Book 1 of The Border Trilogy
A reporter for an independent weekly newspaper in El Paso finds herself strangely thrilled to cover murder stories, even while her beloved brother is dying in a nearby hospital room.
A CNN correspondent trapped in an underground prison in Iraq finds unexpected salvation.
A CIA agent assigned to run Operation Moon Flash, the agency's covert psychic investigations program, has to step up when his psychics start to die, one by one.
An anthropologist searches an ancient rock art site near a small Texas town on the Rio Grande, hoping to find clues to her father's disappearance.
When these characters come together, they will confront their own pasts and one another as combatants in a supernatural war spanning the eons and the continents, all linked by the raging currents of the world's rivers…with the fate of Earth itself hanging in the balance.
River Runs Red is an ambitious epic of a supernatural thriller blending spy fiction with flat-out terror. Character-driven and fast-moving, River Runs Red has more unexpected twists and turns than a mountain stream.
P R A I S E
"Based on actual government programs, Jeffrey Mariotte's RIVER RUNS RED is a fascinating blend of espionage and the occult with several jaw-dropping plot twists and one of the best action sequences I've read in a long time."
—David Morrell, New York Times bestselling author of THE BROTHERHOOD OF THE ROSE and CREEPERS
“Mariotte can flat out write. This is a smart, fast, terrific read. This river runs.”
—Don Winslow, author of SAVAGES and THE DAWN PATROL
"In RIVER RUNS RED, Jeff Mariotte seamlessly weaves our modern and ancient terrors into a breathless, fascinating novel of magic, murder, and friendship. Mariotte's one hell of a writer, and this is his best work yet!"
—Christopher Golden, author of THE BOYS ARE BACK IN TOWN
"A brisk and twisting thriller that builds to an intense climax. Mariotte stirs a rich cast of characters into his wicked black kettle, dashes in some supernatural spice, and serves up a satisfying stew. Mariotte delivers once again."
—Scott Nicholson, author of THEY HUNGER
“With a cast of monsters and madmen, psychics and government spooks, ghosts and (yes) gods, RIVER RUNS RED is a thriller of apocalyptic proportions. Mariotte's latest reads like a clock-slamming game of fastblitz supernatural chess played out on a board stretching from the dungeons of Iraq to the deserts of the American Southwest. With an endgame fought on the dark rivers of the human soul, it’s a battle at once mythic and personal... and a surefire checkmate for readers everywhere.”
—Norman Partridge, author of DARK HARVEST
"From creation to the apocalypse by way of El Paso: Jeffrey J. Mariotte lures you out onto the surface of a real world that cracks like thin ice, plunging you into the bizarre. More than anything, RIVER RUNS RED reminds me of smart, literate video games like "Fear Effect" and "Indigo Prophecy," where you start out investigating a murder and end up trying to save the universe."
—Andrew Klavan, author of EMPIRE OF LIES
A reporter for an independent weekly newspaper in El Paso finds herself strangely thrilled to cover murder stories, even while her beloved brother is dying in a nearby hospital room.
A CNN correspondent trapped in an underground prison in Iraq finds unexpected salvation.
A CIA agent assigned to run Operation Moon Flash, the agency's covert psychic investigations program, has to step up when his psychics start to die, one by one.
An anthropologist searches an ancient rock art site near a small Texas town on the Rio Grande, hoping to find clues to her father's disappearance.
When these characters come together, they will confront their own pasts and one another as combatants in a supernatural war spanning the eons and the continents, all linked by the raging currents of the world's rivers…with the fate of Earth itself hanging in the balance.
River Runs Red is an ambitious epic of a supernatural thriller blending spy fiction with flat-out terror. Character-driven and fast-moving, River Runs Red has more unexpected twists and turns than a mountain stream.
P R A I S E
"Based on actual government programs, Jeffrey Mariotte's RIVER RUNS RED is a fascinating blend of espionage and the occult with several jaw-dropping plot twists and one of the best action sequences I've read in a long time."
—David Morrell, New York Times bestselling author of THE BROTHERHOOD OF THE ROSE and CREEPERS
“Mariotte can flat out write. This is a smart, fast, terrific read. This river runs.”
—Don Winslow, author of SAVAGES and THE DAWN PATROL
"In RIVER RUNS RED, Jeff Mariotte seamlessly weaves our modern and ancient terrors into a breathless, fascinating novel of magic, murder, and friendship. Mariotte's one hell of a writer, and this is his best work yet!"
—Christopher Golden, author of THE BOYS ARE BACK IN TOWN
"A brisk and twisting thriller that builds to an intense climax. Mariotte stirs a rich cast of characters into his wicked black kettle, dashes in some supernatural spice, and serves up a satisfying stew. Mariotte delivers once again."
—Scott Nicholson, author of THEY HUNGER
“With a cast of monsters and madmen, psychics and government spooks, ghosts and (yes) gods, RIVER RUNS RED is a thriller of apocalyptic proportions. Mariotte's latest reads like a clock-slamming game of fastblitz supernatural chess played out on a board stretching from the dungeons of Iraq to the deserts of the American Southwest. With an endgame fought on the dark rivers of the human soul, it’s a battle at once mythic and personal... and a surefire checkmate for readers everywhere.”
—Norman Partridge, author of DARK HARVEST
"From creation to the apocalypse by way of El Paso: Jeffrey J. Mariotte lures you out onto the surface of a real world that cracks like thin ice, plunging you into the bizarre. More than anything, RIVER RUNS RED reminds me of smart, literate video games like "Fear Effect" and "Indigo Prophecy," where you start out investigating a murder and end up trying to save the universe."
—Andrew Klavan, author of EMPIRE OF LIES
