FROM THE COVER:

In the very near future, the biotechnology firm, Chimæra Inc., will develop a transgenic stem cell therapy that will have dramtic implications for humanity. This biotechnological breakthrough will demand adjustments in society, government, and religious institutions. But there is an unexpected "spiritual" consequence: man has now broken through to the Tree of Life and eaten of its fruit. The soul is now trapped in the garment of skin, and this curse brought about by the hubris of science is poised to spread like a plague throughout all humanity.

In the midst of this social and spiritual unheaval a young Mexican-American bioethicist working for the United States Catholic Bishops unravels Chimæra and the Western governments' plot for the imposition of a new world order based upon this biotechnology. The Church responds by forming a new Holy Roman Empire, "a Swiss Guard with nukes." However, the victory over Chimæra begins not in the arena of armed conflict, but in our heroine's fiat to redemptive suffering.

• "A pair of researchers discovers independently two biotechnological advances that seem promising to help mankind, but there chance meeting with a brilliant but power hungry financier, leads to a chain of events nobody, except Maria, our clever, feisty but devout heroine, could have predicted. "Garments of Skin" is a mixture of biotechnology, philosophy, religion, and geo-political affairs in a believable, intriguing, and fascinating book."

• "Kevin McMahon's first major work shows his skill at dancing between and within biological science, genetics, philosophy of theology, theology, and creativity. The novel is heavily influenced by Christian teleology with some epistemology as a guide, but the reader will not be aware of them except as s/he too dances through a fast moving, highly entertaining and poignant combination of them. The last 50 pages rivet the reader so much that one's saccadic pace and page turning move more rapidly than neurons are supposed to fire. I highly recommend this work to any reader, and especially recommend it to those who are trying to keep abreast of stem cell implications for the future."

• "One of my first thoughts upon reading this book is how wonderful it would be if it were made into a film. Not only do the characters, dialogue, and events lend themselves to film representation, but the ideas and message of the story are so timely. This book deals with the pending threat of genomic therapies that might outwardly appear beneficial to mankind, but are really questionable in their ethical, spiritual, and moral basis. While the book certainly takes a Judeo-Christian perspective on such moral issues, it is neither preachy nor filled with boring, didactic characters. There are both saints and sinners in this book and the heroine happens to be both!"

• "Garments of Skin tackles timely technological issues, weaving ethics and science into a book that is at once instructional and entertaining. Scientifically-challenged readers like me need not shy away from the book due to the inclusion of the word "genomic" in the title. McMahon's teaching skills and fantastic creativity make this book highly readable. In our world, advances in reproductive and medical technology continue at a lightening pace. This makes McMahon's book relevant to today's ethical dilemmas and pose pressing questions about what the future may hold."

• "One of the major achievements of this novel is in how the author skillfully makes the incredible events seem so believable, and, in some cases, inevitable. The characters are portrayed as complex and fallible individuals, motivated by greed, altruism, high ideals, lust for power, and, in one instance, love for humanity that results in a supreme act of self-sacrifice. The intricate details of genomic science, so crucial to our understanding of the story, are presented in such a way as to be easily grasped by individuals such as myself who have little scientific backround (the illustrations are particularly helpful). The amount of historical, theological, scientific and cultural information woven into this book is amazing, as the story takes the reader from Vatican City to Moscow, and from the oval office in Washington, D.C. to the dense jungles of Mexico. The novel functions quite well as an action-based, suspenseful thriller, a very good "read", but it is in the questions it raises involving certain ethical, moral and religious ideas that the work achieves real depth and profundity. For example, who should receive the Chimaeric technology - the old or the young, the healthy or the infirmed, the rich or the poor? Also, what should be the role of the government in this process? Would government regulation of this technology result in a benevolent democracy, or Big Brother? More importantly, the novel questions our very idea of "what it means to be human", i.e., are we simply a collection of materials to be manipulated in the quest for "self-actualization", or are we created in the image of God, and as such, off-limits to human tampering? Does Chimaeric technology bring us into a new Garden of Eden, where we can become "like God" instead of, as Christians, participating in God's divine nature? I was particularly interested when the novel related what Eastern Orthodox theology has to say on this subject: how God, after the events in the Garden of Eden, chose to clothe mankind in in "garments of skin" (i.e., biological life), in order to preserve our souls. Thus, at death, the soul is released and achieves union with God. In doing so, God allowed death to limit the consequences of sin, "that evil might not become immortal". As a Christian, I appreciated the fact that the theology in the novel never comes across as "preachy" or contrived; in fact, the opposing viewpoints of the Church and Chimaera, Inc. are presented in such a way that the reader is able to appreciate the arguments of each side, and in so doing, achieve his or her own conclusions. "

FROM THE COVER

In Book I, Garments of Skin, biotechnology had enabled man to slip past the flaming sword. He has broken through to the Tree of Life and eaten of its fruit. But now the soul is trapped in the garment of skin, and this curse brought about by the hubris of science is poised to spread like a plague throughout all humanity.

