Mark Coggins
Encyclopedia
Mark Coggins is the American author of a series of novels featuring private eye protagonist August
Riordan. He was born in New Mexico in 1957 and attended Stanford University
, where he earned an
undergraduate degree in International Relations, a masters in Computer Science and was elected to the
Phi Beta Kappa Society
.
While at Stanford, Coggins took creative writing classes with Tobias Wolff
and Ron Hansen
and wrote
the first short story featuring August Riordan in a class for Hansen. This was published in 1986 in The New Black Mask,
a revival of the famous Black Mask pulp magazine that launched the careers of Dashiell Hammett
and Raymond Chandler
.
Coggins has worked in the Silicon Valley
for such companies as Hewlett Packard and
Netscape
and although
Riordan as a character is something of a technophobe, Coggins' novels often explore high technology themes and
Silicon Valley culture.
His first book, The Immortal Game, dealt with the theft of chess-playing software similar to that run
on Deep Blue and was nominated for the Shamus Award
and the Barry Award. 2007's Runoff described a fictional mayoral election in San Francisco where the results
were altered by individuals who hacked the city's electronic voting machines.
His most recent novel, The Big Wake-Up, envisioned an altered version of the bizarre history of the peripatetic remains of Argentina's
most famous first lady, Eva Perón
. Rather than resting in the Duarte family tomb in La Recoleta Cemetery
in Buenos Aires
, Coggins posits that the body in La Recoleta is a duplicate and that Eva's specially embalmed corpse has been secretly buried in the San Francisco Bay Area
under a false name. A mad scramble for possession of the body ensues, pitting contemporary Peronists—who wish to return the body to Argentina to further political ambitions—against ex-military leaders from the 1970s, who wish to destroy Evita once and for all.
Riordan. He was born in New Mexico in 1957 and attended Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
, where he earned an
undergraduate degree in International Relations, a masters in Computer Science and was elected to the
Phi Beta Kappa Society
Phi Beta Kappa Society
The Phi Beta Kappa Society is an academic honor society. Its mission is to "celebrate and advocate excellence in the liberal arts and sciences"; and induct "the most outstanding students of arts and sciences at America’s leading colleges and universities." Founded at The College of William and...
.
While at Stanford, Coggins took creative writing classes with Tobias Wolff
Tobias Wolff
Tobias Jonathan Ansell Wolff is an American author. He is known for his memoirs, particularly This Boy's Life , and his short stories. He has also written two novels.-Biography:Wolff was born in 1945 in Birmingham, Alabama...
and Ron Hansen
Ron Hansen (novelist)
Ron Hansen is an American novelist, essayist, and professor.-Biography:Hansen was born in Omaha, Nebraska, attended a Jesuit high school, Creighton Preparatory School and earned a Bachelor's degree in English from Creighton University in Omaha in 1970. Following military service, he earned an M.F.A...
and wrote
the first short story featuring August Riordan in a class for Hansen. This was published in 1986 in The New Black Mask,
a revival of the famous Black Mask pulp magazine that launched the careers of Dashiell Hammett
Dashiell Hammett
Samuel Dashiell Hammett was an American author of hard-boiled detective novels and short stories, and political activist. Among the enduring characters he created are Sam Spade , Nick and Nora Charles , and the Continental Op .In addition to the significant influence his novels and stories had on...
and Raymond Chandler
Raymond Chandler
Raymond Thornton Chandler was an American novelist and screenwriter.In 1932, at age forty-five, Raymond Chandler decided to become a detective fiction writer after losing his job as an oil company executive during the Depression. His first short story, "Blackmailers Don't Shoot", was published in...
.
Coggins has worked in the Silicon Valley
Silicon Valley
Silicon Valley is a term which refers to the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area in Northern California in the United States. The region is home to many of the world's largest technology corporations...
for such companies as Hewlett Packard and
Netscape
Netscape
Netscape Communications is a US computer services company, best known for Netscape Navigator, its web browser. When it was an independent company, its headquarters were in Mountain View, California...
and although
Riordan as a character is something of a technophobe, Coggins' novels often explore high technology themes and
Silicon Valley culture.
His first book, The Immortal Game, dealt with the theft of chess-playing software similar to that run
on Deep Blue and was nominated for the Shamus Award
Shamus Award
The Shamus Award is awarded by the Private Eye Writers of America for the best detective fiction genre novels and short stories of the year....
and the Barry Award. 2007's Runoff described a fictional mayoral election in San Francisco where the results
were altered by individuals who hacked the city's electronic voting machines.
His most recent novel, The Big Wake-Up, envisioned an altered version of the bizarre history of the peripatetic remains of Argentina's
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
most famous first lady, Eva Perón
Eva Perón
María Eva Duarte de Perón was the second wife of President Juan Perón and served as the First Lady of Argentina from 1946 until her death in 1952. She is often referred to as simply Eva Perón, or by the affectionate Spanish language diminutive Evita.She was born in the village of Los Toldos in...
. Rather than resting in the Duarte family tomb in La Recoleta Cemetery
La Recoleta Cemetery
La Recoleta Cemetery is a famous cemetery located in the exclusive Recoleta neighbourhood of Buenos Aires, Argentina. It contains the graves of notable people, including Eva Perón, Raúl Alfonsín, and several presidents of Argentina.- History :...
in Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
, Coggins posits that the body in La Recoleta is a duplicate and that Eva's specially embalmed corpse has been secretly buried in the San Francisco Bay Area
San Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a populated region that surrounds the San Francisco and San Pablo estuaries in Northern California. The region encompasses metropolitan areas of San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, along with smaller urban and rural areas...
under a false name. A mad scramble for possession of the body ensues, pitting contemporary Peronists—who wish to return the body to Argentina to further political ambitions—against ex-military leaders from the 1970s, who wish to destroy Evita once and for all.
Novels
- The Immortal Game (1999)
- Vulture Capital (2002)
- Candy From Strangers (2006)
- Runoff (2007)
- The Big Wake-Up (2009)
External links
- Official site
- Review of The Immortal Game in the San Francisco ChronicleSan Francisco Chroniclethumb|right|upright|The Chronicle Building following the [[1906 San Francisco earthquake|1906 earthquake]] and fireThe San Francisco Chronicle is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, but distributed throughout Northern and Central California,...
- Podcast of the first chapter of Candy from Strangers from KQED-FMKQED-FMKQED-FM is an NPR-member radio station owned by Northern California Public Broadcasting in San Francisco, California.KQED-FM was founded by James Day in 1969 as the radio arm of KQED Television. The founding manager was Bernard Mayes who later went on to be Executive Vice-President of KQED TV and...