Last October, I was approached by Amazon Publishing to write a book in A.G. Riddle’s Atlantis world.
It would be my first “traditionally-published” book deal, and they were going to pay me to finish it.
The catch?
I had a month.
Not only was I supposed to write a thriller set in someone else’s world, have it edited, design a cover, and finalize the layout, I hadn’t even finished reading the original series.
It was a whirlwind of a month, but I got it done.
Turns out, I’ve never been prouder of any fiction I’ve written.
Yep, that’s right — I believe The Atlantis Deception is the best thing I’ve ever written.
It’s sort of like Jurassic Park in space. A creature-feature with less gore, more drama, and a lot of action.
The best news is that you do NOT need to know anything about the original Atlantis series to get into this one. It’s written to be a side story in a larger universe Riddle created, with little character overlap.
Here’s the main point:
I can’t seem to get the “needle” to move on this one. I think it’s good, Kevin Tumlinson (my writing and business partner) thinks it’s great, and… that’s it.
My hands are tied — I can’t give the book away, I can’t buy a bunch of ads… etc. That’s probably the biggest downside to me for traditional publishing deals: you’re not in control of your own work.
But there’s one thing I can do:
I can buy the book for you. Or ask you to buy it (it’s only $1.99, and again, I have zero control over that price).
This book must get reviews, or it’s going to be forever stuck in obscurity.
So, that’s exactly what I’m going to do.
Will you help me get this book reviewed? Just choose one of the options below, and then review the book when you’re done reading!
Option 1: Purchase the book from Amazon.com here, for only $1.99.
Option 2: Email me and ask me to buy it for you (I’ll “gift” it to your email address on Amazon).
What’s in it for you?
Glad you asked. Turns out, I want to really get this book launched well, so I’m going to give away:
- 1 Kindle Fire HD 6″ tablet (1 winner)
- $25 Amazon gift cards (2 winners)
- Copies of The Depths audiobook (2 winners)
- Copes of The Golden Crystal audiobook (2 winners)
Want to get started? Check out the giveaway below.
The first step, of course, is to get the book.
Good luck, Nick. I think this is a very smart move.
Oh, and I don’t think it’s fair to point just a thriller writer, my choice would change over time. I’d go for an well rounded writer in case you want one: Stephen King. ‘On Writing’ has been a friend telling me not to quit the craft.
Thanks, Natxo! Good choice!
This sounds a good idea, maybe you could buy one of mine “An Expat’s Experiences of Living in Turkey” on Amazon Kindle. As mine costs twice yours, I would buy two of yours, as like you I need the reviews.
Will do, thanks Colin!
Very cool! I jat bought the book and will read and review it.
Thanks, Edie!
I just bought my copy and will begin reading it then I’ll write a review on it. I am a long standing science fiction fan so I am looking forward to delving into it.
Thanks, Gary!
My favorite writer is TL Higley and her Seven Wonders series.
Good one — haven’t read those yet!
I cannot wait to read the book!
Thanks Anja! Let me know what you think!
I just bought your book and can’t wait to read it and leave a review. I am currently reading your other book “The Enigma Strain”.
Thanks, Crystal! Glad to have you!
My favorite thriller author would have to be Michael Crichton. Although the premise of Jurassic Park in space sounds pretty amazing.
Yep, you’re not alone!
This is a great deal! I haven’t had a chance to read The Enigma Strain yet, but I loved The Golden Crystal. So now I have two of your books to get to reading. 🙂
Great, Andrea, thanks for reading!
David Baldacci
Good one!
Actually, I thought Orson Scott Card did a great job with Empire as far as a “thriller” goes!
Yes, definitely! Good choice!
I just purchased your new Atlantis book and waiting for it to be delivered on my Kindle. Can’t wait. Will review as soon as I’m finished
Great, thanks StarKissed!
Pierce Brown’s Red Rising was very cool. And I love the Dune series, while more SciFi than Thriller I suppose.
Awesome book, thanks!
I was always a HUGE fan of Michael Crichton as a Thriller writer. One of the only authors I can go back and read again and again.
Awesome stuff, Brian!
Looking forwards to being Deceived in Atlantis!
Thanks Loren!
Just bought the book, Nick. Will let you know how much I love it. I will definitely review on Amazon. Thanks.
Thanks, looking forward to your review!
I’m a huge James Rollins fan. Reading one of his stories never fails to whisk me away from this reality!
Oh man — he’s my FAVORITE author!
