The lucrative discovery of Rare Earth minerals in Northern Canada by a maverick geologist, Yakov, pits man against political faction and technology in the sub-Arctic wilderness. The ultimate safety of Yakov rests on an unlikely accomplice named Robb, a youthful scientist, and a Mountie, Trakalo, whose frontier posting renders him vulnerable to intrusions from ruthless forces. Robb is no super-sleuth. Lured from academic study, he provides technical expertise to the US government in the advancing Rare Earth economies. When Robb proposes a Rare Earth angle to a political assassination his world...