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SPECIAL never-before-published

When a young marine biologist discovers that she's the victim of a deceptive US Navy research group, her world is suddenly turned upside down. Together, Alison Shaw and her colleague Chris Ramirez are left trying to pick up the pieces of their professional lives.

But those pieces are about to put Alison on a path with two creatures who are destined to change everything. Beginning with one of the greatest technological achievements in human history. And an extraordinary computer system known as IMIS.

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About the author

Michael C. Grumley

18 books1,313 followers
Michael C. Grumley is the author of the best-selling BREAKTHROUGH series with over two million books sold. He lives in Northern California with his two young daughters. He’s an avid reader, runner and most of all father, and dotes on his girls every chance he gets. He loves hearing from readers while he works on the next ROLLBACK book.

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5 stars
90 (36%)
4 stars
92 (37%)
3 stars
57 (23%)
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5 (2%)
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3 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
Profile Image for Matt.
4,824 reviews13.1k followers
April 11, 2021
After receiving a strong recommendation to try this series “for something completely different”, I eagerly sought out this prequel piece by Michael C. Grumley. Never one to turn down a challenge or something different, I dug in to see if it would grab me. While marine biology and ocean life has never been something for which this Prairie boy has had much affinity, I was intrigued by Grumley’s teaser piece and have decided to give it a plunge, if you will.

Alison Shaw loves her research in Costa Rica, working with sea turtles. When she receives word that her funding and research are being terminated by the Office of Naval Research, she’s at a loss for what to do. A friend reaches out and offers her a chance to come see what’s being done with marine life in Florida. Alison packs up and hopes for the best, with nothing to lose.

While helping some of the marine life after a boating incident, she realises that she has a connection with many species and finds her apparent niche. A tall and mysterious gentleman notices her work and approaches Alison with an idea, one that he hopes will not only change the world, but shine a needed light on one particular member of marine life, dolphins!

As I said before, I am no marine expert, nor can I say that I have a passion for that which lives in the water. That being said, the series comes highly recommended and I was impressed with Michael C. Grumley’s writing in this prequel piece. If this is anything like what is to come, I can tell that I will be in for a treat. Great writing, strong dialogue, and something that piqued my interest. I’m in for the time being... so let’s see what Grumley has to offer!

Kudos, Mr. Grumley, for this intriguing start to your series. I’ll see if Book One keeps my attention and make a better decision thereafter.

Love/hate the review? An ever-growing collection of others appears at:
http://pecheyponderings.wordpress.com/

A Book for All Seasons, a different sort of Book Challenge: https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/...
171 reviews4 followers
January 14, 2018
This novella is extremely short. It is not available on Amazon but can be downloaded free of charge from Michael's website. It provides some background on how Allison developed a dislike for the military and Government(s) in general. It also provides the reader with a description of the work she was doing when she first came in contact with Dirk and Sally (the two dolphins that are present in all of the Breakthrough novels.

