"A highly original debut novel about a scientist making a discovery that defies science. This spellbinding, challenging science-fiction work offers varied philosophical musings, intense discussions of medical ethics and other thought-provoking issues, and well-crafted, compelling characters. The unpredictable, imaginative plot draws from the author's interest in the scientific world and the basics of human behavior. Slavoiu's portrayal of Yuzuki's precise mind and kind heart help carry the plot along, which offers readers a puzzle as intriguing as the human mind itself. A fine sci-fi story about scientists attempting to discover the truth inside all of us." - Kirkus Reviews Yuzuki Tanaka, a young and ambitious scientist, is driven by her magnetic vocation for understanding the dynamics of collective intelligence. She rises to this challenge alongside her second mentor, professor Yuri Kolotov, a famous Russian psychologist, who is frantically engaged in the creation of an artificial neuronal interface. They launch on a heart-pounding scientific journey in search of human rationale patterns, accompanied by Orrin Hammett, an American anthropologist, and Andrey, a brilliant Russian student at the Lomonosov University in Moscow. Along the way they live the most intense experience of their professional and personal life: a mind-blowing encounter with an unexpected form of quantic intelligence - the Core - which challenges their spiritual beliefs and inspires their personal transformation. The four adventurers are given the opportunity to explore the meaning of existence and are initiated in the rules and true wisdom of the Universe. MANA (www.facebook.com/MANA.TheBook) is the first book in the "Bud of Core" series (www.budofcore.com)