Daughter Cell by Jay Hartlove, Weird and Wild Leap Into Genetics! Wow!

Randy squinted and blinked, and ran a hand through his short sandy hair. "I'm still pretty disoriented. I hardly recognized this place until you walked out here. I feel wrung out, like I've been crying or something."
"Well, you have. A lot of crying. A lot of drinking."

Malaysian Beach House www.flickr.com

Randy stared at him as he felt the pieces fall back into place. "Oh, God. Now I remember why I'm here. Cheri is dead, isn't she? We're at your beach house in Malaysia, because she died here in a..." he struggled.
"Car crash," Young Nae supplied patiently. "Four months ago.
Randy blinked and shook his head. "Four months? I've been here for four months?" He shivered and pulled the blanket back around himself. "What, just moping around?"
"It's called grieving. She was the love of your life...
"I feel like I've been sitting for too long already. I can't believe four months have passed. So what is it now, May?"
"June, June 2005. Cheri died in February. You and Desiree came here for the funeral."
"Right." Randolph nodded. "I remember the country was just recovering from some kind of disaster."
"Well, it wasn't this country, but Indonesia, which is right next door. It was the day after Christmas, with a 9.2 earthquake, followed by a tsunami that killed 130,000 people. Back in February it was all anyone would talk about."
"So, I've been out of it for four months since then? That seems unbelievable."
"Well, it's not like you've just been sitting here looking out at the ocean all that time. We've had plenty to do with Desiree's problems too."
Randy could only stare at his friend in wide-eyed confusion.
It took Young Nae a moment to look up from his pouring the coffee to notice the reaction. "What? You're drawing another blank, about your daughter's accident?
"Accident? What kind of accident? What are you fucking telling me? My nineteen-year-old daughter has had an accident and I don't even remember it? Is she okay?"

~~~

Creating a Daughter Cell

Daughter Cell

By Jay Hartlove

Sanantha Mauwad
"First, I want to congratulate
you on taking the initiative to
protect your mental health.
You've been living with your
brief for a long time now, and
it's smart of you to realize you
can't get through this kind of
pain on your own with just the
passage of time." Sanantha sat
facing Randy...She was pleased
to see him sitting more relaxed.
"You said you've never seen a
psychiatrist before, so coming to
me was also a step outside your
comfort zone. For that you should
be proud of yourself."
~~~

This is a sequel to The Chosen which I believe also included Sanantha Mauwad, a psychiatrist. So if you enjoyed her in that novel, you might consider this a must-read. She is a wonderful character! I was especially impressed with Hartlove's writing of her verbal communication skills as a therapist. In fact, if she hadn't been there for Randolph Macklin, a genetic researcher who early in the book became her client, I'm not sure he would have made it through all the trauma that Hartlove put him through, LOL! 

Randolph Macklin
"The memory loss if just scary."
"I'm no shrink, but it's probably your
brain trying to protect itself. I loved
the both of them too, but I cannot
imagine what you have gone through."
"Can I see Desiree?"
Young Nae slapped Randy's knee and
gave it a squeeze. "Of course."
~~~

 Randolph Macklin is not only a leading genetic researcher, he has discovered a major advancement in genetics. There has been no announcement of this discovery to this point.  Because of the way the novel has been written, it is not possible to go too far into this work, else too much will be given away. Let us just say, given the title, that he has developed a method of creating a "daughter cell" but do not assume that this is just another word for cloning... Much more fascinating happenings in this medical thriller which, of course, may or may not even be possible in reality, but surely helped to create an exciting and unique read for those like myself who enjoy learning of medical possibilities 
through fiction!

Young Nae Yoon
Sanantha didn't want to appear
critical while trying to develop
Randolph's trust, but this sounded
unsafe. She covered her hesitation
by shifting..."Doesn't that process
save trouble down the road?...
"We did do testing. We satisfied
ourselves the drugs worked,
without side effects, and I
figured we could collect clinical
data from our customers. Other
cosmetics firms do the same thing
all the time, adjust their
formulas as they get feedback..."
"The practical application that we
wanted to move on was in
cosmetics," Young Nae added.
"You've probably heard of our line,
CytoSkin..."
~~~

