifications that could cure cancer, multiple sclerosis, and almost every other disease except the common flu. Scientists discovered a way to safely inject nanites into humans to monitor vitals, bolster immune systems, and administer medicine. Dubai witnessed its first local snowstorm.By 2042, the equipment for conducting genome modifications had become readily and legally available to public enthusiasts at an almost affordable price. Genetic engineering took over as the fastest growing field in the world, closely followed by nanotechnology.New species of pets, livestock, produce, and insects began emerging at an unheard-of pace. Scientists struggled to fight down the more dangerous outbreaks, and ecosystem-regulation had become the top priority for all world powers. Conservationists panicked as gene pools of all species faced the threat of permanent contamination. Strict laws were implemented against non-medical human gene-mods.Careless weather-manipulators had already caused global chaos.Self-replicating nanites became the top cause of erosion, invasion of privacy, and data-theft. New devices to contain and nullify these pests hit the mass market.Now it is 2070. Traditional conservationists scrambling to catalog and preserve original species are at war with neo-conservationists demanding rights for newly-created species. Governments have seized control of all weather manipulation facilities and equipment in an effort to stabilize the global climate.People have given up any notion of eradicating either nanites or zucchinis, and both have become a permanent nuisance.The ecosystem of Earth has been thrown into total, utter madness, which scientists and governments alike battle to keep in check. The average citizen lives with the constant knowledge that at any moment, they might die in summer blizzards, flash-plagues, or nanite-induced structural failures. Some live in terror. Some live in apathy. Some don’t live at all.But for people like gene-e (genetic engineer) Eris Kandake—owner of Brass Lamp Industries—the threat of getting scorched by a pet dragon or bitten by a bloodsucking butterfly is nothing more than an average day.In fact, it’s a business.