In The Colorado Cipher, former intelligence investigator Hans Adler is assigned to a crisis unfolding not in a foreign conflict zone, but in his own country. The Colorado River lifeline of 40 million people, seven states, tribal nations, and agricultural empires is collapsing under a century of over-allocation, political paralysis, and climate-driven decline. As reservoirs plunge toward dead pool, Hans documents a national failure unfolding in slow motion, exposing how America’s most essential water system became a symbol of institutional breakdown.

From Lake Mead’s alarming descent to the legal battles of tribal water rights, from the agricultural entitlement wars of the Imperial Valley to the desperation of Las Vegas, Phoenix, and the Lower Basin, Hans follows a trail of environmental truth no one in power wants exposed. Every chapter reveals a deeper layer of corruption, denial, and political gridlock what he calls the Colorado Cipher, a century-old arithmetic mistake that now threatens millions.

But the river is not the only thing unraveling. As Hans navigates engineers, policymakers, tribal advocates, environmental activists, and state negotiators, he confronts the moral question he has avoided for years: Can documenting the truth change anything before the system collapses? Or is he simply recording America’s most predictable disaster?

Smart, urgent, and hauntingly real, The Colorado Cipher is a gripping eco-thriller and political investigation about the water crisis poised to reshape the American West. Perfect for readers of Michael Lewis, Daniel Silva, Paolo Bacigalupi, and fans of realistic, research-driven geopolitical fiction.