Proxies (without dust jacket)

The Story

A broad, fascinating SF novel of murder, intrigue, family loyalty, and humanity's first steps to the stars, set in an immensely plausible near-future American Southwest scorched by global warming. Advanced biotech and brain-to-machine interfaces have melded in a secret project, creating full convincing human-shaped machines guided by faraway pilots; proxies. But who has the controls; and why?