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Raised on a ramshackle ranch at the edge of a state park in southern New England, Jon Waskan (1969- ) quickly learned to ride horses, split wood, and root for the Sox. His father tried to teach him that there are no shortcuts in life and there’s no easy money, but the lesson refused to take until Jon made a graceless exit from an Arizona flight school and set off on his own to Atlanta. There he nurtured the dual ambitions of becoming a philosophy professor and writing thrilling science fiction, though in a fit of jealousy the former ambition drove the latter from the nest ... whereupon it was presumed dead ... until recently. Now it's back. And it is seriously teed. Even so, Jon continues to serve as a professor of philosophy at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where he regularly publishes with top journals in philosophy and cognitive science. His research monograph, "Models and Cognition" (MIT), was called "beautifully written" by Choice Reviews on the way to earning Outstanding Book honors. Jon's research concerns artificial intelligence and computational modeling, topics central to the narrative of his debut fiction offering, “Cold Trap.”
Reviewed by Melinda Hills for Readers' Favorite
Intrigue builds as a missing exo-geologist on the moon sets many political, international and scientific wheels in motion in Cold Trap by Jon Waskan. Multi-billionaire Les Keppel has joined forces with NASA and the futuristic International Space Agency to explore the craters of the moon for strategic metals and other deposits. He turned to renowned geologist Ogden Rowley for expert advice on finding and mining these riches. When Og’s time at the Unity Moon Station is over, the job passes to two of his former graduate students, Moochy and Sej, who make an unexpected discovery that is even more important than any rare compounds. A variety of different players are involved in a high stakes game of cat and mouse on the moon, leading to the threat of complete destruction of the moon station and a critical turning point in the balance of power on earth. Can Og expose the plot and stop a madman before it is too late?
Cold Trap by Jon Waskan is a well written tale of scientific discovery and political/economic maneuvering for world dominance. Unfortunately, the lives of many people at the moon station Unity are in danger unless crucial secrets are revealed. Tremendous creativity and an in-depth look at exo-geology – the study of rocks and deposits on the surface of the moon and other ‘space rocks’ – create a realistic background for action involving the basic human emotions of love, greed, the desire for knowledge and the hunger for power. The characters display a wide range of interests and motivations, and the bottom line ends up being the strength of friendship and trust.
