By Eric Penz (Softcover) he line between history and legend can be deceptively thin—too thin, perhaps, to maintain the claim that one is exclusively fact and one fiction. Such may be the case with the history of Lewis and Clark—for the fact is that two hundred years after they were handpicked by Thomas Jefferson to lead an extraordinary expedition to the Pacific coast, legends still persist regarding unexplained gaps in the explorers’ field journals. Call it legend, call it history, Cryptid tells the riveting story of conspiracy theorists who have new evidence of a centuries-old cover-up. When a cryptozoologist, a paleontologist, and a Jefferson descendant begin connecting the dots, they threaten to do more than unveil the well-guarded scientific discovery that lies at the heart of the ancient secret; they threaten to rewrite American history. That is, if they can survive a conspiracy that dates back to the Founding Fathers—the very same one that haunted Lewis to his grave. It may be that one of our nation’s first secrets is still being kept. Cryptid illustrates how the act of seeking the truth can be the very element that destroys it. Two centuries in the making, Cryptid is the final chapter of the Lewis and Clark story. And, as with any good tale, the best secrets have been kept until the end. Scientists race to discover the truth behind Gigantopithecus, aka Bigfoot, before a mysterious group eliminates all traces of its existence. Paleontologist Samantha Russell has spent most of her life searching for remains of a giant ape about which very little is known, due in large part to a paucity of fossils. After another disappointing dig, she receives a package containing a bone. The plot and writing provide genuine thrills… All of the ingredients of a taut thriller are here…