Julia Petrisor's Blog

I began writing Luminous Rose in early 2018. At the time, I was frightened by the concept of the cashless society and I wanted a place to explore my concerns in a lighter way than researching or writing non-fiction.

I knew the future world I wanted to create and I had hinged it around this concept of a tracking tattoo (the OC-TAT) that would not only track every single thing citizens of the Organized Cities did, but would also dispense and monitor what I call Provided Funds – basically Universal Basic Income. 

Then the pandemic hit.

It was wild, writing this book the first few weeks of March 2020. I’d already pretty much created the future, seen in part 1 through Rose’s adventure, and now it seemed to be coming true. For instance, in the future world I’d created, everyone lived in AI-controlled Intellicities, had all kinds of wearable tech, and did everything (school, work, shopping) in Virtual Worlds. Suddenly, faster than I could even write, it seemed as though the real external world around me was doing the same as everything was moved online.

I felt a lot of urgency around getting this book written and I still feel urgent about sharing it now (which is a key reason why I chose to self-publish). The future seems to be catching up. 

It was tempting to rewrite everything to include a virus and mandatory immunization but I stuck with my vision and kept working through a possible scenario, this future of an all-but-dead democracy and a civilization made entirely complacent via AI and Provided Funds. 

Then, the Provided Funds came to life. People started talking about UBI (universal basic income) much more and I realized that I am not at all a fan of it.

For many people who know me, the idea that I’m anti-UBI will come as a shock. But those who might be shocked by this don’t truly know me. I’m anti-authoritarian to my core. I’m chasing freedom on all levels in this lifetime, and I agree with my character Rose’s father, Rod when he says to her that money is the last portal to freedom.

I’d already read about the attempts at rolling out a UBI that had taken place and had a feeling of distrust about it. While there is much to loathe about how we’ve chosen to work with capitalism, what I appreciate about capitalism is the freedom of the individual to hang out a shingle selling something and receive money. In other words, we all have a shot at autonomy—if we want it.

Digression for the privilege-police — Yep, I do believe this. Take a trip to a developing country and you’ll see people earnestly doing what they can with what they have and earning money on their own. Are they “rich”? Not if you define rich solely on numbers on a bank statement. But are they alive, entrepreneurial and able to feed themselves and their families? Yes. The other point is, we don’t need privilege to hang out that shingle, just something to sell, willingness and effort.

To my mind, which was becoming more and more anarcho-capitalist, both the turn to cashless and the UBI are tools for control and surveillance, not to mention key drivers to keep a demographic of society complacent. And complacency anathema to me.

Now, I must pause here. In the interest of full disclosure, I have absolutely collected the CERB and the CRB (Canada’s pandemic response benefits). And yes, I’m grateful for these, there’s no question. I had zero dollars at one point in March (no joke, not hyperbolic, and not in a “but-I-had-thousands-in-savings way. I had no. Dollars. In. The Bank!) and if it weren’t for the CERB and a pal helping me out, I would have … well, I don’t know what I would have done. So while I’m not keen on the whole idea of permanent UBI, I admit fully that I’m grateful Canada got on it as quickly as it did and that I had enough humility to accept a round or two of it.

Still, I don’t love that I had to do it (and in case you haven’t noticed by now, me and money is an entirely other story, to say the least). Meanwhile, an artist friend of mine revelled in it. She loved the CERB, the UBI; she saw nothing but possibilities for artists living off government funds. But all I saw was what I was writing in Luminous Rose – a recipe for surveillance disaster. Governments fully controlling everyone’s receiving and spending. Governments having the power to pull the UBI based on people’s social behaviour. Complacent, zombified populations reduced to consumers with no incentive to create or engage in meaningful work.

At times in 2020 I felt like I was the only person who cared about privacy or being free to make purchase, lend or borrow money that is untracked. I’m not a criminal, but I could see more and more how the concept of untracked money is sold to us as the domain of pirates, criminals, the “bad” people. But surely everyone has the right to privacy around how we spend and transact our money? Why should we be surveilled here? And worse, if we are surveilled here, what kinds of new “incentives” can we expect if our money behavior is … “bad”? And who defines “bad” in this case?

