A Man Stirred By His Passion

 

"Steve Berry is an incredible author. Every book I read keeps me engrossed until the end. I love the fact that he uses history in his novels. I highly recommend this new book, the latest Cotton Malone adventure. " Susan Reichert

History lies at the heart of every Steve Berry novel. It’s his passion, one he shares with his wife, Elizabeth, which led them to create History Matters, a foundation dedicated to historic preservation. Since 2009 Steve and Elizabeth have crossed the country to save endangered historic treasures, raising money via lectures, receptions, galas, luncheons, dinners, and their popular writers’ workshops. To date, 3,500 students have attended those workshops, with over 1.5 million dollars raised.

Now, from celebrated New York Times bestselling author Steve Berry comes the latest Cotton Malone adventure, in which Cotton unravels a mystery from World War II involving a legendary lost treasure, worth billions, known as Yamashita’s Gold.

1945. In the waning months of World War II, Japan hid vast quantities of gold and other stolen valuables in booby-trapped underground caches all across the Philippines. By 1947 some of that loot was recovered, not by treasure hunters, but by the United States government, which told no one about the find. Instead, those assets were stamped classified, shipped to Europe, and secretly assimilated into something called the Black Eagle Trust.

Present day. Retired Justice Department operative, Cotton Malone, is in Switzerland doing a favor for a friend. But what was supposed to be a simple operation turns violent and Cotton is thrust into a war between the world’s oldest bank and the CIA, a battle that directly involves the Black Eagle Trust. He quickly discovers that everything hinges on a woman from his past, who suddenly reappears harboring a host of explosive secrets centering around Bitcoin. The cryptocurrency is being quietly weaponized, readied for an assault on the world’s financial systems, a calculated move that will have devastating consequences. Cotton has no choice. He has to act. But at what cost?

From the stolid banking halls of Luxembourg to the secret vaults of Switzerland, and finally up into the treacherous mountains of southern Morocco, Cotton Malone is stymied at every turn. Each move he makes seems wrong, and nothing works until he finally comes face-to-face with the Atlas Maneuver.

Steve Berry is the New York Times and #1 internationally bestselling author of seventeen Cotton Malone adventures, five stand-alone thrillers, and several works of short fiction. His books have been translated into 41 languages with over 25,000,000 copies in 52 countries. They consistently appear in the top echelon of The New York Times, USA Today, and Indie bestseller lists. Somewhere in the world, every thirty seconds, a Steve Berry book is sold.

Steve’s devotion to historic preservation was recognized by the American Library Association, which named Steve its spokesperson for National Preservation Week. Among his other honors are the Royden B. Davis Distinguished Author Award; the Barnes & Noble Writers for Writers Award given by Poets & Writers; the Anne Frank Human Writes Award; and the Silver Bullet, bestowed by International Thriller Writers for his philanthropic work. He has been chosen both the Florida and Georgia Writer of the Year. He’s also an emeritus member of the Smithsonian Libraries Advisory Board. In 2010, an NPR survey named The Templar Legacy one of the top 100 thrillers ever written.

Steve was born and raised in Georgia, graduating from the Walter F. George School of Law at Mercer University. He was a trial lawyer for 30 years and held elective office for 14 of those years. He is a founding member of International Thriller Writers—a group of nearly 6,000 thriller writers from around the world—and served three years as its co-president.

Steve Berry Writes What He Loves

By Steve Berry

How many times have you heard this piece of advice:  write what you know. On its surface, the old adage makes sense. Writing is difficult enough, why compound it by attacking a subject matter with which you are not familiar. Writing what you know also brings an ability to insert personal insights that those ‘who-don’t-know-what-you-know’ might find interesting. 

But it’s the worst advice you could ever receive.

Never, ever write what you know.

Instead, write what you love.    

If what you love and what you know is the same thing, then you’re truly blessed. But if not (which is normally the case) always write what you love. 

I was a trial lawyer for 30 years. I handled thousands of divorces, criminal defense, and civil litigations. So many cases and clients. A zillion fascinating stories. Here’s an example:  I once represented a man charged with murder. He stabbed his victim multiple times, and then cut the head and hands off to hamper identification (this was back before DNA testing). So how did they make an identification? Apparently while cutting off the hands and head, the accused forgot to notice the victim’s T-shirt. On it was written in bold letters jones family reunion. Talk about stupid. How long do you think it took to make an ID?  The whole thing was an open and shut case and the DA wanted the death penalty. But all my client cared about was whether his name had been spelled right in the paper. That’s it. For him it was all about the spotlight. Talk about a character for a novel. But the last thing in the world I wanted to do was write about him.

I love action, history, secrets, conspiracies, and international settings. That used to be called a spy novel, now it’s an international suspense thriller.  I read anything and everything I can in this genre.  The first manuscript I ever wrote, though, was a legal thriller—that was me foolishly practicing the rule of ‘writing what you know.’ But I learned never to do it again.  I realized that I read spy novels (as they were called then) to escape the torturous world in which I lived each day. Hearing people’s problems, then trying to solve them is a lawyer’s job.  But it gets depressing. You need a way out, if only temporary. Stories with action, history, secrets, conspiracies, and international settings provided that respite for me.  

So I switched genres and kept writing. 

Eventually, after 8 manuscripts, 12 years, and 85 rejections Random House bought The Amber Room.  Yes, there are lawyers in that book, but not a one of them is doing a lawyerly thing.  Instead, they’re all off on an international treasure hunt, in a fictional world I love.

There have been 13 novels since The Amber Room.  The latest is The Patriot Threat.  The books are now published in 51 countries and 40 languages, with nearly 20,000,000 copies.  Everyday I marvel at how that came about, grateful for every single reader who takes the time to enjoy them. 

And if years ago I’d kept writing what I know?

No question.

None of it would have ever happened.

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Steve Berry is the New York Times and #1 internationally bestselling author of The Patriot Threat, The Lincoln Myth, The King’s Deception, The Columbus Affair, The Jefferson Key, The Emperor’s Tomb, The Paris Vendetta, The Charlemagne Pursuit, The Venetian Betrayal, The Alexandria Link, The Templar Legacy, The Third Secret, The Romanov Prophecy, and The Amber Room. His books have been translated into 40 languages with 19,000,000 copies in 51 countries.  They consistently appear in the top echelon of The New York Times, USA Today, and Indie bestseller lists. Find Steve at http://steveberry.org/