Already addicted to the pharmaceutical drug that keeps her body from decomposing, Bryn has to stop a secretive group of rich and powerful investors from eliminating the existing Returné addicts altogether. To ensure their plan to launch a new, military-grade strain of nanotech, the investors' undead assassin-who just happens to be the ex-wife of Bryn's lover Patrick-is on the hunt for anyone that stands in their way.And while Bryn's allies aren't about to go down without a fight, the secret she's been keeping threatens to put those closest to her in even more danger. Poised to become a monster that her own side-and her own lover-will have to trap and kill, Bryn needs to find the cure to have any hope of preserving the lives of her friends, and her own dwindling humanity.

Rachel Caine was the author of more than fifty novels, including the bestselling Morganville Vampires series. She was born at White Sands Missile Range, which people who knew her said explained a lot. She was an accountant, an insurance investigator and a professional musician, and played with such musical legends as Henry Mancini, Peter Nero and John Williams. She and her husband, fantasy artist R. Cat Conrad, lived in Texas until she passed away in 2020.