Young Nae and Randy had known each other since college days at UCLA--Randy in pre-med and Young Nae in Business Administration, which he later applied in pharmaceuticals and medical research. They had later gotten together again and went into business. Randy was doing a lot but not getting anything done due to patents, testing, FDA. He was on the cutting edge but the routine process in a corporation took years of testing and public vetting before anything could even be announced.
As Sanantha and Randolph began their work together, they began to see issues. Sanantha had suggested hypnosis as a possible way to
recover memories, but when it was tried, Randolph did something that was so unexpected that she immediately called for an ambulance and rushed to the hospital. When the doctor saw Randy
he was dismayed and immediately asked what caused the markings that were all over his body. Randy indicated that Young Nae had said they were lots of mosquito bites from when he was in the jungle...

With that assurance, the doctor pushed the American's sleeves all the way up and began briskly rubbing the skin on his forearms... The doctor stopped immediately, though, when he bumped into one of the round insect wounds on the back of Randolph's elbow..."Take off shirt."
The chilling connection visibly shocked Randolph...
Randolph was speechless and as white as the sheets beneath him. He sat up and began unbuttoning his shirt...
Everyone turned when the Chinese doctor sucked in a tight startled breath. He stood there a moment, clearly trying to comprehend what he was seeing. Without taking his eyes off Randolph's back, he gave the nurse an order and she took off running...
Every hole is on a key acupuncture point...
The whole flow [of chi energy] has probably been interrupted... 

Okay, we've got competitors of Randolph's company watching the activities... We've got snake bites...

puffer fish poison being used in various ways, including for meals, LOL...

And we've got Desiree, Randolph's daughter, in a coma with nobody knowing why... Of course, while they now know Randolph's heart has been affected by the acupuncture actions, they don't know who or why it was done...

So, that sounds like a good place to end talking about the book!

Hartlove's writing experience comes through clearly in his writing... But I think the various characters he's created turned out to be my favorite part of the story! (BTW, these character pics were selected and found on the Trilogy Facebook Page)... My opinion is that there's going to have to be some beefing up of the part to be played Gage though. Right now, Sanantha has the lead for me! Seriously, it is fun to picture the characters, but it really isn't needed to capture your total attention as you wade your way through everything that happens in this medical thriller! Ancient cults are already a part, as well as Kung Fu moves...I can't wait until the next one is out! When somebody looking like this beautiful lady will come...!

Don't Miss this one!


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Jay Hartlove has been writing professionally for over thirty years, starting in the gaming industry with Supergame in 1980. He writes banking compliance procedures by day, he blogs about spirituality, and he teaches seminars on the craft of writing. His short fiction has been published in award winning magazines. He is also working on a musical sequel to the Grimms' Brothers' Snow White, called Snow White and the Mirror's Revenge.

Daughter Cell is the second of the Sanatha Mauwad mysteries. The third and concluding volume of the series is Isis Rising, which should be done in 2014.

Related articles

• Author Interview: Jay Hartlove

Violence - Are We By Nature Violent? Can We Change? One Man's Experience...

On November 19, 1979, Edward experienced
 a transformation which completely
 revolutionized the way he perceived reality.
 When the event manifested itself, it was
unlike anything he had ever heard of
 as every belief he cherished was torn asunder..
 Nothing could have led him to expect the form
 it would take. He had the sensation of inconceivable
 powers clashing, as if repeatedly struck from
 within by lightning. When the cataclysmic upheaval
finally subsided, something absolutely new had emerged.  

He brought forth a new human, and a New Consciousness upon Earth.

Edward is a Transformational Relationship Coach who has devoted the last thirty years of his life reaching out to people who are seriously considering the options before them. He has spoken to thousands of people from around the world about “Self-Transformation” and the possibility of life without violence.

