Vitals

Hal Cousins is one of a handful of scientists nearing the most sought-after discovery in human history: the key to short-circuiting the aging process. Fueled by a wealth of research, an overdose of self-confidence, and the money of influential patrons to whom he makes outrageous promises, Hal experiments with organisms living in the thermal plumes in the Ocean depths. But as he journeys beneath the sea, his other world is falling apart.
Across the country, scientists are being inexplicably murdered - including Hal's identical twin brother, who is also working to unlock the secret to immortality. Hal himself barely eludes a cold-blooded attack at sea, and when he returns home to Seattle, he finds himself walking into an eerie realm where voices speak to him from the dead...where a once-brilliant historian turned crackpot is leading him on a deadly game of hide-and-seek...and where the beautiful, rich widow of his twin is more than willing to pick up the pieces of Hal's life - and take him places he's never been before.
Suddenly Hal is trapped inside an ever-twisting maze of shocking revelations. For he is not the first person to come close to ending aging forever - and those who came before him will stop at nothing to keep the secret to themselves. Now every person on earth is at risk of being made an unsuspecting player in one man's spectacular and horrifying master plan.

<b>Greg Bear</b> is the author of twenty-five books, which have been translated into seventeen languages. His most recent novel is <i>Darwin’s Radio</i>. He has been awarded two Hugos and four Nebulas for his fiction. He is married to Astrid Anderson Bear. They are the parents of two children, Erik and Alexandra. <br><br>Visit the author online at www.gregbear.com