Deep Past
- 2 Seas represents: French, Dutch and Nordic countries rights.
- Rights Sold: Audio (Blackstone)
THRILLER
“Fascinating … masterly … intriguing … page-turning” — Starred Publishers Weekly
“An excellent thriller with real meat on the bones … makes you think as well as sweat.” — Lee Child, author of the Jack Reacher novels
“DEEP PAST is an extraordinary novel on so many levels. It is a gripping thriller in terms of pacing, vivid characters and exotic settings, a book you won’t be able to put down.” —Douglas Preston, co-creator of the #1 bestselling Pendergast series and author of The Lost City of the Monkey God
From the award winning and critically acclaimed author of THE PARROT’S LAMENT (sold in 8 countries) comes this astonishingly accomplished first novel challenging our ideas about intelligence, evolution and the impact of climate change.
Eugene Linden, who has long been on the forefront of reporting on science/nature/environment for Time, National Geographic, and Foreign Affairs, creates a thriller that seamlessly weaves cutting-edge science as it collides with the realpolitik of nations, institutions, and ambitions.
An array of bones discovered in the far steppes of Kazak; a mining operation comprised of a dangerously unstable alliance between Russian, Canadian and Kazakhstan interests; and a young woman scientist who is willing to risk her reputation to uncover a story five million years old.
A routine dig in Kazakhstan takes a radical turn for 32 year-old anthropologist Claire Knowland when a stranger turns up at the site with a bizarre find from a remote section of the desolate Kazakh Steppe. Her initial skepticism of this mysterious discovery gives way to a realization that the find will shake the very foundations of our understanding of evolution and intelligence.
The corrupt politics of Kazakhstan force Claire to take reckless chances with the discovery. Among the allies she gathers in her fight to save herself and bring the discovery to light is Sergei Anachev, a brilliant but enigmatic Russian geologist who becomes her unlikely protector even as he deals with his own unknown crisis.
Ultimately, Claire finds herself fighting not just for the discovery and her academic reputation, but for her very life as great power conflict engulfs the unstable region and an unscrupulous oligarch attempts to take advantage of the chaos. Drawing on Eugene Linden’s celebrated non-fiction investigations into what makes humans different from other species, this international thriller mixes fact and the fantastical, the realities of academic politics, and high stakes geopolitics—engaging you every step of the way.
Award-winning journalist Eugene Linden is the author of ten books, including his celebrated works on animal intelligence and climate change: Apes, Men, and Language (Dutton); the New York Times “Notable Book” Silent Partners (Times Books); and the bestselling The Parrot’s Lament (Dutton). His book Winds of Change (S&S) which explored the connection between climate change and the rise and fall of civilizations, was awarded the Grantham Prize Special Award of Merit. He has also won the American Geophysical Union’s Walter Sullivan Award. Linden has written for the New York Times, Time, National Geographic, Foreign Affairs and many other publications.