Sandstorm (Sigma Force, #1)

by James Rollins

Behind him, two men sampled a tray of varied hors d’oeuvres, traditional dishes of Oman, bits of braised meat, goat cheese, olives, and slivered dates. Dr. Omaha Dunn and his brother, Daniel.

Why this quote? It's to highlight a bit of where my love of such scientific adventure fiction began. When I was a kid, I became fixated on a middle-school series featuring Danny Dunn and his adventures (written by Raymond Abrashkin and Jay Williams). Danny and his school friends solved mysteries of a scientific nature. And my imagination (as a nerd who loved math and science) was hooked. So I namedone of the main characters "Daniel Dunn" as an homage to Danny of my youth. Likewise, this character's brother, Omaha Dunn, is a direct nod to another adventurous favorite of mine, Indiana Jones. One of my greatest honors was when I was tapped to write the novelization to Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.Apparently no one can fully escape their past.