The bestselling author James Patterson is set to complete an unfinished manuscript from the late Michael Crichton.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Crichton’s estate has provided him with over 100 pages of a novel about the imminent eruption of Hawaii’s Mauna Loa volcano, which threatens a secret cache of deadly chemical weapons. Just last month, the volcano did start erupting.
“Michael’s ability to tell a story that is propulsive while you learn things about the subject area he’s writing about is what pulled me in,” Patterson said. He said he never met Crichton, but knows him “through his books”.
Crichton died in 2008, leaving behind a career of books including Jurassic Park, The Andromeda Strain, Congo and Sphere, all of which were also adapted into films. In 2020, it was announced that Sphere would be adapted again into a TV series for HBO Max. Crichton also wrote and directed 1973’s Westworld.
The author’s widow Sherri Crichton, the chief executive of CrichtonSun, a company that oversees the estate, found the manuscript after his death. “Michael had been working on this book for years, it was his passion project and centered in the place that inspired him the most, Hawaii,” she said.
She added that her late husband had done extensive research including interviews with volcanologists and location scouting.
In 2016, she also found a finished manuscript which was later published as Dragon Teeth in 2017.
Patterson’s books have sold over 425m copies. His works include the Women’s Murder Club and Middle School series. Patterson’s best known series is led by detective Alex Cross, who has been played by Morgan Freeman and Tyler Perry on screen. A series starring Aldis Hodge in the role is also currently in the works. Patterson also co-authored a thriller with Bill Clinton in 2021.
The as-yet-untitled book is set to be published in 2024.