Self Transformation:

A New You 

By Edward Jones

Yesterday on the Dr. Phil show, a discussion occurred regarding The Warrior Gene, hypothesizing that some individuals are genetically keyed to violence. This may or may not be proven one day, but I think that each of us has the "potential" for some level of violence. It may be limited to abusive language transactions with others, and it may occur only when under extreme pressure... Or maybe we are conditioned for it...

I had the opportunity to read an earlier version of this book. Although I could believe that something happened to Mr. Jones, I felt that book was not presented well for potential new readers. Mr. Jones was receptive to my critical comments and I must say that I am thoroughly impressed with the published self-help book. It provides sufficient information in a logical manner to allow you to understand the premise upon which Edward Jones speaks. It also includes information from a sample workshop with an open exchange of questions and answers. You may find more information on Mr. Jones site by clicking the title of this article.

Throughout my life, I've been an individual who is "willing" to explore. Many years ago, I was an avid reader of self-help books and attended many workshops and classes exploring Maslow, Yung, et. al. I am a Christian, but I am not afraid to explore alternatives and question... I think I can say, with some degree of expertise that, if YOU are looking for something...then Edward Jones' book could very well be one that will interest you.

This book is not for the average reader. it is not fiction, even though you may not believe anything that is said. It is one person's experience--an experience that totally transformed his life. Basic Premise: I am a liar and Truth is the answer (my interpretation) Highly recommended for those seeking new answers... The following are examples of what I found of importance:

• Anger is a part of the defense and control mechanism. Angry people can defend themselves from anybody getting too close, and they can control their surroundings.
• We are selfish little clods, clawing everything to ourselves that we can to hold on to it.  I even had a friend who had a big sign in his office which read, He who has the most toys when he dies wins.
• Even in the Bible it says not to hide your light under a basket. The truth is your light. The truth will set you free, and the truth about everything needs to be spoken.  
• Consider the word God.  The newspaper recently ran a story about a married couple who were convicted of second-degree manslaughter because they prayed for their sick child to get well. They believed that God would intervene, but the child died. In that case, thinking was thinking those parents.
•  I say the only possibility we have is to speak the truth in our lives. Speaking truth is the emptying of our consciousness. What fills up our consciousness is the memory, or rather the attachment to the memory. Speaking the truth relieves that attachment and clears our heads, so to speak. 
• Being knocked out of our language reactions would be the same action we’d take if we came around a corner and suddenly saw a rattlesnake. We would get out of its way very quickly. After we were out of its way, it’s probable that only then fear would show up about being bitten. Can we see that we allow language to bite us daily? 
• I know someone who was raised to be a fundamentalist Christian, and he told me that he would be asked questions like, “Is your faith strong?” or “Do you love God?” to elicit a certain kind of response or behavior. After a while his responses became automatic. Repetition will do that. I call that a frozen belief. That’s when the belief becomes so strong you don’t even realize it’s a belief. You think it’s true.
• The linguistic action is the action of creation. But as with so many other things, knowledge and belief get in the way. We have been so busy for the last few thousand years repeating, repeating and repeating that there can be no creation. In repetition there can be no love, no intelligence. It’s all being blocked by the ignorance of knowledge and belief.

I had made highlights on many paragraphs throughout the book. The above are used as presented and are not intended to be the most important, merely just the first of many that affected me personally.  When I first started working at West Virginia University in the early '60s' I wrote a letter to the campus newspaper in response to some article or letter, I don't remember what. The thrust of my letter was that each of us must find Christ--we cannot know God just because our parents knew him and taught us about him... I think several of these examples reflects my thoughts at that time. Is your Christianity your own or have you been conditioned...

Then taking that a step further... If you are a Christian, are you also a liar...  Please note that Christian can be replaced by Buddhist, Muslim, Atheist, or any other belief you use as an identification for yourself

Are you satisfied with today's world? I'm not! I think violence has increased so much so that our children could very well be conditioned to be violent... Why else? Is it really a part of our DNA or can the world change; i.e., can I change? More importantly...will I?

Book received

from Author

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