Mystery & Suspense
From the creator of the hit show CSI, Anthony E. Zuiker, comes Level 26, a revolution in publishing...
Every 20 pages of gripping prose in Level 26 is followed by Zuiker's latest innovation, the cyber-bridge—a link and passcode where readers can log in and watch high-quality footage that picks up exactly where the book leaves off. Zuiker has partnered with EQAL—the creative web team behind the infamous "lonleygirl15" hoax on YouTube—to create www.level26.com. In addition to hosting the cyber-bridges and a blog, this interactive website contains special behind-the-scenes footage, bonus material, and provides a full social network experience for fans. Sure, you can read straight through the book and not miss any of the plot—but those who log on will enjoy an enhanced experience: clips containing A-list Hollywood actors, crime scene documents, and special interactive features like a direct phone call or text from the novel's villain.
The first in a trilogy, Level 26 tells the gripping tale of a serial killer so terrifying that his existence has been concealed from the public. According to law enforcement officials, there are 25 levels to classify a murderer. But a new type of killer has emerged—one who has shot, raped, maimed, poisoned, burned, strangled, and tortured more than 35 people in six countries over a span of 23 years. His name: Sqweegel. His level: 26.
Only one detective has ever come close to catching this psychopath. But Steve Dark has been out of the game after losing most of his family to the killer and has no interest in ever coming back. Only when Sqweegel makes himself known again and threatens the lives and jobs of everyone in the Special Circs department, does Dark reconsider. But capturing Sqweegel won't just mean following him to his darkest levels—it also means there will be no turning back.
Watch the trailer for Level 26
How do you create an audio edition of the world's first Digi-NovelTM—a novel that can be read straight through but also directs you to a Web site to log into and watch motion picture footage that will enhance the story? It is with great pleasure that Penguin Audio announces the first Digi-Audio™ experience with LEVEL 26: Dark Origins by the creator of the CSI franchise, Anthony E. Zuiker, and written with Duane Swierczynski.
What is the first Digi-Audio experience? It offers two ways to experience the audiobook. The more traditional way is with eight unabridged CDs, read by John Glover, well-known on Broadway, in film, and for his five Emmy Award nominations. However, included in the audiobook package is another way to experience LEVEL 26: Dark Origins: an exclusive DVD containing Glover's brilliant reading, which automatically launches each cyber-bridge (twenty in all) at the appropriate point in the story. The DVD will also contain never-before-seen bonus material, including original illustrations by Marc Ecko and photo stills from the shoots of the cyber-bridges.
Whether one chooses the traditional audiobook or the Digi-Audio experience on DVD, the story will grip you from beginning to end.
LEVEL 26: Dark Origins is centered around the worst serial killer that law enforcement has ever seen. There have always been 25 levels of serial killers. Sqweegel is the first to be classified as level 26. And there is only one man who can find him: Steve Dark, once a part of the highly secret black ops element within the U.S. government who has sworn off chasing Sqweegel since his family was brutalized. But when Sqweegel comes calling, Dark has no choice but to immerse himself in this unknown killer's mind, hoping to stay one step ahead of him—or risk his last chance at a normal life.
