The Black Silent
Coming
in July
Read
an Online Excerpt
Editors
Note By
Ed Stackler
David Dun’s newest thriller, The
Black Silent (Pinnacle original; July 2005; $6.99), melds fact
with fiction into an irresistible whole like few I’ve read
before. Dun’s “faction” is seamless because the
science is either well supported in journals or the product of informed
speculation by today’s working scientists. Like the best “what
if?” fiction the story crackles with fascinating tidbits,
little windows on our possible futures, from the chilling to the
sublime. Make no mistake, though, The Black Silent taps
real-life cultural obsessions along with those scientific currents,
and then infuses it all with the peril and pacing of A-grade suspense
fiction. This is a story of intense struggle between strong-minded
characters and a thriller about corporate greed and desperate deeds,
not a science book.
*
* *
As baby boomers age, the pursuit of a fountain of
youth continues to accelerate. At the same time, we live in fear of
both terrorist attacks and environmental collapse, whether its Tsunamis,
massive global warming, or cataclysmic climate change. Based on cutting-edge
science, The Black Silent’s premise involves all the
elements each rooted in the true-to-life Archaea organism, found in
the deepest sea bottoms, which scientists believe may play a role
in either preserving or destroying life on earth.
In The Black Silent, Dr. Ben Anderson has
disappeared. An eminent scientist working in Seattle’s northern
Puget Sound amongst some of the worlds most beautiful islands, commonly
known as the San Juan islands of Washington state. Dr. Anderson has
discovered the astonishing secrets of the Arcs. Already someone has
tried and failed to kill him, and someone else holds him captive.
As Haley, Dr. Anderson’s adopted daughter, and Sam, his nephew
and a recuperating investigator, search for the missing scientist;
others are in determined pursuit, including the prestigious Sanker
Corporation, Dr. Anderson’s partner in research. At first it
appears that Ben has shared his top-secret research with no one, not
even Sanker. Gradually a much larger picture emerges and it becomes
shockingly clear how one man could possess such a wealth of information.
Sanker is about to merge with a rival, and their
management dominance depends on their ability to score the huge potential
revenues possible from Ben’s research. Haley and Sam’s
search is impeded by a dangerous rogue director of security at Sanker,
whose mission is to eliminate Dr. Anderson and snatch his rich cache
of research. The Black Silent reaches its intense climax
on the sea, as science and corporate greed wage a fierce battle for
the future of the planet’s soul.
Author's Personal
Comments
The Black Silent started at the regular
Monday night dinner. A bunch of guys get together and exaggerate about
everything, drink a little and go home. The restaurant was dark, the
bar a little darker, and my friend Richard was telling me that he
had just learned what lies at the bottom of the sea, and that it blew
his mind. I indulged him, listening as I ate and drank. Then I simply
listened. This was the sort of discovery that will make you stop chewing
in the middle of a bite out of a good burger. Richard spoke excitedly,
but I didn’t know whether to believe this whopping tale.
Soon I’m talking to geologists, biologists,
and molecular biologists about a world that I had no idea existed.
It was a place thousands of feet under the ocean, but not just that.
You have to go even deeper, sometimes a thousand feet or more under
the sediment at the bottom of the sea.
There, you find a marvel. A miracle. One scientist
described organisms with energy efficiency so extreme that they’re
comparable to a race of humans that could survive one year on a slice
of pizza. I learned of incredible biological and geological processes
with astounding implications for humankind: a human dream or a nightmare,
and everything in between. We’re talking about processes that
could end life on earth as we know it or make it unthinkably better.
One of my fictional characters, Dr. Ben Anderson
of The Black Silent, discovered both the dream and the nightmare.
It stirred the greed of men who would do anything to possess his secrets.
And the details behind Ben Anderson’s science, you’ll
find, could soon be knocking at the door of your life.
Next time I saw Richard at that bar I told him,
“You don’t know the half of what’s down there.”
Before long, The Black Silent will hit store shelves around
the country.
People will call this a fast book (I know this
because they already have). It is perhaps unusually so because of
the nature of the story.
People may be referring to the fact that the race
and the chase never stop, and the entire book takes place in just
twenty-four hours. Stories birth themselves in authors' minds and
are nurtured by some of their own loves and interests. I thought that,
since I need to fill this space with something, I would tell you about
some of the experiences that led to The Black Silent.
The setting of The Black Silent reflects
the intrigue of quiet harbors and rushing blue waters driven by the
tides, mounded by the winds; of small yachts; the stink of the sea
at low tide; and my many fond memories of the myriad San Juan Islands
and in particular three islands in the northwest corner of Washington
State. The characters in this novel can’t stop long to enjoy
this water bound dream-land but they do cast a sidelong glance now
and then.
When I was in my twenties my wife, a pilot, took
me on a memorable ride through the San Juan Islands skimming just
over the water, winding through the jutting tree-covered rocks and
islands as if we were a speed boat riding on a cushion of air (except
of course when we landed in the ocean). We had a fine lunch on a wild
beach. I did not know then that I was gathering material for a novel.
These interests and memories have provided a unique
link to the feeling of being in touch with the characters, their predicaments
and the places in The Black Silent. My memories: Hours spent
on the veranda by the coffee shop over looking Friday Harbor; eating
the oysters; dry-suit diving in chilly waters; calm days anchored
in secluded inlets; violent rides in raging storms. You'll find all
these memories woven in there in some way to convey the feeling of
place and the scare in the fictional adventure. Hey, I think it really
happened.
