About The Book

THE COUNCIL OF TEN

A novel by Christian Moerk ©

Victor Tallent never set out to change the world. But by inventing a strain of rice that will end Third World hunger, he just did. The young agronomist gets ready to share his discovery with the world press at a convention in Venice, Italy. Nothing will be the same.

But someone unseen is content to keep the world order just the way it is. Victor’s mentor, Meyer, is viciously murdered in New York, and warning signs appear every place Victor goes: Don’t reveal the formula, they whisper. Meyer claimed to have uncovered a conspiracy of ten powerful men, who ruled the entire known world for 700 years, and who murdered anyone who opposed them. An insane idea. Victor shrugs it all off.

But as Victor loses himself in the labyrinth of ancient Venice, he feels eyes watching him. Shadows appear on rooftops, following his every move. A local interpreter, the blind girl Arabella, becomes his lover and confidante. When she vanishes and the body of a known assassin is found in Victor’s hotel room, it becomes clear that the elusive and powerful Council of Ten never vanished into the history books, but still control world events: inventors who crossed them have been quietly killed since the year 1310.

Now Victor must take on the job of spying on a fellow inventor, whose work also threatenes the Council, or see them destroy his own family. While he pretends to go along with it, Arabella reappears, revealing who The Council really is. Together, they have to bring down the world’s oldest conspiracy. But can Victor trust her?

THE COUNCIL OF TEN is a conspiracy thriller with an unusual love story at its core.