Red Hope

There's been a secret hiding in plain sight on Mars for two million years. In 2015, the Mars Curiosity rover finds a cryptic message made from fossils. With technology pulled from today's prototype laboratories, America sends a crew on a risky discovery mission to the Red Planet. Can you figure it out before the astronauts do? SYNOPSIS: Just a few days from now - The Mars Curiosity rover rolls across the dusty Red Planet. On-board cameras detect something shimmering on the horizon. Engineers re-direct it to go investigate. When the rover finally arrives, the cameras capture shocking images of five-fingered fossils embedded in a mysterious boulder located right next to a unusual stone building. Just as Curiosity attempts to transmit high-resolution photos, the power cuts out. With the driving ambition of an embattled president, a discovery mission is planned on a rushed deadline. It's all made possible with technology from a Silicon Valley tycoon who was in the right place at the right time. Equipment is built too quickly; flaws and a Wart are sent to the launch pad. The initial crew balks at the mission, but not family man Adam Alston; he's the consummate professional focused on safety. And he's nearly broke after his post-Space-Shuttle endeavors are quietly failing. Achieving greatness becomes his last option for saving his family and failing career; perhaps not in that order. Ride along with Captain Alston and his crew as NASA is plunged into a race to the Red Planet with little time to spare. Nothing can prepare them for the split-second back-stabbing decisions they'll have to make. Will they find out the secret of the mysterious fossils? Or will the human pride they carry to Mars condemn their mission and all of humanity? PRAISE FOR RED HOPE: "A science fiction thriller based (for a change) on solid science." - Robert Cringely "This was a rip roaring fun read..." - Brian Moeller. "The best book I have read in a long time!" - Lenore Hoenigman "John Dreese has written an exciting and imaginative SciFi space exploration novel." - Susan Barton "This book is a good space adventure story. It has mystery, action and plot twists." - Gene Komaromi "The play of good and evil throughout the book was thought provoking. It's a page-turner." - Rose & Thorn "I love the humor, the characters felt real, and the story drew me in." - Mary Guess