Written by John Darnton
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Matt Morrison and Susan Arnot, archaeologists and ex-lovers, are summoned to investigate an odd find: an apparently new Neanderthal skull. They rush to Tadjikistan and foray into some of the least hospitable terrain in Asia. Not too unexpectedly, they find their quarry only to discover a long-lost mentor who is guarding unsettling moral, political, and archaeological secrets that threaten their lives and those of the reclusive Neanderthals. Untangling the puzzle involves figuring out why one tribe is vegetarian and peaceful, the other martial and carnivorous; why their brains are larger than those of contemporary humans; and how they communicate without speech. When government agents intrude and threaten the scientific find, the two scientists must survive, rescue their old friend, deceive American and Russian intelligence gatherers, and balance a study of an astounding archaeological find with the interests of the tribes. This first novel by a Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter is very Indiana Jonesish; in fact, movie rights have been sold to Steven Spielberg and Dreamworks. Recommended summer reading, if not to be taken seriously. [Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 4/1/96. Originally scheduled for release in August, this novel was rushed into print in response to the publication of Petru Popescu's Almost Adam,