Can a man fall in love with an android if it holds the ghost of his late wife? Should he? If an attractive gynoid contains the essence of a man's late wife, does that make it okay? Because of a firmware flaw and an overly ambitious project to mesh android and human brains, the android population on Novae Terrae now have human emotions--and human flaws. Robotics scientist Harley Harris wants a peaceful coexistence between androids and humans on a planet that humans have escaped to during the apocalypse on Earth. When the Leadership Council and society push back, his has to pick his battles. He struggles to make the right decisions for his disabled son and his desire to partner with an android who has the essence of his late wife versus the human woman who has stuck by him.