And it felt scary. I struggled to find likeminded people alive (and I still do so reach out if you also prefer to use a system of money that allows for private, untracked expenditures. Blockchain & crypto enthusiasts, I cautiously optimistically wave at you here although I do have reservations about the blockchain…) Then David Graeber died and I really felt it. I had woken up to the fact that I am acutely more of an anarchist, really, anarcho-capitalist, than I’d realized and I did not know the best way to work with this in myself. 

The benefit of the pandemic, however, was time. I was able to finish the novel and because everything in life was stripped away I had time to dedicate to the task. 

What’s really cool though is the more I wrote and shaped the work, the better I felt about my own choices and what might be possible. While I don’t love the idea of a cashless society, I’ve learned that I’m not alone when it comes to a desire for privacy here. And when I read the Fed announce a new digital currency in the works, I was able to feel much more neutral about it.

As a writer, I find myself striving to reach this neutral place and to not present views that exacerbate the (to me, chronic) polarizing that the online platforms especially enjoy cultivating. Outside of writing as a human, individualist and spiritual seeker, I find more and more that I’m seeking to reach a state of non-dual thinking.

Thus, writing Luminous Rose during a pandemic, when the potential for me to jump into the fear rabbithole (conspiracy theories) or gobble up mainstream rhetoric (also another fear rabbithole) and the fear it pushes out daily actually brought me to a place of neutrality. It also took me deeper into who I genuinely am, in all its messy glory. I’m anti-authoritarian. I lean anarchist. I love capitalism. I’m anti-patriarchy, but not necessarily pro-feminist. And these things are deep within me, on the soul level, not fads I am trying on.

The gift of writing dystopian fiction throughout a pandemic has been to connect deeper with myself and see the world through the lens of my soul. Even better, my fear of the cashless society has all but vanished. I’m braver than I ever was and more open and curious to discovering ways we as individuals can navigate the system with authenticity and humanity.

photo credit: Giorgio Trovato

Note on what you are about to read:

I’m a huge fan of movie trailers and one night I was inspired to try and write my own book trailers. I had a lot of fun putting these together and I’m pleased to share the first of a few I wrote.

By the way – Luminous Rose is available to buy now! Click here to buy your copy.

About this trailer…

So, it’s a book trailer which is slightly limiting (when compared to movie trailers). Here’s a little background to know going in (click on each character for more about them):

Rose – lives in the far future, in Intellicity-12 in Novum Mundi. Rose is 15, and looks androgynous, with short brown hair and dark, dark eyes.

Vivian – lives in the near future, in a “smart” neighbourhood (a prototype for the Intellicities). Vivian is stunning, with vibrant green eyes and rich honey-coloured hair.

Greta – lives in the present day, in a large city. Greta is quiet, mystical, with long blonde hair and beautiful blue eyes.

Luminous Rose – Trailer #1

In.

A message to you, Rose Goldman, from Intellicity-12 City Organizers. The 72-hour countdown to your Installation Ceremony begins at 12 noon today. Be prepared to greet Implant Technicians as well as your Intellicity-12 PF Organizers by the end of the 71st hour. Hourly notifications will commence after this transmission. 

Out.

* * *

“I don’t want to get the stupid barcode-tattoo,” Rose let the words tumble out, using the anarchist slang for the OC-TAT. She felt relieved. She had not said that aloud since she’d first had the thought a few days earlier. But there it was. She didn’t want to get the OC-TAT. She knew she could say it to her dad and now, knowing Arti-F was not on, she felt free at last to say how she really felt.

            Rod turned, shocked and yet not really surprised. “Don’t let your mom hear that—she’ll blame me. Besides, I need your help. Actually, we need your help.”

            “We? You mean the Ring? What can I do? I don’t know how any of this works, Dad.”

            Rod sat closer to Rose, holding the tablet. He pulled out a tiny, round and flat iron magnet. “Watch,” he said. He hovered the magnet over the transactions. Slowly, one by one, lines erased. 

