Ted Kosmatka's sensational new thriller, Prophet of Bones, thrusts readers into an alternate present. Paul Carlson, a brilliant young scientist, is summoned from his laboratory job to the remote Indonesian island of Flores to collect DNA samples from the ancient bones of a strange, new species of tool user unearthed by an archaeological dig. The questions the find raises seem to cast doubt on the very foundations of modern science, which has proven the world to be only 5,800 years old, but before Paul can fully grapple with the implications of his find, the dig is violently shut down by paramilitaries. Paul flees with two of his friends, yet within days one has vanished and the other is murdered in an attack that costs Paul an eye, and very nearly his life. Back in America, Paul tries to resume the comfortable life he left behind, but he can't cast the questions raised by the dig from his mind. Paul begins to piece together a puzzle which seems to threaten the very fabric of society, but world's governments and Martial Johnston, the eccentric billionaire who financed Paul's dig, will stop at nothing to silence him. Amazon.com Review Amazon Exclusive: Daniel H. Wilson Discusses What Makes Prophet of BonesWorth Staying Up Too Late Daniel H. Wilson is the New York Times best-selling author of Robopocalypse, as well as seven other books including How to Survive a Robot Uprisingand Amped. Prophet of Bones is a well-written, utterly convincing thriller that left my mind reeling for days. It latched on after the first chapter and didn't let go until the last word. Ted Kosmatka's novel is a bloody, yet profoundly introspective, thriller that's not set so much in a near-future world as in a near-alternate world. This is a place where science has proven evolution wrong and radio carbon dating shows the earth is about 6000 years old. The seamless blending of science and theology is fascinating, moreso when scientist Paul Carlsson discovers a set of ancient human bones that shouldn't exist. His quest to requite the two worlds-οΏ½to seek the truth at all costs-οΏ½will destroy his life and take the reader on a trip that is half detective work and half old-fashioned butt-kicking (with a side of biology, genetics, and paleoanthropology). Despite the sheer fun of reading Prophet of Bones, the underlying themes are what elevate the material. You are left wondering about the shared origin of humanity, the lost branches of human sub-species, and whether knowing more really helps us understand ourselves. Is it more tempting to play God in a world where science and religion are the same thing? Kosmatka is a full-time writer at Valve Software, the company behind the massively popular video games Half-Life and Portal. Maybe it's my imagination, but I occasionally caught beautiful facets of those games lurking under the surface of Prophet of Bones. In the novel as in the games, our heroes are scientists, our villains are scientists, and their creations... well, just wait until you meet their creations. What else can I say?Prophet of Bones is as thoughtful as it is thrilling. It kept me up way, way past my bedtime. From [b]Booklist[/b] Starred Review Kosmatka follows up his splendid debut, the near-future thriller, The Games (2012), with something more ambitious and with a much higher potential for failure. Paul Carlsson is a scientist recruited to help out at an archaeological dig in Indonesia, where a startling discovery has been made, one that could shake the very foundations of world history. Paul soon learns that there are hidden truths about the history of mankind and that desperate people will stop at nothing to keep those secrets from being revealed. The tale begins with a startling premise, that carbon dating has conclusively proved that the earth is less than six millennia old. Kosmatka incorporates real history (Willard F. Libby did win a Nobel Prize in 1960 for his work on carbon dating) and uses a real event as a jumping-off point: Homo floresiensis (οΏ½Flores manοΏ½) really was discovered in Indonesia in 2003, really was nicknamed οΏ½hobbitοΏ½ for its small stature, and really did cause some serious controversy about its status as a possible human ancestor. A near-perfect blending of traditional thriller and alternate-reality scientific and theological fantasy, the novel, expanded from KosmatkaοΏ½s 2007 novelette, οΏ½The Prophet of Flores,οΏ½ has best-seller written all over it. With appropriate marketing, this cross-genre mix of thriller and fantasy could hit it big. --David Pitt