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Mohrbooks Literary Agency
Sebastian Ritscher
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English
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FIFTY MICE

Daniel Pyne

A suspensful thriller: Paranoiac, puzzling, suspenseful, and expertly balancing grim darkness with humor and hope, FIFTY MICE is a stand-out.
From the moment Jay, a bright and decent, but quietly lost midlevel guy, wakes up in his Los Angeles apartment, next to the girlfriend to whom he can’t commit, he’s certain something’s askew. When, hours later, he’s lured into a staged scene on a commuter train, and then whisked away against his will, he’s certain his captors have targeted the wrong guy. And when he comes to in an undisclosed location, and realizes he’s being monitored by Federal agents who believe he has something to tell them, Jay knows he’s taken a turn into the truly surreal.

As Jay tries to control his unofficial imprisonment, and outsmart the agents who search for meaning in his every move, he is dispatched to a Witness Protection locale, a dreamy but oddly inorganic California island town. Put up with another set of protected witnesses, a mother and her silent young daughter, Jay steps up his game with the Feds, while slowly letting down his guard with the fragile and charming child. As he endeavors to navigate the newly inexplicable circumstances of his life, he reconnects with a nightmarish childhood trauma, the genesis of his life lived remotely and in pieces.

Dan Pyne is an acclaimed filmmaker, screenwriter, and novelist. His screenwriting credits include the remake of The Manchurian Candidate, Pacific Heights, and Fracture. He made his directorial debut with the indie cult film, Where’s Marlowe?
Pyne’s list of television credits is vast. His two previous novels, Twentynine Palms and A Hole In The Ground Owned By A Liar were published by Counterpoint Press.
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Book

Published 2014-12-01 by Blue Rider Press

Book

Published 2014-12-01 by Blue Rider Press

Comments

Screenwriter and author Pyne (Twentynine Palms) weaves a smart, exceedingly clever, and unusual tale with a horrible secret at its center, which is as much a late coming-of-age story as it is a thriller. Fans of brainy noir will find much to love in this highly satisfying, big-screen-ready book.

Exceedingly clever, expertly timed, and dripping with paranoia, the nightmarish scenario at the center of this thrilling story turns on a kick-ass dime.

This book has one of the strongest beginnings of any book I have read this year!

Edgy paranoia and complex plot…I was so impressed.

If you like books that keep you on the edge of your seat, make you paranoid and have you thinking you might be losing your mind, Fifty Mice is perfect for you….It would make an awesomely twisted movie – think Shutter Island meets Momento meets Bourne Identity. 5 of 5 stars.

A unique thrill ride…. A real cat-and-mouse story….This plot is both gripping and suspenseful, as the author offers up a secret that will make all us ‘normal’ people out there think long and hard about the people powerful enough to change lives in an instant. Pyne is an extremely clever writer.

[A] wonderfully paranoid jaunt through competing realities…Pyne’s confident hand guides readers to a surprising, popcorn-dropping final twist.

Drawing on the noir tradition…a serious consideration of memory and how it functions, or doesn’t.

This book is for those of you who love a mystery, thriller, adult themes, an unusual plot, and a most shocking ending.