Matthew Reilly - Area 7

DONT MISS THESE OTHER THRILLING NOVELS

BY MATTHEW REILLY

TEMPLE

ICE STATION

AVAILABLE FROM ST. MARTINS PAPERBACKS

AND TURN TO THE BACK OF THIS BOOK FOR AN

EXCERPT FROM HIS NEXT NOVEL

CONTEST

COMING SOON IN HARDCOVER

FROM ST. MARTINS PRESS

OUTSTANDING PRAISE FOR NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR

MATTHEW REILLY

AND HIS NOVELS

AREA 7

Reilly, the pedal-to-the-metal action novelist from Australia

can inspire awe. How many heroes, after all, can kill an enemy

aboard the space shuttle in outer space, then return to Earth and

dispatch another foe by pushing him into a pool full of meat

eating Komodo dragons all over the course of less than an hour?

Speed demons, take note. Publishers Weekly

Reillys most suspenseful blow-em-up to date. The jet

boat chase through the blind chasms of Arizonas Lake Powell

puts the Bond books to shame. Kirkus (starred review)

Australias Reilly punches his way onto bookstore and library

shelves with another action-packed adventure Packs a wallop.

Booklist

TEMPLE

As good as it gets when it comes to action thrillers brilliant.

The Charleston Post & Courier

Turn the page for more acclaim

A new thriller star, a combination of Ian Fleming meets Tom

Clancy. Tulsa World

Reillys book has adrenaline in super-sized quantities.

Orlando Sentinel

The action just keeps on coming Michael Crichton meets

Indiana Jones. Kirkus Reviews

A great read nonstop action adventure If you want rollicking adventure, old-fashioned escape ala Indiana Jones or

Allan Quatermain, look no further than TEMPLE.

Rocky Mountain News

Reilly writes with chilling cleverness and can be entered, with

deafening gunfire, in the Michael Crichton/John Grisham showcase.

Cliff hangers (literally) abound.

The Weekend Australian

ICE STATION

It takes a really good action thriller to shove its way into this

space, but ICE STATION made it with ease. What follows are

some of the wildest and most sustained battles in an action

thriller in a long time. The Chicago Tribune

Employing crude but effective prose, a nonstop spray of short,

punchy paragraphs, and cliff hangers galore, this is grade-A action

pulp. Publishers Weekly

A fabulous Hovercraft chase ensues, followed by even more

spectacular movie-style stunts (with a genuine cliff-hanger, just

for fun). Alistair MacLean meets the X-Files, in a first novel by

Australian writer Reilly thats as satisfying as a wide-screen

Hollywood blockbuster. Kirkus Reviews

ICE STATION grabs you like seeing a Glock pointed at your

head. If you want actionand I mean serious action with hard-as-nails marines and cutting edge weaponsthen pick up Matt Reillys ICE STATION. Richard Marcinko,

author of the Rogue Warrior series

Once you start reading ICE STATION, youre not going to

want to be interrupted by anything. The whole thing moves at

the speed of light. Matthew Reilly instantly catapults himself

into the top rank of adventure/suspense writers.

Warren Murphy,

GRANDMASTER and THE FOREVER KING

The pace is frantic, the writing snappy, the research thorough.

Deaths and derring-do aplenty, plus high-tech gadgetry and old-fashioned heroics. Un-put downable.

The Weekend Australian Review of Books

Supersonically paced This is a seriously good book.

The Daily Telegraph

Indiana Jones goes to Antarctica. ICE STATION is a ripping

read fast and inventive, with lots of action, and is obviously

backed by good research about weaponry, science, and

international jealousies. AW Magazine

ST. MARTINS PAPERBACKS TITLES

BY MATTHEW REILLY

TEMPLE

ICE STATION

AREA 7

MATTHEW REILLY

St. Martins Paperbacks

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.

First published in Australia by Pan Macmillan Australia Pty Limited

AREA 7

Copyright 2001 by Matthew Reilly.

Excerpt from Contest copyright 2003 by Matthew Reilly.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews. For information

address St. Martins Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY

10010.

Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 2001054458

ISBN: 0-312-98322-0

Printed in the United States of America

St. Martins Press hardcover edition February 2002p>

St. Martins Paperbacks edition February 2003p>

St. Martins Paperbacks are published by St. Martins Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010.

10 987654321

For John Schrooten, my friend

ILL TRY TO BE QUICK. SINCERE THANKS ONCE AGAIN TO:

Natalie Freerwho gets to see (and put up with) my

creative eccentricities up close. Her patience and generosity

know no bounds.

My brother, Stephen Reillytortured writer, constructive

and creative critic, and good friend; and to his wife,

Rebecca Ryan, because they come as a package.

My wonderful parentsRay and Denise Reillyfor

encouraging me to build miniature movie sets for my Star

Wars action figures when I was a kid; my creativity comes

directly from them.

My good friends John Schrooten, Nik and Simon Kozlina,

the whole Kay clan (notably Don, who made me shrink

the size of the cats in Temple), and to Paul Whyte for accompanying

me on an extraordinary trip to Utah while researching

this book.

A special mention to two American friendsCaptain

Paul M. Woods, U.S. Army, and Gunnery Sergeant Kris Hankinson,

USMC (retired), who generously gave of their time

and assisted me with the military details of this book. Any

mistakes are mine, and were made over their objections.

And finally, once again, thanks to everyone at Pan

Macmillan and Thomas Dunne Books. This is our fourth

outing together and it still rocks. Thanks to Gate Paterson,

Jane Novak, Sarina Rowell, Paul Kenny, and Pete Wolverton.

And, of course, as always, to the sales reps for the countless

hours they spend on the road between bookstores.

To anyone who knows a writer, never underestimate the

power of your encouragement.

All right! Now on with the show.

UNITED STATES AIR FORCE

SPECIAL AREA (RESTRICTED) NO. 7

GROUND LEVEL: Main Hangar

LEVEL 1: Hangar Bay

LEVEL 2: Hangar Bay

LEVEL 3: Living Quarters

LEVEL 4: Laboratories

LEVEL 5

LEVEL 6: X-rail platform

GROUND LEVEL: MAIN HANGER

LEVEL I UNDERGROUND HANGAR BAY

Air

LEVEL 2: UNDERGROUND HANGAR BAY

shaft

LEVEL 6: X-RAIL PLATFORM

Regular

elevator

Tunnel

blast doors

>

rail engines

Maintenance

vehicle

The single greatest fear that America faces today

is that its military forces no longer tolerate the

continuing incompetence of its civilian leadership.

Mr. George K. Suskind,

Defense Intelligence Agency,

Evidence given before the House