            “Where did you get that? Isn’t it illegal?”

            “Shhh. Of course it is. Graeber made it. See – now it looks like I didn’t get my Provided Funds for this month. I can apply for more.”

            “I don’t understand… isn’t it smarter to get your dollars into the PF tracker instead of more PFs?”

            “I can do that too- look,” He spun the magnet on its side and tapped it three times. Three hundred omnis showed up on the PF tracking screen.  

            “But I don’t get it. I’m sure OneBank will notice if additional PFs are added?”

            “Not necessarily. The scrambler mixes up the signal to the grid. We’re working on the last piece now, which will allow us to convert and add currencies like these dollars and not only add them but even manipulate the data file at OneBank so it looks like nothing has changed. Everyone’s allowed to carry over 5% of their monthly PFs, so if we make it about a 1% carryover it will totally go unnoticed.”

“Are you sure? Why would anybody carry over PFs?” There was a lot Rose had yet to learn. She had never even interacted with money at all and was about to have her OC-TAT installed in a few days. A heavy, anxious feeling began to swell in her belly.

            “So here’s the thing. It’s perfect timing, actually. Your birthday is in three days. We can use your install to load in the new scrambler and converter,” Rod looked at Rose and lowered his voice. “We have a chance to subvert the system, kid. You with me?”

* * *

The lightrail flew everyone swiftly from one side of the city to the other in a spiral formation. Vivian enjoyed taking the lightrail, enjoyed her anonymity. She also liked to see the city. She crossed the city in this spiral most mornings on her commute. From the smart neighbourhood, the lightrail passed through a poor neighbourhood, a series of bungalows that were once government subsidized housing and now shanties where anyone could crash and squat. Anti-OneBank graffiti ran along the wall between the lightrail line and the bungalows. Vivian read the scrawls with amusement:

“Our money, our choice!”

“Beware! OneBank today, One Government tomorrow!”

“Democracy is dead! Long live democracy!”

Beyond that neighbourhood, the buildings began to get taller. The lightrail passed the derelict mall, once a bustle of activity, full of stores and arcades, now only populated by the few essential, and mostly illegal, stores that refused to let go of the storefront. Windows were smashed and Vivian could see evidence of tents and makeshift shelters here and there inside. Several Enforcers in riot gear stood waiting by the entrance.

* * *

“What kind of kook are you?” Greta loved it. “Debate for fun?”

“It’s how I think. Helps me see things from all angles. Come on. OneBank. Bad. Go.”

Greta was so flattered that Otto was interested in her opinion, she failed to notice how comfortable she felt. She had never talked about her money fears and opinions with anyone. As her mother continually reinforced, “girls don’t discuss money.” 

“All banks merging into one is just too much power for one company. I don’t know how else to say it.” 

“But what’s wrong with one company having too much power?” Otto asked.

“Okay, look, I’m not an economics major but it seems to me that this capitalist system functioning fairly depends on free markets, and a healthy, free market needs competition. Otherwise, it’s an autocracy. We’ve already seen ample evidence of this with big tech. I mean, we can list on one hand the companies controlling the Internet. The creation of OneBank would eliminate competition where I believe it matters most, which is our money and who handles it. I can probably live my life without a bank account, hell, maybe that’s my destiny, so in a way I don’t give a shit. But I’ll say, on behalf of consumers everywhere, if there’s only one place for us to keep our money, that’s a dangerous situation. Even bankruptcy trustees counsel people to spread their money and assets across accounts and organizations. With OneBank, that’s impossible. Everyone’s at the mercy of whatever OneBank decides. But worse, what’s next? All the nations collapsed into One World? Then overseen by, what, One Government?” Greta shuddered. “It’s preposterous!”

* * *

Vivian beamed at the men and casually tossed her hair back. She was prepared to lay it on as thick as it took.  

The bald man, still unconvinced, sat back in his chair. He wrote something down on his tablet with a stylus, then waved a hand over it, turning it off. He leaned over and whispered something to his neighbour, who brushed him away.

