What if bacteria turned all the gasoline in Los Angeles into vinegar?
Carmegeddon doesn't begin to describe it. Petroplague does.
Petroplague, a debut novel by Dr. Amy Rogers, presents a terrifying scenario that is all too believable because it could really happen. In this story supported by plenty of Crichton-esque scientific detail, a Latina graduate student at UCLA modifies natural oil-eating bacteria to make them particularly good at breaking down petroleum into natural gas. Christina Gonzalez’s goal is worthy: to increase energy production from currently inaccessible underground tar sands. But a radical environmentalist sees her work as a threat and sabotages the field test. Before long, mysterious gas leaks, explosions, and car breakdowns begin to plague central Los Angeles, and Christina must confront the unintended consequences of research gone horribly wrong.
Petroplague is a fast-moving thriller with some serious brains behind it. Science, in particular microbiology, is central to the plot. It’s a story about good intentions and unintended consequences, about loyalty and betrayal, about love and family. Petroplague will have you cheering for Christina not only because you care about her, but because the situation she confronts is so frightening-–and believable-–that you can’t let yourself imagine it coming to pass in a fictional world, much less the real one. Don’t be surprised if this book gets you thinking about investing in gold and stocking up on canned food. Read Petroplague and you’ll realize that bacteria do a lot more than make people sick. Bacteria rule the world.