Part of NUMA Files, book 16
First published 2018
Three oil rigs explode in the Gulf of Mexico, and suddenly the world's most productive oil fields start going dry. The President calls in Kurt Austin and the NUMA team to investigate what appears impossible: something is consuming oil faster than it can be pumped from the earth. Austin's investigation leads to Tessa Franco, a billionaire who has spent fortunes developing advanced fuel cell technology. Franco presents herself as an environmental savior working to end the oil age, but her connections to a rogue genetic engineer and Central Asian money tell a different story. As oil prices triple and global markets crash, Austin discovers that bacteria are devouring oil reserves underground. The key to stopping the crisis lies with a French submarine that vanished in the Mediterranean fifty years ago alongside an Israeli vessel. Austin must find the lost submarine before Franco's army of hired killers stops him permanently.
Genres: adventure, mystery, thriller, action
Vibes: fast-paced, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, found-family
Setting: Gulf of Mexico, Mediterranean Sea, Central Asia
Period: present-day
480 pages · Hardcover · G.P. Putnam's Sons