Cover reveal – Doomsday Match (The Dresden Codex book 1)

I’ve been keeping this news pretty close to the vest for a while now, but it’s official now and I’m excited to finally spill the beans about my new series. Last year, I had a terrible nightmare while on vacation. Quite action packed (which my wife likes to tease me about), but very personal because the dream was about my own family being in danger and it was up to me to keep them safe.
As I often do with my dreams or ideas, I wrote down the details in an e-mail and stored it under ‘Book Ideas’ and just left it alone. Weeks went by. Months went by. The dream wouldn’t leave me alone. So I ended up talking to my editor about the idea that it had given birth to — writing a series of novels outside the fantasy genre. This book, this series, would be a thriller like The Da Vinci Code or National Treasure. I talked to my editor as well as another editor at Thomas & Mercer. They both loved the idea and encouraged me to venture outside my comfort zone.
I spent months reading other thriller authors to explore the tropes of the genre and to make sure what I wanted to write would fit and stay within my brand. I also dived deep into history that I’d never read much about in college or after–Mesoamerican history. What I thought I knew, I came to realize, was much less accurate than the reality and what modern archaeologists have discovered in the last ten years. There was so much to explore, in fact, that I literally took a trip down to the Yucatan peninsula with my family and spent time in the area. We also did some humanitarian work at orphanages, shelters, and other places and met some amazing people. The touristy stuff was fun too.
So with that preamble, here’s the cover art for the first book of my new series: Doomsday Match
Here is a little bit more about it.
SPOILER ALERT – read further at your own risk:
The name of the series (The Dresden Codex) isn’t a riff on Jim Butcher’s novels. In my research, I learned that very few original Maya records exist. They were almost all destroyed by the conquistadors and those put in charge. A few survived and were shipped back to Europe. One of them is on display at a library in Dresden, Germany. As with most of my books, I take what is historical and invent new outcomes. The places you’ll visit may feel like a fantasy novel. But they’re real.
Hope you enjoy this new adventure. The Dresden Codex series will be a trilogy. I’ve already written the sequel and started work on the third book.
Get ready for something different!
(ruins at Chichen Itza, Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico…there are thousands more still undiscovered)
Becky says:
Sounds interesting and I am looking forward to this new type of Thriller from you. Sounds pretty scary when a dream pops into your mind a second time.
Heather says:
I can’t wait! I savor and re-read your books. I am glad to have a new one to look forward to!