My new novel and first mystery hits the street November 14, 2023 and is available for pre-order now. Here is a bit about the book, BEHIND THE LIES.

Will Franklin—former academic geek, now recognized as a rare talent in the “fake it ’til you make it” biotech industry—is in the wings for his dream job as next CEO of a global powerhouse. Or so he thinks, until his boss, Chet, calls him into his office and angrily tells him he is going to be fired. Chet hints at impropriety, but won’t say more—and before Will can press him he falls so ill that he’s put on ventilator care.

Now, instead of losing his job, Will finds himself in the position of supporting Chet’s family through the hell of a dire illness. Just as suddenly, he finds his leadership ability tested by a crippling cyberattack that threatens the entire industry and leaves him with little time to untangle the mystery of whatever it is that Chet uncovered before he got sick.

Can Will clear his name before the ax falls—or his marriage collapses—due to his lapse in judgment? And does Bella, a young and beautiful rising star making waves with her own start-up company, have anything to do with this mess?

Early readers and reviewers describe the book as a thriller. Precision in this genre is often the goal; there are spy thrillers, detective thrillers, legal thrillers, action-adventure thrillers, medical thrillers etc. Amazon has characterized Behind the Lies as a domestic thriller, techno-thriller and psychological thriller. In my own early thinking, I characterized the book as a literary mystery—contemporary fiction with plenty of suspense.

Suspense is a crucial characteristic of the thriller genre. It evokes that irresistible combination of fascination and excitement mixed with apprehension, anticipation, and tension. For me as an avid reader of thrillers, the vicarious anxiety I feel for the protagonist in situations of danger albeit emotional or physical causes my chest to tighten and my pulse to quicken. I love thrillers for that reason!

The mood of Behind the Lies is intense. The book starts out with a scene that frames the mystery and complexity crowds in immediately. I chose the setting of the Kendall Square area of Boston near the Charles River as it is a biotech hub internationally recognized as an innovation district. I visualized a fast-paced, somewhat frenzied atmosphere of competitive business types where risk-taking is praised and cutting corners not uncommon. 

But, this is not just a corporate cautionary tale. This is also about family, and how precious it is. Families we are born into, those we create, and those we find along the way.

I did not know I was writing a thriller until I was. I am a character driven writer so I start with a protagonist and build the narrative around the character development. In this case, Will, my protagonist, was where I started. Will grew up wounded by the loss of his parents, a nerdy wunderkind in the scientific community who was somewhat naive about the temptations of his new world in the morally challenged business climate of biotech wannabes. The story evolved as I kept throwing grenades at Will to test his reactions….and tension kept building. 

In future posts I’ll write about my inspiration and themes of the book. Thanks for you interest in Behind the Lies !

Maren