Circle Tide

Circle Tide, Rebecca K. Rowe, Edge Science Fiction and Fantasy Publishing, 2011

Set in Los Angeles in the mid-22nd century, this novel is about two unlikely people on a mission to save the world.

Noah is a rebellious member of high society. His mother runs a Domus, which is something like a family-owned multi-national corporation (but a lot bigger). She is not afraid to roll over people to get what she wants, and is a very dislikable person. Noah promises that he will deliver a datasphere to the right person. Meantime, and ecological disease called Circle Tide is ravaging the city, a disease that is fast-acting and deadly. Noah is afced with knife-wielding monks and a smart intelligence that wants him dead.

Rika is a Data gatherer (or data thief) whose expensive, and not-paid-for, neural improvements are failing. Her last chance to prove herself, and get out of debt, is to stop Circle Tide (simple, no?). But she has to steal Noah's datasphere.

The pair travel from the top of society to the bottom, accused of crimes thy did not commit. They seek clues to catch a murderer, and keep mankind from being destroyed by Circle Tide.

Here is an excellent piece of society-building. It has enough going on (virtual worlds where memories are stored, for instance) to satisfy anyone. This may not be a very fast read, but it is very much worth the reader's time.