ABOUT THE BOOK

A grieving mother. A poisoned wilderness. A billion-dollar secret.

In the remote wilderness of Oregon, archaeologist Jennifer Russo makes two discoveries that change her life forever: an ancient cave filled with prehistoric remains, and a nearby pond choked with toxic yellow vapors. When a man posing as a sheriff warns her to stay silent, Jen realizes she has uncovered something powerful that people will kill to protect.

Still shattered by the death of her infant daughter, Jen returns home hoping for comfort. Instead, she finds betrayal. Her husband, an environmental attorney, is working for oil tycoon Abdul Hammed Dillinger, whose refinery produces petcoke, a toxic byproduct poisoning land, air, and oceans worldwide.

When Jen Clean Air, water, and truth become matters of survival, she joins Antheia, a network of young activists led by Brian Adakai. Together, they uncover illegal dumping, corporate corruption, and a conspiracy stretching across continents. Their search leads to murder, kidnapping, and a final confrontation aboard Dillinger's cargo ship where the fate of a whistleblower, and of the truth itself, hangs in the balance.

From the emotional depth of Where the Crawdads Sing to the urgency of Erin Brockovich, Antheia in the Thorns is a gripping environmental thriller about grief, courage, and the cost of speaking out.

Kirkus Reviews says:

"A fiction-filled, well-plotted yarn of industry vs. nature. The narrative sets up a delightfully conflict-heavy premise: How can Jen fight for the natural world while her husband works for someone who actively seeks to destroy it? Readers will be sufficiently engaged by the central conflict to stick around to see how the (petcoke) dust settles."