K47

by Ricky Ginsburg

K47 is a robot who is becoming human against his wishes. Unable to complete his programming due to the metamorphosis, the robot finds himself in a battle with an emotion chip, the law, and the very people who stand to profit from his mission. He’ll have his day in court to fight for legal rights for androids, but surviving the challenge may be too much for his system to bear.Life Extension LLC began selling android clones to wealthy business people shortly before the second mission to Mars was announced. The mechanical duplicates were designed to carry a rich person’s affairs to their logical conclusion in the event the upper crust socialite passed away unexpectedly. The units were physically identical to their purchaser and their internal memory core was loaded with every detail of the person’s life. Transfer of those memories, thought patterns, and reactions were done upon delivery and updated by the user as they saw fit. Equipped with the owner’s vocal patterns, a Life Extension Unit spoke exactly the same, even when switching to another language.The LEU’s purpose was to finalize contracts, pay any outstanding debts, and see to the dispersal of funds to the heirs. For those who could afford the seven-figure price and thousands of dollars of monthly maintenance, it was the perfect way to guarantee their empire would be dealt with in a manner consistent with their desires and lifestyle. Lawyers could interpret a person’s Last Will and Testament as they saw fit. Even a probate judge could rule that a certain statement had several meanings and then choose the one he liked best. An android was a machine with a program. It only had the ability to see issues as either black or white. Gray was not an option.Until now.

342 pages, Paperback

Published December 10, 2023

About the author

Ricky Ginsburg began writing short stories and novels in October 2006 and has penned nearly 400 tales in a rainbow of genres since. He has three self-published novels readable on every modern device including handheld paperback:
• “A Tasty Murder” - August 2011
• “Sushi, Burgers, and Rocky Mountain Oysters” - March 2010
• “When Life Gives You Beef, Make Burgers” the sequel - June 2020
The first three novels of his murder mystery series, featuring Detective Valarie Garibaldi of the Fort Lauderdale Police Department have been published by Black Rose Writing:
• “The Blue Macaw” - October 2020
• “Shooting Limpkins” - April 2021
• “Clouds Full Of Ravens” - December 2021
• “Castro’s Pelican” - 2022
• “Herons Die Slowly” - 2022
• “Gulls Cry At Dawn” - 2023
• “Hawks Fly Alone” - 2023
“Boulong’s Cheese,” a post-Covid satire, will be released by Black Rose Writing in September 2021.

His writing comes from a lifetime of experiences, both normal and bizarre with heavy leanings toward the latter. Simply put, Ricky Ginsburg is one of those writers who sees a flock of birds heading south for the winter and wonders what they talk about on their journey. While much of his writing has elements of magical realism and humor, he also has a serious side, but keeps it in a small plexiglass box under his desk.

When he’s not writing, gardening, cooking, hiking, biking, traveling, taking photographs, eating massive quantities of sushi and barbecue, he enjoys mediation and chocolate egg creams. Despite a forced existence from birth until age eighteen that revolved around suburbia, Chinese takeout, and puberty, Ricky has managed to set foot on six of the seven continents, survived the loss of two wives, and eaten jellied monkey brains three times in search of the perfect flavor profile.