The Nano Flower — Peter F. Hamilton

Julia Evans: billionairess, owner of Event Horizon, for fifteen years the undisputed power behind England's economic renaissance. And in trouble.

With her husband missing and rival companies suddenly claiming to have acquired a technology impossibly superior to anything on Earth Julia has no time to take notice of an anonymously delivered flower. But this flower has genes millions of years in advance of any terrestrial DNA.

Is it a cryptic alien message, or a poignant farewell from her husband? One man can discover its origin. But Greg Mandel is not alone in his desperate search. A vicious mercenary killer, a jaded merchant and his son, a ruthless arms dealer, and a courtesan all have a part to play.

It was never going to be easy, but as Greg and Julia discover simply being first in the race isn't good enough as the Nano Flower starts to bloom.