Black Milk

“A poignant story that explores the repercussions of humanity’s search for perfection,” from the Hugo Award–winning author of Marrow (Library Journal). With a perfect memory and hyper-acute senses, Ryder is the leader of a group of five children, all highly specialized thanks to the genetic engineering pioneered by Dr. Aaron Florida—scientist, philanthropist, and genius. They represent a new generation of genetically tailored individuals, created to help build a brighter future. But some effects of Dr. Florida’s work were unforeseen—and these children will soon discover the shocking truth about the new world they stand to inherit . . . “Very similar to some of the better works of John Varley.” —Science Fiction Chronicle Ryder’s gang is just like any other gang of suburban kids. They do what all kids do: build tree houses, hunt snakes and rodents in the woods, keep snowballs in the freezer to throw at each other in mid-summer, boast, brag, argue and tussle. Ryder, the sensitive day dreamer; Cody, the energetic tomboy; Marshall, the gangly know-it-all; Jack, the foul-mouthed mischief; and Beth, the pretty little girl with the sweet singing voice...all just like any other kids. Except... By their parents’ choice, they have all become members of a new generation of genetically tailored individuals created by one Dr. Aaron Florida. Hoping their son can get a leg up in an increasingly competitive world, Marshall’s ambitious parents have ordered for him the pre-planned life of a top scientist; Cody’s two mothers have a girl who can do anything a boy can do—better; Ryder’s parents are blessed with a son possessed of a perfect memory. And it is through Ryder’s perceptions that this at once captivating and chilling tale of ours and other worlds unfolds. Black Milk is yet another work of powerful imagination and prodigious story-telling technique from the author of The Leeshore and The Hormone Jungle. It is of this world and beyond, of the present and the future...and, at its heart, it is a tale of good and evil linking a terrifying conflict in space with mankind's most vulnerable hostages—its children. From Hugo Award-winning author Robert Reed. With a perfect memory and hyper-acute senses, Ryder is the leader of a group of five children, all highly specialized thanks to the genetic engineering pioneered by Dr. Aaron Florida—scientist, philanthropist, and genius. These friends represent a new generation of genetically tailored individuals, created to help build a brighter future. But some effects of Dr. Florida's work were unforeseen, and Ryder and his friends will soon discover the shocking truth about the new world they stand to inherit.