Consistent with Michael's subsequent works, it is well written, well edited and hard to put down.
Profile Image for The Cats’ Mother.
2,345 reviews192 followers
February 28, 2023
Genesis is a very short story introduction one of the lead characters in the Breakthrough thriller series, about a marine biologist working on a programme that has learned to communicate with dolphins .
I read the first two books several years ago, and was ready to start book 3, so downloaded this from the author’s website. I don’t think it’s essential to read this before the main series, but it was a nice reminder of who Alison’s character is, and her background doing research with the navy - as well as her first meeting with Sally and Dirk.
Profile Image for Todd.
2,225 reviews8 followers
April 26, 2024
In this prequel to the Breakthrough series, after the funding for Allison's turtle project dries up she finds a new opportunity.
1,423 reviews9 followers
February 18, 2018
This is a whiff of the startling books to follow about anumal-human communication, ecology, the world need for more weapons, outer space travel to the Earth and the things they left behind, and so much more. Because this book is just a taste of things to come, I didn't rate it so high. But all the others are terrific- this is again, just to get you stgarted in the terrific series.
Profile Image for Shanna.
699 reviews15 followers
August 21, 2021
Alison and Chris are close to finishing a major research project on sea turtles, when suddenly their project is shut down, due to a change in leadership in the military department which had been providing funding. A friend asks Alison to help her at a marine rescue center, where Alison meets a special dolphin, and Frank asks her to head up his new project.
667 reviews4 followers
January 15, 2024
very short story that could have easily been included in the first book in this series but my guess is it was written and created only to show where the main character came from and done after other books had been written.Either that or the editor thought the first book (Breakthrough) would be too long.
Profile Image for Cam.
248 reviews
July 20, 2016
Genesis is a novella prequel to the Breakthrough series. I enjoyed learning some of Alison's backstory, including what turned her against the Navy. But I loved learning how she met Sally and Dirk. A quick and enjoyable read that adds dimension to an already very good series.
Profile Image for Birgit.
1,331 reviews17 followers
September 29, 2016
That was an extremely short sort of prequel to the Breakthrough series! It explains how Alison came to discover the "Breakthrough", and why she does not have a good opinion of the US Military, more explicitly the Navy. Reading this will take about 30 minutes.
My only complaint? Way too short.
346 reviews14 followers
July 28, 2017
It was great to read a bit of the story, before the story! I love the Breakthrough series and it was good to know what had happened to Alison and Chris prior to their involvement with the dolphins -- before the book Breakthrough takes up the story! Short, but plenty of back ground for the series!
Profile Image for Kim.
391 reviews13 followers
February 7, 2018
I was given this book for an honest review. It was a quick read as it is a prequel to the series. I am looking forward to reading more of the series. I loved the writing and how he skipped ahead 5 years, so you could see where Ali and Mr. Dubois were with regards to their invention.
1,070 reviews7 followers
December 11, 2021
This is a short little piece that answers a major question the books in the series don't address: Why does she hate the Navy so much??

Read the first book or two before checking out this prequel. By itself, it probably wouldn't grab you to try the series.... and you'd be missing out!
Profile Image for SA.
168 reviews24 followers
May 8, 2017
Background story and character development for the "Breakthrough" series not included in the original book.
Profile Image for Nathan Reilly.
32 reviews
July 1, 2020
Very short, but it certainly has me wanting to continue this series!
3,792 reviews7 followers
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September 5, 2020
Quick little prequel to the Breakthrough series. Not necessary to read to enjoy the series, but gives a little background on Allison's feelings toward government interference in her work.
Profile Image for Slytherin BookDragon.
14 reviews1 follower
January 1, 2024
Great prequel to what looks like is going to be an interesting series of books. I am excit3d to read this story. Do highly recommend you read this one first. Before starting with book 1.
Profile Image for Hazel Graves.
22 reviews
March 14, 2025
This book was amazing. the Characters that you meet over come being betrayed only to find a possible better advantage. I do recommend that you read this book first before you read the rest of the series. This book sets you up for what is to come in the future books.
Profile Image for Dan.
78 reviews3 followers
June 1, 2017
A Novella. A good supplement to the Breakthrough series which fills in some background for us.
Profile Image for Rosemary Dreyer.
1,522 reviews5 followers
April 25, 2018
Short prequel to the Breakthrough series. Brief and not very satisfying. It needed more details and a longer storyline. There was too little to the story.
Profile Image for Franc Woods.
93 reviews2 followers
May 29, 2018
Good for short intro to Breakthrough series. This could easily be turned into a full length prequel.
14 reviews1 follower
June 3, 2020
I didn't read this book because when it was downloaded for free from the site, it had malware on it. Very disappointed that companies do this. Such a shame.
Profile Image for JWeiss.
230 reviews2 followers
January 31, 2021
Short and sweet! This quick read is just a few chapters. Set 5 years before Breakthrough, we get a glimpse of how the research started and the personality of the main characters.
Profile Image for Carolyn Pulley.
245 reviews2 followers
June 21, 2022
This is a short story giving some background information about one of the main characters in the “Breakthrough” series. It was pleasant but not necessary to the outstanding series.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews

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