An inquisitive reader posted this question on Goodreads: What made you decide to write Coercion, Betrayal, and Flash? I thought the answer was worth sharing.

I love a good thriller more than just about anything else in life, so I wanted to create my own. And I wanted to use my stories to answer interesting questions—questions I felt qualified to answer based on my background.

With COERCION, I was answering the question: How could I have prevented Russia’s collapse? Specifically, one person working with enough cunning, guile, and foresight.

With BETRAYAL, I wanted to address terrorism and the war thereon. What makes people terrorists? What could someone do to top 9-11?

With FLASH, I wanted to explore biotechnology. It’s a field full of desperate people with shattered dreams. The vast majority medical technologies fail, even after many millions in investment. How might one recoup his losses, if he were ruthless, creative, and under the gun?

In PUSHING BRILLIANCE (yet to be released) I bring together parallels to all my previous works in a single plot full of provocative questions and twists. The core question: How far will people go to win?

Thank you for the excellent question, Kim, and for your kind attention.