Replicated: A Cybil Lewis Novella

Cybil Lewis #2.6

by Nicole Givens Kurtz

Life's never simple for private inspector, Cybil Lewis. Her investigation for her latest client runs into a snag: dead bodies all over The District with his DNA. Is it a malfunction in the system or something far more sinister?

109 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 18, 2017

About the author

Nicole Givens Kurtz is an author, editor, and educator. She's the recipient of the Ladies of Horror Grant (2021), the Horror Writers Association's Diversity Grant (2020) and the two-time Atomacon Palmetto Scribe Award Winner (2021 and 2022). She's also the editor of the groundbreaking anthology, SLAY: Stories of the Vampire Noire. She’s written for White Wolf, The Realm's The Vela: Salvation series, and Baen’s No Game for Knights and Straight Outta Tombstone. Nicole has over numerous short stories published as well as numerous novels and three active speculative mystery series. She enjoys reading scary stories and watching true crime.

Reviews

[JJ Broenner · Rating 5 out of 5]

An intriguing story - I read book three in the series without reading one and two and was able to jump right in; although I’m planning to read first two because I want to read more of these characters stories. I particularly enjoyed the authors use of a female lead that is constantly proving being female is not a weakness. Cybil realistically gets injured lots during this story but with the help of future tech heals up quickly. She is an inspiring character and I look forward to reading about her future.

[Darrell Grizzle · Rating 5 out of 5]

How can so many different dead bodies have the same DNA? That's one of the mysteries in this new story featuring Cybil Lewis, a private investigator in a futuristic Washington D.C. ("The District"). Like the previous novels in this series, Replicated is a fast-paced mystery thriller with film noir elements, in a science fiction setting. The combination of genres works like a charm in the hands of a gifted author like Kurtz.

[Linda · Rating 2 out of 5]

First off, I definitely did not like this narrator. She really took a lot away from this story. The story to me was more science fiction than mystery. It just wasn't something I enjoyed listening to.

[Sophie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Starting to improve from the previous two, but still really needs some editing.

[Ren Thompson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Private Investigator Cybil Lewis loves her downtime. Give her a few bottles of her favourite Peck beer, some Bruce Lee flicks and she's good to go. However, when a cyborg shows up at her office, Cybil is faced with an unwelcome blast from the past and an unspoken cry for help. With her wise-cracking, chain-smoking partner, Jane, by her side, Cybil must try and untangle a complicated, yet deadly, riddle involving stolen DNA and freshly-severed body parts all the while dodging multiple attempts on her life. As Cybil probes deeper into the case, she is left with more questions than answers. Who is behind the rising body count? What does her ex-boyfriend know, and most importantly, who wants her dead?
Set approximately one hundred years into the future and peppered with pop-culture references, Replicated was an enjoyable read that leads into the other books in the Cybil Lewis series. Recommended for lovers of a good science-fiction murder mystery.