Shadrach in the Furnace

Blurb

Shadrach in the Furnace is a science fiction novel by American writer Robert Silverberg, first published by Bobbs Merrill in 1976. The novel was nominated in 1976 for the Nebula award, and in 1977 for the Hugo award.
The story takes place in 2012, and is set in Ulaanbaatar, that has become the world capital. The main character is Shadrach Mordecai, personal doctor of the world dictator, Genghis II Mao IV. The dictator wants to reach immortality, and puts all of his efforts to financing projects that can save him from death. The three main projects are Phoenix, Talos, and Avatar. The story then delves into the relationship between Shadrach and Genghis Mao, the ethical problems of a doctor in this situation, and above all, the developments of the plot when the man who needs to be used in project avatar is finally chosen.