“Ms. Caine, I think OneBank will be happy to contribute 1 million omnis to your longevity products in exchange for 20%. I know it’s a small start but according to your proposal that will get 5000 bottles into the population and once we see the results of those, we’ll contribute more. Do we have a deal?”

“10%.” Vivian said confidently. She stared at the man who was offering. 

He withered and stuck out his hand. “10%.” 

Vivian refused his hand. “I don’t shake hands.” Instead, she offered a tablet and stylus. “Here,” she pushed the tablet into his hands. The man signed on the tablet.

“We’re going to make a lot of money together,” she smiled. “And with OneBank on board, well, the sky’s the limit, isn’t it?” 

She turned back to the table. “Thank you, gentlemen, for your time. With your help, ViVi Longevity Solutions will be everywhere.” She looked directly at the bald man. “We’re going to make a huge difference in the world. No more fear of aging. No more fear of death knocking on one’s door. Can you see the possibilities?”

“No, Ms. Caine, I’m afraid I can’t,” the man pulled back his collar and revealed a cross tattooed on his neck. “If God wanted us to live forever, he would have created us to do so. This, what you’re doing, well, it goes against everything I believe in.”

“And yet, here you are. Investing,” Vivian said, amused.

* * *

Graeber got up from his high stool and released the monocle from his eye. “I wasn’t expecting two youngsters. What do you want?”

“I’m Rod’s daughter,” Rose offered. 

Graeber softened immediately upon hearing Rod’s name. “Ah, Rose. Luminous Rose. You’ll be our saviour, don’t you know,” Graeber said. Gently, he reached for Rose’s forearm. He turned it over and placed a finger on her naked wrist. “Good, good. But why have you come out here? Has there been a change of plans with the install?”

* * *

Ping. One hour to Installation Ceremony.

[End trailer]

Will Rose get her OC-TAT? Will the Provided Funds system be subverted? Get your copy of Luminous Rose today and start reading!

I am delighted to announce my debut novel, Luminous Rose, is now available to buy as an e-book from all kinds of sellers!

Canadians! Buy your copy here.

US and international – pick up a copy from one of the sellers here.

Over the coming days I’ll post a few articles sharing my thoughts on the process and the experience. I have thus far done all of this for free which, although certainly not ideal, is pretty cool in my opinion!

Grab your copy today! Makes for a great summer read! (If I do say so myself!)

Rose wakes up one morning in her Intellicity-12 cube in Novum Mundi, the unified world made up of all the former nations on Earth and governed by Imperium, to a dissenting thought: I don’t want to get my OC-TAT.

The OC-TAT? A mandatory tracking implant installed in all citizens of the Organized Cities of Novum Mundi on their 16th birthday. 

Influenced by this mysterious thought, Rose embarks on a journey to free citizens from Imperium, with the help of Greta and Eli, two mystical elders Rose feels deeply—and inexplicably—connected to. This connection reveals the genesis of Rose’s thought and her mission – a singular event that took place 70 years earlier. 

Moving backwards in time over a 70-year time period, Luminous Rose asks the fundamental question of how humans can access freedom in a completely controlled surveillance state—and just how much free will any individual truly has. 

Can one suggestion truly change the future?

Luminous Rose will be available to buy after 07/21/21! Subscribe at the bottom of this page for info on how to grab your copy.

Hey friendly reader! Julia here. Just in case you haven’t noticed, I’m trying to market my book myself. Trouble is, I’m a novelist, not a book PR expert (and boy, do I have some opinions about the demand for authors to do their own marketing!)

For the next series of posts I’ve created teasers, some flash fiction, and a pretty wacky attempt at writing a trailer (yeah, we’ll see if that one gets loaded!) In other words, I’m squirreling away coming up with creative ways of introducing the book to you and in a way that ensures no spoilers! Please enjoy these little morsels of Luminous Rose and be sure to subscribe so you know when it goes on sale!

Rose Goldman wakes up three days before her 16th birthday to one thought: I don’t want to get my tattoo.

