Swedish Vikings founded Russia and named the realm after their leader, Rurik. A thousand years later, during the Cold War, Swedish archeologists raised the Vasa, a mighty gunship that had been meant to seal Sweden's second claim as a world power. The Ship in the Woods follows two timelines -- the Vikings venturing out from Sweden to besiege Constantinople, and the 1960s archeologists unearthing clues from Cold War spies about what seems might be the end of the world.

The author of 3 novels and nearly a dozen nonfiction books, Sullivan earned an English degree at Cornell University, studied linguistics in Heidelberg,Germany, and completed a master's degree in German literature at the University of Oregon. His adventure memoir of a 1000-mile walk through Oregon's wilderness, "Listening for Coyote" was hailed as "an American classic" by Alison Lurie and chosen one of Oregon's 100 books. He lives in Eugene, Oregon.