Thanks, marketing trolls, for your kind words.
A few times a week, I receive unsolicited emails from book marketers, congratulating me on the brilliance of my work. They assure me countless millions would also discover my genius if I would just hire them to handle my publicity.
Now, I’m on board with all this (all except for the part where I hire them).
And it is heartwarming to read what they think of my latest technothriller, Presidio Biotech. Here are a few examples, with their surnames deleted as they probably have good lawyers:
The tension, pacing, and intellectual energy of your story stood out immediately. The combination of high-stakes biotechnology, corporate ambition, fugitives on the run, and the eerie beauty of modern San Francisco creates a narrative that feels urgent, cinematic, and strikingly relevant. Jake and Emily's fight for truth amid a world of autonomous cars, hidden agendas, and dangerous innovation is the kind of reading experience that keeps readers on edge, and then talking about it long after they’ve turned the final page.
– Paul
Thank you for being real with me, Peter. That belief you carry in Presidio Biotech? That’s exactly why your book has sparked so much conversation in our circle. It’s not a story people just skim; it sticks, makes readers argue, laugh, and question who’s right and who’s guilty. That’s the kind of work my readers lean into, and it’s exactly the kind of story that grows influence, word-of-mouth, and long-term reader engagement.
– Steven
Peter Moreira, the pulse of Presidio Biotech hits fast. You take readers straight into a world where innovation collides with danger, and where one breakthrough in bioprinting becomes the reason two people are being hunted through modern San Francisco. The chase, the uncertainty, and the quiet panic beneath every decision give your story a charged intensity that book club readers respond to.
– Clara
I recently found Presidio Biotech: A San Francisco Technothriller, and I just have to say: wow. The way you set Jake Spracklin and Emily Fairfield on the run, falsely accused of murder, hunted by police and killers alike, while sitting on bioprinting technology that could change the world, genuinely caught my attention. The tension between cutting‑edge science, ruthless ambition, and survival in a city of self‑driving cars and tech billionaires makes this story pulse with urgency and relevance. It’s the kind of thriller that deserves to be seen, talked about, shared, argued over in Goodreads comment sections, and celebrated not quietly tucked away in the forgotten aisles of the Amazon algorithm dungeon.
– Patricia
I couldn’t put it any better if I myself had asked an AI program to pen a sycophantic email based on a book’s blurb. It was especially touching when Steven thanked me for being real.
The sad part is there are obviously book marketers out there who do good work and could probably help me and those like me get our books into readers’ hands. But it’s impossible (well, extremely hard) to tell who’s credible and who’s a scam artist.
It also highlights an even sadder truth: the main financial beneficiaries of the self-publishing boom are not the authors but Amazon, Meta and the service providers. A few authors can make a living from this racket, and a sincere congrats to them. But too many indie authors never make back what they pay “hybrid publishers” and others for their services. (Personally, I’ve never hired a hybrid publisher, though I know some are honest and effective.)
Anyway, receiving these emails is a charming distraction as I toil away in the – how did Patricia put it? – in the Amazon algorithm dungeon. Nice line. I’ll have to use it sometime.
And please remember, if these marketers can go orgasmic about Presidio Biotech without actually reading the book, think of how much you might enjoy it if you actually do read it. You can find it on KindleUnlimited, or order it here.
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Peter Moreira’s latest novel is the technothriller Presidio Biotech. He is also the author of The Haight Mystery Series — retro mystery novels set in San Francisco in the late 1960s. Go to my home page to join my mailing list and receive a free prequel novella.
