The Emerald Scepter

"The Emerald Scepter just might be the perfect speculative thriller, offering up a seasoned blend of legend and folklore mixed brilliantly with actual historical fact. James Rollins and Clive Cussler have nothing on Paul Kemprecos, who has been and continues to be a master of the form and then some. This is everything a great read should be: a riveting, tried-and-true tale of quests and daring-do, of great heroes and equally contemptuous villains. There's a reason why Kemprecos is a #1 New York Times bestselling author, and it's all on display here."

-Jon Land, bestselling author, Pandora's Temple

A STRANGE AND DANGEROUS MISSION

Something bad happened to Matinicus "Matt" Hawkins in Afghanistan. The ex-SEAL was grievously wounded in an ambush that killed men under his command and almost ended his life. When he pushed for an investigation, he was kicked out of the Navy with a psychiatric discharge. The doctors put his shattered leg back together, but the bitterness destroyed his marriage.

Five years later, Hawkins is jerked out of his tranquil life as a designer of undersea robots by a super-secret government group that wants to send him back to Afghanistan on a strange and dangerous mission. A Georgetown University historian has unearthed evidence that could lead to the fabulous treasure of Prester John, a legendary Christian ruler of an Eastern empire. The historian has disappeared, and the government wants Hawkins to track down the treasure as a matter of national security. The centerpiece of the trove, an emerald-encrusted gold scepter, is the linchpin in the Prophet's Necklace, code name for a plot intended to kill more people than the attack on the Twin Towers and rally others to the terrorist cause.

Backed by an eclectic team that includes his ex-wife, a former comrade-in-arms, and a mentally unstable computer whiz, Hawkins will travel thousands of miles and hundreds of years on an amazing time-space odyssey. He'll face off against a cold-blooded killer. Probe the underwater secrets of an ancient tomb. Untangle the strands of a deadly conspiracy. And, in the process, will discover that there are treasures even more valuable than gold.