She is a prisoner who can alter reality.
He is a dead soldier brought back to life as a sentient machine.
2086. In a dying world divided into a luxurious enclave for the super-rich in the far north of Canada and Greenland, and the billions left to survive outside its impenetrable walls, Cassandra’s ability to alter reality marks her as a valuable asset to Global Command.
Lost in a terrorist attack to the United Freedom Fighters, she is discovered in the seedy underworld of London by an elite soldier who does not learn who she is until far too late, and he too becomes an asset owned by faceless powers.
Resurrected as a near-immortal machine, his first mission is to extract her from London and return her to the ones intent to use her gift to give the rich a second chance at life in a new world.
As the world collapses into its death throes, he fights to protect the one he loves, to save her from what is to come, and to give her a second chance . . . no matter the cost or how long he has to wait.
A forbidden love affair that transcends time, the end of the world, and what it means to be human.
Honorable Mention - Writer’s Digest 9th Annual Self-Published e-Book Awards 2021
Genre: Science Fiction, Post-Apocalyptic, Cyber-Punk, Dark Romance
Keywords: chosen one, collapse of society, greenland and nunavut, billionaire bunker, forbidden love, cryogenics
Comps: Elysium meets Altered Carbon
“A stunningly innovative sci-fi novel.” — The BookLife Prize Critic’s Review
“Surprising and unexpected.” — Writer’s Digest
“The scale of I, Cassandra is truly awesome.” — C.N. Vair, Author
“Stunning SF on a mythic scale.” — Kirkus Reviews
“A believable extrapolation of our current situation.” - Judge, 9th Annual Writer’s Digest Self-Published E-Book Awards
Content warnings: violence, human trafficking, rape, suicide, drug use, language
Spice Level: 3/5 At least one intimate scene with the reader present, euphemistic language for act and body parts. Non-pornographic descriptions. No smutty language.
© E A Carter 2021 All Rights Reserved © Michal Karcz Cover Art
Excerpt from Chapter 6:
An hour later, the secure line buzzes, and a light on its panel blinks red, slow, steady, like a heartbeat. It’s the first time it’s lit up in twelve years. I set aside the file and take the call.
“Major Ezenwa,” a French-accented voice says through the speaker without introduction. She doesn’t need one. I sit up straighter. Never have I had reason to be spoken to by de Pommier. I sense my day is about to get a whole lot worse.
“General,” I reply, hoping she can’t tell from my voice I have been drinking.
“This call is Q Clearance,” she says, “you have thirty seconds to secure your location.”
I get up and lock the door, disconnect the other lines in, and power down my tablet and wall screen. Four seconds to spare. I sit, uneasiness pooling around me, whatever is coming next, I know I’m not going to like it.
“We have a situation,” she says, crisp, exactly at the count of thirty, “one which you are able to remedy with the most expedience.”
“Ma’am,” I say, hoping I sound soberer than I feel.
A pause. It drags, ominous, oppressing me. I can hear her tapping a finger against her desk. My instincts keel. I force myself to stillness, to quiet my tumult.
“What I am about to ask of you,” she says instead of going straight to my orders, making my instincts haul on me harder than ever, “I would prefer never to ask of any soldier. It is why I have contacted you directly, rather than sending the order via the Lieutenant Colonel.”
“Major?” she asks, soft. “Are you prepared to receive your orders?”
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