James Brock

One small handwritten letter, sent from a dark, remote corner of the planet and lost in the system for 60 years, is about to change the entire human race. Outside Denver, Colorado, Joe Rickards stands over a small aircraft wreckage, studying burnt remains still smoldering in a field of freshly fallen snow. He's an investigator for the NTSB, working to carefully roll back the last several hours and identify the cause of the accident. But this time, he can't.

In 1984, a doomsday vault was constructed on a remote island in the Arctic Ocean. Its purpose was to preserve Earth's genetic history in the event of a global catastrophe. Now, decades later, a second vault has been uncovered, this one resting where no one ever expected. And the problem is it's not ours. Yet even more curious than the vault itself is what lies inside. Seeds. Millions of seeds. Each with a genetic embryo untouched and perfectly preserved. Waiting.

With the help of a powerful computer system, Alison Shaw and her team are preparing to translate the first two-way conversation with the planet's second smartest species. But the team discovers much more from their dolphins than they ever expected when a secret object is revealed on the ocean floor. One that was never supposed to be found.