One small step could ruin mankind’s greatest leap...
Leap
The Race In On Book 1
by OC Heaton
Genre: SciFi Techno Thriller
One small step could ruin mankind’s greatest leap...
November 2003. Brilliant scientist Uma
Jakobsdóttir has figured out a way to solve global warming for good. Known as
LEAP, the system is capable of providing Earth’s ultimate second chance...until
it falls into the wrong hands.
When playboy CEO Samuel Reynolds III
snatches LEAP out from under her nose, he adds insult to injury by attempting
to destroy Uma. But this is no malicious whim. As the daughter of its creator,
Uma enforces the LEAP Laws.
Because of its potentially devastating
capabilities, LEAP users must not clone people, revive the dead, or merge minds
and species. But in the race to recover her precious piece of tech, Uma is
faced with sacrifices that push her resolve to breaking point.
From the frozen wastelands of Iceland, to
the leafy suburbs of London and the mean streets of New York City, LEAP is a
technothriller that will keep you questioning what it means to be human.
EXCERPT
Route 41, South-West Iceland
13 November 2003, 18:43 hours GMT
The doomed four-by-four plumed thick fountains of spray into the darkness as it crawled along the narrow highway to Keflavík International Airport, its bright beams illuminating a hypnotic kaleidoscope of churning rain. The sight made Sally Moltex nauseous. She tried the side window, but it was mirror black, reflecting the Jeep’s night-lit interior back at her. She closed her eyes, willing the vehicle to move faster as a thrill of excitement surged through her at the memory of what they’d seen that afternoon. Almost immediately, it was replaced by a prickle of fear. Everything screamed hoax: one second, they’d been stood inside the Department of Geothermal Studies, the next, they were in Ethan Rae’s London Town house. They’d gone outside onto a busy Camden Town street thick with traffic. Alone. Ethan had insisted on that. They’d walked to the tube station. Bought a newspaper. Again, Ethan had been insistent. They’d asked someone where they were. And a second person. The third had shouted abuse at Sally; accused her of being an ignorant Yank. Of not knowing that she was in London. James had eventually intervened in his charming British way, calmed the man down, and they’d returned to Ethan’s office. Twenty minutes later, they were back in Reykjavík. Heads spinning at what they’d seen. Hearts beating with what Ethan had given them.
‘Do you think LEAP’s fake?’ she asked her companion.
James Reagan didn’t reply straight away. Without taking his eyes off the road, he attempted another call to his producer at News 24/7 in London. Nothing. He was going to miss tomorrow’s deadline if he didn’t get through soon. Seven million Saturday viewers was no disaster, but it was well below his Friday average.
‘Nah,’ he said. ‘Ethan wouldn’t risk it. What would he gain by misleading us?’
‘That’s what I can’t work out,’ Sally said, tracing her fingers along the cold glass of the passenger window, trying to keep pace with the streaming water.
‘How do you fake what we just saw?’ James said. ‘Besides which, it will do him way more damage if he’s lying.’
Sally wasn’t so sure. She liked James. Had known him for twenty years, but he anchored a light entertainment show for a channel that needed content. Lots of content. She, on the other hand, unearthed stories. Real stories that took months to fact check before she allowed them to be broadcast. If they got this wrong, James could blame Ethan, an eccentric billionaire. She would be finished.
‘I need more time,’ Sally said.
‘Ethan is launching in ten days. With or without us.’
‘You’d broadcast on the strength of what he just showed us?’
‘As of midday tomorrow,’ he said. ‘That’s if we can take off to—’
He never finished his sentence. A loud crack from the rear of the Jeep veered it savagely left. James tried to counter by wrenching the steering hard right, but the small charge had done its job. The Jeep flipped, bleeding fuel from its shattered underbelly as it slithered off Route 41 and onto the lava below. The dead rock punctured the thin roof, ripping through plastic, metal and cables which sparked into life. Fumes met fire and a blinding explosion boiled into the sheeting rain, as long forgotten lava flows glowed red in approval.
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Book Links:
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0B8CNJS6N
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/books/leap-the-race-is-on-book-1-by-oc-heaton
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/175050946-leap
About the Author
I write what I love to read – big issue
thrillers that are super well researched inside a complex plot full of twists
and turns.
The result of the above is The Race Is On Series, an idea I had on a trip to
Iceland. The first in the series is called LEAP, which tells the tale of a
device which has the power to halt global warming. The ensuing race to control
the power of this machine will continue throughout the sequel to LEAP which I’m
well on my way to completing. It’s called Green Ray and will be published in
May 2023.
Just like LEAP, the 2nd book weaves fact with fiction and encompasses events
such as the 2009 global financial meltdown, Al Qaeda, a new US President and a
cornered CIA; another delightful concoction around which I have constructed
another tall, but hopefully credible, tale. Watch this space!
I live in Leeds, UK with the love of my life and our two daughters. It rains a
lot in Leeds but that works out well for me – loads of time for research and of
course writing!
Website
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Author
Links
Website: https://ocheaton.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ocheatonauthor
X: https://twitter.com/OCHeaton
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ocheaton/
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/stores/O.-C.-Heaton/author/B003VO7ZDW
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4716845.O_C_Heaton
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The excerpt sounds great. I like cover art. Looks good.
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