There’s far too many good options and I don’t read the genre enough to have a favorite. I tend to jump from one genre to the next. I definitely enjoyed The Atlantis Deception though. I’m looking forward to reading more of your work. Thanks for the opportunity!
Thanks meitniear!
I haven’t been reading a lot of thrillers recently, but am enjoying The Atlantis Deception. I am a big fan of Joseph Finder books as I really liked the business aspect when I got into reading fiction after some time.
Great to hear it! Can’t wait to hear what you think about it!
Read the Golden Crystal and it was a great book. I placed it in my read again collection on my kindle 😀
Thanks Anna! Much appreciated!
I don’t read thrillers all that often (I’m more of a romance girl), but when I do, I love James Rollins’s Sigma Force series and David Baldacci’s Camel Club series (which I still need to finish).
LOVE Rollins — haven’t gotten into many of Baldacci’s stuff, but definitely need to!
I’m a romance author and I’ve been looking for something to read to “change it up” a bit. I just bought the book on amazon nick! cant wait to read it
Awesome! Let me know what you think!
Brad Thor, I just love the suspense thriller.
Yes — totally with on this!
I love science fiction / fantasy novels and read the first book in the Atlantis series; The Atlantis Deception didn’t live up to my expectations as a stand alone book. The premise was promising but the execution somewhat confusing; not enough information was provided during the story to tie all pieces together. Maybe if I had read all books in the series this one would make more sense. The writing style is great and the eye flies over the pages.
Thanks for the review!
I love a good thriller that I can pick up good writing tips from. You’re an inspiration, Nick.
Thanks, Jesse — great review!
Blaft Publications is an Indian publishing house which specialises in Indian and Pakistani crime novels, Nigerian soyayya fiction, experimental writing, pulp art, folk tales, graphic novels, and picture books about girls who are in love with monsters. My first taste was a set called The Blaft Anthology of Tamil Pulp Fiction (“Mad scientists! Desperate housewives! Murderous robots! Scandalous starlets! Sordid, drug-fuelled love affairs! This anthology features seventeen stories by ten best-selling authors of Tamil crime, romance, science fiction, and detective stories”. I can only read in English and French and I used to envy my college mates who read in Tamil. The cover art was always so juicy. And that led to my buying Daylight Robbery by Surender Mohan Pathak. It’s one of those books one would see being sold at railway stations and in its blaft translation still sports a lovely lurid cover. I loved it because it brings so many places and experiences from the India of those days to vivid life. The hero is really quite cool. One might call it a kind of Indian James Hadley Chase.
Thanks, Gita!
Just finished reading and reviewing “The Atlantis Deception”, yet another great read! Now on to “The Golden Crystal”…
Best thriller writer ever, however, would be Graham Greene, hands down.
Jm2c
Thanks, Taf!
Just purchased “The Atlantis Deception” and I am looking forward to reading it. It’s been a while since I’ve read a great thriller!
Awesome. Can’t wait to hear what you think, L.A.!
I purchased the Atlantis Deception and I can’t wait to read it. I love reading “kindle world’s books” They add a lot to a book sereis.
Great, glad you’re reading it Natalie!
A good author is able to create a “world” for his characters to inhabit and interact with each other. Some authors have developed complex “worlds” by writing a series of stories that goes on and on, sometimes for generations. It is no easy task for an author to remain true to his world, keeping everything in perspective and satisfying his reader’s demands for new plots, intriguing relationships, and sparkling dialog. A truly great author can drop into another author’s “world” and spin an entertaining yarn which grabs your interest (even if you know nothing about this “world”). Nick Thacker is such an author. When I heard that Nick had written a story set in the Atlantean world of A.G. Riddle, I was intrigued. I bought the book, (a rarity for me) based on my experience with Thacker’s writing. I was not disappointed, the novella was very well done and the relationships between the characters was quite interesting. I enjoyed the style of flashing from character to character, as the story progressed; thus giving us a varied look at each situation they found themselves in. I grew up in the 1950s & 60s reading science fiction and this reminded me of those old stories in Astounding/Analog, Galaxy, and If. In fact I can picture a cover by Emsh ( Ed Emshwiller), showing Species 9 in the foreground. I heartily recommend this book to everyone as it will not only entertain you, it will also cause you to think (A worthy goal of many authors).
Thanks, Donald!
Really enjoyed Atlantis Deception and will be posting my review later this week. Favorite thriller writer, a tricky one. I like James Rollins and Wilbur Smith. Favorite is Stephen King, though he’s obviously not strictly a thriller writer, but it’s always a thrill reading his books.
Awesome, thanks for reading it!
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