Down

FROM THE AUTHOR

What a wild ride we have been on! I thank you so much for taking it with me.

When I was writing Sick, I had no idea that the tale of the Sage Flu would turn into more than just that one book. But the story begged for a sequel, and from the messages I received from many readers, you wanted one, too.

At that point, I thought perhaps the Project Eden saga would last three books, maybe four. But seven? It was the story that drove everything, showing me in each book there was more to be told. I was only the conduit, I guess. It has been an adventure for sure. There are so many storylines and characters that showed up unexpectedly that then became featured parts of the series.

What interests me about stories such as these is how they explore the ways people react in the face of unexpected circumstances. And what better unexpected circumstance than an apocalyptic event? It is in these moments of disaster that we are at our best and worst, and these kinds of stories make us wonder how we would react in similar situations. It’s something that has fascinated me since I was a teen reading such disaster novels as Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle’s Lucifer’s Hammer, Robert A. Heinlein’s Farnham’s Freehold, and Robert Merle’s Malevil, just to name a few. With the recent explosion of successful extinction-event novels, it’s clear other authors and readers share this fascination.

But wait, you say, the story of the Sage Flu isn’t finished. The whole world still hangs in the balance.

To that, I say, you’re not wrong. There are hundreds of stories in this universe that could still be told, some of which I might undertake at some point (no promises). But the story of Project Eden’s attempt to lead the new world is done. Project Eden, or at least how we’ve come to know it, has been gutted and left to die. Its story is finished.

What happens next? Well, maybe we’ll see.

Brett Battles

Los Angeles

October 2014