At the start of Fountain's middling debut, a mélange of political thriller, X-Files
-ish science fiction and romance, CIA officer John Gideon saves the life of attractive FBI agent Natalie Reyes during a botched FBI operation in Lisbon, Portugal. Back in the U.S., Gideon and Reyes join forces to investigate some strange doings at Kulbeda Station, an obscure satellite base in Delaware. The base turns out to be the cover for an underground, miniature city housing twin girls known as “wellwishers” whose paranormal abilities enable them to influence world events. The girls of “Littleton” become the target of a crack team from North Korea, which hopes to use their gifts to achieve world domination. Gideon and Reyes must use all their resourcefulness to foil the scheme. Paper-thin characters and routine prose don't help the implausible plot. Author tour. (July)
