Sacramento novelist James Rollins weaves mind-boggling 'what-ifs' into his thrillers

Before we hear from Sacramento-based novelist James Rollins, consider this sampling of plots from three of his 10 thrillers:

"Map of Bones": Ruthless bad guys in Italy seek the bones of the Magi who came to pay homage to the baby Jesus. The relics are a "treasure that could reshape the world" – but in an evil way. "Amazonia": A CIA agent whose expedition team has gone missing staggers out of the Amazon jungle. His missing arm miraculously regenerates, but he soondies of a mysterious virus that threatens to segue into a worldwide epidemic. Special forces are dispatched to find answers.

"Subterranean": A team of specialists – an anthropologist, a cave explorer, a biologist and a geologist – are accompanied by Navy SEALs on an expedition to a gigantic cavern beneath Antarctica. Among their science- shattering findings are living dinosaurs and aggressive humanlike creatures.

Where do such fantastic tales come from?

"I would love to have a glib answer for that, but I don't know," Rollins said. "I have a tendency to read voraciously, including scientific magazines. Most of my ideas come from a 'what if?' question. Say I'm reading National Geographic magazine and see a story that speaks to me. I have to ask, 'OK, but what if ...?' "

Rollins – whose real name is Jim Czajkowski (ch-KOW-skee) – has another identity, too. He has written seven fantasy novels under the pseudonym James Clemens.

Rollins just came off a 12-city national tour for "The Last Oracle," the fourth entry in his action-filled Sigma Force series. "There's a little bit of Clive Cussler, Tom Clancy and Michael Crichton in my novels, and a little Conan the Barbarian in me," he once told me. "Oracle" (William Morrow, $26.95, 448 pages) is The Bee Book Club's choice for July.

Also: Last year, Rollins was contracted to write the novelization of "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull," a book that shares the movie's title (Del Rey, $26, 352 pages). It made it to the New York Times best-seller list.

"Oracle" focuses on a group of autistic children with special powers, psychopathic villains with plans to start a nuclear holocaust and then rebuild civilization to their liking, and the saving-the-world-again members of the covert Sigma Force. The elite team consists of ex-Special Forces officers with expertise in many fields, from science and medicine to black ops and weaponry. As with Rollins' other books, the action is nonstop and the bodies drop.

But don't be fooled into thinking Rollins' titles are merely cheesy adventure tales. The man is a scuba diver (he has dived with sharks), a cave explorer and a world traveler, and a scientist by avocation. He's a veterinarian who sold his practice in 1998, then worked there part time for two more years before stepping away. "I pretty much produced four books while I owned and operated the clinic," he said.

Rollins has been called "a master at combining historical and scientific intrigue with cutting-edge adventure," a salute a long time in the making.

For instance, "The Last Oracle" is well-versed in the mythology of the oracle at Delphi, through whom the god Apollo spoke; the intricacies of brain science; the former Soviet Union's plutonium factories in the Ural Mountains (and the ongoing legacy of radioactive pollution); and the nature of autism and the autistic savant syndrome.

At the end of "Oracle" (as in his other books) is an afterword that separates the story's facts from the fanciful. Take the notion of some people being able to see three seconds into the future: "That has been documented by Nobel Prize-winning scientists and by university researchers." Or the history of the Romani (Gypsies): "Their roots (being) in the Punjab region in India is factual." Or the validity of the Jasons: "This organization of scientists who work alongside the Defense Department is real and still operating."

Which brings the question: Do the stories hang on science and history or vice versa? "I start with the science and history, then I look for the story to frame around it," Rollins explained. "I do about three months of research and at the same time prepare the outline of the story. But I make a commitment to myself that on the 91st day, I have to actually start writing and produce a story. I cast a big net when I research, and it takes a while for the net to close."

About the writer:

• Call The Bee's Allen Pierleoni, (916) 321-1128.