The Book
Deniable by David Edgerly
Trying desperately to hold on to power, Syria’s dictator resorts to one last, deadly throw of the dice. Using a recently developed bio-chemicalweapon developed in an impregnable medieval fortress he hopes to plunge the entire region into the kind of chaos that will allow him to emerge stronger than ever.
The Americans have become aware of this weapon but are desperate to eliminate it without a major assault that would trigger a wider war with unforeseeable and unwanted consequences. They pin their hopes on a small group of mercenaries led by a former CIA officer and Delta Force soldier to eliminate the weapon before they are forced to call on the full power of the American army.
As if the odds of penetrating the fortress and destroying the bio-chemical weapon were not high enough, the group faces serious opposition from shadowy groups inside the US and Israel that want the weapon to succeed and create the war that will allow them to re-shape the Middle East. Besides their lethal skills, these particular mercenaries have one vital quality that endears them to the Americans – they are completely deniable if the mission ends in disaster.
The Author
David Edgerly was born and educated in the US. His career was initially in journalism, but he then moved into finance. Based in Istanbul, he has spent 25 years managing investment companies in the Middle East with offices in Cairo and Amman. He now splits his time between London and an island in Greece.
How the book came about
"This came from my own experiences in the region," the author, David Edgerly, explains. "I worked more than 20 years in Turkey and the Middle East and travelled extensively in the countries mentioned. On one of my hikes in Turkey I contracted the same deadly virus that became the theme of the book.
Like my characters I stepped in infected rat droppings and developed the exact same symptoms. I still remember the immunologist telling me proudly that the CDC in Atlanta, Georgia confirmed his diagnosis. 'We now know what you have. But, unfortunately, there is no antidote. You live or you die.
Fortunately you're a little overweight and in decent health so you should survive. The virus mutates so fast we have never found a lasting cure.' I am very familiar with regional politics and have encountered several military and civilian officials only too willing to let the conflicts continue. My wife is Greek and we spend a large part of the year on a small island in the Aegean.”
Rat-infections have been covered by the BBC recently so are still as dangerous now as they ever were! You can see the article here.
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