The tattoo she doesn’t want to get? A tracking implant through which Rose will receive Provided Funds from Imperium, the corporation ruling over Novum Mundi. 

The thought Rose had? Illegal. As a citizen of Intellicity-12, Rose is obligated to have her tattoo installed on her 16th birthday. If not, she’ll be cast out of Intellicity-12 and into the Outerlands…

Meanwhile, (well, 40 years earlier), Vivian Ward is about to launch her longevity serum. She’s vibrant, beautiful and at the top of her game. But nothing about taking her product to market via her company, ViVi Longevity Solutions, is easy. And for some reason, most of the obstacles are spurred on by the men in her life…

Twenty years before Vivian launches her longevity serum, Greta Dahlstrom, age 18, meets Otto Fischer, a charming and visionary PhD student and hypnotist. When Otto asks Greta if she’ll be a case study for a hypnosis protocol he’s developing, the two embark on a mission to save the world from a possible future reality.    

Eager to know more about how these women’s stories connect? Subscribe and be first to hear when Luminous Rose goes on sale!

My debut novel, Luminous Rose, takes place in an imagined world that could be perceived as either dystopian or utopian, depending on where your opinions lie as the reader. 

Each of the characters moves through the world at a unique timepoint, showing the evolution of one possible future timeline. However, each character is always at choice—the future that Greta believes is coming remains just a possibility, one possible timeline in a multidimensional universe of infinite possibility.

The future time passages in Luminous Rose reveal a future wherein the world has become one world, renamed Novum Mundi, and ruled by corporations. Democracy has been taken over by a new “government” (Imperium) made up of corporate magnates. Automation and “smart” cities contain citizens and keep them complacent through a sophisticated and compelling set of Virtual Worlds. Everything from shopping for clothes, working (at the few jobs left for citizens to do) and entertainment are all found in the Virtual Worlds. 

Novum Mundi is made up of Organized Cities. These are the Intellicities, like the one where Rose lives, and the Mass Tiered Cities; huge cities that rose up even higher from the previously existing cities that stood there. These Tiered Cities fortified the skyscrapers that were there by creating a central hub from which extends wide tiers to support the height of the central hub building. 

Walking around Intellicity-12, where Rose lives in part 1, would be like walking around a ghost town, as citizens spend the majority of their days inside their cube homes wearing Smart-specs to access the Virtual Worlds. The hum of the massive server farm beneath the city creates the eerie soundtrack. Intellicities around Novum Mundi all look the same: a sprawling collection of glass-walled cubes that extend in a series of spokes around the main city centre. The city centre itself houses only the data processing houses and Imperium monitoring outposts.

This is a world that has become truly One World, and all cultures and races have been mixed together to the point where there is no more diversity; every individual is a unique blend of different races and cultures after decades of rampant globalization and commingling. Every citizen living in the Organized Cities is tattooed with a tracking implant through which they are given Provided Funds every month. Of course, as Imperium giveth, so Imperium taketh away (so to speak) and any citizen’s Provided Funds are not a guarantee should said citizen engage in anti-social or non-conformist behaviour.

This is a world completely cut off from nature, a world that has damaged the planet to a far greater degree than anyone is willing to admit to. A signalling grid covers the Earth, obscuring the view of the sky, especially in Intellicities. Order and conformity have taken over, and the complacent, controlled population creates the illusion of peace. Meanwhile, small bands of humans seeking freedom continue to scour the planet, living in old, abandoned cities called Cashtowns, or the Outerlands, scorched earth and damaged lands that surround the Organized Cities.  

Rose ignored her brother and the loud television, a television that never stopped. In every Intellicity, televisions were required to be on at all times. They were designed to run perpetually and it was impossible to turn them off. At night, the television offered low-volume ASMR videos on one channel, perpetual entertainment on all the rest. It wasn’t uncommon for people to often watch television around the clock, especially anyone who wasn’t a student or otherwise occupied on the Virtual Realities. It was impossible to turn it down when an Imperium message was being broadcast, which seemed to be almost every six hours most days. Considering the world was united and there was only one government, war had been eradicated, and everyone received the same amount of Provided Funds from Imperium, did they really need so many announcements?

