The Mother Code is broken into two parts; the first half focuses on the realization that a bioweapon that was designed to take out a specific enemy and then quickly become dormant and useless succeeded on the first part, but failed on the second. The consequence of this failure is a spreading disease that will present as flu-like symptoms, but quickly result in death. In response, the military has put together a team to attempt to cure the disease, but there is a strong chance that any cure they find will not be a good long-term solution. So, alongside developing medicine to help those currently alive, the team also starts developing the ability to modify human embryos to be immune to the disease. The big problem there is, the rest of humanity could be dead by the time those babies are ready to be born and raised.
While most of the first part of the book focuses on General Rick Blevins' operation over the course of a decade or so, there are occasional chapters that jump ahead following the life of a couple of these yet-to-be-born children. At first, this jump between the two time periods can be jarring, but it's interesting to see the struggles of the scientists exploring different options while also reading where their path will eventually take them - children being raised alone in the desert with only a robotic mother to teach and care for them.
Under Blevins, there is Dr. James Said, an expert in using artificial DNA called NANs to manipulate the human physiology at an embryonic stage with the hopes of removing genetic diseases like cystic fibrosis. He is partnered with Dr. Rudy Garza who, much to his own dismay, is all too familiar with the origins of the bioweapon turned disease. While the two of them focus their efforts on understanding the impending pandemic and researching ways to solve the problem from a biological viewpoint, Captain Rose McBride, an unusual blend of psychologist and computer scientist, heads up a branch of the operation focusing on a different solution. A solution that no one really hopes to employ, but one we, the readers, know is inevitable. McBride and her team are developing robotic "mothers" to birth, raise, and protect the babies that will be born immune to the sickness. At her side is Kendra Jenkins, whose focus on robotics coupled with McBride's attempts to invest maternal instincts into code has the pair running a team of engineers and developers who think they are building robots destined for some theoretical space colony, not the impending disaster that is still under wraps from all but those that need-to-know.
When focused on the future children, the book primarily follows a young boy named Kai and his mother, Rho-Z. At first it is just the two of them, but at some point, Rho-Z informs Kai that they should start seeking out the other 49 children scattered around the desert. Before the first part of this book is over, we will also meet Sela and Alpha-C, as well as Kamal with his mother, Beta-S, but it also isn't long before the events leading up to these childrens' births catch up to Kai's place at the start and the two tales come together. That is when the second part of The Mother Code starts and the tone of the story goes from disaster movie to post-apocalyptic survival.
While the decision to jump between the two time periods in the first half of the book is odd, it ends up making sense. By the time the past and future meet up, the reader needs to understand the struggles of the few kids we meet and have their characters develop independently of everything else. By seeing their formative years, it is easy to understand their reactions when the events of the second half of the book take place, and I can't think of a better way to lay down that groundwork without losing momentum in the story as a whole. Even though it feels a little odd at first, Stivers made a smart choice in this regard.
I enjoyed and recommend The Mother Code, though anyone feeling a bit of pandemic fatigue might want to hold off on this book a bit. While the disease is more of a set-piece for this book and not truly its focus, there is still a good bit of pandemic-related content here that could turn some people off right now. If this book intrigues you but that topic is still a bit taboo for you, then keep The Mother Code in mind for a future read. It's worth it.
