by Christine Amsden
Twilight Times Books, $18.95, 267 pages
It has been over 400 years since The Change. A day that began like any other ended with the release of a virus that stopped aging and caused immortality. It was a gift to some, like the elite few who enjoyed power, life and health. But to the rest, it meant poverty, violence, starvation and desperation. The Immortality Virus is author Christine Amsden’s latest book. You can usually find her work in the science fiction and fantasy sections but her favorite genre is speculative fiction. As she does in this book, Amsden puts characters in extraordinary situations to find out how people define themselves under dire circumstances. Grace, the strong female protagonist, is forced to take a stance. Does she support immortality or will she fight to find a cure so people can die with dignity? How can this private investigator save all of humankind? She must risk everything to find the man who both created the virus and now holds the cure. What follows is an action packed, highly intense mission. The conversations are witty and the action is thrilling. You’ll be on the edge of your seat until the final page.
Reviewed by Elizabeth Franklin