This is the world of Luminous Rose, and the world each of our characters – Rose, Vivian, Greta – will live and interact within. 

Is this a nightmare? Or is this level of control and conformity truly the way to peace? As the reader, only you will know what’s true for you. 

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“And what if the creation of ‘One World’ is actually the path to peace?” Otto questioned. “Is it possible that without duality, we would have no conflict? I mean fuck, man, I don’t know about you, but I just don’t get this division and fighting. I don’t know what people are talking about half the time. And people are so keen to hang onto these visual separators. It’s such low-hanging fruit. What about culture? Nobody seems to be able to tease out the more nuanced conversations.”

He backed up and raised his hands, as if being arrested.  “Okay, okay, yes, when I say ‘people’ and ‘nobody’ I am referring directly to mainstream media, pick your medium.”

Otto put his arms down and sat back. “But never mind all that. Even though I’m into unity, this idea of One World still disturbs me. Why is that?”

In part 3 of Luminous Rose, we get to know Otto Fischer, a twenty-seven year old PhD candidate in psychology with a keen interest in hypnosis. Otto is a true free thinker – not in the sense that he is atheistic (relating to the origin of the expression), but in the sense that he has an incredibly open mind. He is intelligent and a visionary, able to see patterns and connections between perceivably unrelated concepts. He also has an ability to remain neutral, and actively challenges himself to engage in a non-dualistic way of thinking, especially when he is debating with another. 

Otto, not unlike Eli, also believes that any future remains only as a possibility until an individual makes a choice that will put them on that timeline. Whether or not that timeline is predestined, Otto is still trying to determine for himself. 

Otto meets Greta when he is her psychology TA. When he asks her if she would be hypnotized as a case study for his PhD work, he sets off a chain of events with far-reaching effects neither of them could have ever imagined…

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Eli grinned at Rose like an excited child. “I can’t believe this moment is here, really. I’ve been waiting for so long. We all have.”

“But what do you mean? Why does everyone keep saying that?”

“Your choice matters, Rose. Your choice to do this. It sent you on a timeline I saw once, a long time ago. In some ways, you made this choice in a previous life. But the fact you’re here means this is the timeline; it’s on. And if it’s on, then you’re going to be a hero, Rose.” Eli paused, then changed his mind. “I’ve said too much.” He stopped. 

Another character in Luminous Rose is Eli, the wisdom-keeper. Eli is highly intuitive and spiritual, living out his life in the Outerlands. Since the Redistribution, Eli has deliberately sought an autonomous life outside of the Organized Cities. He also avoided ever taking ViVi Longevity Serum, so at age 80 he looks like an actual 80-year-old, a stark contrast to the rest of the population of Novum Mundi.

Eli spends his days attuned to the fluctuating rhythms of nature and the beating heart of the Earth. Even though the land around him has been scorched by the cellular communications grid that lines the sky, Eli is able to see evidence of new life growing. He gets most of his food and other supplies from the nearby Cashtown and is content to live in solitude, outside of the system.

Eli is a seer who years earlier saw the life he is living when Rose meets him. He believes in the ideas of parallel realities and multiple timelines and believes that no future timeline is ever certain. He believes that for a future timeline to play out, a series of choices must be in place. Eli also believes that for each timeline to become alive, one choice out of many must occur. Without that moment, that decision, that choice, the timeline dies. 

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Between the windowsill and the nearby floor, Greta was able to keep over twenty different plants. She had several ferns on each end of the window, as well as another large fern in the corner across from her bed. Beside the ferns were four small juniperus procumbens, little juniper bonsai trees she carefully tended. Beside these were two large and strong aloe vera plants. In the centre of the windowsill sat several herbs, including a cannabis sativa plant that rose tall and sturdy. She had been growing her own cannabis since she was 14, although she didn’t start smoking it until she was 16. Beside the cannabis plant were a few pots each with basil, lemon balm, chamomile, peppermint. A few hot pink potted geranium sanguineum, for colour, and her prized plant: rosa carolinae, a miniature rosebush of white roses, which Greta looked after with exquisite care. It had grown from one of the original clippings she’d brought home from The Botanist’s greenhouse when she was still a little girl. Greta’s persistent attention and love she gave it showed—the plant was very much alive and vibrant. 

