How much does a career mean – is it worth risking a life? That’s a central question in both “The Slush Pile Brigade” (September 15, 2015, $12.99, $2.99) and “Blind Thrust” (October 2015, $12.99, $2.99), by Samuel Marquis.
About the Book “The Slush Pile Brigade”
On his thirtieth birthday, Nick Lassiter has lost his girlfriend and his job, is wanted by the police, and has discovered that his unpublished thriller, “Blind Thrust,” has been stolen and turned into a blockbuster movie called Subterranean Storm. Even worse, the movie is based on a soon-to-be best-selling novel by Australian thriller writer Cameron Beckett, one of the world’s biggest brand name authors. Rather than seek revenge through a financial settlement or public humiliation, Lassiter sets out for New York to obtain mea culpas from Beckett and his renowned literary agent, whom he is certain colluded with the Aussie in stealing his debut novel.
Once in New York, Lassiter, and his three quirky fish-out-of-water friends who insist on accompanying him, instantly run afoul of the law and other powerful forces intent on thwarting them and their mission. As they encounter one thorny obstacle after another, the scope of their inquiries expands and they are soon in way over their heads, battling toe-to-toe not only against the mega-bestselling author and his agent, but a formidable army of antagonists, including the NYPD, Beckett’s Big Five publishing house security squad, and the Russian mob. Collectively, these adversaries present Lassiter with the greatest—and deadliest—challenge of his life.
Unexpectedly aided by his CIA father, Director of the Russian Counterintelligence Desk, and his former girlfriend turned CIA-informant, Lassiter and his comrades take to calling themselves the Slush Pile Brigade. Outmatched and outgunned, they are foiled at virtually every turn but still they are determined to win. But will they find justice? Can they prove that Beckett and his crooked literary agent have stolen Lassiter’s blockbuster novel and are undeservedly reaping the success? And more importantly, will they solve one of the most important counterintelligence cases in CIA history and actually live to tell about it?
About the Book “Blind Thrust”
Horrific earthquakes are devastating the Front Range between Denver and Colorado Springs in an area long believed to be seismically quiescent. They are being generated by ruptures along cryptic, mysterious, deeply buried thrust faults (blind thrusts) that, unlike many faults, do not break the surface during large-scale seismic events. Somehow the cause of the unusual earthquakes must be unraveled and the cataclysms stopped before they result in more carnage and devastation. But are they the result of natural tectonic adjustments, hydrofracking, conventional subsurface sequestering, or clandestine operations?
Environmental Geologist Joe Higheagle is on a mission to find out the answer. But he soon finds himself in a deadly duel of wits against powerful forces. With his team of techie sleuths, Higheagle goes toe to toe against his adversaries while grappling to collect, analyze, and leverage the scientific data needed to prove his case. But at every turn he is thwarted by his shadowy enemy and, with the cataclysms worsening, he may not have enough on his side to solve the mystery and save Colorado from more devastation.
Can he solve the enigma of the earthquakes and gather enough evidence to stop those responsible? Will the tremors continue to wreak death and mayhem across the Front Range? Or will Higheagle and his outgunned team be defeated and ultimately crushed by their adversaries? If the earthquakes are not stopped, thousands more will perish and more towns and homes will be destroyed, leaving countless injured and homeless as well as untold financial damage across the Front Range. But can the resourceful Higheagle and his team stop those responsible? In the end, all they can do is try.
An Interview with Samuel Marquis
What was the inspiration behind both “The Slush Pile Brigade” and “Blind Thrust”? “Blind Thrust” seems more closely aligned to your day-to-day work, while “The Slush Pile Brigade” seems like an adventure in your imagination.
I actually wrote “Blind Thrust” before “The Slush Pile Brigade.” The inspiration behind “Blind Thrust” is my experiences in California and Texas as a registered professional geologist in assessing earthquake hazards and fault classifications. I wrote the novel and my agent was pitching it to publishers in New York. I began wondering, “What if a mega-best-selling author was having writer’s block, needed a good story and actually colluded with his literary agent to steal a promising novel by a no-name author from the slush pile, an author who happened to be an expert in his field like me and had written a scientifically-accurate novel like “Blind Thrust?”
I wondered to myself how I would try and seek revenge. Once I dug into the research, I quickly discovered that big-name publishers, producers, writers, editors and directors in both the literary industry and Hollywood pilfer creative works from no-name authors and screenwriters all the time. It made me angry. And that is why I wrote “The Slush Pile Brigade.” Like a lot of people, I’m sick and tired of the smart, hard-working little guy being stomped on and not being able to earn a fair wage for his creative work.
Why did you choose to self-publish instead of working with a traditional publisher?
Traditional publishers are not investing in, nurturing or taking on new authors unless their costbenefit analysis shows significant profit potential with minimal editorial and publicity effort. In other words, they support the one-percent authors who generally began publishing prior to 2005, and they are painfully slow in all aspects of their business model. So even though I had two very talented literary agents, the choice for me and 99.9% of the authors out there is the choice between having full artistic control, publishing multiple series simultaneously, putting out several great books a year and receiving 70 percent of the profit from your creativity and perseverance – or watching other people do it.
What would you do if you were a struggling, no-name writer and the world’s second bestselling author of all time stole your book and turned it into a blockbuster movie and book without giving you credit? How would you seek revenge?
Personally, I like the way Nick handled it. He is only 30 years old, out of work and just lost his girlfriend – and yet all he wants is a simple apology. He is driven purely by principle. I don’t think that I would be so forgiving of the thief that stole my bestselling-caliber manuscript from the slush pile. Most of the readers and friends I have asked say they would probably hire a lawyer and take legal action. I would probably do the same, I suppose, but only if I thought I could win. The problem is there is no way on earth a no-name is going to win a copyright infringement case against a big-name author, publisher or producer. Power and money trump all – always have, always will. Except in my novel, I guess I’m just a sucker for happy endings.
About Samuel Marquis
Samuel Marquis works by day as vice-president - hydrogeologist at an environmental consulting firm in Boulder, Colo., and by night as a writer of historical and modern suspense novels. He holds a Master of Science degree in geology, is a registered professional geologist in eleven states and is a recognized expert in groundwater contaminant hydrogeology, having served as a hydrogeologic expert witness in several class action litigation cases. He also has a deep and abiding interest in military history and intelligence, specifically related to the Plains Indian Wars, World War II and the current War on Terror.
His strong technical scientific background and deep passion for military history and intelligence has served Samuel Marquis well as a suspense writer. James Patterson has compared his forthcoming novel, “The Coalition,” to “The Day After Tomorrow,” the classic thriller by Allan Folsom which appeared in the number three spot in its first week on the New York Times bestseller list for fiction and for which American publishing rights were sold for two million dollars. Donald Maas, author of “Writing 21st Century Fiction” and two novels, has compared “The Coalition” to “The Day of the Jackal.” Other book reviewers have compared Marquis’s WWII espionage novel, “Bodyguard of Deception,” to the spy novels of Daniel Silva, Ken Follett and Alan Furst.
In addition to his novels, Mr. Marquis is widely published in peer-reviewed scientific journals/books and has provided principal expert litigation support and senior technical oversight on a variety of remedial, hydrogeologic and sustainability projects.
