The Patron Saint of Plagues
by By Anderson, Barth
Category: Fiction , Science Fiction , General

In this biological thriller of the near future, postinsurrection Mexico has undermined  the superpower of the United States. But while the rivals battle over borders, a  pestilence beyond politics threatens to explode into a worldwide epidemic. . . . Since the rise of the Holy Renaissance, Ascension—once known as Mexico City—has  become the most populous city in the world, its citizens linked to a central government  net through wetware implanted in their brains. But while their dictator grows fat  with success, the masses are captivated by Sister Domenica, an insurgent nun whose  weekly pirate broadcasts prophesy a wave of death. All too soon, Domenica’s nightmarish  prediction proves true, and Ascension’s hospitals are overrun with victims of a deadly  fever. As the rampant plague kills too quickly to be contained, Mexico smuggles its  last hope over the violently contested border. . . . Henry David Stark is a crack  virus hunter for the American Center for Disease Control and a veteran of global  humanitarian efforts. But this disease is unlike any he’s seen before—and there seems  to be no way to cure or control it. Racing against time, Stark battles corruption  to uncover a horrifying truth: this is no ordinary outbreak but a deliberately unleashed  man-made virus . . . and the killer is someone Stark knows.