Picking up her spritzer, Greta approached the big fern in the corner first. “I’m okay,” she poked around the plant, looking for dead leaves. “I have a new opportunity. Hypnosis. What do you think?” She picked up the spritzer and started spritzing the fern. She moved onto the aloe vera.

“I knew you’d say that!” Greta laughed. “Well, it’s exciting. And he’s paying me,” Greta put her fingers in the aloe’s soil. “You’ll be all right,” she said to the plant. She ran her fingers over the tops of the herbs. She smiled as they tickled her fingertips. “Look how strong you all are!” 

Part 3 of Luminous Rose tells the story of Greta Dahlstrom, an 18-year-old university student struggling to make money. She is also unable to get a bank account due to her mother’s irresponsible money behaviour. 

Greta is a sensitive introvert with a special connection to plants. Her father, whom she was deeply connected to, died when Greta was 12, and she lives with her mother, who has been drinking her grief away. Greta keeps a room full of various plants, one of which in particular is quite special to her, the Perpetual Plant. 

Greta moves through her days with calm and grace, belying the deep guilt she feels inside from an event that happened when she was eight years old. She prefers to spend time with her plants and has few friends. 

When Greta’s psychology TA (teaching assistant), Otto Fischer, asks her if he can hypnotize her as a case study, the two of them embark on an adventure that will have ramifications far in the future. 

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Vivian pulled the skin by her temples back, smoothing out her forehead. She frowned. She let the skin bounce back. She inspected her eyes, moving her expression between frowning and smiling. Minimal crows’ feet. Not bad.

Next, she observed her mouth. Over the last few weeks, she had noticed a disconcerting new collection of wrinkles forming on her upper lip. She pulled her cheeks taut to eliminate these, then let go. As careful as she was about smiling too much, she had clearly neglected to consider her resting face. She half-smiled, pulling her top lip over her top row of teeth, then let the expression go. She allowed her face to rest in its usual position.

“Photo, please,” she commanded. A flash went off. She glanced over at a panel near the bathroom door where the photo came up. “Again. Zoom in to 12, please,” the flash went off again. This picture was better. “Cut photo one, move photo two to today’s documentation please.” 

She looked in the mirror again and pulled her hair back. She ran her fingers along the hairline. She had been blessed with a fantastic head of hair, honey-coloured and thick. Luscious was not an understatement. Her hairline revealed that all of her honey colour was still intact. She ran her hands through her hair, checking for thickness and consistency. Inevitably, she pulled out a couple of hairs, and inspected these just as closely. 

“Sample collection, please,” she said. A small tray came out of the wall beneath the panel. Vivian put the hairs on the tray and the tray retracted. “Add the data to today’s document.” 

In part 2 of Luminous Rose, we follow Vivian Caine, the stunning and charismatic biologist on the precipice of becoming a businesswoman. Her longevity serum—a serum taken internally to promote not just longer life but eternal life—has just completed its clinical trials and she can now take it to market.

Vivian is obsessed with defeating nature and has dedicated her life to longevity. Nothing will stop her now. She is focused, confident, and strong. She glows with youth and vitality as she approaches 40, thanks to her serum. 

Beneath Vivian’s beauty and vitality, however, is a lifetime of sadness and pain. Orphaned at a young age, she was adopted by a colleague of her father’s, Dr. Caine, and his wife, Elsa. While the Caines raised Vivian as best they could, she never felt fully seen and understood by them. 

She pursued her scientific interests single-mindedly and had only one love in her life, when she was 18, a love she never forgot.

Now, as she is about to launch ViVi Longevity Solutions and transition from biologist to businesswoman, Vivian is faced with a string of obstacles emanating from the men around her, both living and dead, until she is driven towards a radical act of defiance…

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