After more than a century in deep freeze, Jefferson Nighthawk is waking up from his sleep, finally cured of the disease that almost killed him. Now sixty-two years old, he's ready for a new kind of life, one of peace and quiet. The former bounty hunter has made enough widows, not to mention clones, one of whom still roams the galaxy . . .

With his loyal trainer, Ito Kinoshita, by his side, Nighthawk looks for a place to settle down, to grow some flowers, and maybe even find a wife. What he isn't expecting is to be hounded to the ends of the universe by the enemies his two clones have made and by bloodthirsty men out to make a reputation for themselves. Nighthawk and Kinoshita try to stay one step ahead of his pursuers, but when that doesn't work, Nighthawk's instincts take over--and the killing begins. There's only one way to escape being the Widowmaker--and Nighthawk is just about desperate enough to try it . . .

Praise for Mike Resnick

"Resnick is thought-provoking, imaginative . . . and above all galactically grand." --Los Angeles Times

"Nobody spins a yarn better than Mike Resnick. Best of all, when the story's over, you find that he's left something in your memory for you to draw on again and again: a clearer understanding of how nobility emerges from the struggles of life." --Orson Scott Card, New York Times-bestselling author of Ender's Game