Michael Gruber (born October 1, 1940) is an American author. Gruber was born in Brooklyn and currently lives in Seattle, Washington. He attended Columbia University and received his Ph.D. in biology from the University of Miami. He worked as a cook, a marine biologist, a

speech writer A speechwriter is a person who is hired to prepare and write speeches that will be delivered by another person. Speechwriters are employed by many senior-level elected officials and executives in the government and private sectors. They can also be ...

, a policy advisor for the Jimmy Carter White House, and a bureaucrat for the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) before becoming a novelist. Gruber was the ghostwriter of the popular

Robert K. Tanenbaum Robert K. Tanenbaum is an American trial attorney, novelist, and former mayor of Beverly Hills, California. Early life and education Robert K. Tanenbaum, born in Brooklyn, New York, attended the University of California, Berkeley on a basketbal ...

series of Butch Karp novels starting with ''No Lesser Plea'' and ending with ''Resolved''. After the partnership with Tanenbaum ended, Gruber began publishing novels using his own name. ''The Book of Air and Shadows'' became a national bestseller shortly after its release in March 2007.

Published works

*''Tropic of Night'' - The detective Jimmy Paz investigates a series of mysteries involving African sorcery in Miami. Themes explored include the nature of race, "magic," and the perceived illusions of reality. (2003) *''Valley of Bones'' - Jimmy Paz becomes intertwined with the life of a nun (Emmylou Dideroff) from a little-known Catholic order who is wrapped up in the

Sudan Sudan ( or ; ar, السودان, as-Sūdān, officially the Republic of the Sudan ( ar, جمهورية السودان, link=no, Jumhūriyyat as-Sūdān), is a country in Northeast Africa. It shares borders with the Central African Republic t ...

ese civil war. Themes include redemption and the mysteries of faith. (2005) *''Night of the Jaguar'' - Paz investigates a string of murders revolving around an Indian shaman from the

Amazon rain forest The Amazon rainforest, Amazon jungle or ; es, Selva amazónica, , or usually ; french: Forêt amazonienne; nl, Amazoneregenwoud. In English, the names are sometimes capitalized further, as Amazon Rainforest, Amazon Forest, or Amazon Jungle. ...

and a guardian jaguar spirit. Environmental devastation, greed, and the failures of science to explain the unknown are some of the areas explored in the last novel of the Paz trilogy. (2006) *''The Witch's Boy'' - Classical stories are revisited in this fantasy novel, as seen through the eyes of an ugly orphaned boy named Lump who is raised by a witch. Winner of the 2006 Scandiuzzi Children's Book Award for Middle Grades/Young Adults of the Washington State Book Awards. *''

The Book of Air and Shadows ''The Book of Air and Shadows'' is a thriller novel by Michael Gruber published in 2007. Plot summary Set concurrently in the 17th century and the current century, the novel is an intriguing and complex thriller based on the mystery of William Sh ...

'' - Letters found in a rare book set off a race to find an undiscovered Shakespeare play. The concept of "intellectual property" and the world of William Shakespeare are explored in this intricate thriller. (2007) *''Forgery of Venus'' - A novel about art forgery and time travel.(2008) *''The Good Son'' - A spy thriller that slides in and out of conventional identities with great facility. (2010) * ''The Return'' (2013) - Aging Vietnam vet Marder ventures to Mexico with Skelly, a war buddy and elite soldier with ties to the underworld, in order to seek revenge for the murders that drove his wife to suicide.

Ghost-written works for Robert K. Tanenbaum

*1987 '' No Lesser Plea'' *1989 ''

Depraved Indifference In United States law, depraved-heart murder, also known as depraved-indifference murder, is a type of murder where an individual acts with a "depraved indifference" to human life and where such act results in a death, despite that individual not ...

'' *1991 '' Immoral Certainty'' *1992 '' Reversible Error'' *1993 '' Material Witness'' *1994 ''Corruption of Blood'' *1994 ''

Justice Denied ''Justice Denied'' is the only regularly published print magazine in the world solely devoted to issues related to wrongful convictions. The magazine prints stories about wrongful convictions, miscarriages of justice, and criminal justice issues r ...

'' *1996 ''

Falsely Accused A false accusation is a claim or allegation of wrongdoing that is untrue and/or otherwise unsupported by facts. False accusations are also known as groundless accusations or unfounded accusations or false allegations or false claims. They can occur ...

'' *1997 '' Irresistible Impulse'' *1998 '' Reckless Endangerment'' *1999 '' Act of Revenge'' *2000 '' True Justice'' *2001 ''Enemy Within'' *2002 '' Absolute Rage'' *2003 '' Resolved''

References

External links

Official website
article appearing in ''Wired Magazine''

article appearing in ''Wired Magazine''
Interview with author at BookBrowse"The case of the missing ghost"
by Jules Older, ''San Francisco Magazine''
"Story behind ''The Return''", online essay by Gruber
at Upcoming4.me {{DEFAULTSORT:Gruber, Michael Columbia University alumni 1940 births Living people People from Brooklyn Writers from Seattle Ghostwriters American male novelists