This is a "What if...?" novel. What if Mark Twain actually dictated secrets on the recordings he made toward the end of his life? What if he had hidden them for a future generation to find, then laid a trail of clues for their discovery?

Following graduation from Middle Tennessee State College, I declined an offer to become a Border Patrol Agent in order to finish work on a Master of Arts degree in English at Peabody College, now part of Vanderbilt University. I had fun creating a scenario of what might have been.

The real Sam Clemens—Mark Twain—was a very complex man who led a fascinating, diverse life for nearly seventy-five years. The man is much more interesting than I have been able to portray him in fiction.