For me another piece of intrigue is the pace of
The Black Silent. This is the fastest moving story I have
written and the challenge was to find a moment in the story that would
allow you, the reader, to get to know the characters.
The riddle in the story is of interest to me because
I found the real life science quite absorbing. It is dramatic science.
More like discussing when the next sizeable meteor might strike the
earth or how we might control mother earth's climate, than why an
amoeba has a certain unexpected genetic structure. The human biology
is even more fascinating for me, but that could be because middle
age is upon me.
This second piece of the puzzle came when I was
at a party of scientists. Someone said: "Hey, you've got to come
and meet one of the guys who starves mice to make them live longer."
He was William Pendergrass, Ph.D., of the University of Washington
Medical School, Department of Pathology. I learned he didn't starve
them, he puts them on a reduced caloric diet. Dr. Bill shared with
me some fascinating things that later proved very related in my mind
to the strange happenings at the bottom of the sea (and if they aren’t
strictly related it makes a heck of an interesting story but you will
be the judge of that).
I wondered how it might all fit together--what sort
of revolution in human civilization it might inspire. I was intrigued...and
so indeed were the characters of The Black Silent. Perhaps
the facts of the deep ocean and the shining light of molecular biology
will grip you as well. More likely I suppose it will be the titanic
battle between the science guys and the corporate types.
Since, like most suspense fiction, it depends in
part on surprise, I'll pass on telling you about the details of the
science mystery until after you've read the story. Look for the surprising
truth in The Science Behind the Books on this website. However, so
as not to spoil the fun, you may want to read the book first.
A Word About
the Islands
People come from all over the world to catch some
of the special charm of the San Juan Islands just north of Seattle,
Washington. Particularly Yachtsmen. Whether you charter a small yacht
(or a large one) or take the many ferries, it’s a place that
most people with a bit of poetry in their soul will want to visit.
The general areas described in The Black Silent are for the
most part real. If you should wander around San Juan, Orcas, or Lopez
islands, please respect people’s private property rights. Folks
go to these islands, myself included, so that we can get away from
it all. I know you will go easy on the nerves of the generally friendly
inhabitants of these islands. Also when you go to Lopez, most everybody
waves. It’s a custom. Wave back. The restaurants and cafes on
all three islands are great and you will enjoy most every place you
try. Maybe I will see you there.
—David
Dun
Excerpts
An attempted murder underwater
reveals a sinister plot
Prologue
Chapter
1
Chapter
2
Chapter 3
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Unacceptable Risk
Now Available
Sam Wintripp, a half Tilok Native American espionage
expert, must foil a double plot to unleash a deadly brain-altering
genetic vector into U.S. cities and a potent electronic virus into
the worldÍs interconnected computer systems.
A powerful and potentially dangerous form of biotechnology
has fallen into the hands of a terrorist mastermind. With it he plans
to use microscopic vector particles developed originally for therapeutic
purposes to make genetic modifications in humans on a large scale.
The unlucky victims become senselessly violent until they die 48 hours
later. Sam fears that the simultaneous outbreak of random violence
and a massive attack on essential US computer systems will destabilize
financial markets, a circumstance that will allow anyone with advance
knowledge to make huge profits.
A crack team of high-tech experts tracks the plots'
mastermind through cyberspace while Sam pursues him across the continent.
The fate of millions of people depends upon their success.
Unacceptable Risk is the second Sam Wintripp
novel, following Overfall.
Read an Online Excerpt
Chapter
1 A platoon of mercenaries disturb
the peace around Sam's mountain cabin. Sam must discover who wants
him dead, and why.
Back
to Top
Overfall
Buy It Now at
Travel to the islands off British Columbia,
the forests of Borneo, and the island of Manhattan in Dun's third
adventure novel.
After a risky water rescue, a pair
of unlikely allies find themselves embroiled in a plot to turn the
latest advances in gene therapy to deadly use. As the plot twists
and turns, readers will be pulled into a thriller as gripping as the
whirlpool currents that give the book its name.
Read an Online Excerpt
Chapter
1 Sam Wintripp, cousin of Necessary
Evil's Kier, settles in for a relaxing vacation on his yacht.
Chapter
2 Sam's calm is broken by an unknown
woman's desperate dash for the safety of his boat.
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At The Edge
Buy It Now At
Deep in a redwood forest lies a deadly secret that
two sworn enemies—joined in an extraordinary mission—must
uncover to survive.
Dan Young, a big city corporate attorney, and Maria Fischer, an environmental
activist and attorney, are professional rivals whose disagreements
have recently threatened to spill over into personal animosity. The
philosophical rift between them is profound, but their adversarial
relationship is turned upside down when Dan's client sends him on
a bewildering mission—to hand-deliver $500,000 in cash to Maria
Fischer.
A simple plan gone
awry
Excerpts
Prologue
Chapter
1
Chapter 2
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A USA Today National Bestseller!
Necessary Evil
A private jet crashes in the snowbound mountains
of northern California, bringing with it a plane full of exotic toxins,
paramilitary shock troops, and a blizzard of death.
Kier Wintripp, a renowned veterinary doctor and Tilok Indian, and
Jessie Mayfield, a big city FBI agent, are brought together when the
thunderous crash draws them into the forest to investigate. There
they discover the twisted remains of a corporate jet and nine bullet-riddled
bodies bearing silenced weapons. The jet's cargo: a secret so astounding
that its owner will do anything to protect it...
A villain with the
cunning of Machiavelli
Excerpts
Chapter
1
Character
Profiles
Kier
Wintripp
Jessie
Mayfield
Grandfather,
a.k.a., Stalking Bear
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