Now in Book II of the Genomic Apocalypse, former adversaries have united to defeat this onslaught of Satan. But, before they can confront humanity's vilest nemesis, they must be joined by their sister—the Daughter of Abraham.

• "Unlike most sequels that fail to live up to the first novel, Daughter of Abraham is as compelling and powerful as McMahon's first novel, Garments of Skin. While the first novel introduced us to the gutsy heroine, Maria O'Conner, Daughter of Abraham gives us her daughter, Teresa O'Connor, a young woman whose life is nothing but ordinary. Continuing with the theme of the first novel, the genomic therapy (Chimera) has begun to spread. This therapy promises extra-ordinary long life, resistance to disease and even aging! However, the therapy has one very frightening consequence. When the person does eventually die, their soul is trapped inside their dead body, and they can no longer find release to heaven or to hell. While the story is clearly about the struggle between good and evil, at its heart it is a story about people. Though it is fast paced and thematically driven, its true charm lies in the beauty of the characters who are struggling to become their authentic selves and discover truth despite the evil which they must war with both spiritually and physically. At the end of the novel...you only want more."

• "In "Garments of Skin", we saw the development and introduction into American life of the Chimaera technology, a stem-cell therapy that cures a wide range of medical disorders and greatly increases the human life span. However, an unforeseen consequence occurs: at death, the Chimaeric patient's soul is trapped in the body (fused to the "garments of skin"), and is alone and in despair. However, Obermann and Chimaera Inc. successfully hide this fact from the American people, and use of the technology advances rapidly. In "Daughter of Abraham", this progression has led to entire nations being forced to decide whether or not to allow the technology to be used by its citizens. Naturally, this has certain geopolitical ramifications, and a "Great Alliance" is formed, composed of Russia, Israel and the Arabian Empire, to combat the spread of Chimaera from the nations of the West. This alliance (the "sons of Abraham") is the reestablishment of an ancient covenant: Christians, Jews and Muslims all claim Abraham as a physical and spiritual ancestor. As these events progress, both Frederick, the heir to the Chimaeric West, and Ch'ucha', the "daughter of Abraham", develop at an incredible rate due to the Chimaeric technology, and are endowed with supernatural powers. Their eventual confrontation is inevitable."

• "When the tide seems to be against you, when public opinion is swinging the other way, when all the power seems to be in the hands of your enemies, how do you continue to have faith, the faith required to buck the tide, go against popular opinion, and fight the powerful for what is right. A handful of individuals spread across the world must suffer and fight for not only what is right, but will determine the fate of the world in Kevin McMahon's second book "Daughter of Abraham". I quickly devoured this fascinating book not only because I was deeply invested in the outcome of not just the world, but the individual flawed characters of the story, but secondly because I saw examples of how to deal with suffering, setbacks, and adversity in my own life."

• "As an author, McMahon possesses a vision not unlike that of William Blake. Blake saw the beginnings of the Industrial Revolution surrounding him and grieved the presence of what he termed the "dark Satanic mills", and he could foresee the effect that their proliferation would have on "England's green and pleasant land". Indeed, Blake foresaw what one author has termed the "tyranny of materialism' that exists with us in the present day. McMahon, by contrast, sees within the advances in stem-cell research a potential "genomic apocalypse" whereby mankind once again commits what in the Christian tradition is the oldest sin, that of attempting to "be like God', with catastrophic results. Both Blake and McMahon see what happens here on earth as having metaphysical consequences, with forces at work much greater than ourselves. That is why, in "Garments of Skin" and "Daughter of Abraham", it can be said that we see the battle between good and evil. Both Obermann and his son Frederick are seen as the embodiment of pure evil. As such, they are totally selfish, and seek to dominate and control mankind. Theirs is an act of defiance, and they are never satisfied. However, in opposition to their efforts, Maria O'Connor, through her sacrifice, commits an act of pure good. Her action is one of love for God and mankind and is totally "self-less". Rather than seeking control, she is completely giving up control in an act of obedience and faith. As we see the battle between good and evil in the pages of McMahon's work, we recognize ourselves, and the battle waged in our own hearts, one that I believe can only be won through Jesus Christ."