First-time author Brett King scored a two-book deal in the mid-five figures for his "reality-based thriller" about a world-changing technology. So what's King's background, and what's the hook that made The Radix a must-buy? We asked his agent.
Publisher's Marketplace reported King's book deal the other day, describing The Radix, and its sequel, The Black Chrism, thusly:
A fact-based thriller with a terrific "McGuffin" swathed in mystery that many people will kill for, and which could have tremendous impact upon the world, especially in the realms of science and medicine.
We love a terrific McGuffin as much as anyone else, so we wrote to King's agent, Pam Ahearn, to try and glean more details about this plot device, as well as whether King had a medical/scientific background. She replied:
We're trying not to give too much away too soon, but I can tell you the Radix represents an idea born in alchemy, existing in rumor and secrecy for centuries. Known to a few as the inspiration for the Rx symbol, the Radix is a historical relic that possesses the power to either heal or kill. Informed by the mystical writings of Carl Jung, a team of disparate scientists (and ambitious politicians) begin a quest to find the Radix and unlock its power.
Brett King has a Ph.D. in general-experimental psychology and has researched everything from forensic psychology to sport psychology to the history of psychology. He is a psychologist and historian of science as well as an award-winning professor in the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience at the University of Colorado at Boulder.
We don't have a firm pub date but it looks like THE RADIX will most likely be published in late spring-early summer 2010.
So yeah — aren't you kind of excited about any concept that combines Carl Jung, historical relics and alchemy - that can either heal or kill? I'm totally on board. Image from JungianStudies.org