Meg: Hell's Aquarium

380 Pages·2010·2.03 MB·English

by  Steve Alten

Praise for MEG: A Novel of Deep Terror
“An adrenaline-pumping thriller . . . the perfect antidote to a sunny day at a
crowded beach.”
—New York Post
“Two words: Jurassic shark!”
—Los Angeles Times
“Nonstop excitement.”
—Library Journal
“Hellishly riveting . . . an utterly amazing climax.”
—Kirkus Reviews
Praise for The Trench
“An entertaining tale of gripping nonstop horror.”
—Midwest Book Review
“A fast-paced thriller with many plot twists.”
—Booklist
“Alten can still write a mean prehistoric shark scene.”
—Publishers Weekly
Praise for MEG: Primal Waters
“An exuberant potboiling action thriller. The shark attack scenes . . . are
numerous and exciting. Fans should devour it.”
—Publishers Weekly
“Alten’s imaginative tale will keep readers turning the pages.”
—Booklist
More Thrillers by Steve Alten
MEG SERIES
MEG: A Novel of Deep Terror
The Trench
MEG: Primal Waters*
MEG: Hell’s Aquarium*
MEG: Night Stalkers (forthcoming)
DOMAIN SERIES
Domain*
Resurrection*
Phobos (forthcoming)
GOLIATH SERIES
Goliath*
Sorceress (forthcoming)
The Loch*
The Shell Game
* From Tom Doherty Associates
STEVE ALTEN
A TOM DOHERTY ASSOCIATES BOOK
NEW YORK
NOTE: If you purchased this book without a cover, you should be aware that this
book is stolen property. It was reported as “unsold and destroyed” to the
publisher, and neither the author nor the publisher has received any payment for
this “stripped book.”
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events
portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used
fictitiously.
MEG: HELL’S AQUARIUM
Copyright © 2009 by Steve Alten Previously published in hardcover by Variance
Publishing in 2009.
Interior art by William Louis McDonald All rights reserved.
A Tor Book
Published by Tom Doherty Associates, LLC
175 Fifth Avenue
New York, NY 10010
www.tor-forge.com
Tor® is a registered trademark of Tom Doherty Associates, LLC.
ISBN 978-0-7653-6585-9
First Tor Edition: May 2010
Printed in the United States of America 0 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
To my father, Lawrence Alten,
for always rescuing me when I need it.
Thanks, Dad.
Contents
Cover
Title
Copyright
Dedication
Acknowledgments
Prologue
Part 1
Chapter 1.
Chapter 2.
Chapter 3.
Chapter 4.
Chapter 5.
Chapter 6.
Chapter 7.
Chapter 8.
Chapter 9.
Chapter 10.
Chapter 11.
Chapter 12.
Chapter 13.
Chapter 14.
Chapter 15.
Chapter 16.
Chapter 17.
Chapter 18.
Chapter 19.
Chapter 20.
Chapter 21.
Part 2
Chapter 22.
Chapter 23.
Chapter 24.
Chapter 25.
Chapter 26.
Chapter 27.
Chapter 28.
Chapter 29.
Chapter 30.
Chapter 31.
Chapter 32.
Chapter 33.
Chapter 34.
Chapter 35.
Chapter 36.
Chapter 37.
Chapter 38.
Chapter 39.
Epilogue
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
It is with great pride and appreciation that I acknowledge those who contributed
to the completion of MEG: Hell’s Aquarium.
First and foremost, many thanks to my literary agent, Danny Baror of Baror
International, along with his assistant, Heather Baror. I am also indebted to my
friend and producer, Belle Avery, at Apelles Entertainment, as well as Craig Roll
at The Masada Group for their tireless efforts to bring the Meg franchise to the
big screen. My thanks as well to Tim Schulte, Stanley Tremblay, and Shane
Thompson at Variance Publishing, who published the original hardback.
It’s an honor to have Tor/Forge publishing this mass market edition. My
grateful appreciation goes out to Tom Doherty, Linda Quinton, my editor, Eric
Raab, and editorial assistant Whitney Ross.
I have been very fortunate to have been associated with talented artists during
my writing career, two of whom made valuable contributions to this book. Many
thanks to Erik Hollander for his tremendous cover design and graphic artistry in
the YouTube book trailer (listed under MEG: Hell’s Aquarium) and to William
McDonald (www.AlienUFOart.com) for the original artwork found within these
pages.
Special thanks to the staff at the Georgia Aquarium for their information,
insight, and behind-the-scenes tour of their amazing facility . . . especially Dave
Santucci, director of public relations. Thanks also to David Zelski at the Georgia
Public Broadcasting for arranging the visit. My appreciation to Dr. Maria
Sdorlias and her colleagues at the University of Sydney’s School of Geosciences
for their expertise regarding the mystery of the “undersea shelves” located in the
Philippine Sea Plate, as well as the contribution of their outstanding maps of the
area.
To my assistant, Leisa Coffman, for her talent and expertise in updating the
www.SteveAlten.com website, as well as all her work in the AdoptAn-Author