Brad Fischer, Laeta Kalogridis and James Vanderbilt's Mythology Entertainment has acquired feature rights to Richard Morgan's sci-fi novel "Altered Carbon," reports Variety. Fischer, Kalogridis and Vanderbilt will produce, with Mike Medavoy and Arnie Messer executive producing.

Kalogridis (Shutter Island, Avatar) will adapt the novel along with David Goodman. The book is described as follows:

Four hundred years from now mankind is strung out across a region of interstellar space inherited from an ancient civilization discovered on Mars. The colonies are linked together by the occasional sublight colony ship voyages and hyperspatial data-casting. Human consciousness is digitally freighted between the stars and downloaded into bodies as a matter of course.

But some things never change. So when ex-envoy, now-convict Takeshi Kovacs has his consciousness and skills downloaded into the body of a nicotine-addicted ex-thug and presented with a catch-22 offer, he really shouldnt be surprised. Contracted by a billionaire to discover who murdered his last body, Kovacs is drawn into a terrifying conspiracy that stretches across known space and to the very top of society.

The trade says the deal for "Altered Carbon" also covers books in Morgan's "Takeshi Kovacs" series.