Contemporary Thriller
POLAR DECEPTION
2023 SHORTLISTED: Retreat West Opening Lines Contest
2022 and 2023 KILLER NASHVILLE CLAYMORE AWARD BEST THRILLER FINALIST under title BENEATH THE ICE and FRACTURING ICE
In 2050, a world without rare-earth minerals runs like it’s 1985.
The collapse of Thwaites Glacier in Antarctica has caused a two-foot sea-level rise. Revolutionary magnetic crystals from the region could restore the modern era, but now that Thwaites has collapsed, mining here will trigger other glacier collapses, destroying Antarctica and irrevocably damaging the planet.
Carlos Perez plans to mine these rare crystals found only at a Chilean research station in Antarctica. After killing three colleagues there at the direction of his Chinese buyer, he hides the promised samples from her until he can find a new buyer. To avoid detection, he arranges a return to the facility aboard a pleasure cruise. Recently widowed Diana Harris, a sustainable planet advocate with a background in geology, is also aboard with her lively best friend, Angie. After finding an exotic red crystal, she begins an investigation that sparks a love interest but endangers lives. The CIA is also aboard, tracking Carlos’s crew.
When Diana uncovers Carlos’s plans, she commits to stopping him over Angie’s objections. But Carlos leaves Diana and other campers stranded on shore when he hijacks the ship to recover his crystal samples, now on top of a newly formed iceberg. With support from Angie, Diana leads the campers to safety as a rare cyclone approaches, but the group barely makes it back to the ship alive. With time running out before life-threatening winds hit, Diana must act. But first, she must overcome her own self-doubts and painful memories of a climbing accident. China is monitoring the iceberg from a nearby secret military base. Saving the planet is about to become deadly.
bclark@iowareflections.com bluesky: @prairiewind46.bsky.social
This novel is out on submission. If you are an agent or publisher interested in learning more about this manuscript, or my YA story, or my WIP, please contact me at bclark@iowareflections.com