From Publishers Weekly
In 1959, the U.S. government issued a report by the Brookings Institution, coauthored by famed anthropologist Margaret Mead, recommending that any evidence of extraterrestrial intelligence found during the exploration of our solar system be withheld from the general public-who might react badly to it. This, suggests Tigerman in his lumpy, jumpy but rarely boring first novel, was the start of a massive coverup, exposed during the first 100 days of the administration of George W. Bush's fictional successor, a former Democratic senator from Colorado. When someone inside the NASA establishment sends PBS science correspondent Angela Browning pictures of fabulous archeological ruins on Mars, pictures that seem to have come from a supposedly lost Mars probe, it sets off a series of frighteningly believable defensive maneuvers by a host of government agencies. To find out more, Browning tracks down Jake Deaver, one of the last astronauts to walk on the moon. Together, the two embark on an investigation that not only reveals the existence of extraterrestrials but also uncovers the true function of a strategic defense shield dubbed Project Orion. As the novel proceeds, chapters and sections become increasingly short and jerky, and Tigerman's usually brisk prose occasionally turns baroque: "The fact was that Mother England's runaway child was only a blink away from possessing the means for world domination on a scale only Deutschland's most infamous housepainter had ever envisioned, burning himself alive with pure methamphetamine crystal and raving in his self-made Bergtesgarden [sic] of corpses." Despite its inconsistencies, however, this is stirring speculative fiction.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Book Description
Project Orion. It's a revolutionary space-based defense shield, only weeks away from deployment. Promising global protection from missile attack by rogue nations, Orion offers an "umbrella" of security to a terror-stricken world. But even the loftiest aims often conceal darker intentions. Behind closed doors, insiders maneuver to control the new superweapon with an agenda that places all mankind at risk.
When Angela Browning, an ambitious journalist, receives a mysterious computer disk from an anonymous source, she can't believe the information it contains: photos of ancient structures on the planet Mars. But after diligent research, Angela discovers that the images originated from the Mars Observer probe, a satellite declared "lost" over a decade before. Perhaps even more troubling than the artifacts themselves is the implication that somehow, somewhere in the corridors of power, it's been decided that the discovery of intelligent life on Mars must be suppressed.
Angela's quest for the truth eventually leads her to Jake Deaver, the commander of the last Apollo mission to the moon. Deaver, a maverick his whole career, may be the only one who can help her shed light on a conspiracy that reaches into the darkest corners of Washington politics. But the pair's investigation takes them dangerously close to Project Orion, and a powerful cabal determined to prevent anyone from jeopardizing their plans. Now Jake and Angela must face the stark reality that pursuing the truth may put both their lives at risk. And the choice they make will change the world forever.
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