[crocos]

Nexus by Ramez Naam
Set in 2040, post-human intelligence is real - and considered a danger that needs to be destroyed. Clones, genetic splicing, artifically hyperintelligent humans, all considered illegal by the Chandler Act and the Copenhagen Accords.

Nexus: A new street drug that has the curious properties of letting people feel each other's emotions, hear each other's thoughts.

From naive Californian university students revelling in their new found connectedness to neuroscience conferences in Bangkok, a tale unwinds plumbing the depths of human reactions to the unknown.

Fully recommended - check it out. I'm about to start on the sequel, Crux.